Bulls Begin Final Stretch With Twinbill Sweep 2-1, 4-0
Bulls starting pitcher Tommy Romero continued his excellent stretch with five scoreless innings and shortstop Wander Franco reached base twice as part of an MLB Rehab Assignment in a 2-1 game one victory, while first baseman Dalton Kelly crushed his team-leading twenty-seventh homer and drove in two runs in a
Bulls starting pitcher Tommy Romero continued his excellent stretch with five scoreless innings and shortstop Wander Franco reached base twice as part of an MLB Rehab Assignment in a 2-1 game one victory, while first baseman Dalton Kelly crushed his team-leading twenty-seventh homer and drove in two runs in a 4-0 triumph in the nightcap as Durham swept a twinbill over the Gwinnett Stripers on Thursday evening at Durham Bulls Athletic Park.
Romero (5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K) yielded two hits over five shutout frames to earn his fourth victory over his last five starts. In that span he has recorded a 0.59 earned-run average, surrendering just two earned runs in 30.1 innings over that stretch. Bulls relievers Cody Reed (1.0 IP, H, 2 K) and Colby White (1.0 IP, 2 H, R, ER, BB, K) fired the final two frames, with White notching his first Triple-A save. Gwinnett starter Bryce Elder (5.0 IP, 2 H, R, ER, 2 BB, 5 K) suffered the defeat.
CF Nathan Lukes drove in the Bulls’ first run with an RBI groundout in the third before Kelly’s sacrifice fly to center in the sixth made it 2-0. The Stripers would make it a one-run game in the seventh, though Durham would finish the job in the opening contest. Franco (0-1, R, 2 BB), who began the year with the Bulls as the top overall prospect in baseball, reached base twice via two walks as part of his Major League Rehab Assignment. RF Josh Lowe (0-1, 2 BB) also drew two bases on balls in the victory.
Kelly smashed a solo shot in the second to start the scoring in the nightcap. Two frames later he would club a run-scoring double to right to extend the advantage to two before LF Miles Mastrobuoni’s two-run two-bagger doubled the margin to four.
Durham right-hander Chris Mazza (2.0 IP, H, 2 BB, K) combined with relievers David Hess (2.0 IP, H, 2 K), Josh Fleming (1.2 IP, 2 H, BB, K) and Shawn Armstrong (1.1 IP, 2 K) in the four-hit shutout, with Hess earning the win. Stripers starter Jose Rodriguez (4.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K) suffered the loss.
The Bulls continue the Final Five at the DBAP presented by Fifth Third Bank versus Gwinnett on Friday evening, with first pitch scheduled for 6:35pm. RHP Tobias Myers is slated to toe the rubber for Durham, while LHP Kyle Muller is anticipated to get the nod for the Stripers. Tickets for that game, as well as all remaining Bulls home games are available and can be purchased at DurhamBulls.com.