Eight is Great

TROY, NY- Hudson Valley pitchers held Tri-City batters to only two hits, and third-baseman Adrian Rondon had a crucial two-run double as the Renegades took the first game of a three-game series from the ValleyCats 3-1 Thursday evening from Joseph L. Bruno Stadium. The victory is the eighth in a row for the Renegades as the hurlers struck out a season-high 13 batters for the game.
The Renegades got their first two runs in the third inning as a hit-batsmen and walk put runners at first and second with one away. That's when Rondon proceeded to rip a double to center, scoring both runners and giving Hudson Valley a 2-0 lead.
The visitors added to their lead in the seventh when catcher Chris Betts belted his second homerun of the year, a solo shot, to right field to make the score 3-0.
Tri-City responded with a run of their own in the bottom-half on an unearned run. After a single and throwing error put runners at the corners with two away, Renegades relief pitcher Simon Rosenblum-Larson balked, which allowed leftfielder Austin Dennis to score from third. However, that would be as close as the ValleyCats would get as Rosenblum-Larson got catcher Oscar Campos to fly out to right to end the threat.
In the ninth, Tri-City put runners on the corners with two away against closer B.J. Myers, but pinch-hitter Juan Pineda struck out swinging to end the game.
The Renegades had six hits for the contest. Rondon had a single to go along with his two-run double. Rightfielder Marvin Malone chipped in with a couple of singles to aid the cause. A single by Dennis and a fourth-inning double from Jeremy Pena were the only hits in the game for the ValleyCats.
The win went to Hudson Valley starting pitcher Paul Campbell (2-0) who upped his scoreless innings streak to 10.1 innings after tossing five scoreless frames on one hit. He also walked two and struck out seven. The loss went to Tri-City reliever Mark Moclair who allowed the two-run double to Rondon in his only inning of work.
After Campbell, Rosenblum-Larson fired three innings of one-hit ball. In addition to the unearned run, he walked one and struck out four. Though he struggled in the ninth, Myers garnered his first save by striking out two in a scoreless inning.
The Renegades continue their three-game series with the Tri-City ValleyCats tomorrow with first-pitch slated for 7:00. Right-hander Michael Mercado (0-0, 6.00 ERA) will toe the mound for Hudson Valley against fellow righty Cody Deason (0-0, 0.00 ERA) of the ValleyCats.
Hudson Valley returns home on July 5^th when they open a brief two-game series and homestand against the Staten Island Yankees. Both games start at 7:05 and will include a postgame fireworks show. Tickets can be purchased online at hvrenegades.com or by calling the ticket office at 845-838-0094.