Four Home Runs & A Triple Play in LKings Win

BURLINGTON, IA (June 8, 2019) - Marcos Rivera, Christopher Torres, Jerar Encarnacion, and Sean Reynolds each homered for the Clinton LumberKings who turned a triple play in a 9-5 win over the Burlington Bees on Saturday night at Community Field. The home runs were the most in a game by the LumberKings (30-30) this season and the triple play their first in over four years.
Burlington (34-27) started the scoring with two runs, one earned, in the bottom of the third without the benefit of a hit. Three walks were issued in the inning to set an unfortunate theme for Clinton pitching for walks allowed. By games end three LumberKings pitchers combined to walk 11 batters and tie a team high for walks issued in a game this season.
The LumberKings took their first lead of the night in the top of the fifth with a pair of home runs. Marcos Rivera went to the opposite field in right for his fourth home run of the season and was followed two batters later by a Christopher Torres two-run home run that put the LumberKings on top 3-2.
The game was tied in the bottom of the sixth when Clinton reliever Zach Wolf allowed an RBI triple to Justin Jones.
Wolf (3-1) was given a blown save for his time but also earned the win for his 1.2 innings of work. He allowed two runs on one hit while walking three and striking out one.
In the top of the seventh, Clinton exploded for six-runs against Bees relievers Austin Krzeminski and Tyler Smith. Nine batters came up with seven hits tallied in the inning. Torres started the scoring with an RBI double and was followed by a Will Banfield RBI single - his third hit of the night. Encarnacion then slugged his eighth home run of the year to left center and was followed two batters later by a Sean Reynolds two-run home run over the scoreboard in right for his team leading ninth home run of the year.
Krzeminski (1-2) was hung with the loss for a two-inning outing in which he allowed four runs on six hits while walking one and striking out two.
Burlington threated to make it a game in the bottom of the eighth with a run across, the bases loaded, and nobody out. D.C. Arendas then flew out to right to start the LumberKings first triple play in over four years. Encarnacion's throw home scared lead base runner Tim Millard back to third but caught Jordyn Adams, at second, off the bag. As the throw went to second, Millard broke for the plate and was thrown out. Adams then tried to move to third before attempting a dive back to second where Banfield's throw beat him for the triple and final out of the inning.
Tyler Mitzel recorded the final seven outs for Clinton to preserve the win and move the team back to .500 at 30-30.
The LumberKings will meet the Burlington Bees for the third and fourth game of their five-game series on Sunday afternoon. Clinton will throw RHP George Soriano (0-4, 5.98) in game one and RHP Tyler Jones (1-3, 2.70) in game two. The Bees will go with righty Cristopher Molina (3-2, 1.49) in game one and lefty Hector Yan (0-2, 4.12). Fans who cannot make it to the game can hear Erik Oas on the call at 1:45 p.m. with the pregame show on 100.3 FM WCCI and online at lumberkings.com via the tunein radio app. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
 
About the LumberKings
The Clinton LumberKings, the only remaining Charter Member of the Midwest League, are in their 64th season in the league and their first year of affiliation with the Miami Marlins. They play their home games at NelsonCorp Field a park that has been home for the Clinton franchise since 1937. Since the club's inception, 282 former Clinton players have gone on to reach the Major Leagues. Advertising and tickets for the 2019 season are available by calling (563)242-0727 or by visiting LumberKings.com