ValleyCats win third straight
'Cats return home, drop Lowell 5-2
The ValleyCats' momentum was not stalled by a day off, as they kept up their winning ways with a 5-2 victory over Lowell. 4,467 fans at Joe Bruno Stadium saw the 'Cats win three consecutive games for the first time this season.
The seventh inning proved the pivotal frame. Lowell outfielder Bryce Brentz stroked Brandt Walker's first pitch off the wall in right field for a double. Two batters later, Brentz came home on Seth Schwindenhammer's sacrifice fly, knotting the game at two apiece.
But the 'Cats answered in their half, fueling a three-run rally with smallball. Buck Afenir picked up his second hit of the game on a grounder through the middle, and a hit-and-run enabled Dan Adamson to beat out an infield single to shortstop Jose Garcia. Oscar Figueroa laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, which Kolbrin Vitek threw into right field. Afenir scored on the error.
The ValleyCats still had runners on first and third with no outs, and converted both opportunities. Ben Orloff hit a grounder to second that brought home Adamson. With two outs, Kiké Hernandez hit a line drive that went off a diving Brentz's glove, plating Figueroa.
Orloff, the team's batting leader, went 0-for-3, but his sacrifice bunt in the third inning led to the second Tri-City run.
"It seems like Ben Orloff is in the middle of every big inning we have," manager Jim Pankovits said. He's a run producer - he plays the game the way it's meant to be played."
Starter Jake Buchanan had a great outing for the home team, throwing five innings and allowing just one run. Buchanan fanned four Spinners and did not walk any, only once reaching a three-ball count.
This was the second strong outing in a row for Buchanan, who gave up one run in 5.2 innings last week at Aberdeen. The ValleyCats won both games.
"I tried to get [the Spinners] to get themselves out," Buchanan said. "I had a couple quick innings without many pitches. Early in the year, I tried to do too much...but lately, I've been throwing my fastball and trusting my stuff, and it's working."
Pankovits credited Buchanan's recent success to a more aggressive approach.
"He's using his fastball more and keeping it down in the zone," Pankovits said. "Before, he'd throw his breaking ball too much and got in too many hitters' counts. [Recently] he's been aggressive, getting ahead, and setting up his breaking ball."
Speedy centerfielder Felix Sanchez manufactured the game's first run. Sanchez beat out an infield single, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch.
But Buchanan would not allow another score. Four other Spinners reached scoring position in the first five frames, but all four were stranded there.
Tri-City struck first, racking up four hits in the second inning. Afenir's first single brought home Mike Kvasnicka with the game's first run. But starter Miguel Celestino induced Figueroa to ground into an inning-ending double play, limiting the damage to just one score.
Wilton Infante answered Sanchez's run with one of his own in the bottom of the third. The leadoff hitter beat out an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error. After Orloff's sacrifice advanced him to third, Infante scored on a Hernandez flyball.
Hernandez's seventh-inning single extended his hitting streak to eight games; the second baseman has hit safely in 21 of 22 games this month. Kvasnicka had a pair of hits to increase his own streak to nine games.
"It feels good to be winning, and it feels good to feel good at the plate," Hernandez said. "I'm just trying to stay with the plan and trying to stay hot."
Hernandez also made a highlight-reel play in the fourth inning, sliding to his glove side well behind the infield dirt and throwing to first to rob Brentz of a hit.
Tyler Burnett nearly added another run in the sixth inning. The first baseman earned a rare triple when his fly ball down the right-field line eluded a diving Brentz, rolling far enough away for Burnett to reach third uncontested. But he was thrown out at the plate on a Kvasnicka grounder three pitches later. Burnett and much of the partisan crowd thought he had beat the tag at home.
Michael Ness earned the save, pitching two scoreless innings to end the game. The righty loaded the bases in the ninth, putting the tying run on base, but got out of the jam unscathed. Four of the six outs Ness recorded came via strikeouts.
The ValleyCats (16-21) last won three consecutive games in September of 2009. They look to extend the streak to four games when Lowell (8-31) returns to Joe Bruno Stadium tomorrow night at 7 pm.
The seventh inning proved the pivotal frame. Lowell outfielder Bryce Brentz stroked Brandt Walker's first pitch off the wall in right field for a double. Two batters later, Brentz came home on Seth Schwindenhammer's sacrifice fly, knotting the game at two apiece.
But the 'Cats answered in their half, fueling a three-run rally with smallball. Buck Afenir picked up his second hit of the game on a grounder through the middle, and a hit-and-run enabled Dan Adamson to beat out an infield single to shortstop Jose Garcia. Oscar Figueroa laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, which Kolbrin Vitek threw into right field. Afenir scored on the error.
The ValleyCats still had runners on first and third with no outs, and converted both opportunities. Ben Orloff hit a grounder to second that brought home Adamson. With two outs, Kiké Hernandez hit a line drive that went off a diving Brentz's glove, plating Figueroa.
Orloff, the team's batting leader, went 0-for-3, but his sacrifice bunt in the third inning led to the second Tri-City run.
"It seems like Ben Orloff is in the middle of every big inning we have," manager Jim Pankovits said. He's a run producer - he plays the game the way it's meant to be played."
Starter Jake Buchanan had a great outing for the home team, throwing five innings and allowing just one run. Buchanan fanned four Spinners and did not walk any, only once reaching a three-ball count.
This was the second strong outing in a row for Buchanan, who gave up one run in 5.2 innings last week at Aberdeen. The ValleyCats won both games.
"I tried to get [the Spinners] to get themselves out," Buchanan said. "I had a couple quick innings without many pitches. Early in the year, I tried to do too much...but lately, I've been throwing my fastball and trusting my stuff, and it's working."
Pankovits credited Buchanan's recent success to a more aggressive approach.
"He's using his fastball more and keeping it down in the zone," Pankovits said. "Before, he'd throw his breaking ball too much and got in too many hitters' counts. [Recently] he's been aggressive, getting ahead, and setting up his breaking ball."
Speedy centerfielder Felix Sanchez manufactured the game's first run. Sanchez beat out an infield single, stole second, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch.
But Buchanan would not allow another score. Four other Spinners reached scoring position in the first five frames, but all four were stranded there.
Tri-City struck first, racking up four hits in the second inning. Afenir's first single brought home Mike Kvasnicka with the game's first run. But starter Miguel Celestino induced Figueroa to ground into an inning-ending double play, limiting the damage to just one score.
Wilton Infante answered Sanchez's run with one of his own in the bottom of the third. The leadoff hitter beat out an infield single and advanced to second on a throwing error. After Orloff's sacrifice advanced him to third, Infante scored on a Hernandez flyball.
Hernandez's seventh-inning single extended his hitting streak to eight games; the second baseman has hit safely in 21 of 22 games this month. Kvasnicka had a pair of hits to increase his own streak to nine games.
"It feels good to be winning, and it feels good to feel good at the plate," Hernandez said. "I'm just trying to stay with the plan and trying to stay hot."
Hernandez also made a highlight-reel play in the fourth inning, sliding to his glove side well behind the infield dirt and throwing to first to rob Brentz of a hit.
Tyler Burnett nearly added another run in the sixth inning. The first baseman earned a rare triple when his fly ball down the right-field line eluded a diving Brentz, rolling far enough away for Burnett to reach third uncontested. But he was thrown out at the plate on a Kvasnicka grounder three pitches later. Burnett and much of the partisan crowd thought he had beat the tag at home.
Michael Ness earned the save, pitching two scoreless innings to end the game. The righty loaded the bases in the ninth, putting the tying run on base, but got out of the jam unscathed. Four of the six outs Ness recorded came via strikeouts.
The ValleyCats (16-21) last won three consecutive games in September of 2009. They look to extend the streak to four games when Lowell (8-31) returns to Joe Bruno Stadium tomorrow night at 7 pm.