Puig-Power! Quakes Win in Lancaster!

Lancaster, CA - Yasiel Puig homered in what could most likely be his final rehab appearance, as the Quakes downed the Lancaster JetHawks by a final of 4-1 on Friday night at The Hangar in Lancaster.

Just prior to Friday's game, Puig said on his Instagram account that he'd be playing his final game in Lancaster and rejoining the Dodgers on Saturday in Los Angeles. If that's the case, he left quite an impression on the Lancaster fans, smacking a long homer to straight-away center field to help the Quakes to a second straight win over their division-rivals.

Puig finished the game with just the one hit, going 1-for-3 with a walk, leaving after six and a half innings of work.

The Quakes pitching staff may have been a bit overshadowed on Friday night, but they stood tall at the end, holding Lancaster to just a single run on seven hits.

Starter Jharel Cotton was touched for a first-inning homer, as J.D. Davis went deep for his seventh of the year, giving Lancaster a quick 1-0 lead. 

The Quakes capitalized on three JetHawks' errors on Friday, all by first baseman A.J. Reed. Reed's two-out error in the second opened the door for two unearned runs, as the Quakes took a 2-1 lead. Rob Garvey capped the two-run rally with a two-out single to right, scoring Paul Hoenecke, who reached on the miscue. 

Puig's solo blast in the fifth off Lancaster starter Troy Scribner (2-2) gave the Quakes their only earned run of the night and a 3-1 lead.

Rancho got another unearned run in the ninth, as Reed mishandled Travis Witherspoon's ground ball, allowing Garvey to hustle all the way home from second base, putting Rancho in front by three at 4-1.

The Rancho bullpen was outstanding, as Michael Johnson and Dan Tillman combined for 4 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. Johnson (3-0) left after three innings and netted the win, while Tillman got the final five outs, working around two ninth-inning base-runners to earn his fifth save of the year. 

The Quakes (33-21) are now 12 games over .500 for the first time this year and now own a five-game lead over Lancaster. On Saturday, the Quakes will look to make it ten wins in their last 11 games overall, sending Rudy Owens (0-0) to the mound for his second appearance, while Lancaster counters with Joe Musgrove (3-0), with game time set for 6:00pm.

After this current seven-game road trip, the Quakes will return to LoanMart Field on Thursday, June 11th, for another Thirsty Thursday, featuring $2 Pepsi products, $3 domestic 16-oz drafts and $4 premium 16-oz drafts, wine, champagne and margaritas. Tickets are available online at rcquakes.com and by phone at (909) 481-5000 or online at rcquakes.com.