Hagerstown Uses Perfect Balance to Down Delmarva 4-1
The Shorebirds, who will host the South Atlantic League's 2011 Strike Out Hunger All-Star Game, got on the scoreboard first when Baltimore Orioles first round draft pick from the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft, SS Manny Machado, lofted a solo home run that scraped the back of the right field wall to give the 'birds a 1-0 lead.
The Suns answered right away in the 2nd inning when DH Randolph Oduber pulled a moon shot over both tiers of signage in left field to even the contest 1-1. The high arching four-bagger was Oduber's fourth home run of the season. Oduber went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in the game.
Delmarva southpaw, Jacob Pettit (5-2), despite giving up just three earned runs on seven hits without surrendering a base-on-balls and fanning six, was the losing pitcher of record.
Hagerstown took the lead in the 5th frame with a solo home run off the stick of SS Jason Martinson, as part of a 2-for-4 night at the plate, over the left center field partition. Martinson, like Oduber, used the launch pad for his fourth homer of the 2011 campaign.
A critical defensive play served as a game changer after Solis left the mound with two outs in the 7th inning. RHP Neil Holland, with two inherited base runners, induced a lowly grounder off towards the third base chalk hit by 2B Mychal Givens. Holland leaped off the mound, scooped up the baseball, and delivered an off-balanced strike to first base for the final out of the inning.
Before stretch time in the 7th stanza, the Suns grabbed some more insurance on an RBI single laced to shallow center field off the bat of LF Wade Moore. The Catawba College product went 2-for-4 in the ballgame.
The Suns got one more run in the 9th inning on an RBI dribbler by 1B Mills Rogers that rolled up the third base line scoring Oduber who reached with a single in the middle of the infield diamond.
LHP Chris Manno (8 SV) hit a batter in the bottom of the 9th but would retire the other three hitters he faced to seal the deal on his eighth save of the season in nine save opportunities.
The Shorebirds will host the Suns in Game Two on Friday night for a 7:05pm first pitch. The radio flagship of the Hagerstown Suns, WJEJ AM 1240, will provide wall-to-wall coverage beginning with a 6:50pm Break Away 2 Sports Lounge Pre-game Show. The Suns will bring LHP Matt Grace (6-4, 4.26) to the mound to face Delmarva RHP Scott Copeland (4-4, 5.09).
The Hagerstown Suns play at Municipal Stadium in Hagerstown, MD and are a Class "A" affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Season ticket packages, group outings, and corporate sponsorships are available by calling the Suns at 301-791-6266. Visit the Suns on the web at www.hagerstownsuns.com. The Suns are owned by Hagerstown Baseball, LLC.
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