Spikes bring thunder in 8-0 win over Auburn

AUBURN, N.Y. - Delvin Perez produced his first three-hit game for the State College Spikes, and the Spikes used a pair of big innings to rout the Auburn Doubledays, 8-0, in a game that rain shortened to 7 ½ innings on Thursday night at Falcon Park.

Perez collected a trio of singles to lead an 11-hit State College (8-12) attack, and Stanley Espinal knocked in a pair of runs to help the Spikes offense.
State College's effort was bolstered by the pitching staff's second shutout of the year. Michael Baird , the Cardinals' 2018 23^rd-round draft choice out of Southern Illinois, tossed four innings of three-hit ball and struck out four batters in his first professional start.
Hector Villalobos (1-0), who joined the Spikes yesterday, then yielded just two hits and struck out two batters over three innings to finish the game and earn the win in his debut with the club.
The Spikes jumped out in front on Espinal's double in the first, then scored again in the fourth when Imeldo Diaz doubled and then crossed the plate on a double-play ball.
State College took advantage of Auburn (11-8) miscues to plate four runs in the seventh. The Spikes needed just one hit, a bunt single by Andres Luna , to go with two errors and two walks. Doubledays reliever Aaron Barrett also delivered three wild pitches in the inning, with two bringing runners home, and Espinal's sacrifice fly finished the scoring in the frame.
Wadye Ynfante 's two-out RBI single then brought in another run in the eighth, with an error on the same play ballooning the margin to eight runs, giving the Spikes their biggest win of the year.
Thunderstorms in the Auburn area halted play just after the final out of the State College eighth, and the game was called after a 29-minute delay.
Yonathan Ramirez (1-3), the Auburn starter who was facing the Spikes for the sixth time in his professional career, took the loss. Ramirez allowed just two runs on seven hits and three walks in a quality start, but he dropped to 2-4 against State College all-time. The left-hander also struck out five batters.
The Spikes have now held Auburn scoreless for 15 straight innings since a Doubledays run in the opening frame of Wednesday's game, the longest shutout streak for the State College staff this season.
Thursday's win marked the first rain-shortened game for the Spikes since a 4-1, five-inning loss at West Virginia on August 4, 2017. It was all the Spikes' first win in a rain-shortened affair since a 7-4, seven-inning victory at home against West Virginia on August 11, 2016.
The win secured State College's first road series victory of the season, and the Spikes will now go for the sweep when they meet the Doubledays in the finale of the three-game set at Falcon Park on Friday.
Left-hander Jake Dahlberg (0-0) gets the ball for State College in the 6:30 p.m. matchup, and he will be opposed by Auburn right-hander Francys Peguero (1-0).
Following the set in Auburn, the Spikes will head to Western New York for a three-game series with the Batavia Muckdogs (Miami Marlins) before an off day on the NYPL schedule on Tuesday the 10^th.
The Spikes are then home at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park for a six-game homestand from Wednesday, July 11 to Monday, July 16, with three games each against the Vermont Lake Monsters (Oakland Athletics) and Tri-City ValleyCats (Houston Astros). Highlights include the return of $1 Beer Thursday, presented by BIG Froggy 101, on Thursday, July 12, FryDay the 13^th Night featuring a National French Fry Day Celebration and Salute to Horror Movies on Friday, July 13, and the Spikes Youth Baseball Clinic presented by Penn State Health, Official Healthcare Provider of Penn State Athletics at 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 14.
In addition, Military Appreciation Night presented by Lion Country Kia and FIREWORKS presented by First National Bank will take place on Sunday, July 15, and Super Splash Day I with a noon start happens on Monday, July 16.
Tickets for all six games from July 11-16, as well as the 2018 New York-Penn League All-Star Game presented by the Central PA Convention & Visitors Bureau, the 2018 NYPL All-Star Tailgate Gala presented by Reinhart Foodservice, and every game on the 2018 Spikes home schedule, are currently on sale through the Spikes Ticket Office. Tickets can be purchased by calling (814) 272-1711 or by visiting the Ticket Office in person from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday. Fans can also buy and download single-game tickets by visiting StateCollegeSpikes.com.
Catch all of the action on Friday via the Spikes Radio Network, presented by Penn State Sports Medicine, Official Healthcare Provider of Penn State Athletics, at 6:15 p.m. with Spikes Live, presented by Mount Nittany Health, on the air from Falcon Park. The Spikes' radio broadcast can also be heard worldwide through the "Listen Live" link on StateCollegeSpikes.com, provided by the club's flagship radio home, Newsradio 1390 WRSC, as well as the TuneIn Radio app.