RubberDucks Game RecapThunder 6 (16-18, 54-45) RubberDucks 3 (10-24, 44-59)WP: Brian Keller (2-1) LP: Sam Hentges (1-10) Save: Brooks Kriske (8)SummaryAfter a quick turnaround following Tuesday's doubleheader, the Akron RubberDucks did not have an answer for the Trenton Thunder offense, dropping the rubber match of the series, 6-3, Wednesday afternoon
RubberDucks Game Recap
Thunder 6 (16-18, 54-45) RubberDucks 3 (10-24, 44-59)
WP: Brian Keller (2-1) LP: Sam Hentges (1-10) Save: Brooks Kriske (8)
Summary
After a quick turnaround following Tuesday's doubleheader, the Akron RubberDucks did not have an answer for the Trenton Thunder offense, dropping the rubber match of the series, 6-3, Wednesday afternoon at Arm & Hammer Park.
Turning Point
The Trenton Thunder doubled their score thanks to a two-out rally in the bottom of the fourth inning with a solo home run from Kellin Deglan to center field and a line drive RBI single from Hoy Jun Park to center, which gave the Thunder their fourth run in as many innings. Those two runs, plus two later insurance runs, were enough offense to outpace the RubberDucks offense, 6-3.
Mound Presence
Akron RubberDucks starter Sam Hentges worked through a rocky 3.2 innings, allowing just three hits, but two of which were home runs. Hentges struggled to find the strike zone for the Ducks, walking five Trenton Thunder batters and striking out four to total 80 pitches on the day. The damage came from a pair of long balls, the first being a tw-run blast in the bottom of the first inning from Ben Ruta, and the second a solo shot from Kellin Deglan in the bottom of the fourth. The Akron bullpen would surrender two more runs in the bottom of the fifth after Ben Krauth came in to relieve Hentges, giving up
Duck Tales
The RubberDucks offense struggled to get things going most of the day, batting 1-for-7 as a team with runners in scoring position and leaving eight total runners on base. The bright spots came in the top of the second inning when Alexis Pantoja doubled to bring in Connor Marabell who led off the frame with a five-pitch walk to pull the RubberDucks within a run, 2-1. The RubberDucks would manufacture two runs in the top of the fifth inning when Pantoja walked and alertly advanced to third base on a Logan Ice single. Ernie Clement would bring in Pantoja with a sacrifice fly, and then Nolan Jones would double home Logan Ice all the from first base to again reduce the Akron deficit to a single run, 4-3.
Notebook
Alexis Pantoja has been one of the most reliable hitters for Rouglas Odor and the RubberDucks, hitting safely in 19 of his past 26 games, including seven multi-hit games … Reliever Robert Broom with another 1.1 innings of scoreless work now has seven consecutive scoreless appearance and has lowered his ERA to a staggering 0.87 … Despite being the youngest player on the RubberDucks, Nolan Jones, has shown great power, collecting six extra-base hits and raising his slugging percentage to an even .500 … Time of Game: 2:59… Attendance: 7,323
On the Pond
The RubberDucks will now head north to square off with the Hartford Yard Goats in a four-game series beginning Thursday night at 7:05 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1350 AM, the WARF iHeart channel, and the TuneIn Radio App.
