[Empty Body]
LOWELL, MA-The Hudson Valley Renegades pounded out a season-high 18 hits as they overcame an early five-run deficit to defeat the Lowell Spinners 11-10 Friday night at LeLacheur Field. With the win, the Renegades took two out of the three-game series against the Spinners.
The Spinners started fast by scoring the first five runs of the ballgame off of Renegades starting pitcher Austin Franklin. The action started in the first inning as shortstop Michael Osinski led off and blasted his first homer of the year over the centerfield wall to give Lowell a 1-0 lead.
Lowell surged ahead by scoring four more runs in the second. Centerfielder Yoan Aybar started the frame by reaching on a fielding error by Renegades shortstop Taylor Walls. After a groundout moved Aybar to second, catcher Samuel Miranda launched a double to right to score Aybar. After designated hitter Jordan Wren drew a walk, rightfielder Alexander Martinez was hit with a pitch to load the bases with one out. That's when Osinski blooped a single to left to score Miranda and Wren to increase the Spinners lead to 4-0 as Martinez went to second. After a fielder's choice to short retired Osinski at second and moved Martinez to third, Hudson Valley catcher Zac Law threw the ball away on a pickoff attempt at third, allowing Martinez to score and make the count 5-0.
However, the lead would not stand as the Renegades got back into the game by scoring three runs in the third off Spinners starting pitcher Yorvin Pantoja. Designated hitter Rafelin Lorenzo started the inning with an infield single to short. Third baseman Deion Tansel came up next and blasted his second homerun of the year to left to pull the Renegades to within three. After the dinger, leftfielder Oscar Rojas dunked a single to left, which was followed by a lined single to right from second baseman Vidal Brujan. With runners at first and second with no one out, centerfielder Carl Chester grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, which moved Rojas to third. Walls would then pick up Chester by lining a single to left to score Rojas and pull the Renegades to within 5-3.
Hudson Valley continued to keep the pressure on by scoring four more in the fourth to take the lead. Law lined a single to left to start the inning, then went to second after rightfielder Angel Perez came up and roped a single of his own to left. Lorenzo then stepped to the plate and swatted a double to center as Law scored and Perez went to third. Tansel followed Lorenzo and lofted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Perez and tie the game at five apiece with Lorenzo still at second and one out. After a groundout for out number two, Brujan swatted a lined single to center to score Lorenzo and give the Renegades their first lead of the game at 6-5. The onslaught continued as Chester smacked a line drive single to left to bring in Brujan and chase Pantoja from the game. The inning would end with the Renegades having posted 11 hits through the first four innings.
Lowell cut the deficit in half by scoring a run in the fifth. With third baseman Garrett Benge at first and one out, Benge went to second on a wild pitch. Benge came in to score when the next hitter, leftfielder Marino Campana, grounded a single to left to make the score 7-6. Franklin was taken from the game and the Renegades went with reliever Blake Pflughaupt who promptly gave up a single to Aybar to put runners at the corners with one out. However, Pflughaupt got first baseman Raiwinson Lameda to ground into a 6-3 double play to preserve the one-run lead.
Hudson Valley would take control of the game by scoring three more runs in the seventh. Chester started the inning with a lined single to right, before Walls reached on a bunt single to third, which moved Chester to second. After a strikeout, Law punched a single to left to score Chester and send Walls to second. After a groundout moved Walls to third and Law to second, Lorenzo wrapped a double to center to score both runners and give the Renegades a 10-6 lead.
The Spinners would not go quietly though. A single by Benge and walks to Valentine and Campana by Pflughaupt loaded the bases with no one out in the seventh. Aybar was then hit with a Pflughaupt pitch to force in a run. Pflughaupt was replaced by left-handed reliever Sam Long who gave up back-to-back sac flies to center from Lameda and Miranda to make the score 10-9. With a runner at third and two away, Wren struck out swinging but reached first on a wild pitch, which allowed the tying run to score to knot the game up at ten.
Hudson Valley came right back in the eighth to retake the lead on some aggressive baserunning. Rojas led off with a double to center. He was still at second with one out when Chester flew out to deep centerfield. Rojas tagged at second and came all the way around to score the go-ahead run and give the Renegades an 11-10 lead.
Lowell tried for one last rally in the bottom of the eighth. Valentin drew a one-out walk and went to second on a groundout. From there, the Renegades went to closer Zack Mozingo who got Campana to ground out to short to end the inning.
In the ninth, Mozingo retired the side in order, including a strikeout of Miranda to end the game, as he picked up his third save of the season.
Of the nine hitters, seven had multiple hits for Hudson Valley. Brujan, Perez and Lorenzo had three hits apiece. Brujan scored a run and drove in another, Perez doubled and scored once, and Lorenzo doubled twice, scored twice and drove in three RBI. Chester went 2-4 with two RBI and a run scored, Walls went 2-5 with a run and RBI, Law went 2-5 with two runs scored and an RBI, and Rojas finished 2-4, scoring twice, and picking up a double.
Despite the 10 runs, Lowell was held to seven hits as two Renegades errors led to two unearned runs. Osinski finished 2-5 with a homer, three RBI and a run scored. Miranda went 2-4 with two doubles, two RBI, and a run scored himself.
Getting the win for Hudson Valley was Long (1-0) who walked one and struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings. The loss went to Spinners reliever Ryan Oduber (1-1) who gave up a run on two hits in two frames. He also struck out two hitters.
The Renegades return home tomorrow as they open a three-game series against the Vermont Lake Monsters beginning at 7:05. Right-hander Tobias Myers (2-2, 3.94 ERA) will make his debut for the Renegades against righty Parker Dunshee (0-0, 0.00 ERA) of the Lake Monsters. There will be fireworks following the game. Tickets can be purchased online at hvrenegades.com or by calling the ticket office at 845-838-0094.
