Sparkling Shutout: Espinal twirls gem

PAWTUCKET, RI (July 2, 2019) - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders beat the Pawtucket Red Sox 4-0 at McCoy Stadium on Tuesday evening. Three RailRiders pitchers blanked the PawSox on five hits as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre worked its fifth shutout win of the year.

After a scoreless first, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre built a 3-0 advantage. Trey Amburgey hit a solo home run off Kyle Hart; a 374-foot blast to right for his 14^th of the season. Ryan McBroom and Billy Burns followed with singles and both scored on a double down the left field line by Wendell Rijo.
The RailRiders added a run in the third on a Tyler Wade double and a run-scoring single by Mandy Alvarez.
Raynel Espinal allowed a single in the first and retired seven straight before surrendering another hit. After a three-batter fifth with a pair of strikeouts, the PawSox put two runners on in the sixth before Espinal induced a lineout and a pop foul to end the inning.
Espinal (4-7) worked a career-high seven complete, striking out nine and allowing just four hits and one walk. The nine strikeouts also matched a career-high for the right-hander from Villa Gonzalez, Dominican Republic.
Hart (3-3) took the loss for the PawSox, allowing all four runs on six hits over six innings. Tuesday's loss marked the first time Pawtucket had been shutout this season.
Wade had the RailRiders only multi-hit game, going 2-4 with a double and a run scored; his fifth consecutive multi-hit contest. Wade is 11-for-23 over the last five games; a .478 clip.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Pawtucket close this three-game set Wednesday at 6:05 p.m. as the RailRiders seek a series sweep. The RailRiders return to PNC Field on Thursday, July 4, to start a five-game, four-day series against the Rochester Red Wings. For tickets and more information, call (570) 969-BALL or slide to www.swbrailriders.com/tickets.