Chiefs score early, beat Tides, 5-3

The Syracuse Chiefs, the Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, beat the Norfolk Tides, 5-3, on Thursday night at NBT Bank Stadium. Left fielder Destin Hood knocked in two runs and Ryan Tatusko pitched five and one-third innings of three-run ball to pick up his fifth win on the year.

Norfolk (27-40) struck first in the top of the first inning off right-hander Tatusko. Three batters into the game, left fielder Francisco Peguero hit a solo shot to right field. The home run was Peguero's first four-bagger of the year.

Syracuse (38-28) would take the lead in the bottom of the first inning off right-hander Mike Wright. Shortstop Emmanuel Burriss led the inning off with a single to left field. Two batters later, center fielder Steven Souza Jr. singled to left field to put two runners on. After a Tyler Moore strikeout, Hood singled to right field, scoring Burriss and Souza. The next batter, catcher Jhonatan Solano, followed with a single past a diving shortstop Alexi Casilla to score Hood. Right fielder Brian Goodwin kept the hit parade going with a bloop single to center field to score Solano and give the Chiefs a 4-1 lead.

The Tides would cut into the lead in the top of fourth inning off Tatusko. Catcher With one out and designated hitter Xavier Paul on first base, first baseman Chris Marrero followed and doubled down the third-base line to put runners on second and third. Casilla stepped up to the plate next and singled past a diving third baseman, Brandon Laird, to score Paul. Second baseman Steve Lombardozzi followed and grounded out to Chiefs' second baseman Zach Walters, but Marrero would score on the play to cut Syracuse's lead to 4-3.

The Chiefs would extend their lead in the bottom of the fourth inning off reliever Brock Huntzinger. With two outs in the inning, Walters crushed the first pitch he saw from Huntzinger over the right-field fence to double the Chiefs' lead. The home run was Walters' sixth on the year, and his third home run in as many games.

The Chiefs continue their eight-game home-and-home series with Norfolk Friday night at 7:00. Left-hander Aaron Laffey takes the mound for Syracuse against right-hander Eddie Gamboa.