MWL Cedar Rapids Kernels

Cedar Rapids Bashes Season-High Five Homers in 11-2 Romp

May 19, 2022 - Midwest League (MWL)
Cedar Rapids Kernels News Release


Cedar Rapids, IA - The Cedar Rapids Kernels crushed a season-high five home runs to go with a season-best eight extra-base hits as part of an 11-2 win over the Lake County Captains on Thursday evening. Five different Kernels left the yard and eight of nine reached base in the win as the club went 4-for-6 with runners in scoring position. With a Wisconsin loss to South Bend, the Kernels are back to 2.0 games ahead in the West Division standings as they improve to 25-11.

The offensive onslaught came in support of a brilliant effort by Cade Povich, who earned his third win of the season with 5.1 scoreless frames of two-hit, one-walk baseball. Povich struck out five Captains and threw 45 of 65 pitches for strikes, providing Cedar Rapids with an incredibly efficient outing.

Seth Gray put the Kernels on the board first in the home half of one, blasting a towering 465-foot two-run home run over the batter's eye in center field. Things would get out of hand quickly in the second as the first five Kernels reached. Jeferson Morales doubled then scored on a Willie Joe Garry Jr. triple, followed by a no-doubt two-run shot by Wander Javier. Will Holland drew a walk, stole second and scored two batters later on Christian Encarnacion-Strand's sixth home run of 2022 - a prodigious blast to left-center.

Leading 7-0 entering the fifth, Aaron Sabato and Gray opened the frame with back-to-back singles. Kyler Fedko blasted a three-run shot out to left, followed by a Morales solo bomb to center.

Lake County would get two in the seventh, but Tyler Palm and Denny Bentley each worked scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth to seal the win.

Sabato, Gray, Morales and Garry Jr. each had two-hit nights for Cedar Rapids.

Game four of the series is set for 6:35 p.m. on Friday at Veterans Memorial Stadium with Star Wars Night - the first 1,000 fans will receive a free storm trooper key chain as the team wears special Star Wars jerseys.

To keep up to date on information regarding the Kernels 2022 season please visit www.kernels.com or follow our Facebook and Twitter feeds and subscribe to our Kernels email newsletter.

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Midwest League Stories from May 19, 2022


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