Halpin and Valdes Power Akron Past Altoona 5-2
April 6, 2024 - Eastern League (EL)
Akron RubberDucks News Release
Yordys Valdes drives in two while Petey Halpin collects three more hits to guide the Akron RubberDucks to a 5-2 win over the Altoona Curve on Saturday night at Canal Park.
Turning Point Akron got the party started in the bottom of the first. Halpin singled to lead off the inning before advancing third on a Kahlil Watson single. Aaron Bracho lifted a sac fly to left score Halpin and make it 1-0 RubberDucks.
Mound Presence Tommy Mace looked strong for the RubberDucks in his start. The right-hander allowed just three base runners through the first four innings while striking out three. Mace ran into some trouble in the fifth after an error and a single put runners on first and second with one out, but the righty was able to roll a double play ball to escape without damage. Ross Carver fired two scoreless innings of relief while striking out five. Tyler Thornton allowed two runs (one earned) over two-thirds of an inning. Andrew Walters struck out all four batters he faced to pick up the save.
Duck Tales The RubberDucks offense kept their foot on the pedal in the second inning when Kody Huff doubled with two outs before scoring on a Valdes single to make it 2-0 Akron. In the fifth inning, Halpin once again opened the inning with a single. Two batters later with runners on the corners, Halpin beat the throw home on an infield grounder to make it 3-0 Akron. The Ducks kept the offense rolling in the sixth as Christian Cairo doubled with one out before scoring on a Valdes single. Akron added one more on in the seventh as Chase DeLauter scored from third on an infield grounder to make it 5-0 Ducks.
Notebook Walters made his professional baseball regular season debut after being drafted in 2023...Halpin recorded three hits in his first three at-bats for the second night in a row...Game Time: 2:33...Attendance: 1,860.
On the Pond
The RubberDucks will conclude their series at Canal Park against the Altoona Curve on Sunday, April 7 at 1:05 p.m. Right-hander Ethan Hankins will take the mound for Akron against Altoona lefty Anthony Solometo. The game broadcast is on 640 WHLO, the 640 WHLO iHeartRadio channel, and akronrubberducks.com, and available on Bally Live. Tickets for all RubberDucks home games, are available at akronrubberducks.com/tickets.
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