Hillcats Win Fourth Straight
August 19, 2011 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Lynchburg Hillcats News Release
Lynchburg, VA- Four Hillcats pitchers combined to allow five hits, and Geraldo Rodriguez drove in two RBI on two doubles, as Lynchburg beat the Frederick Keys 4-2 Friday night. The win extended their winning streak to four games, tying a season-high.
The Hillcats scored in the first inning, and like the night before, it was with some help from the Keys defense. Todd Cunningham led off the inning with a single. Andrelton Simmons hit a grounder towards the hole that was misplayed by third baseman Dale Mollenhauer. Simmons reached base and Cunningham moved to third. Two batters later, Cunningham scored on the sacrifice fly by Joe Leonard.
Lynchburg's bats started to come alive in the second inning. Shawn McGill hit a one-out single. Marcus Lemon hit an infield single that rolled slowly along the third base line without going foul, putting runners on the corners. Geraldo Rodriguez doubled, scoring McGill and giving the Hillcats a 2-0 lead. The Hillcats went on to load the bases, but couldn't score another run in the inning.
Hillcats starter Matt Crim gave up the one blemish on the scoreboard for Lynchburg in the top of the third. Bobby Stevens, playing in his first game since returning from Double-A, hit a two-run home run to tie the game up.
The Hillcats responded quickly in the bottom of the third. Barrett Kleinknecht singled, and Joe Leonard doubled him home to put Lynchburg on top again. Once again, the Hillcats loaded the bases, but couldn't add to the lead.
Some timely two-out hitting helped the Hillcats extend the lead in the fifth. With two outs, Lemon singled. Rodriguez followed with another double, and Lemon motored around the bases. The throw came to the plate, but Lemon slid in safely. Rodriguez attempted to advance to third on the throw, but was tagged out to end the inning. However, the Hillcats moved ahead 4-2, which held up for the rest of the game.
Crim (2-7) earned his first win since April 23, also against Frederick. He pitched five innings, giving up just two hits and two runs and striking out five. Jeremy Haynes came in behind him, throwing two and two-thirds scoreless innings, and continuing a strong month of August. Ryan Buchter pitched a perfect ninth for his 14th save.
Rick Zagone (3-2) gave up four runs, three earned, in five innings to take the loss.
Lynchburg matched their season-high winning streak with their fourth win in a row. The Hillcats are now 24-30 in the second half. The Keys fell to 33-21.
The Hillcats and Keys continue their four-game series Saturday night at City Stadium. Righty David Hale (3-5) will pitch for the Hillcats, and the Keys will send out lefty Nick Haughian (8-6). First pitch is at 6:05 pm and the gates will open at 5.
The Hillcats On-Deck Show presented by Honda/Suzuki of Lynchburg will go on the air at 5:40 pm. Tune in to 105.5 KD Country or go to lynchburg-hillcats.com to listen live to all the action.
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Carolina League Stories from August 19, 2011
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