MWL1 Cedar Rapids Kernels

McKay Collars Kernels Thursday

Published on May 10, 2018 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Cedar Rapids Kernels News Release


BOWLING GREEN, KY. - Two-way player Brendan McKay registered a personal-high six scoreless innings pitched to win a 4-0 combined two-hit shutout Thursday for the Bowling Green Hot Rods against the Cedar Rapids Kernels at Bowling Green Ballpark. Only one baserunner reached safely against McKay in the first quality start of his professional career.

McKay (2-0) yielded nothing but a third-inning single in a nearly perfect outing for Bowling Green (21-12). He retired seven consecutive batters before giving up David Bañuelos' one-out single in the third. McKay responded by setting down the final 11 batters that he faced to close his scoreless start. He totaled seven strikeouts including three in a row within the sixth.

The Hot Rods grabbed a 1-0 lead during the bottom of the first inning. After a groundout by Vidal Brujan, Taylor Walls and Zach Rutherford collected back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Moises Gomez hit a single that drove in Walls.

Two more runs in the fifth pushed Bowling Green's lead to 3-0. Rutherford produced an RBI single, and Gomez added an RBI double to knock out starting pitcher Randy Dobnak (3-1). Dobnak was tagged for three runs and 10 hits over 3.1 innings pitched within his first professional loss.

In the sixth, the Hot Rods secured a 4-0 advantage. Zac Law's RBI single off Derek Molina plated Brujan. Molina was replaced by fellow Kernels reliever Moises Gomez, who induced an inning-ending groundout from Bowling Green's Moises Gomez.

Jhonleider Salinas and Phoenix Sanders combined for three scoreless innings of relief to complete the shutout. Salinas pitched into the ninth before a hit batsman and a walk ended his evening with one out remaining in the final frame. Sanders finished the contest with a strikeout to earn his first professional save.

The lone bright spot for Cedar Rapids (14-14) was Alex Kirilloff's one-out triple during the seventh inning that secured a career-long 11-game hit streak. Kirilloff has also tallied an extra-base hit in 10 consecutive appearances.

Game two of this three-game series is slated for Friday at 6:35 p.m., and Kernels right-hander Blayne Enlow (0-1, 4.91) will start against Hot Rods right-hander Alex Valverde (2-1, 3.47). Coverage with Chris Kleinhans-Schulz will be available on 1450 KMRY AM and 93.1 KMRY FM and also online at www.kmryradio.com and www.kernels.com.

Cedar Rapids' next homestand starts Monday, May 14 and includes five games against the Quad Cities River Bandits. Fans can purchase tickets for all Cedar Rapids home games by visiting www.kernels.com, going to the Kernels Ticket Office, or calling (319) 896-7560. The Kernels Ticket Office is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. On Sundays when the Kernels have a home game, the Kernels Ticket Office will open at 11:00 a.m.

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Midwest League Stories from May 10, 2018


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