Nuts Capitalize on Amarillo Miscues to Cruise to 10-5 Win
Published on July 2, 2014 under American Association (AA)
Wichita Wingnuts News Release
WICHITA, KS (July 1, 2014) - The Amarillo Sox committed four errors, two each in two different frames, on Tuesday night at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium and the Wichita Wingnuts seemed poised to capitalize on each and every mistake on their way to a 10-5 win. The Wingnuts scored nine unearned runs against Amarillo starter Kellen Moen, three in the first inning and six in the sixth, to put distance between themselves and the South division rival Sox.
The Wingnuts (30-16) threw rookie pitcher Jared Gaynor into the fire right away as he made his professional debut on the bump after being signed earlier in the day. The George Mason product assimilated himself nicely by striking out a pair in a one, two, three first inning. The next time he took the mound he would have a lead thanks to his offense's bats and poor defense by the Sox.
Ryan Khoury led off the game by squeezing a groundball double down the left field line and moved to third on an infield single by Jake Kahaulelio two batters later. J.T. Wise singled home Khoury to score the first run and then Chris McMurray hit a groundball that was mishandled by the third baseman, Kevin Mahoney, causing Kahaulelio to race home. Chris McClendon followed with a base knock of his own and when right fielder Cory Patton bobbled the ball, Wise crossed home plate to push the lead to 3-0. Taylor Oldham, the next hitter, grounded out to short, bringing in one more run and making it 4-0. Three of the runs were unearned.
The Sox (16-28) figured out the rookie in their second time through the order. Kyle Bellows started the inning with a double and scored when Jason Martin traded places with him on a two-bagger of his own. The next man up, Mahoney, drove a ball over the wall to right center to plate a pair and make it just a 4-3 lead for the Nuts. Gaynor would last through 5.0 innings, allowing those three runs on five hits with three strikeouts.
Daniel Bennett (1-0) replaced him in the sixth for his team-leading 22nd appearance of the year. He gave up a one out infield single to Bellows, before hitting Martin with a pitch that put two on base. Mahoney came up big again, lining a two-RBI double to center that cleared the bases and put the Sox on top 5-4. The Amarillo third baseman was 3-4 with two extra base hits and four RBI.
In the bottom of the inning the Wingnuts pounced on Moen (2-2) and the right-hander's defense did him no favors. After McClendon and Oldham reached to start the inning, Trevor Whyte attempted to put down a sacrifice bunt on the third base line. When he did so Moen tried to turn quickly and cut down the lead runner at third, but threw it up the left field line and allowed both runners to come in to score. With Whyte at second, Moen rebounded to retire the next two batters, before another error would cause the game to blow wide open. A slow bouncer hit to second by Carlo Testa was bobbled by the second baseman, Michael Broad, allowing Testa to beat the throw to first. Although it appeared harmless at the time, that error was followed by back-to-back home runs from Jake Kahaulelio (3) and J.T. Wise (12) that extended the advantage to 10-5. Kahaulelio's was a three-run blast, improving his RBI total to 34 for the season. After those two long balls, Moen was pulled by Bobby Brown, the Sox manager, with an unusual line score to his name. He allowed 12 hits and 10 runs in 5.2 innings, but only one of them was earned and his ERA raised only a miniscule amount to 1.64.
Handed the lead, the bullpen trio of Alex Hinshaw, Mike Zouzalik, and Matt Nevarez combined to limit the Sox to just one hit in three shutout innings. Although five batters tallied multiple base hits, Wise paced the group by going 3-5 with two runs scored and two driven in.
The Wingnuts and Sox close out the three-game set on Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. RHP Tim Brown (6-2) will go for Wichita against RHP Matt Larkins (5-2) of Amarillo. The Wingnuts will be hosting their "Salute to America's Heroes" with a post-game fireworks show to follow that is sponsored by KAKEland and Kansas One Call. For information on season tickets, group outings, and party packages, call the Wingnuts' main office at (316) 264-NUTS, or visit the Wingnuts' official website at www.wichitawingnuts.com.
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