CarL1 Lynchburg Hillcats

Rodriguez Powers Hillcats to Victory

Published on June 4, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Lynchburg Hillcats News Release


Lynchburg, VA- The crowd of 4,470 that came to City Stadium on Saturday night knew that they would see a fireworks display after the game. What they didn't know was that Geraldo Rodriguez would put on a fireworks display of his own, hitting two home runs and leading the Hillcats to an 8-6 win over the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

Joey Terdoslavich led off the second inning with a double. He advanced to third on a groundout by Barrett Kleinknecht. While Geraldo Rodriguez was batting, Pelicans starter Barret Loux threw a pitch that got over the head of his catcher and all the way to the backstop, allowing Terdoslavich to score the first run of the game.

The Pelicans took the lead in the top of the fourth. The first four batters of the inning reached on singles, and three of them came in to score to give Myrtle Beach a 3-1 lead.

The leadoff batter in the bottom of the fourth, Kleinknecht, again doubled for the Hillcats. Three batters later, he came in to score when Keenan Wiley singled to center to cut the lead to 3-2.

Todd Cunningham led off the bottom of the fifth with a single. After a fly out by Andrelton Simmons, Phil Gosselin hit a double to right-center that allowed Cunningham to score and tie the game at 3-3.

Myrtle Beach retook the lead briefly in the top of the sixth. Zach Zaneski led off the inning with a home run to center field, giving the Pelicans a 4-3 lead.

In the bottom of the sixth, Kleinknecht led off with a walk. He didn't wait long to score, as Rodriguez followed behind with a home run to left field, putting the Hillcats on top 5-4. After the home run, Shawn McGill singled, and Wiley was hit by a pitch. Cunningham bunted the runners over, then both scored on a double by Simmons, increasing the lead to 7-4.

The Hillcats showed they could score without putting the leadoff runner on base in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs and nobody on, Rodriguez hit his second home run of the game, making the score 8-4. Rodriguez went 3-for-4 with a double to go with the two home runs, and drove in three RBI. It was Rodriguez's first multi-home run game since May 7, 2010. In a twist, he hit those home runs while playing for the Pelicans against Lynchburg at Calvin Falwell Field.

The Pelicans threatened in the ninth, scoring two runs. Hillcats reliever Matt Frevert settled down after giving up those two runs, getting out of the inning and giving Lynchburg the 8-6 win.

Chris Masters pitched six innings, giving up four runs and striking out three for the Hillcats. Masters (4-2) won his first start since May 2. Pelicans reliever Zach Osborne, who came into the game in the sixth, took the loss to fall to 0-2.

Lynchburg won to improve to 24-30. Myrtle Beach lost and fell to 32-23.

The rubber game of the three game series will be played on Sunday afternoon. Lefty Matt Crim (1-3) will pitch for Lynchburg, while lefty Robbie Ross (6-1) is scheduled to take the mound for Myrtle Beach. Sunday will also conclude Braves Weekend at City Stadium. The first 500 fans through the gates will receive a Braves replica baseball cap. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 pm and the gates will open at 1.

If you can't make it to the game, the Hillcats On-Deck Show presented by Honda/Suzuki of Lynchburg will go on the air at 1:40 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 June 4, 2011


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