Storm cruise to win
Published on August 5, 2011 under California League (CalL1)
Bakersfield Blaze News Release
The Storm jumped on Matt Fairel early, and never looked back, cruising to a 9-3 win over a sleepy Blaze club on Thursday night at Sam Lynn Ballpark.
The game got out of hand quickly. Fairel, in his first start at High-A and coming off a significant shoulder injury, allowed 5 of 7 batters to reach base in the first inning, and he was yanked having retired just 1 man. Mace Thurman was the first man out of the pen for Bakersfield, but life didn't get a whole heck of a lot easier. Thurman worked out of the 1st, but got touched up for a pair of 2-out runs in the second, and surrendered a 3-run homer in the 3rd, and before the Blaze knew what hit them, they were behind 9-1.
Over the final 6 innings, Bakersfield tacked a few runs on the board to make the final score a tad more manageable, but the Storm mostly cruised to the end. The bright spots for the Blaze in this game were not hard to find, though. Kevin Coddington reached base in all 4 of his at-bats, and leadoff man Dayne Read collected two more doubles. In addition, the combination of Drew Bowman, Scott Gaffney, Doug Salinas and Chris Manno worked the final 6.2 innings, allowing just 2 hits and striking out 8.
The win goes to Lake Elsinore starter Jerry Sullivan (W, 6-6) who pitched well enough, and the loss falls to Matt Fairel (L, 0-1), who will look to shake off the rust for his next appearance.
The series continues with a mammoth fireworks show tomorrow night, sponsored by KUZZ and Three-Way Chevrolet. Tickets are going fast, so any interested parties should check online for availability! If you cannot find a seat, the game will be broadcast live on BakersfieldBlaze.com starting at 7:35 with Dan Besbris.
California League Stories from August 5, 2011
- Ports to Host Japanese Heritage Night - Stockton Ports
- Giants Score Early In 6-3 Win Over Mavericks - San Jose Giants
- Storm cruise to win - Bakersfield Blaze
- Ports Hand Bauer First Pro Loss With 5-2 Win - Stockton Ports
- Lemmerman's Walk-Off Hit Sends Quakes to 5-4 Win - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- 66ers Ride Hellweg to 9-1 Win - Inland Empire 66ers
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