Tides Record Six Two-Out RBI For First Win of Season
March 31, 2023 - International League (IL)
Norfolk Tides News Release
DURHAM, NC --- The Norfolk Tides (1-0) defeated the Durham Bulls (0-1), 6-4, on Friday night at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. It was a pitching matchup between Baltimore's and Tampa Bay's top pitching prospects in Grayson Rodriguez and Taj Bradley, but both teams' offenses stole the show.
Durham got on the board in the first inning when René Pinto hit a two-run shot. Norfolk answered right back in the top of the second when Connor Norby hit a go-ahead three-run shot to give the Tides a 3-2 lead.
The Bulls tied the game up in the bottom of the third when Osleivis Basabe roped and RBI single. But the Tides retook the lead in the fourth when Ryan O'Hearn hit an RBI single, followed by a two-run homer by Josh Lester to give the Tides a 6-3 lead.
Rodriguez exited the game after the fourth. He reached 75 pitches, with 48 for strikes. He allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits (one home run) and four walks while striking out two. Durham's Bradley ended up exiting after the second inning, with Norfolk batters forcing him to throw 55 innings.
One more run was added by the Bulls in the sixth, but that would be all as the Tides win, 6-4. Game two of the series is set for tomorrow at 1:05 p.m. The Tides will throw LHP Bruce Zimmermann (0-0, -.--), while Durham has RHP Cooper Criswell (0-0, -.--) going for them.
POSTGAME NOTES
THE CURSE IS BROKEN!: With the win tonight, the Tides snapped a 14-game Opening Day losing streak...the last time the Tides won was their first game of the season was back in 2007 against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in their first season as an Orioles affiliate.
NORBY GOES YARD: Putting the first runs on the board for the Tides this season was Connor Norby, who launched a go-ahead three-run homer in the second...he finished the night 1-for-5...Norby led the Orioles farm system with 29 home runs in 2022.
LESTER BESTER: The first hit for Josh Lester in the Orioles organizaton was a two-run shot in the fourth that was blasted 440 ft....Lester finished the night 1-for-3 with a run, a home run, two RBI and two walks.
O'HEARN'S DEBUT: Going 2-for-5 with a run, a double and an RBI in his Orioles organizational debut was Ryan O'Hearn...the RBI was a two-out go-ahead knock in the fourth.
WILD WILD WEST: Another Tide to record multiple hits was Jordan Westburg, who went 2-for-5...Westburg led the Tides last year with 27 multi-hit games.
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