Wingnuts Finish Sweep of Fish with 4-1 Victory
May 29, 2015 - American Association (AA)
Wichita Wingnuts News Release
WICHITA, KS - The Wichita Wingnuts streak of 21 straight innings pitched without allowing a run ended with the third batter of Thursday night's game against the Winnipeg Goldeyes at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium. However, the offense quickly took the lead away and the pitching staff would not allow even one more run the rest of the night. All of this added up to a 4-1 win, a five-game win streak, and the first sweep of a series by the Wingnuts in 2015.
Casey Haerther hit a two out home run in the first inning to put Winnipeg (3-4) in front 1-0 before the crowd had completely settled in. After that it was all Anthony Capra and the bullpen in the top half of innings. The Nuts' starter went 6.0 innings and allowed just the one run on five hits with five strikeouts to earn his first victory of the year.
The Wingnuts put together a threat of their own in the bottom half of the first as Winnipeg starter Jonathan Cornelius walked the bases loaded with two outs. The left-hander was able to strike out John Nester to work out of the jam. He wasn't as fortunate in the next frame when Luis Hernandez drove in Jayce Ray with two outs to tie the score.
Wichita (5-1) took control courtesy of a two-run third inning. Alberto Gonzalez worked a leadoff walk and was immediately plated on T.J. Mittelstaedt's booming double off the base of the wall in right. Three hitters later, Nester got another crack at driving in a run with two outs and took advantage. He beat out a ground ball for an infield single and pushed the Wingnuts to a 3-1 lead.
With Capra keeping the Goldeyes caged through six, Kevin Hooper called on his bullpen for the final three innings. Scott Kuzminsky worked out of a mini jam in the seventh with the help of an inning-ending double play via strikeout and a caught stealing. Daniel Bennett cruised through the eighth to set things up for closer Matt Nevarez.
Two eighth inning doubles, the first by Jayce Ray and the second of the RBI variety from Hernandez, helped the Nuts tack on an insurance run and grab a 4-1 lead. Nevarez, pitching in the fourth straight game, allowed the first two batters of the inning to reach base. With the tying run at the plate, he quickly righted the ship and struck out the next three hitters to end the game and record his second save.
Winnipeg's Haerther led all hitters with his three hits in four at-bats. Hernandez, Gonzalez, and Brent Dean each collected a pair of hits for Wichita.
The Wingnuts will open a three game series on Friday night against the Grand Prairie AirHogs at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium. The first 1,000 fans will receive a 2014 American Association Championship pennant upon their entrance and there will be a fireworks show following the game. The 7:05 p.m. start will feature a battle between RHP Tim Brown (1-0) of the Nuts and RHP T.J. Bozeman from Grand Prairie. 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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