Hughes Shines In Curve Win; Farrell Homers Again

Bradenton Marauders 5, �Fort Myers Miracle 3 (box)

The Marauders continued their hot hitting, with 11 hits in their second game against Ft. Myers. �Yesterday’s game was held in Bradenton, but they switched over to Ft. Myers for tonight (they are about 90 miles apart).

Bradenton jumped right out to a 2-run lead in the top of the 1st. �SS Greg Picart opened the game with a walk, and RF Robbie Grossman singled. �CF Starling Marte grounded to short, forcing out Grossman, and it probably would have been a double play, but Marte is very fast. �That speed came into play when C Tony Sanchez doubled into center field. �Picart scored from third base, and Marte came flying around from first to score too. �The inning ended when LF Quincy Latimore lined right to the shortstop, who was able to catch Sanchez off second base to double him up.

3B Jeremy Farrell, who hit 5 home runs last season, matched Indy Indian Pedro Alvarez’s home run total when he also hit his third home run in two games. �Farrell hit #3 in the 4th inning, driving in Latimore, who had reached on an error, and 1B Calvin Anderson who had singled.

Grossman and Marte both singled in the 5th inning, off a Ft. Myers reliever named Shooter Hunt, �but did not score. �DH Eric Fryer tripled with two outs in the 6th, but was left stranded there.��Sanchez had another double, followed with a single by Latimore in the 8th, but a double play ended that threat.

Jeff Locke made the start for the Marauders. �He gave up one hit over the first three innings, then gave up a run on a single and an RBI double in the 4th. �Locke also gave up a solo homer in the 5th inning, then was relieved after two outs in that inning. �Mike Felix finished the 5th inning with a ground out, facing just one batter. �Diego Moreno pitched 2 scoreless innings and allowed one hit, and was credited with the win. �Tom Boleska gave up a solo homer in the 8th, but retired the other three batters he faced. �Noah Krol earned his first save of the season with a perfect 9th inning.

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Savannah Sand Gnats 5, �West Virginia Power 0 (box)

The Power were held to only 3 hits and hurt their own cause by committing 3 errors in their second loss of the season. �2B Jarek Cunningham had two of the hits, one in the 1st inning and one in the 6th. �Both times, CF Evan Chambers got on base behind Cunningham — he reached on a fielding error in the 1st, and walked in the 6th. �But each time both runners were left stranded. �Sixteen Power batters went down in order between Chambers’ reaching base in the 1st and Cunningham’s hit in the 6th. �The only other Power batters to reach base were DH David Rubenstein, who led off the 8th with a double, but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. �Chambers reached again in the 9th when he was hit by a pitch.

Savannah was not doing much better over the first 4 innings. �Starter Nate Baker held them to two doubles over those 4 innings, plus one more batter who reached on a throwing error by 3B Jesus Brito. Baker’s own error on a sacrifice bunt hurt him in the 5th, when a walk and the bunt put runners on second and third bases. �A single brought in both runners. �A missed catch error by Cunningham turned what should have been a picked off/caught stealing into a runner on second base. �A double brought in the runner from second, and that was the end of Baker’s night. �Maurice Bankston came in to pitch, but he gave up an RBI single, then another single that turned into an out at third on a strong throw from RF Wes Freeman. Bankston got out of the 5th, but gave up a run on a walk, a stolen base, and a double in the 7th inning. �Ryan Kelly pitched the last inning for the Power, and gave up a triple, but left that runner on third base. � Nate Baker was charged with the loss. �He gave up 4 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits and a walk, but did strike out 7 batters in 4 innings.

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