Behind a dominant seven-inning start from RHP Joan Baez (W, 6-8) and a home run from both SS Luis Garcia and 1B David Masters, the Potomac Nationals (55-48, 18-18) picked up a relatively easy 7-2 win over the Frederick Keys (51-57, 16-23) on Tuesday night. It was the fifth consecutive victory for Potomac, while the loss snapped Frederick’s six-game win streak.
After both Baez and LHP Alex Wells (L, 4-7) each worked a perfect first inning, Potomac put two runs on the board in the second frame. The first three hitters of the inning for Potomac all singled, as CF Nick Banks made it 1-0 with an RBI hit. Two batters later, Masters made it 2-0 Potomac with an RBI single. An inning later, Garcia led off the third frame with a home run, his second home run with Potomac. It was the first home run of the season that Wells has surrendered to a left-handed hitter.
The Keys finally cracked through against Baez in the fifth inning, as a leadoff walk led to Frederick’s first run of the night. Baez, who walked two batters in the second inning but escaped, issued a leadoff walk to 3B Jomar Reyes in the fifth frame. After Baez retired the next two hitters, and with Reyes at second base, C Stuart Levy made it 2-1 with a two-out RBI single. Levy’s single was the only hit that Baez surrendered in the victory.
Immediately after the Keys pulled within one, Potomac knocked Wells out of the game. The Frederick starter hit LF Telmito Agustin to begin the sixth inning, and after a strikeout of RF Rhett Wiseman, Wells surrendered a two-run home run to Masters, who had been robbed of a home run in his previous at-bat. Masters’ two-run blast made it 5-1 in favor of Potomac. The P-Nats added a run against LHP Matt Trowbridge in the seventh inning, and a run against LHP Travis Seabrooke in the eighth frame.
Following seven innings from Baez, RHP Jacob Condra-Bogan allowed a run in the eighth inning on a two-out double from SS Chris Clare in the eighth frame, while RHP Jeremy McKinney worked around a single and an error and posted a scoreless ninth inning, which secured Potomac’s 7-2 victory.
With a chance for a season-best sixth consecutive victory, Potomac will turn to LHP Nick Raquet (1-1, 6.10) on Wednesday night. Raquet departed his last start after just 2.2 innings due to an injury. For the Keys, RHP Michael Baumann (6-2, 3.34) is set to make the start. Baumann has gone six-shutout innings in each of his last two starts.
First pitch at Nymeo Field on Wednesday is set for 7:00pm. The Potomac broadcast will get underway at 6:45pm with the P-Nats Leadoff Show. You can listen to the Potomac broadcast at potomacnationals.com, at http://bit.ly/P-NatsBroadcast, or on the TuneIn Radio App.
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Chris Graham
