Nellie Rodriguez hit his 10th home run of the season, and Luigi Rodriguez went 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI to pace the offense in a 6-2 Hillcats victory Wednesday night at Frawley Stadium. Mitch Brown (3-8) registered his third win of the season with his fifth quality start of 2015, holding the Blue Rocks to two runs in six innings.
THE RODRIGUEZ VARIETY HOUR
Nellie and Luigi Rodriguez provided a little bit of everything in the second half of the game, ranging from singles and stolen bases to doubles and home runs. With the Hillcats trailing 2-1 in the fifth, Ivan Castillo doubled with two outs, and Luigi Rodriguez drove him in with a base hit up the middle to level the score at 2-all.
In the ninth with the Hillcats already leading 3-2, Luigi Rodriguez doubled with one out and scored on an RBI triple by LeVon Washington down the right field line. Washington now has six RBIs in six games since joining the Hillcats. Two batters later, Nellie Rodriguez hit a deep fly ball over the left field wall for his 10th homer of the season, which increased his league-leading RBI total to 57 for the year. Rodriguez’s blast gave the Hillcats a 6-2 lead, which became the final score.
AUDIO: Washington triple
AUDIO: Nellie home run
QUALITY START FROM BROWN
Mitch Brown limited Wilmington to two runs on seven hits in six innings while striking out a pair to earn his third win of the season. The right-hander saw his team take the lead on an unearned run in the top of the second inning when Claudio Bautista scored on an errant throw by Mauricio Ramos. However, Wilmington tied the game in the home half on the combination of three hits and a walk. Cody Stubbs plated the tying run on an RBI single by Cam Gallagher.
Brown surrendered his final run in the third inning when Ramos doubled and Stubbs singled him in to give the Blue Rocks a 2-1 lead.
HILLCATS RECLAIM LEAD
After Luigi Rodriguez tied the game with his RBI single in the fifth, the Hillcats jumped back in front in the sixth with another unearned run. Nellie Rodriguez reached on an error and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Sicnarf Loopstok, which marked his first RBI at the Advanced-A level. Jakob Junis (3-6) took the loss after allowing three runs in six innings despite two of the runs being unearned.
WE’LL TAKE IT FROM HERE
With a 3-2 advantage, the Hillcats bullpen closed out the final three innings. Antonio Romero tossed two scoreless innings with three strikeouts to earn a hold. In a non-save situation, Casey Weathers struck out a pair as part of a perfect ninth to end the game.
KEEPING UP WITH THE ‘CATS
Luigi and Nellie Rodriguez are tied for the Carolina League lead with 32 extra-base hits…Luigi Rodriguez is currently on an eight-game hitting streak and has seven multi-hit games during this stretch…He is batting .459 (17-for-37) over his last eight games with two doubles, two triples and two home runs…Claudio Bautista scored the first run of his career at the Advanced-A level…Lynchburg improved to 5-3 against Wilmington this season…
UP NEXT
Lynchburg attempts to win five in a row for the first time this season when it returns to Frawley Stadium Thursday at 6:35 p.m. Dace Kime (2-3, 4.50) starts for the Hillcats against lefty Luis Rico (3-3, 2.83). Fans can tune in to the action on ESPN Virginia 93.3 FM and 1320 AM as well as www.lynchburg-hillcats.com beginning at 6:10 p.m. for the Hillcats On-Deck Show.
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