Barley laps Shorebirds, leads FredNats to 5-3 win

A “little league” grand slam from Jordy Barley provided all the offense the Fredericksburg Nationals needed on Wednesday night in a 5-3 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds.

With the bases loaded in the third, Barley hit a two-run double off Shane Davis and circled the bases on a throwing error from right field to turn a 1-1 tie into a 5-1 lead. A solid bullpen effort from Lucas Knowles (W, 2-1) and Michael Kirian (S, 1) gave the FredNats their second win in a row.

Jacob Young began the game with a double to right field against Ty Blach, and scored on a Barley groundout. Delmarva evened the score in the bottom of the inning with a Connor Norby solo homer.

Fredericksburg starter Rodney Theophile lasted 4.0 innings, allowing two more runs in the fourth thanks to a bases-loaded walk and a wild pitch. He stranded the potential tying runs in scoring position, however, and handed the ball to Knowles in the fifth with a 5-3 lead.

Knowles struck out the side in order in the fifth inning, and contributed 3.0 scoreless innings to earn the win. Kirian came on for the eighth in his FredNats debut and got the final six outs for the save.

The FredNats continue their series against the Shorebirds on Thursday. First pitch from Perdue Stadium is scheduled for 7:05, with FredNats On Deck beginning at 6:50 on the FredNats Baseball Network.