Shane Bieber tied a career high with 11 strikeouts and only allowed four baserunners over a career-high eight innings as part of a 3-0 Hillcats victory at City Stadium Thursday night.
Facing Frederick for his third consecutive start, Bieber (3-1) began the game with a strikeout of Glynn Davis. The right-hander struck out at least one batter in each of his eight frames, and he fanned seven different Keys hitters over the course of the game. After hitting a batter and giving up a double with two outs in the first, Bieber stranded both runners in scoring position with aYermin Mercedes flyout.
Shane Hoelscher singled with one out in the second inning. Bieber only surrendered one baserunner for the rest of his time on the mound, retiring 12 in a row at one point and 20 of the final 21 batters he faced overall. The fourth-round pick from UC-Santa Barbara finished his night the same way he began, with a strikeout of Glynn Davis.
Bieber’s 11 strikeouts matched his total from April 14 when he fanned 11 Lansing Lugnuts hitters while with Low-A Lake County. Just like that start, Bieber did not walk anyone Thursday night. His eight innings surpassed his previous career high of 7 1/3 against Potomac on May 31.
Lynchburg scored its first run in the second inning when Jodd Carter doubled to left field to drive in Willi Castro, who had reached on an error earlier in the stanza. The Hillcats plated their final two runs in the seventh. Sam Haggerty and Ka’ai Tomboth walked and eventually came home on a Martin Cervenka two-RBI double.
Leandro Linares pitched a perfect ninth inning for his third save with Lynchburg. It completed the fourth shutout of the year for the Hillcats pitching staff. Keegan Akin (5-5) took the loss despite the only run against him being unearned. He struck out nine and walked four in six innings for Frederick.
Lynchburg (41-29, 1-0) plays Frederick (31-39, 0-1) Friday at 6:30 p.m. It is the 11th Annual Swing for A Cure Breast Cancer Awareness Night presented by Centra’s Alan B. Pearson Regional Cancer Center. Gates open at 5:30, and the first 1,000 fans will receive a T-shirt. The game can be heard live at www.lynchburg-hillcats.com, beginning with pre-game coverage at 6:20 p.m.
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Chris Graham
