The Lynchburg Hillcats used three big innings and 12 two-out RBIs to leap out to a 14-1 lead and cruise to a 14-5 victory over Myrtle Beach at TicketReturn.com FieldSaturday night. Joe Sever posted a career-high five RBIs, including a two-run homer, and Luigi Rodriguez also went deep to highlight a season-high 14 runs for the Hillcats. D.J. Brown held Myrtle Beach to one run in 6 2/3 innings for the win.
ACT I: TWO-OUT RALLY
With two outs and Ivan Castillo at first base, it seemed the third inning would end as quietly as the first two, but the next five batters all reached to suddenly vault Lynchburg to a 6-0 advantage. Bradley Zimmer walked, and a double-steal put two runners in scoring position for Nellie Rodriguez, who delivered with a two-run single to give him a league-leading 50 RBIs for the year.
Eric Haase and Mike Papi followed with back-to-back RBI doubles to stretch the lead to 4-0, and Joe Sever capped off the outburst with a two-run homer to left field to give Lynchburg a 6-0 margin. It marked Sever’s fifth home run of the season and pushed his RBI total to 22.
AUDIO: Haase double
AUDIO: Papi double
AUDIO: Sever home run
ACT II: FOUR-RUN SIXTH
In the sixth inning, Castillo served as the catalyst again with a one-out single. Luigi Rodriguez hit a deep home run opposite way to left field for his 10th homer of the year, which leads the Carolina League. Clint Frazier and Nellie Rodriguez reached later in the inning, and Haase lined his second double of the game to push the score to 10-1. Haase has 26 RBIs in 39 games this year.
ACT III: SEVER SETS CAREER HIGH
Lynchburg tacked on four more in the eighth when five straight batters reached base with two outs again. Nellie Rodriguez and Haase both singled, andPapi walked to load the bases. Sever tripled to right-center field to clear the bases and set a career high with five RBIs in the contest. Lynchburg led 13-1 at that point. James Roberts added an RBI single to give the Hillcats a 14-1 lead and ensure that every Hillcat in the starting lineup had a hit in the game.
BETWEEN ACTS: D.J. BROWN DEALS
D.J. Brown (4-2) held Myrtle Beach to one run and four hits in 6 2/3 innings for his second quality start in his last three outings. Lynchburg improved its record to 6-1 in games he starts. J.P. Feyereisen retired all four batters he faced, which included two strikeouts, to close out the night.
KEEPING UP WITH THE ‘CATS
Lynchburg improved to .500 for the first time since April 12 when the team was 2-2…Luigi Rodriguez only had 23 home runs in his five-year career entering this season and now has 10 before the All-Star Break…Five different Hillcats had an extra-base hit in the game…Lynchburg’s 16 hits fell one shy of the team’s season high.
UP NEXT
Lynchburg looks to complete a sweep of the Pelicans Sunday night at 6:05 p.m. Luis Lugo (3-4, 4.74) starts for the Hillcats against Jonathan Martinez (4-1, 2.76). 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 5:40 p.m. for the Hillcats On-Deck Show.
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Chris Graham
