Bullpen propels FredNats to 6-2 victory

The Fredericksburg Nationals got five hitless innings from their bullpen to help secure a series split against the Lynchburg Hillcats, winning 6-2 in their Sunday finale.

Josh Wolf (L, 0-3) allowed only one earned run in his five-inning start for Lynchburg, but saw four Hillcats errors and a passed ball give the FredNats an early lead they would not give up.

Things started ominously, as Viandel Peña reached on an error to begin the ballgame. Paul Witt followed with an RBI double, and Junior Martina extended the lead to 2-0 with an RBI single.

Lynchburg answered back in the bottom of the first, as Christian Cairo hit the first pitch from Karlo Seijas for a double and scored on another double from Julian Escobedo. Seijas stranded two men in scoring position in the first, and runners at the corners in the second, to keep the Fredericksburg lead intact.

Witt scored on a passed ball in the third to extend the FredNats advantage to 3-1. Alexfri Planez hit a solo homer in the fourth for Lynchburg to make the game 3-2, but catcher Juan Paulino erased Korey Holland from the basepaths with a caught stealing to end the inning. Holland’s single would be the final Lynchburg hit of the day.

Onix Vega hit an RBI double in the sixth for a big insurance run, and the FredNats added two in the seventh to cap the scoring. Jake Randa led off the frame with a double and scored on a single from Peña, who collected his first four-hit game of the year. With two outs, Ricardo Méndez ripped an RBI single to right field that extended his hitting streak to 16 games.

Trey Turner (W, 1-0) relieved Seijas in the fifth and contributed two hitless innings, followed by clean frames from Gilberto Chu, Troy Stainbrook and Tyler Yankosky. Though the Hillcats got two men on with two outs in the ninth, Yankosky coaxed a flyout from pinch-hitter Miguel Jerez to end the ballgame.

After an off day Monday, the FredNats continue their 12-game road trip as they open a series against the Red Sox in Salem. First pitch from Haley Toyota Field is scheduled for 7:05, with FredNats On Deck beginning at 6:50 on the FredNats Baseball Network.