The Richmond Flying Squirrels (13-19) racked up six runs in the first three innings and never looked back, dropping the Bowie Baysox (18-17), 8-4, on Friday night at Prince George’s Stadium. The win was the third straight for the Squirrels. The loss was the fifth consecutively for the Baysox. Richmond has won 10 of their last 12 games, and their last six in a row on the road.
The Squirrels came out of the gates swinging, plating three runs off right-hander Dylan Bundy in the top of the first inning. Kelby Tomlinson led off the ballgame with a single pushed through the right side of the infield. He promptly swiped second base. An out later, Mac Willamson followed the same path with an RBI single, plating Tomlinson for a 1-0 lead. Another out later, Ricky Oropesa stayed red-hot, bouncing a single into center field. Williamson came around to make it 2-0. Myles Schroder followed and laid down a bunt-single, and Oropesa scored on a wild-pitch from Bundy to make it 3-0.
The Baysox got one run back immediately against lefty Kelvin Marte. Glynn Davis led off the first with a double off the left-field wall. Mike Yastrzemski followed and ripped a double into the right-field corner. Davis scored the first run of the night for Bowie.
Richmond was back at it in the second, notching two more runs off Bundy. Jackson Williams started the inning with a single. A batter later, Tomlinson doubled to left-center field to bring him in. Later in the inning, Williamson notched an RBI single to left field to make it, 5-1.
The Squirrels tacked on another run and chased Bundy in the third. Bundy survived only two batters in the inning, hitting the first – Oropesa. Schroder and Williams both singled, and Oropesa scored on a fielder’s choice to make it 6-1.
Bundy (0-5) was charged with a season-high six runs, five earned, on a season-high eight hits. He hit a batter and struck out two. He was saddled with the loss, his third
Bowie got back in the fight in the fourth and fifth innings. They plated three runs on five hits across the two frames, all charged to Marte. Davis contributed an RBI double, Chris O’Brien did likewise and Sharlon Schoop cut the Richmond-lead to 6-4 with a sacrifice-fly.
Marte (3-0) battled through five innings to earn the win, his third in as many starts. He was charged with four earned runs on nine hits. He walked one and struck out five.
The Squirrels put the game away with a lone run scored in the sixth, and another in the seventh. Devin Harris knocked in the run in the sixth with a single. Williams provided his third hit of the night, a single, in the seventh to score Schroder for an 8-4 lead.
Richmond used four relievers for an inning apiece to secure the win. Right-hander Pedro Rodriguez slipped out of some trouble to work a scoreless sixth inning. Righty Jose Casilla had no trouble in the seventh and fellow righty Joan Gregorio breezed through the eighth. Lefty Josh Osich then finished it off without incident in the ninth.
Game three of the four-game series is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. on Saturday night at Prince George’s Stadium. Richmond RHP Chris Stratton (0-4, 4.49) will make the start against Bowie LHP Tim Berry (0-3, 7.46). The Flying Squirrels Pregame Warmup will begin at 6:00 p.m. on Fox Sports 910 and FoxSportsRichmond.com.
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Chris Graham
