The Trenton Thunder stormed out to an 8-0 lead after three innings thanks to a grand slam by Jorge Saez, eventually defeating the Richmond Flying Squirrels, 10-0, at The Diamond on Wednesday in front of 7,147 fans to complete a three-game sweep.
Saez’s grand slam came in the second inning against Richmond (11-19) right-hander Andrew Moore (0-1), who was making his San Francisco Giants organizational debut. After allowing the grand slam, Moore later surrendered an RBI single to Hoy Jun Park before leaving the game.
Franklin Van Gurp entered for the Flying Squirrels and got the final out of the second, but allowed three Trenton (19-10) runs to score in the third inning. With two outs, Angel Aguilar, Saez and Jeff Hendrix strung together three straight hits to extend the Thunder lead to 8-0.
Van Gurp finished his outing by striking out the last five batters he faced for a total of eight strikeouts in three innings.
Heath Quinn went 0-for-3, but walked in the sixth inning to extend his on-base streak to 15 games.
Right-hander Ryan Halstead kept the Thunder offense at bay with 2.1 scoreless innings, but right-hander Rodolfo Martinez allowed a run in each of his two innings to bring Trenton’s total to 10.
Right-hander Deivi Garcia (Win, 1-1) scattered five hits over five innings for Trenton before handing the ball to the bullpen to polish off the shutout. Wednesday’s loss was the fifth time Richmond has been shut out this season and the 10-run margin of defeat is tied for the largest of the season (April 16 @ HFD).
Following an off day on Thursday, the Flying Squirrels begin a six-game road trip, starting with a three-game series against the Bowie Baysox on Friday. Right-hander Alfred Gutierrez (0-1, 5.60 ERA) is slated to start for Richmond opposite Bowie left-hander Bruce Zimmerman. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., and coverage begins with the Flying Squirrels Pregame Warmup at 6:35.
Tickets are on sale now for the 2019 Eastern League All-Star Week presented by Genworth. The All-Star Week festivities begin on Sunday, July 7 with Mayor Levar Stoney’s All-Star Week Kickoff on Brown’s Island, followed by the All-Star Country Music Jam on Monday, July 8, headlined by Big & Rich with special guests Cowboy Troy and DJ Sinister at Virginia Credit Union LIVE! at Richmond Raceway. The Celebrity Home Run Derby is Tuesday, July 9 and the festivities wrap up with the 2019 Eastern League All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 10.
For tickets or more information, call 804-359-3866 (FUNN), visit SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets or stop by the Flying Squirrels box office.
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Chris Graham
