Trenton Thunder Beat Bowie Baysox

Thunder And Baysox Continue Five-Game Series

Jun 4, 2009 Mark Fontes

Bats heated up early as Trenton took the lead in the first inning and never looked back.

In the first inning it was Colin Curtis' solo homerun. In the second, it was Justin Snyder's RBI double. He almost made it a triple, had it not been for a great throw to nab him in an attempt to reach third base.

Yet it didn't matter, as the first two innings dictated the way the Thunder's 8-0 win over Bowie went Wednesday night. They poured on a little bit of offense at a time (until the 7th inning), and complemented it with solid pitching and defense.

Hurler Wilkin De La Rosa allowed only two hits through six shutout innings. The Baysox infact were held hitless until the top of the fifth. A bloop single to left-center field by Bowie catcher Guillermo Rodriguez was followed by a De La Rosa balk, advancing Rodriguex to second. Yet Trenton got out of the inning unscathed, as the Baysox's Robert Valido struck out swinging in the following at-bat.

Thunder Offense

Leading 2-0 going into the sixth, Trenton added insurance runs with right fielder Edwar Gonzalez's RBI double, and third baseman Marcos Vechionacci's groundball. It was misplayed by Valido at shortstop, allowing Gonzalez to score and make it 4-0 Thunder. Gonzalez turned in one of his finest performances yet, going 2-for-4, including a triple and an RBI. He also scored twice.

In the seventh inning, the Thunder doubled their advantage. Five straight base hits came with two outs on Bowie relief pitcher Ryan Rodriguez. Among them, Trenton catcher Jesus Montero, Gonzalez, and first basemen Kevin Smith all singled back-to-back-to-back. Two more runs came in, and Vechionacci hit an RBI double. That concluded the scoring as the Thunder went ahead 8-0, and never looked back.

Thunder Defense

Defensively for Trenton, the only blotch came via a third inning error by second baseman Chris Malec. He misplayed a groundball hit by Bowie's Robert Valido, who after reaching first safely stole second. Yet it was to no avail for the Baysox as Jonathan Tucker grounded out on the next at-bat to end the inning.

Thunder Looking Ahead

The Thunder's five game series against the Baysox concludes Thursday with an 11:05am matinee. They hope to add to what is currently a two-game winning streak. At 28-23, the Thunder find themselves atop the Eastern League's Northern Division, half a game in front of both Connecticut and New Britain, who are tied for second. Also for Trenton, five games above .500 is so far their highest record of the 2009 season.

After the series with Bowie, the Thunder will remain at home for a three game set against the Binghamton Mets.

The copyright of the article Trenton Thunder Beat Bowie Baysox in Baseball is owned by Mark Fontes. Permission to republish Trenton Thunder Beat Bowie Baysox in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.