Shorebirds Fall to Howlers to Start May
Delmarva Shutdown by Hill City Bullpen
SALISBURY, MD: The Delmarva Shorebirds (9-16) were denied a second straight win against the Hill City Howlers (15-10) on Friday, as they were defeated 6-3.
The Shorebirds jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, thanks to an RBI single by Raylin Ramos and a throwing error on a pickoff attempt that scored Edwin Amparo from third base.
Hill City countered in the top of the second when Jose Pirela's two-run homer tied the game at two.
Delmarva reclaimed the lead on an RBI double by Jordan Sanchez in the bottom of the inning, giving the Shorebirds a 3-2 advantage.
Another home run by the Howlers helped them even the game as Robert Arias launched one of the park to square the game at three.
With the game still tied at three in the fifth, Hill City took its first lead on a two-out RBI single by Dauri Fernandez, scoring Tyler Howard and making it 4-3 Howlers.
The Shorebirds got a pair of notable pitching performances on Friday. Starting pitcher Christian Rodriguez threw a career-high 5.2 innings and recorded a personal-best 8 strikeouts. Todd Knibbe relieved him and tossed 2.1 innings of perfect baseball, matching his career-high with four strikeouts.
The Howlers added two insurance runs in the ninth on a two-run single by Tyler Howard, giving Hill City a 6-3 lead. The Shorebirds were unable to answer in the bottom half and fell 6-3.
Luke Fernandez (2-1) earned the win in relief, while starter Christian Rodriguez (1-2) took the loss for Delmarva. Keegan Zinn (1) was credited with the save, recording the final nine outs.
Delmarva looks to bounce back, with Kailen Hamson taking the mound against Harrison Bodendorf for the Howlers. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM.