Kevin Keyes’s three-run double, mixed with a little fortuitous wildness, were the, um, keys to Potomac’s four-run sixth as the P-Nats scored five unanswered runs in a 5-3 win over Lynchburg.
Like many do, the big inning started with a whimper, not a bang as Caleb Ramsey drilled a grounder off the leg of Hillcats starter A.J. Holland for an infield single. Holland hit Michael Taylor, then gave up a single to Adrian Nieto to load the bases.
The Lynchburg bullpen had been busy since the Ramsey single, but Holland was left in to face the P-Nats first baseman, hoping that the right-on-right matchup might yield the badly needed double play.
Instead, Keyes looped one over the third baseman that rattled around by the left field corner, enough for Nieto to score all the way from first. Holland was still left in to face Cutter Dykstra, who singled to left, too shallow for Keyes to score, but an errant throw allowed Dykstra to take second as Holland backed up the play to keep Keyes in place.
After a pitching change, Keyes finally came in on a wild pitch by lefty Carlos Perez. The miscue loomed larger when Perez struck out the next three batters to quash the rally.
The next inning, Billy Burns led off with a triple to right-center and scored two batters later on an RBI single by Taylor. After a walk to Nieto, Lynchburg switched pitchers again, and again the fireman, John Cornely, struck out the side.
The four runs in the 6th and 7th innings gave David Fischer the vulture win, as he turned a 2-0 deficit into a 3-0 hole with a run on a walk and two hits. Brian Dupra settled things down with two scoreless frames in the 7th and 8th and Richie Mirowski pitched around a single in the 9th for his sixth save.
Brian Rauh made the start and went the first five innings, allowing two runs on second-inning HR and five hits total. The 21-y.o. walked one and struck out five in his sixth start and seventh appearance since his promotion from Hagerstown.
The win was Potomac’s third in a row since ending a four-game slide on the road. Matt Purke (0-2, 8.56) is slated to make his second home start (and second Friday start) tonight, opposed by Greg Ross (5-4, 3.50) for Lynchburg.