WALDORF, Md. – The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (16-21) won against the Road Warriors (7-31) 5-3, hitting three homeruns in the game.
The Road Warriors wasted no time getting their offense going on the day, putting up two runs in the first. Osvaldo Martinez started the game with a double down the third base line, putting himself in scoring position right away. A groundball moved him up to third, before a strikeout from Daryl Thompson (5-3) brought him within an out of escaping the inning. Back-to-back doubles from Jose Ruiz and Gustavo Pierre followed, bringing home a pair of runs to grab an early 2-0 lead.
The Blue Crabs got one run back in the bottom of the first on a solo homerun from Teodoro Martinez. Two innings later, they would take their first lead on the day, with the long ball once again providing the offense. Edwin Garcia singled as the second batter in the inning, moving up to second on a throwing error from the pitcher Alberto Rodriguez (1-3) when he misfired a pickoff attempt. Two batters later Jon Griffin would launch his second homerun of the series, a two-run shot to give the Blue Crabs the lead.
Southern Maryland would add another to their lead in the fourth inning, beginning with a single from Cory Vaughn. A pair of wild pitches from Rodriguez would move Vaughn all the way around to third, pulling the Road Warriors infield in to try and avoid the run scoring. Jose Gonzalez would single back up the vacated middle of the infield, bringing Vaughn home to push the lead to 4-2.
A solo homerun from Vaughn would add another to the lead in the sixth, giving Thompson a comfortable three-run lead. The right-hander settled in nicely after struggling in the first, allowing just four hits over his final six innings. Thompson exited after seven strong innings, giving up just the two runs on seven hits and leaving in line for the win with a three-run advantage.
Both bullpens worked a scoreless inning in the eighth, sending the game to the ninth for closer Cody Eppley (S,13). The right-hander recorded two quick outs to start the frame, before a single from Anthony Ray extended the game. A walk moved Ray up to scoring position, allowing him to come around to score on a single from Melvin Rodriguez. With two away and runners on the corners, Eppley recovered to get a strikeout, finishing off the 5-3 win and the sweep of the Road Warriors.
The Blue Crabs return to action Tuesday, August 21st for the series opener against the Long Island Ducks. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 P.M. on Tuesday at Regency Furniture Stadium.
For more information on the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, or to reserve your seat today for any of the Blue Crabs upcoming home games, please visit our website at somdbluecrabs.com or call us at 301-638-9788.