Left-hander Robbie Ross Jr. was making not only his first start of the season, but his first start since 2014 when he was a Texas Ranger. He brought a 2-4 record with a 3.98 ERA into tonight’s contest.
After both teams went quietly in the first, Ross Jr. found himself in some trouble in the second. Four consecutive hits, two singles and two doubles, plated the first two runs of the game for the Clippers. With runners on second and third and one out, Marabell recorded an RBI groundout to shortstop. Ross Jr. punched out the last hitter he would face, Alex Call, to end the frame, but Columbus held an early 3-0 lead.
The Mud Hens offense woke up a little in the third inning. Outfielder Dylan Rosa started the inning with a double. Derek Hill was then hit by a pitch to put two on with no outs. A single from Jacob Robson loaded them with no outs, bringing Isaac Paredes to the dish. He hit a deep fly ball to center that was caught, but allowed Rosa to score and Hill to move up to third, cutting the Columbus lead to 3-1. With one out and runners still at the corners, Renato Nunez rolled into an inning-ending double play and the Hens still trailed by two.
After a long but scoreless inning from Wladimir Pinto that consisted of two walks, righty Drew Carlton took over in the fourth. He struck out Arias to start the inning, but yielded a double to Brooks and a single to Marabell, allowing the Clippers to get that run right back.
Carlton exited after the sixth inning with a final line of three innings, three hits, one run, and two strikeouts. Southpaw Miguel Del Pozo took over and struggled with his command. He hit a batter and walked a batter. On a 2-2 pitch, Owen Miller smoked a ball over the center field wall for a three-run home run, making the Columbus lead 7-1.
The Mud Hens would threaten a little in the eighth and ninth innings, but did not score and fell quietly, failing to score in the final six innings.
What’s Next:
The Toledo Mud Hens and Columbus Clippers play game five of the series Saturday night at Fifth Third Field with the first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
Hens Notes:
- Outfielder Jacob Robson’s batting average is back over .300 after his four-hit night.
- Outfielder Dylan Rosa has now doubled in back-to-back games.