Originally slated to start Thursday’s game prior to the postponement, opposing left-handers Matthew Boyd and Kirk McCarty took the hill in this one. Daz Cameron and Kody Clemens started the game with singles to right field. On the first pitch he saw, Aderlin Rodriguez smacked a ground-rule double to left-center field that scored Cameron and advanced Clemens to third. After Josh Lester battled at the plate, he got a 2-2 pitch he could handle and lofted it into left-center for a two-run double, making it 3-0 Mud Hens.
In the second inning, it was once again the top of the order getting the job done. Cameron singled to center field and Clemens followed it with a triple off the wall in left field to extend the Toledo lead to four.
After two scoreless innings of work in his first rehab start, Boyd was replaced by righty Logan Shore. He found himself in trouble right away, yielding a single, double, and then hitting a batter to load the bases with no outs. Gabriel Arias stepped to the dish and hit a ground ball that was twisted for a big double play. A run would score, but Arias would not record an RBI. After Shore walked Johnson, Lavarnway dumped a single into left, cutting the Hens lead to two. Gonzalez then singled to right, but Cameron came up and made a beautiful throw to cut down Johnson trying to score to end the inning.
After scoring in the first two innings, the Mud Hens offense went a bit cold. Lester changed that though in the sixth with a rocket to dead center field that left the yard for a solo homer, his first of the season for Toledo. The blast made it a 5-2 game.
After Shore’s shaky third inning, he settled in really well and went on to throw four more innings without allowing any more runs. In the eighth, he turned it over to Bryan Garcia. Garcia was immediately greeted by a double from Marabell. Brooks then poked a single to right field that scored Marabell, cutting the deficit to two. Arias singled as well, putting runners at first and second, still with no outs. After a strikeout and a punch out, Garcia was nearly out of the inning. Gonzalez tapped a soft comebacker to him, but Garcia short-armed his throw to first base and Clemens was unable to bail him out, allowing Brooks to score and Arias to advance to third. With the Hens lead now just one, southpaw Miguel Del Pozo was called on to get the last out of the frame. After he walked the first man he faced, a ground ball to short ended the inning with Toledo up 5-4.
Looking for a four-out save, Del Pozo returned for the ninth. Two quick ground ball outs were a good start, but Brooks singled to center and the Hens went back to the bullpen, bringing in Alex Lange to close the door. He struck out the only batter he faced to end it and put this one in the win column for the Hens.
What’s Next:
The Toledo Mud Hens and Columbus Clippers meet again Saturday night at Huntington Park for a doubleheader with the first pitch scheduled for 5:05 p.m. The second game will begin about 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game. Both games will be seven innings.
Hens Notes:
- OF Daz Cameron recorded two hits, extending his hit streak to nine. He also scored twice and tallied an outfield assist.
- OF Josh Lester came through all night, once with a double and once with a home run in a three RBI effort.