‘Cats can’t complete sweep of ‘Birds

TROY — After dropping the first two games of the series, the Aberdeen IronBirds were likely very certain in wanting to avoid a humiliating sweep by the ValleyCats  

The ‘Birds struck first in the top of the 3rd, scoring two runs off an RBI double from right fielder Austin Hayz.  That hit put Aberdeen up 2, but the ‘Cats countered back in the bottom half of the inning.  After Connor Goedert singled to lead off, the next two Tri-City batters went down in order. With 2 outs and 2 strikes, Rodrigo Aarza delivered an RBI double to score Goedert, putting one on the board for the ‘Cats. Aarza  wouldn’t make it home though, as the next batter popped out stranding him on second base.  Aberdeen controlled the game as we entered and exited the 4th, leading by one.

In the top of the 5th inning, the Ironbirds struck again.  What began with back-to-back doubles from Cole Billingsley and Ryan McKenna scored Aberdeen’s first fun of the inning.  The next batter, Austin Hyaz, brought their second run of the inning in, making it a 3 run game. But the ‘Birds weren’t done there. By the end of the 5th the ‘Birds had scored 2 more, giving them a 5 run lead (6-1).

In the bottom of the 8th the ‘Cats finally put something more on the board, when Miguelangel Sierra tripled. That hit would score Rodrigo Aarza, knocking it down to a 4 run game (6-2).

In the top of the 9th, the IronBirds put up an insurance run, bringing it back to a 5 run game. With their last at-bats in the 9th, the ‘Cats made things interesting but not enough to fully bridge the gap. Though Tri-City Able to put up 2 runs, it only served to cut their loss by 3 rather than 5. This time the ‘Birds caught the ‘Cats with a final score of 7-4.

“We didn’t pitch well, I tip my hat to them,” manager Lamarr Rogers said after the game. ”They beat us today, it’s just like that,”Lamarr went on to say.

A bright spot in the disappointing day for the ‘Cats came from pitcher Abdiel Saldana.  Saldana delivered 6 strikeouts, while not allowing any runs in his 3.2 innings of work. “He’s becoming a fun pitcher to watch…he’s coming along,” Lamarr Rogers said.

The ‘Cats will now tangle with the Hudson Valley Renegades for a three game set starting tonight (Saturday) at 7pm at the Joe.