Hillcats make hits count

By Chris Lang
Sports writer
Published: April 12, 2008

It was a classic case of putting quality ahead quantity. No, the Hillcats didn’t rip the cover off the ball Saturday evening at City Stadium. Of their nine hits in a 6-3 win over Wilmington, only two went for extra bases.
But in key situations, Lynchburg found ways to compile clutch hits. Brian Friday’s fifth-inning triple scored James Barksdale, breaking a 3-all tie and giving the Hillcats the lead for good. With no one out in the seventh, Kent Sakamoto roped a double, moving Jim Negrych, who’d later score on Steve Lerud’s sacrifice fly, to third.
For a team averaging a scant 3.1 runs through its first seven games, the resourcefulness in crucial situations was encouraging.
“Clutch hitting is a lot better than going out and getting 10 or 12 hits and not scoring any runs,” said Negrych, who went 2-for-4 and raised his batting average to .455. “We came up pretty big tonight. We got a couple of big hits, and that was the difference in the game.”
After a rough start, right-handed pitcher Mike Crotta settled down to throw five solid innings, improving his record to 2-0. Kyle Pearson pitched a perfect ninth for his second save.
Crotta, who took a perfect game into the seventh inning of his first start at Frederick last week, wasn’t nearly as sharp Saturday. The Blue Rocks (3-6) hit him hard in the first inning. David Wood rapped Wilmington’s second double of the inning, scoring Jeff Bianchi and Joe Dickerson to put Wilmington ahead 2-0.
Lynchburg staged an immediate rally, and some unfortunate fielding by the Blue Rocks allowed the Hillcats to take a 3-2 lead. With two outs and runners at second and third, Lerud hit a routine grounder to shortstop Kurt Mertins.
Mertins bobbled the ball, and in trying to recover, he lobbed it wildly to first, and Wood couldn’t handle it. Friday and Negrych were running on contact, and both scored. Lerud advanced to second on the error, to third on a wild pitch and finally scored on another wild pitch to put the Hillcats up 3-2.
“The first inning, you want to go up and put up a zero for them,” Crotto said. “Then they come back and they give you back the lead. It’s huge.”
Given new life, Crotta found command of his sinker and retired six of the next seven batters. Wilmington tied the game in the fourth when Matt Morizio reached on an infield single, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a double steal. With Derrick Robinson on second with two outs, Crotta struck out Mertins to end the threat.
“I was missing up a lot in the first inning, so I had to really concentrate on working down,” Crotta said. “I made the adjustments I needed.”
Hillcats manager Jeff Branson flip-flopped Angel Gonzalez and Friday in the lineup Saturday, putting the latter in the leadoff spot. Friday was one of four Hillcats with two hits, and Gonzalez reached on a single in the eighth and stole his first two bases of the season. The top four batters in the order combined to go 7-for-16, a sign that Lynchburg’s hitting fortunes may be turning.
“There are a lot of us that jumped up a level and the pitching is a little bit different,“ Negrych said. “The guys are obviously a little better than they were in low-A ball.
“It’s going to come around. There’s a lot of confidence around here. People are battling. It’s not like anyone is hanging their head and throwing away at-bats. It’s only a matter of time.”
BASE HITS: The Hillcats will try for their first series win today at 2:05 against the Blue Rocks. They lost two of three to both Frederick and Winston-Salem to open the year. … Daniel Moskos, the Pirates’ first-round pick in the 2007 draft (fourth overall) will make his home debut today. He allowed six hits and two earned runs in five innings and took a no-decision in his only start this season. … The Hillcats lowered their bullpen ERA to 0.65 in 27 2/3 innings after relievers Jeff Sues and Pearson combined for four scoreless innings.