Two streaks end for Hillcats in one night

By Andy Bitter

Published: July 6, 2008

The streaks — yup, both of them — are over.

Lynchburg watched its six-game winning streak come to a halt with Sunday’s 5-2 loss to Frederick at City Stadium. Jim Negrych had an 0-for-3 day, ending his team-best hitting streak at 17 games.

“We didn’t play well tonight,” Hillcats manager Jeff Branson said. “We gave at bats away and we didn’t do the things that we normally have over the last six days.”

Brandon Snyder was 3-for-5 with two doubles and Brandon Tripp was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs as Frederick (6-11) won for the third time in the last 10 games.

Negrych, who leads the league with a .363 average, was one game shy of the Carolina League’s longest hitting streak this season, set by Willie Cabrera of Myrtle Beach.

“It’s good that I had one this long,” Negrych said. “Heck, in this league, you’re happy if you have one that lasts three days.”

He walked in his first at bat but wouldn’t reach base again, grounding back to the pitcher in the third, striking out swinging in the fifth and grounding out to first in the eighth.

“When you’re playing the game, you don’t think about it,” Negrych said. “You’re out there trying to get a hit every time, regardless of whether you have a hitting streak or not.”

He went 28-for-67 (.418) during the streak, with 10 doubles, a triple, 14 runs scored and seven RBIs. The 17-game streak is tied for the sixth-longest in Hillcats history, matching Lee Evans (2000).

Lynchburg’s winning streak bit the dust shortly thereafter. The Hillcats (10-7) got their runs on Kent Sakamoto’s double in the fourth and Alex Presley’s fourth home run of the season in the fifth. That gave them a 2-1 lead.

They didn’t capitalize on some prime opportunities, though, something that hasn’t happened often during the streak. Jamie Romak and Sakamoto started the fourth with back-to-back doubles off Frederick starter Tim Bascom (3-2). But the next two batters grounded out before Jared Keel hit a liner right at the third baseman.

“We had their pitcher on the hook at that point in time and let him off,” Branson said.

Frederick made Lynchburg pay for failing to deliver. Hillcats starter Michael Crotta (7-6), coming off his best start of the year at Wilmington, was solid through five, allowing just one unearned run.

But the Keys rattled him in the sixth. Snyder wasn’t fooled by an offspeed pitch to start the inning and ripped a double to right-center. Chris Vinyard walked with one out before Billy Rowell lined an RBI double to left that tied things at 2.

“What led him up to that sixth inning was what got him to where he was at — he was aggressive with his fastball,” Branson said. “His mindset changed, and that’s what got him in trouble.”

With two outs, Crotta threw a pitch in the dirt that got to the backstop. Vinyard scored to give the Keys a 3-2 lead.

Tripp added a two-run double in the seventh for insurance.

Bascom earned the win, striking out five and giving up two runs on five hits in six innings. Chad Thall pitched a scoreless ninth for his eighth save.