Hens, Bazardo have rough night

6/22/2008
BY TOM ROBINSON
SPECIAL TO THE BLADE
  • Hens-Bazardo-have-rough-night-3


    • MOOSIC, Pa. - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees used the top four hitters in their lineup to break a season-high, four-game losing streak last night.

    Brett Gardner and Justin Christian had three hits each in the top two spots to lead the Yankees to a 9-5 victory over the Toledo Mud Hens.

    Gardner and Christian combined with Shelley Duncan and Juan Miranda to give the Yankees 10 hits, three walks, three stolen bases, all nine of the team's runs and four of the RBIs.

    "We had been struggling a little at the plate," said Gardner, who scored twice and stole two bases to move into a share of the International League lead with 27. "We managed to do a pretty good job getting on base."


    Christian hit a home run and scored three times.

    Miranda, coming off a 5-for-5 game in Friday's loss, doubled with the bases loaded to score two runs before Yorman Bazardo recorded an out.

    Bazardo (1-4) lasted just 11/3 innings. He gave up five runs on seven hits and three walks.

    "They have a couple of guys at the top, who if they get on, they can run on you," Mud Hens manager Larry Parrish said. "We didn't pitch well early and when [Bazardo] did look like he made a pitch, he either was just missing or he couldn't repeat it."


    Both pitchers struggled early.

    Sidney Ponson, making his first appearance since signing with the Yankees organization, allowed a run each in the first and third innings and was gone after throwing 72 pitches in four innings.

    Ponson, who has 86 wins in a troubled 11-year Major League career, gave up three hits and three walks while striking out two. He allowed two runs, one earned.

    Max Leon, Brent Clevlen, and Fernando Seguignol all singled in the first inning to put the Mud Hens on top.

    The Yankees built the lead to as much as 7-2 after four innings before the Mud Hens closed within, 8-5, by scoring once in the fifth and twice in the sixth.

    Seguignol singled to lead off the sixth and scored when Matt Joyce followed with a double. Joyce advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a groundball by Max St. Pierre.

    St. Pierre was in the lineup as the starting catcher after joining the team earlier in the day from Double-A Erie where he was hitting .250 with six home runs. St. Pierre took the place of Nick Trzesniak, who went on the disabled list after suffering a strained oblique in Friday's game.

    NOTE: The four-game series concludes today at 5 with Chris Lambert (6-3, 2.97) pitching against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's Jeff Karstens (1-3, 5.87).