Mud Hens get back on track with win at Columbus
5/23/2018The Toledo Mud Hens snapped a two-game losing skid in Columbus and got back in the win column with a 4-1 victory on Wednesday night at Huntington Park. The pitching was strong for Toledo as Drew VerHagen pitched six solid innings and Paul Voelker and Johnny Barbato shut down the Clippers over the final three innings.
What happened: Toledo started by scoring two runs in the first inning on an RBI double from Dawel Lugo and an RBI single from Jim Adduci. Edwin Espinal hit his second home run of the season in the fourth inning, a solo shot that gave the Mud Hens a 3-0 lead. Columbus finally scored in the bottom half of the fourth on a sacrifice fly from Yu Chang. Espinal did more damage in the sixth with an RBI double that gave Toledo a 4-1 lead.
VerHagen was excellent in his six innings of work, giving up just one run on two hits, while walking just one and striking out eight.
Voelker pitched two scoreless innings in support of VerHagen and Barbato closed the game with a scoreless ninth to earn his second save of the season.
Game MVP: Edwin Espinal was 3-4 with a home run, a double, and two RBIs. But he shares the honor with VerHagen who set the tone with his pitching performance and earned his first win of the season.
Comings and goings: Jeimer Candelario was in the Toledo lineup on the first day of his rehab assignment…He is expected to play two or three games with the Mud Hens while working back from a wrist injury...Candelario played the full game at third base, going 0-4 with a run scored.
Make a note of it: Ronny Rodriguez went hitless in his five at bats and saw his International League-leading hit streak come to an end after 18 games…Dawel Lugo served as the designated hitter with Rodriguez shifting from shortstop to second base while Harold Castro manned shortstop.
A look ahead: The Mud Hens close out their four-game set in Columbus with an 11:05 a.m. game on Thursday. A.J. Ladwig (5-0, 2.43 ERA) will start for Toledo while the Clippers have not yet named a starter.
Contact Brian Buckey at bbuckey@theblade.com, 419-724-6110, or on Twitter @BrianBuckey.