On Friday night at Coca-Cola Park, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs took on the Charlotte Knights in game four of the series. The IronPigs have been going the wrong way, blowing two one-run leads and coming into the game tied with the Durham Bulls for second place.
Before the game, the IronPigs welcomed back Dustin Peterson, who’s been out with an injury. Cristopher Sanchez (2-1, 3.62 ERA) was on the mound for the IronPigs, and the Knights started Kyle Kubat (4-3, 5.17 ERA).
IronPigs starter Cristopher Sanchez started the top of the first inning, giving up a double to Mark Payton. After striking out Yolbert Sanchez, Sanchez gave up a single to Jake Burger with Carlos Perez coming to the plate.
Perez hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Payton for a 1-0 lead. Knights’ second baseman Romy Gonzales was up next and grounded into a force-out, ending the inning.
Moving ahead to the top of the third inning, IronPigs starter Cristopher Sanchez gave up a single to Yolbert Sanchez with two outs. Then, Knights’ third baseman Jake Burger flied out to right field, but IronPigs’ right fielder Chris Sharpe dropped the ball and made a throwing error to home plate as a run scored for the Knights 2-0, while Burger went to second base. Carlos Perez was up next and popped out, ending the inning.
The IronPigs had gotten their first shot at scoring a run after two straight singles from Ali Castillo and Karl Ellison with no outs. Unfortunately, Dalton Guthrie and Yairo Munoz struck out, and Dustin Peterson grounded out to end the inning.
Knight’s second baseman Romy Gonzales started the top of the fourth inning with a single. Then former IronPig Adam Haseley came to the plate. During Haseley’s plate appearance, Cristopher Sanchez threw a wild pitch, moving Gonzales to second base. Then, Sanchez got Haseley to ground out and struck out Micker Adolfo.
Knights’ left fielder Tyler Neslony was up next. Initially, Neslony hit a two-run home run to right field that clearly went foul. IronPigs manager Anthony Contreras came out to argue the call, and the umpires got together. After a discussion, they ruled it a foul, and the Knights’ staff were furious. Knights hitting coach Chris Johnson was ejected.
Once play resumed, Neslony doubled to right field, scoring Gonzales for a 3-0 lead. Finally, Laz Rivera grounded out that retired the side.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, IronPigs’ first baseman Josh Ockimey got the IronPigs on the board with a crushing solo home run over the roof of the KYLR Bar at right field, making it 3-1.
It was Ockimey’s sixth home run of the year. Ockimey has done a nice job since being called up when Darick Hall moved up to the Phillies. Then, Chris Sharpe walked, followed by a Will Toffey strikeout.
Scott Kingery was up next, and he singled on a bunt to third baseman Jake Burger with one out. Once again, the IronPigs batters wasted another scoring opportunity when Ali Castillo flied out, and Karl Ellison struck out on a foul tip to end the inning.
Cristopher Sanchez was done after five innings, allowing eight hits, three runs, one walk, and two strikeouts in 83 pitches. Francisco Morales was the new IronPigs pitcher at the top of the sixth inning. He allowed two hits, no runs, no walks, and no strikeouts in 17 pitches.
Andrew Vasquez pitched for the IronPigs at the top of the seventh inning, allowing one hit, no runs, no walks, and no strikeouts in ten pitches.
Lane Ramsey was the new Knights pitcher to start the bottom of the seventh inning. He walked Scott Kingery, followed by a double from Ali Castillo. Then, IronPigs’ catcher Karl Ellison grounded out, and Dalton Guthrie walked that loaded the bases.
This was the third opportunity for the IronPigs to get back into this game with only one out. However, Yairo Munoz struck out, and Dustin Peterson grounded out, ending the inning. Ofreidy Gomez pitched the top of the eighth inning with no hits, no runs, one walk, and one strikeout in 17 pitches.
Mark Appel was the new IronPigs pitcher at the top of the ninth inning. First, he gave up a solo home run to Laz Rivera that went into the Knights bullpen at left field for a 4-1 lead. Then, Appel gave up a single to Mark Payton before getting Yolbert Sanchez to ground into a double play for two outs. Finally, Appel struck out Jake Burger to retire the side.
Dan Winkler was the new Knights pitcher in the bottom of the ninth inning. He gave up a single to Simon Muzziotti, then struck out Justin Williams. Dalton Guthrie was up next and singled right field, moving Muzziotti to second base. After a wild pitch that moved both runners up a base, Yairo Munoz flied out, ending the game.
The IronPigs lost their third straight game 4-1 and have lost four of the last five games. They had seven hits and are now 59-50 for the season. Meanwhile, the Durham Bulls beat the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 4-3, and both teams are tied for first place, while the IronPigs are a game back.
There IronPigs are struggling right now. The IronPigs hitting coach needs to help the batters tweak their batting mechanics. They are striking out, popping out, and flying out too much. This team can hit, and they’ve proven it before.
But right now, they are having a hard time hitting the ball and need to break out of this slump soon, or else they won’t have a chance to win the division.
The series continues with game five tonight at 6:35 pm. Tickets for the game can be purchased on StubHub, and pick up IronPigs merchandise at Fanatics.com.
