DURHAM, N.C. – The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders controlled every aspect of their Thursday series opener and cruised to a 10-2 win over the host Durham Bulls (Tampa Bay Rays). The RailRiders (17-18) notched 12 hits, worked 10 walks and their pitching retired the last 18 hitters the Bulls (20-15) sent to the plate.
Down 2-1 in the fifth, the RailRiders amassed their best inning of the season to shift the game for good. Eleven men came to the plate with five runs scoring thanks to RBI hits by Nick Noonan, Slade Heathcott, Rob Refsnyder and Kyle Roller. That chased starter Scott Diamond (3-1) who allowed six runs over 4.2 innings.
Diamond’s starting counterpart, Jaron Long (3-3), left the bases loaded in the first and second innings en route to five innings of work for the win. He allowed two runs (one earned).
Nine RailRiders batted in a three-run sixth to salt the advantage with RBIs by Heathcott, Refsnyder and Austin Romine.
SWB pitching dominated down the stretch. Diego Moreno struck out four over three perfect innings and Danny Burawa fired a 1-2-3 ninth.
The RailRiders’ seven-game road trip continues with game two of the four-game set on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. SWB right-hander Kyle Davies (2-3, 5.47) will face southpaw Enny Romero (1-0, 0.00).
The RailRiders return home on Monday, May 18 to start a seven-game homestand with the first of three against the Charlotte Knights (Chicago White Sox). It will be a Dollar Dog Night with all hot dogs priced at $1. For tickets or more information, call 570-969-BALL (2255) or visit the team’s website, www.swbrailriders.com.
OFF THE RAILS:
Rob Segedin hit a monster home run to left field in the second inning. Each of his two RBIs this season has come thanks to a big fly.
Rob Refsnyder singled, walked, scored a run and drove in two to extend his on-base streak to 16 games.
Ramon Flores walked three times and scored once. He has reached base safely in 23 of his last 24 games.
Slade Heathcott doubled, scored twice and drove in two tallies on a two-hit night.
The RailRiders’ got two-hit showings from each hitter in the bottom third of their order (Ben Gamel, Jonathan Galvez and Nick Noonan).
One day after the RailRiders scored a single run on 12 hits, they plated a season-best 10 tallies on 12 hits.
The five-run fifth tied as the team’s most productive inning of the year. The other five-run frame, also the fifth, came in the 8-5 win at Gwinnett on April 29.
SWB posted its biggest run-scoring effort since a 13-0 win against Syracuse on Aug. 2, 2014. It marked the franchise’s highest run total on the road since a 12-4 victory at Gwinnett on July 23 of last year. The team had not plated double-digit tallies against Durham since a 12-8 triumph at Durham on June 5, 2012. That was the opener of a four-game set swept by the then-Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.
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