The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (7-2) concluded the six-game series on Sunday evening against the Durham Bulls (2-7) from Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The game was delayed for three hours due to rain. Tucker Davidson was on the mound for Lehigh Valley against Evan Reifert of Durham. Durham starter Evan Reifert only pitched one inning with one strikeout, throwing 16 pitches, of which nine were strikes.
The game was scoreless in the first two innings until the top of the third inning. With two outs, Lehigh Valley shortstop Christian Cairo hit a single to left field. Then, on the first pitch, first baseman Felix Reyes hit K.C. Hunt’s cutter for a two-run home run at 391 feet to left field for a 2-0 lead. It was Reyes’s second home run of the season, and the exit velocity off the bat was 102.9 mph. Right fielder Bryan De La Cruz struck out swinging, which ended the inning.
In the bottom of the third inning, Lehigh Valley starter Tucker Davidson got into trouble when he loaded the bases with one out. Luckily, Gavin Lux grounded into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play.
Moving to the top of the fourth inning with one out, Lehigh Valley third baseman Carter Kieboom hit Hunt’s changeup for a solo home run at 401 feet to center field for a 4-0 lead. It was Kieboom’s first home run of the season, and the exit velocity off the bat was 98.2 mph.
Two batters later, Lehigh Valley shortstop Sergio Alcantara hit a single to right field and advanced to second base on a wild pitch by K.C. Hunt. Center fielder Oscar Mercado worked a four-pitch walk before designated hitter Cade Fergus hit a sharp RBI single to right field. Alcantara scored for a 4-0 lead. Left fielder Christian Cairo struck out to end the inning.
Lehigh Valley starter Tucker Davidson pitched 4.2 innings, allowing three hits, four walks, and three strikeouts, throwing 69 pitches, of which 34 were strikes. Génesis Cabrera was the new pitcher for Lehigh Valley in the bottom of the sixth inning. With one out, Durham catcher Dom Keegan hit Cabrera’s sinker for a solo home run just inside the foul pole at 347 feet to right field. Lehigh Valley’s lead was now 4-1, and the exit velocity off the bat was 100.8 mph.
Two batters later, with a runner on first base, Durham second baseman Cooper Bowman hit a two-run RBI double to left field. Blake Sabol and Logan Davidson scored, and it was now a one-run game, 4-3. Cabrera struck out Carlos Colmenarez, and a pop-out by Nicandro Aybar ended the inning. Cabrera pitched 1.1 innings, allowing three hits, three runs, two walks, and two strikeouts, throwing 34 pitches, of which 19 were strikes.
Lou Trivino pitched for Lehigh Valley in the bottom of the seventh inning. He allowed one hit, one walk, and two strikeouts, throwing 20 pitches, of which 10 were strikes. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Lehigh Valley had runners on first and second base when shortstop Sergio Alcantara hit a ground ball RBI single to second baseman Cooper Bowman. Bryan De La Cruz scored. A throwing error by Bowman allowed Carter Kieboom to score for a 5-3 lead.
Chase Shugart was the new pitcher for Lehigh Valley in the bottom of the eighth inning. He struck out Blake Sabol and Logan Davidson before getting a groundout from Cooper Bowman to end the inning.
Seth Johnson pitched for Lehigh Valley in the bottom of the ninth inning. He got pinch-hitter Raynel Delgado to ground out to first baseman Felex Reyes for the first out, struck out Jacob Melton with a four-seam fastball, and struck out Victor Mesa Jr. with a curveball to end the game. The Lehigh Valley IronPigs take the series win over the Durham Bulls by the final score of 5-3.
Lehigh Valley finished the night with eight hits, went 3 for 6 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base. Third baseman Carter Kieboom went 2 for 4 with a single, a home run, and one RBI. First baseman Felix Reyes went 1 for 5 with a home run and two RBIs. The win went to Lehigh Valley pitcher Lou Trivino, and the loss went to Durham pitcher K.C. Hunt.
Lehigh Valley returns to Coca-Cola Park on Tuesday to begin a six-game series against the Rochester Red Wings at 6:35 pm on the MLB App.
