A Surprise Win

As the players filed out of the stadium there was a look of shock on their faces, down 4 to 1 going into the top of the 8th it seemed another sure loss for the boys who were struggling to reach base all day.

A pitching change in the 8th was the downfall of the York Revolution. Right handed relief pitcher David Shafer came in and walked back to back batters on 9 pitches and then would be pulled out of the game for Travis Hughes who would give up a single to Richard Giannotti that would score Lance Burkhart getting him past second base for the first time in the game. Next up was right fielder John Ramistella, only 1-3 on the day; he shocked fans and players alike when on the first pitch he crushed the ball over the left field pavilion bringing the Blue Crabs into a one run lead for the first time in the game. Three batters later short stop Travis Garcia would crush another bomb to the same stop scoring himself and third baseman Patrick Osborn, to give the Blue Crabs a 3 run lead over the Revolution.

Excellent pitching on the day kept the game close and thus allowed for the Blue Crabs to win. Starter Ryan Bicondoa pitched 7 innings for the no decision giving 4 runs 3 of which were earned on 8 hits, with 4 strike outs, 1 hit batter and 1 walk. Right hander reliever Matt Hensley pitched the 8th and got the win. He pitched a 1-2-3 inning with one strike out. Closer Jim Ed Warden also got his men out in order in the 9th and struck out the last batter. Jim Ed also got his 10th save of the season which ties him for the lead in the league. Patrick Osborn was back at third tonight and was part of one out in the 9th; he was one for four on the day with a run scored. John Ramistella was also in action tonight in right field and was 2 for 4 on the day with a game winning homerun and game winning RBI. He had a total of 3 RBIs on the day.

In Other Blue Crabs News: Tomorrow is the double-header against York, starters are expected to be John Halama in the first game, and Edward Rodriguez in the second game. This will be Edward's second start as he makes a transition from relief pitcher to starter. In his last start he went 2 innings of scoreless ball giving up 2 hits and striking out one batter. The Blue Crabs are still in first place at 2.5 games ahead of Long Island, 3 games ahead of Camden, and 8 games ahead of Bridgeport. York and the Blue Crabs are the only teams playing two tomorrow so hopefully we will be able to distance ourselves from the pack and secure our lead.