The Alaska Goldpanners opened league play with a bang, routing the Athletes in Action Fire, 16-3 Friday night at Growden Memorial Park.
The Panners (1-0 ABL, 6-3 overall) used three big innings and a solid pitching performance from starter Kevin Hernandez to spoil the Fire’s (1-3 ABL, 3-5 overall) first game in Fairbanks this season.
“I was just trying to establish my fastball for strikes and get ahead. Let my defense play behind me, they made some great plays,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez received plenty of help from the Panners’ bats, as the offense which scored six runs in the last three games, exploded for six runs in the seventh inning.
Following a walk by Goldpanner designated hitter Joe Persichina, right fielder Jordan Mayer turned on a Chris Albrecht changeup and belted it over the left field wall for his first home run of the season, and the Golpanners’ second of the year.
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“The team hit really well as far as a unit today, putting hits together and scoring runs,” Mayer said. ” I think that’s the best we hit so far since we started.”
Things went downhill from there for Albrecht, as he allowed the next three batters to reach base. After Jovanny Bramasco recorded his second RBI of the night on a fielder’s choice against the Fire’s fourth pitcher of the night, Jordan Hanslovan, Panner third baseman Bo Mills put an exclamation point on the inning with a blast to straight away center field that cleared the wall just left of the Alaskan flag.
“For a left-handed hitter to hit it to center field, over that blue wall, I’ve never seen that,” said Goldpanner manager Ed Cheff, who is in his fifth year as Panners’ manager. “[Mills] was a little bit off field, for a left-hander that’s some power.”
After a poor performance Thursday night, Cheff said that he felt his team brought a lot more intensity to the ballpark for their Alaskan Baseball League opener.
“We’re playing a league game, and we’re trying to get off to a good start in league play,” Cheff said.
In the top of the first the Panners looked like the same team that was blown out by the Beatrice Bruins Thursday night. Fire center fielder Blake Stouffer popped Hernadez’s fourth pitch of the game into shallow left field. Mills, shortstop Mark Thompson, and left fielder Chu Yuan-Chin, all converged on the ball. Thompson and Chin both seemed to be able to make the play, but the ball fell between the two, allowing Stouffer to reach with a double.
Xavier Scruggs’ home run over the left field wall allowed the Fire to take a 2-0 lead, but Hernandez was able to work out of the inning without any further damage.
“It was the only mistake that really hurt,” Hernandez said of the 0-1 pitch that he left over the plate.
Such a mistake was a rare occurrence for Hernandez, who allowed only three runs and five hits over seven innings, including a three-up, three- down second.
“I liked Hernandez a lot, he’s going to be a good starter for us,” Cheff said of the right-hander from Moorepark Junior College.
Brian Bird came on to pitch a scoreless eighth, striking out two, and Chris Shwinden made his Goldpanner debut striking out one and walking one in the ninth.
Payton Tweddale, the Fire’s starting pitcher, gave up five runs on 11 hits in three plus innings of work.
The strangest play of the night came in the top of the fourth, when Fire shortstop Daniel Morrow was thrown out stealing home for the third out. After Morrow reached base on a filed sacrifice bunt, with Hernandez throwing out the lead runner at third, he advance to second on a Hernandez wild pitch, and moved to third when Steve Shaver flied out. Morrow broke for home before an 0-1 pitch from Hernandez, but the throw to the plate beat Morrow for the last out of the inning.
Goldpanner catcher Joey Dunn sat out the game with an injury to his knee. Cheff said that the team suspects that Dunn has torn cartilage in his knee, and that he will undergo an MRI on Monday.
The Panners are off today, while the Athletes in Action host the Anchorage Bucs at 7 tonight at Growden.
Staff Writer Adam Raeder can be reached at 459-7583 or araeder@newsminer.com
