PALM SPRINGS – The POWER (12-1, 3-1) rebounded from their first loss of the season with a bang, defeating the East LA Dodgers 9-0 on Sunday.
In his first start of 2013, Keaton Hernandez threw five scoreless innings to earn his second win of the year. Mark Lukowski also pitched two scoreless innings of relief before giving way to Ryan Jones and T.J. Bennett to pitch the eighth and ninth, respectively. The win represents the second shutout in four games for Palm Springs pitching.
Playing in his first game in almost a week, Mark Lindsay had a strong day at the plate, going 3-4 with two RBI. Also chipping in offensively were Anthony Torres and Blake Estep. Torres went 2-5 with two doubles and an RBI, while Estep had a two-RBI single in his first start at shortstop for Palm Springs.
The POWER wasted no time jumping in front of the Dodgers. In the first, Torres ripped a two-out double to left-center field and later scored on Lindsay’s single. Torres picked up an RBI of his own in the third, plating Tyler Truitt with another double to stretch the lead to 2-0.
Palm Springs doubled its lead in the fourth inning. Estep stepped up with two out and two on, and drilled a hard groundball to third that hit the bag and popped into the outfield. Reagan Fowler and C.J. Reed scored on the play to make it 4-0.
The POWER put an exclamation point on the game with a four-run fifth inning. Eric Urry walked before three-consecutive extra base hits by Fowler, Michael Massi and Reed pushed the lead to 8-0.
With the score standing at 9-0 in the eighth, manager Harry Gurley turned to Jones and Bennett. The pair each worked a scoreless inning in their Palm Springs pitching debuts to finish the game and seal the shutout.
The POWER return to the field on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. when they host the Inland Valley Pirates in an SCCBL contest. Remember it is “Two-for-Tuesday,” meaning fans can enjoy two-for-one admissions, as well as discounts on select concessions. If you cannot make it to the ballpark, be sure to listen online at pspbb.com.