(June 22, 2018) — Robert Carson spun seven shutout innings and Michael Burgess blasted a three-run homer as the York Revolution never trailed and beat the Sugar Land Skeeters 4-1 on Friday night at PeoplesBank Park in the opener of a three-game series. The win puts the Revs at 26-24 on the season and within four and a half games of the Skeeters for second place in the Freedom division first-half standings.
A pair of southpaws met on the mound as Carson and Skeeters starter James Russell went back and forth through three shutout innings.
The Revs got on the board in the fourth when Burgess smoked a two-out, three-run home run to right field, his eighth of the season to break the scoreless tie and give the Revs a 3-0 lead.
In the sixth, Ryan Dent drove in an insurance run with a two-out RBI single off Russell, pushing York’s lead to 4-0. Dent's knock came on a liner out to shortstop that hit the top of a leaping Alvaro Rondon’s glove and went into left field. The run was unearned after Jared Mitchell, who scored on the play, reached on an error earlier in the frame.
Carson was dialed in for the Revs and got better as the game went on. The lefty tossed seven shutout innings with four strikeouts and no walks, and retired the leadoff batter in each of his first six innings. Carson stranded runners at first and third by getting a foul pop up to catcher Luis Cruz behind home plate to end the seventh, the only inning in which multiple runners reached.
Russell went six innings for Sugar Land, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits. He struck out four batters and walked three.
James Pugliese came on to pitch the eighth inning for the Revs and walked the first two batters of the inning. After a sacrifice bunt, Pugliese gave up one run on a Matt Chavez RBI groundout as Sugar Land broke up the shutout, but Pugliese struck out Albert Cordero to limit the damage with the Revs up 4-1.
Junior Rincon was summoned to pitch the ninth and retired the Skeeters in order on three straight hard-hit outs to earn his ninth save of the season. The first two outs were line drives to left and center, respectively, before Travis Witherspoon scaled the wall in left-center to rob Courtney Hawkins of a home run for the final out of the game.
Carson (4-2) earned his first win as a starter for the Revs while Russell (1-2) took the loss for the Skeeters.
Notes: The Revs are 4-1 on their current seven-game homestand and they’ve won two of the games by a score of 4-1.
Up Next: Revs LHP Logan Williamson will face off against RHP Casey Coleman for the Skeeters on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. It is Ag & Farm Night presented by BB&T with Post-Game Fireworks presented by Allied Milk Producers. Tickets are on sale at YorkRevolution.com, (717) 801-HITS, and in-person at the Revs Ticket Office.
Story by Michael Marcantonini
Broadcaster/Media Relations Asst.
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