Published: May 13, 2008 03:19 pm         

Orioles edge Brewers in minor league, 6-5

The Minor League Orioles battled past the Brewers, 6-5, Saturday morning in local Little action.

The Orioles took the first at bat, but were quickly halted by two strikeouts and a ground out to the pitcher by Trey Barber.

The Brewers took to the plate and Tyler Jennings slapped a bouncing ball that was picked up by pitcher Brandon Loper and flipped to the first baseman, who missed, allowing Jennings to take second. Kyle Bowling hit a single, bringing in Jennings. Chris Glover followed with a double and Bowling came in for the RBI. Two more strikeouts by Loper ended the inning.

At the top of the second, three walks loaded the bases. Kyle Blankenbuehler and Hudson Pratt both stole home on wild pitches. Adrian Kidd hit a single to third, but runner Michael Fultz was tagged out at the base. With runners on first and second, a strike out sends the Brewers back to bat.

The Orioles put Pratt on the mound in the bottom of the second. With one runner on base, Jennings smacked a fly ball to right field to single bring in Jacob Wagner. Jennings made his way around stealing bases, including home. Kyle Bowling hit a grounder right down the middle for a double. A series of blunders brought Bowling into home, but the Orioles defense stood up as Glover made his way around for an in the park home run. Glover stopped in his tracks as he headed home and was tagged out in a rundown by catcher Trey Barber to end the inning.

After the game, a red-faced Barber was eager to talk with The Morehead News.

“It’s been a long time since we won a game,” he said. “We played well as a team today and really hustled.”

The score stood at 5-3 in the top of the third with the Orioles in the lead. With two singles, three walks, and two stolen points, the Brewers relieved pitcher Kyle Bowling with Blake Carver. Pratt was tagged out stealing third and Carver stopped the O’s with a strikeout. Pratt took the mound for the Orioles in the bottom of the third, pitching a no-hit round.

The fourth and final inning showed little action, with both teams holding their 6-5 scores. The Orioles celebrated their second win of the season. “I am really proud of the boys,” Orioles’ coach Larry Barber said. “We’ve had a lot of losses this season, but we came together and started playing as a team today.”

“It was hard at first, and we made some errors,” Loper said. “Trey was pulling balls down if I threw them too high. We worked together real well.”

Look for local Little League updates in each edition of The Morehead News. Need a stat sheet for your team, call the sports desk at 784-4116 or the office at City Park, 784-8686.