(Photo Courtesy: Lyle Ripplinger)
Written By: Cody Shook, Larks Broadcaster
EAU CLAIRE, WI – Hendry Rodriguez started on the mound for the Bismarck Larks and threw six shutout innings to earn the Larks their seventh win of the year and earned pitcher of the night in the Northwoods League. A low scoring ball game for the Larks, but the team was able to push across three runs to get the 3-0 victory. The Larks improve to 7-4 on the season and remain in a tie for first place in the Northwoods League standings.
Kyle Stevens got the Larks on the board in the top of the fourth inning with a leadoff solo homerun to make it a 1-0 game.
Pitching was the key in Friday’s ballgame from start to finish. Rodriguez got his first start of the season on the mound and was lights out through six innings. He didn’t allow a run while striking out eight batters and only allowed two hits. Coming out of the bullpen was Parker Harm and he threw 2.1 innings and gave up three hits and didn’t allow any runs. Evan Miller finished the game for the Larks throwing .2 innings and recorded the save, his first of the season.
“Hendry gave us everything we needed to win tonight’s ballgame and he’s a gamer with plus off-speed stuff that makes him dominate,” said Larks Head Coach, Sean Repay. “Hendry deserved pitcher of the night because he had a great outing and we can expect this to be a reoccurring thing for the Larks.”
The Larks added two runs in the seventh inning when Carson Bartels got things started with a one out walk and that was followed up with a single by Wyatt Ulrich. Ripken Reyes drove both of them in with a double, deep in the left-center gap to make it a 3-0 ballgame.
Great defensive plays by Ulrich and Bartels to cut down runners at home to preserve the shutout for the Larks. Pitching coach for the Larks, Brett DeGagne said “This shutout was huge for our team and now our pitchers get to take batting practice on the field when we return home and these guys are excited about it.”
The Larks improve to 7-4 on the season with one more game on the road against Eau Claire before returning home for a four game home stand. Saturday’s game starts at 6:35 p.m. at Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
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The Bismarck Larks are a proud affiliate of the Northwoods League, the proven leader in development of elite college baseball players. The Larks mission is to use FUN to make a difference in the lives of our families, businesses, players, and communities we serve. This is accomplished with a commitment to putting fans first and providing high quality family entertainment at affordable prices. In 2017, the Larks sold out 27 of their 36 home games in Bismarck Municipal Ballpark, home of Dakota Community Bank and Trust Field, and were named the Northwoods League’s Organization of the Year.
The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Entering its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 190 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
