3B Jonathan Rodriguez crushed a grand slam while 1B Michael Ohlman provided four RBIs to help lead the 1st-Half North Division Champion Springfield Cardinals to the 11-1 blowout win against the Corpus Christi Hooks before 5,818 fans at Whataburger Field on Friday night. The 10-run win is the largest margin of victory for Springfield this year, as the Cardinals nail down the series win by taking the first two in a row in Corpus Christi.
The Cardinals (4-3, 45-32) came out swinging with a four-run, two-out rally against RHP Francis Martes (L, 5-3) in the top of the first. With two away and nobody on, RF Nick Martini initially extended the inning with a two-out walk. LF Luke Voit followed with a single, before an RBI base hit from SS Paul DeJong brought in Martini for the game's first run and DeJong's team-leading 47th RBI. After a C Carson Kelly walk loaded the bases, 1B Michael Ohlman unloaded the bases with a three-run double to open the lead to 4-0.
Cardinals RHP Andrew Morales kept the Hooks (4-4, 51-27) bats in check through his first two innings, before Springfield doubled the lead with four more runs in the top of the third. Facing RHP Eric Peterson, Ohlman sparked the rally with a one-out walk. DH Luis Cruz singled himself aboard to put two men on, before Peterson induced a lineout from SS Juan Herrera. With two on and two down, CF Harrison Bader reached on an infield single inside the third base line, loading the bases with two away for 3B Jonathan Rodriguez. Rodriguez promptly unloaded a grand slam with a towering shot inside the left field foul pole, clearing the bases with the Cardinals first slam of the season and doubling the lead to 8-0.
Springfield kept adding to the lead with two more runs in the top of the sixth inning. DeJong led off with a single, followed quickly by a walk from Kelly. Ohlman then struck again with an RBI double, his second double and fourth RBI of the game, bringing in DeJong and moving Kelly to third. One out later, Kelly came darting home on an RBI groundout from SS Juan Herrera, stretching the lead to 10-0.
The Cardinals added an 11th run on an RBI fielder's choice by Cruz in the top of the eighth, before the Hooks found a way onto the board in the bottom of the eighth. RHP Heath Wyatt (W, 1-1) had blanked Corpus Christi in the sixth and seventh, but CF James Ramsey opened the eighth against him with a single. RF Alejandro Garcia singled as well, but then Wyatt induced a 4-6-3 double play to leave only Ramsey at third base with two away. SS Jack Mayfield, though, came through with an RBI double, bringing in Ramsey to get the Hooks their first run of the night and make it 11-1.
Wyatt got out of the eighth with no further damage, before RHP Rowan Wick slammed the door with a pair of strikeouts in a perfect ninth inning, closing the 11-1 runaway win for the Cardinals.
