Dominant Pitching Leads RedHawks to Blowout Win

Originally Published: Apr 25, 2010 7:31 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY – Michael Kirkman and Clay Rapada combined to pitch a two-hit shutout and lead the Oklahoma City RedHawks to an 8-0 victory over the Memphis Redbirds Sunday.

Kirkman (2-0) got off to a monster start, striking out the side in the first inning. Memphis (8-10) started the second inning with a single and a walk and eventually loaded the bases after another walk, but Kirkman got a much-needed out to end the inning unscathed. The Redbirds did not come close to scoring again.

In fact, Memphis did not have multiple base runners on at the same time for the rest of the game. Kirkman pitched eight innings and gave just the one hit in the second, and Rapada finished things off in the ninth by giving up one hit as well.

As Kirkman took care of things on the mound, his teammates gave him plenty of run support. The RedHawks (12-6) started slow at the plate, but managed to score their first two runs without registering a hit.

Entering the bottom of the fourth, the game was scoreless and Rich Hill had held the RedHawks (12-6) hitless. But Hill walked the first three batters of the inning, quickly loading the bases with nobody out. Matthew Brown and Max Ramirez followed with back-to-back sacrifice flies to give OKC a 2-0 lead despite still not having a hit.

Brandon Boggs finally registered the RedHawks’ first hit later in the fourth, but the real damage was done in the fifth. After two quick outs, Craig Gentry and Esteban German hit consecutive singles to put runners on first and second. Chad Tracy drove both of them in with a three-run home run to stretch the lead to 5-0.

Oklahoma City added its final three runs in the eighth inning, again because of control problems by the Memphis pitchers. Ramirez hit a double, and Tyler Norrick proceeded to walk the next three batters. The final walk scored Ramirez and kept the bases loaded for Gregorio Petit, who drove one of them in with an RBI single.

After Petit’s hit, Mark Shorey entered to pitch for Memphis with the bases still loaded. He walked the first batter he faced, again handing the RedHawks a free run to give them an 8-0 advantage. Shorey prevented an even bigger inning by getting German to ground into a double play.

Kirkman’s gem earned him his second win of the season, and he struck out six. Hill was credited with the loss after giving up five runs on just four hits in five innings. The four Memphis pitchers combined to throw eight walks.

Oklahoma City has now won three of its last four games and is halfway through its four-game series with the Redbirds. The two teams will face off again at 7:05 p.m. Monday.