Jody Gerut Homers Portland Beavers Past the Oklahoma RedHawks in 5-4 Victory

MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com – PORTLAND, Ore. – Jody Gerut (GAIR-it) hit two home runs and had four RBIs to lead the Portland Beavers to a 5-4 victory over the Oklahoma RedHawks Monday night at PGE Park.

Gerut belted a solo homer to right off starter Steve Rowe in the first and sliced a go-ahead, three-run shot to the opposite field in left in the fifth against Kea Kometani. Gerut, who was batting .192 a week ago, is 10-for-18 over his last six games to raise his season average to .286.

Gerut’s exploits helped make a winner of Shawn Estes (3-2), who limited Oklahoma (17-8) to two runs, three hits and three walks while striking out three in five innings. Jared Wells gave up a run in the ninth but worked out of further trouble to get his third save.

Chase Headley hit his second homer of the season for the Beavers (9-13), who snapped a six-game, home-losing streak.

Nelson Cruz belted a two-run homer off Estes in the first inning, but the Beavers countered with Gerut’s one-out solo blast.

Oscar Robles and Craig Stansberry walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth and were aboard for Gerut’s second homer of the game, which was the first multi-homer game of the season for Portland.

The RedHawks got a run back in the top of the seventh on Casey Benjamin’s sac fly to right that scored Joaquin Arias, who singled to lead off the inning. Oklahoma threatened in the eighth, loading the bases with one out, but Arias lined out to second baseman Marshall McDougall for an unassisted double play.

The series continues Tuesday night at PGE Park. First pitch is 7:05 p.m.

NOTES: Before the game, the Beavers placed shortstop Luis Rodriguez on the disabled list with a right hook of hamate fracture and reinstated outfielder Will Venable from the disabled list … Gerut’s multi-homer game was Portland’s 66th since the club’s return to the PCL in 2001 and the first since Pete Laforest hit two home runs on Aug. 8, 2007, vs. Memphis … it was Portland’s first one-run victory of the year.

Beavers Game File
MONDAY’S GAME: Beavers 5, Oklahoma 4
WINNING PITCHER: Estes (3-2)
LOSING PITCHER: Kometani (2-1)
SAVE: Wells (3)
HOME RUNS: Gerut 2 (3), Headley (2), Cruz (8)
TUESDAY’S GAME: Oklahoma (Eric Hurley: 1-1, 6.93) at Portland (Cesar Ramos: 2-2, 4.26), 7:05 p.m.; live broadcast on KKAD AM-1550 and www.portlandbeavers.com.

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