Lakewood BlueClaws Blank the Greensboro Grasshoppers 2-0

MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com – LAKEWOOD, N.J. - Chris Kissock, Moises Melendez and Joe Rocchio combined to keep the Greensboro Grasshoppers off the board and help the BlueClaws to a 2-0 win on Friday night at FirstEnergy Park.
It was the first shutout of the season for the BlueClaws, who have pitched 16 straight scoreless innings, a new season high.

Kissock set the tone in just his second start of the season. Getting the nod in the place of the injured Julian Sampson, Kissock pitched 3 1/3 scoreless frames, allowing three hits and walking one. The right- hander also fanned five Greensboro hitters.

Kissock had made ten appearances out the bullpen before being moved to a starting role during a doubleheader earlier this week. He was a last minute replacement this time around for Sampson, who was placed on the disabled list prior to Thursday's game.

Recently-recalled Melendez was next to take to the mound and he improved on Kissock's performance. The southpaw was making his first trip to the mound for the 'Claws since returning from extended spring training on May 20. Melendez (1-0) faced the minimum 11 hitters in 3 2/3 innings without allowing a hit.

ADVERTISEMENT Rocchio completed the shutout with two hitless, scoreless frames to earn his first save of the season.

Jay Voss (0-2) took a tough-luck loss despite allowing just one unearned run in six innings. The left-hander gave up just two hits in that span and struck out three.

The 'Hoppers (25-23) committed a pair of errors, each of which helped along a BlueClaws rally. Emilio Ontiveros' throwing error allowed Travis Mattair to score the winning run in the third.

Adam Howard also misplayed a ball in leftfield that helped Karl Bolt to score on a Freddy Galvis single in the seventh for some extra insurance. Galvis was credited with an RBI on the play, but Howard's misplay made the run a certainty.

The BlueClaws (24-24) will head to West Virginia starting on Saturday with a .500 record for the first time since being 19-19 on May 15. The 'Claws will be on the road for the next eight, including four games with the Power and four games at Lake County.

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