CARDINALS Baseball Club’s promo side jumped out to an early lead on Rockets and captured a 12-2 victory at Hoy Park.
With 12 runs in the first three innings, Cardinals left no doubt about the eventual outcome.
An RBI single by Craig Dempsey and an RBI double by Frank Delvalle in the first inning, and an error and a fielder’s choice during the second inning helped Cardinals put some runs on the board early on.
Dale Coetzee racked up two RBIs on one hit and he doubled in the third inning. Coetzee got it done on the mound, allowing two runs over four innings. He struck out three, walked two and surrendered four hits.
Spa Mthembu ended up on the wrong side of the pitching decision, charged with the loss. He allowed nine runs in two innings, walked four and struck out three.
It didn’t take long for the Cardinals to respond as they scored eight runs of their own in the third. Cardinals scored on an RBI single by Willem Kraamwinkel, an error, a two-run double by Coetzee, a walk by Pierce Ackerman, a fielder’s choice, a bases loaded walk by Laezaro Lopez, and a wild pitch.
The win was secured despite the team missing key players, one of which was Keith Dempsey who is recovering from surgery. The club wishes him a speedy recovery. His second base position will be waiting for him on his return after completion of a fitness test.
Man of the match was awarded to Frank Devalli for his solid batting and fielding performance. Mare went to Derek Baylis for attempting a strip show while taking a catch at first base – at least he kept his cap on.
This weekend Cardinals will have home games at Toti 2 starting at 8.30am with the promo side taking on Rebels, followed by an 11am Major B fixture Rockets vs Orioles, finishing off with the Major A game vs Orioles at 2pm. All are welcome to go down and watch and enjoy the excitement.
