THE baseball bats were busy at Hoy Park on Sunday, and when the dust cleared the Cardinals Baseball Club promo side had a 13-10 win over the Cubs in six innings.
Hitters on both sides were strong at the plate as the teams combined for 18 hits, including eight extra base hits.
Cardinals’ starter Vaughn Nel struggled, allowing six in 2 1/3 innings, but the bullpen let up four runs and the offense banged out 12 to pick up the slack and secure the win for the Cardinals.
The teams traded runs for most of the contest, leading to four lead changes in the game.
Cardinals pulled out the win thanks to a strong fourth inning. Cardinals scored on a two-run double by Ray Merrick off Marrick Baronet, bringing home Craig Dempsey and Nel.
Merrick racked up five RBIs on three hits.
Colin Hill got the win in relief for the Cardinals. Hill pitched 3 2/3 innings and allowed four runs.
The Toti team easily handled the Cubs pitching, as six hitters combined for 12 hits, 12 RBIs and 13 runs scored.
Baronet took the loss for the Cubs. He allowed seven runs in two innings, walked two and struck out three.
The top of the first saw the Cardinals take an early lead, 3-0. The scoreboard lit up again when Nel scored on a groundout by August Gunter and Dempsey scored on an RBI single by Johnny Venter.
The Cubs scored one run in the second inning, and then followed it up with one more in the fifth. In the second, the Cubs scored on a wild pitch, bringing home Jarred Schoeman.
Cardinals got three-run rallies in the third inning and the fifth. In the third, they scored on an RBI double by Merrick, plating Nel.
The Cubs scored six runs of their own in the third, on an RBI double by Baronet, two wild pitches, an RBI single by Michael Jordon, and a two-run single by Dylan Ebrahim.
Cardinals never surrendered the lead after the fourth inning, the runs piling on thanks to an RBI single by Dempsey.
The Cardinals increased their lead with three runs in the fifth. A groundout scored Keith Dempsey to start the scoring in the inning. That was followed up by Merrick’s double, bringing home Nel.
Two runs in the bottom of the sixth helped the Cubs close their deficit to 13-10. An RBI single by Schoeman and a passed ball gave the Cubs life, with their Jordon out to end the ballgame.
