Draft rocks Blue Sox

STUARTS DRAFT – After a slow first three innings, the Diamondbacks finally came together to demolish the Blue Sox 15-1 on Thursday, with help from Wes Harlow’s two home runs, in the first game of the semifinal round.

Draft averaged one run each in the first three innings with hits coming from Ryan Cooper and a home run from Harlow.

“Everybody’s been hitting well, it’s not just me,” Harlow said. “Everything’s falling into place now.”

Elkton came out in the third inning to gain a run off a throwing error, putting the score at 3-1, but it was the fifth inning that started off the rally for the D’backs. Jason Butterworth was walked as lead off, but a hit from Jay Thompson had Butterworth on second base. Cooper then came up to land a blooper in shallow left field and a stand up double from Harlow scored both Thompson and Cooper. Trip Kiser’s RBI single up the middle sent Harlow home and put the D’backs up 6-1.

“We finally figured out the pitching I guess,” said Stuarts Draft manager Tinker Kiser. “I was happy to make progress with one run each in the first three innings, but those three runs in the fifth really broke it open. Our guys relaxed and started having fun.”

Draft came back out in the sixth to put five more runs on the board. Lance Bragg led off with a shallow hit to left and Brandon Zollman’s hard grounder down the third base line put Bragg in scoring position. Butterworth then dug in and sent one to center field, sending in Bragg and Zollman. Cooper’s hit to center field put Butterworth in scoring position and put Harlow back in the box. Harlow then sent one flying over the left-field fence for a two run home run, putting the score at 11-1.

“It wasn’t anything special really,” Harlow said. “I didn’t eat anything special, just got lucky tonight.”

“We don’t ask him to do a lot of hitting,” Tinker Kiser said of Harlow. “Because of his defense, his hitting is a plus.”

Even with two pitching changes, the Blue Sox were unable to keep up with the D’backs.

“We’ve had four days off,” Tinker Kiser said. “But our pitching was outstanding tonight.”

The D’backs came out in the eighth inning to finish up the scoring with four more runs off a three-run RBI double to center field from Wes Dimitt and an RBI single from Bragg.

The D’backs and Blue Sox play again tonight at Elkton for the second game of the semifinal round.

“It’s a big game, but every game’s a big game for us now,” Tinker Kiser said.