(Trenton, NJ) – In one of the best starting pitching matchups of the season, lefthanders **William Saxton **and **Blair Frederick **kept Friday night’s series opener between the Thunder Pork Roll and Crosscutters scoreless until the sixth inning. Saxton was beyond efficient in his Thunder debut while Frederick tossed five scoreless innings in his second straight start against Trenton. A five-run home fifth was the difference and Deelan Espinal’s three-run homer into the right field corner stood up as Williamsport’s five-game winning streak ended on a 6-3 loss.
Saxton worked around baserunners in every inning and yet only needed 77 pitches to record 18 outs. His defense helped him out all game and the University of Central Florida product ended his night with his second strikeout. He became the first Thunder Pork Roll starter to throw six innings in a game this season while only allowing four Crosscutters to get into scoring position.
Once Frederick left the game, the Thunder Pork Roll wasted no time scoring the game’s first run off righthanded reliever **Spencer Taack **in his first appearance. **Christian Merriweather’s **sacrifice fly to right broke the scoreless tie after they had previously stranded the bases loaded in the third and fifth. **Jeff Manto **scored the second run after a four-pitch walk, a passed ball, and two wild pitches. And a few batters later, Espinal lined his second home run inside the foul pole to give the Thunder Pork Roll a 5-0 advantage.
The Crosscutters scratched a run across in the seventh on *Jake Ureñ*a’s **second single of the night, but it was short lived once **Kolby Blanchard’s **eighth inning double for Trenton pushed the lead back to five at 6-1. The Thunder Pork Roll committed two errors in the top of the ninth that allowed two runs to score, but with the tying run at the plate, **Niko Leontarakis **froze **Travis Holt **to get Trenton (22-22) back to .500 and 2-2 on the homestand.
The weekend series continues on Saturday, July 30 at 6:30 PM when the Thunder celebrate Faith & Family Night at Trenton Thunder Ballpark with special music and Postgame Fireworks presented by Horizon BCBSNJ! Cloudman's Heroes Week continues with Good Deed Day/Non-Profit Night, and there will be a Postgame Street Party. For full ticket pricing and information for the rest of the 2022 season, partnership/sponsorship opportunities, and information about special events at Trenton Thunder Ballpark, please visit trentonthunder.com or call the Thunder Box Office at (609) 394-3300, opt 4.
New Jersey's Baseball Team | Big League Futures. Major League Fun.
The Trenton Thunder have drawn over 10 million fans over 28 years and have won the three major awards that Minor League Baseball teams can win; the Johnson Trophy for the “Nation's Best Franchise”, the Larry MacPhail Trophy for Outstanding Club Promotion, and the Bob Frietas Award for Long-Term Success, given by Baseball America. The team has given back over $7.5 million worth of goods, services, and monetary donations through Trenton Thunder Charities, under the Grand Slam We Care Foundation umbrella. The Thunder can be found online at trentonthunder.com, facebook.com/trentonthunder, twitter.com/trentonthunder, and on youtube.com/AATrentonThunder.
