With everyone watching Joc Pederson, it was Rafael Ynoa who had another multi-hit game as he helped the Solar Sox secure a 6 - 5 victory over the Saguaros. 5 years Pederson's elder, Ynoa went a perfect 2 for 2 with a double and a single, drew a pair of walks, and drove in a run. Joc, on the other hand, finished the day 0 for 5 with 2 K's and has started his AFL season in an 0 for 9 funk. That being said, it's obviously it's way to early to make anything of this. Rounding out the Dodger hitters was Griff Erickson who collected his first hit of the campaign, a single, but struck out in his other two at bats.
On the mound the Solar Sox struggled early as Surprise scored all 5 of their runs in the first 3 frames, but after that the Mesa bullpen held the opposition hitless until the 9th. That was when our own Eric Eadington entered the game and allowed a pair of base knocks to open the inning. Luckily he was able to settle down and record the save by K'ing the next two batters, then recording the final out on a popup. One bonus when playing in Surprise Stadium is that they track the pitchers, so I can tell you that Eadington topped out at 93 mph, consistently threw a 81 mph slider, and also showed a 74 mph curveball.
Coming up: Rumor has it that Andres Santiago will be starting Friday's game for the Solar Sox, so it will be interesting to see how he fares against some of baseball's top hitting prospects. Mesa will be facing the very same Surprise Saguaros, although this time the Sox be the home team.