Three times Putnam County came to the plate early in Monday’s match-up with Trenton High School at Burleigh Grimes Field. Three times the visiting Midgets plated three runs.
Before the Bulldogs knew it, they were in a 9-0 hole.
Putnam County took advantage of errors and stranded runners by Trenton, scoring a 12-0 road victory over Trenton in five innings.
The damage was done before the Bulldogs even realized what hit them. Putnam delivered, taking advantage of Trenton errors with timely hitting and putting up three spots in each of the opening three frames.
“I didn’t think we were defensively ready to play from the start,” Trenton Head Coach Andy Hight said. “We kind of dug ourselves a hole and it is tough to come back when you give up a quick nine spot. I don’t think we were 100 percent ready to play from the start.”
Trenton’s starter Spencer Harris, who had been spectacular in his first two outings of the season, struggled at times, allowing a season-high seven hits through three innings of work. His defense didn’t help him any either. Harris allowed nine runs, but only four were earned. To his credit, however, Harris still showed the same strikeout ability that has become his hallmark early this season, fanning six Putnam County batters in the game, an average of two per inning.
“What (Harris) can learn is that these things happen and you aren’t always going to have your best stuff,” Hight said. “He will get better. He is still in the infancy stage of learning how to pitch. He will get better and he will learn from this start, so I’m not worried about him. Of course when you have to get five or six outs in an inning it makes it a lot harder on your pitcher. I was still proud of how he competed.”
Offensively, Trenton was able to put runners on base, but could never get the big hit when it needed to. Trenton had runners on the corners in the second inning with one out but couldn’t score and Trenton stranded the bases loaded in the third inning. All totaled, Trenton left 10 runners on base in the game.
INJURY REPORT
Trenton should get a boost this weekend as Hight believes pitchers Drew Rorebeck and Sam Schilling will both return to varsity action at the North Harrison Tournament.
UP NEXT
Trenton won’t have to sit on the loss long as the Bulldogs return to the diamond today, playing host to another first-year program in Pattonsburg. The first pitch at Burleigh Grimes Field is scheduled for 4:30.