By MATT FULKS, tbonesbaseball.com
GARY, Ind. – Behind the pitching of Kyle DeVore and a perfect game at the plate by Danny Richar, Kansas City beat Gary SouthShore in game two Friday night, 5-2, and split the doubleheader at the U.S. Steel Yard.
Kansas City got started early with three first-inning runs off Gary starting pitcher Nick McCully (1-2). Bryan Sabatella started the scoring with a two-out bases-loaded walk that scored Danny Richar from third. Robby Kuzdale connected on a two-run single to right, driving in Ray Sadler and Nick Schwaner and giving Kansas City a 3-0 lead.
The T-Bones added to their lead in the second inning when Richar connected with his sixth home run of the season, and gave Kansas City an early 4-0 lead. Richar finished the game a triple shy of the cycle, on a 3-for-3 night with a double and a homer.
Kansas City starting pitcher Kyle DeVore (4-6) gave the T-Bones exactly what they needed as he went 6 innings and allowed two runs on five hits to go along with six strikeouts and one walk.
Trailing 4-0, in the bottom of the second the RailCats finally scratched across a run against DeVore, when Ryan Brockett was able to get an RBI single past the infield that scored Drew Muren from second and brought Gary within 4-1.
Kris Regas (19) picked up the save with a perfect seventh-inning frame.
In the first game, which was a makeup of Thursday’s rainout, the T-Bones committed four errors that led to five unearned runs as Gary SouthShore scored in every inning except the first and beat the T-Bones 11-4.
Six days after throwing a complete game in a win over the RailCats, starting pitcher Casey Barnes (3-5) gave up seven runs in his 3 1/3 innings, but only two were earned. The T-Bones biggest offensive presence came in the fifth inning when Matt Padgett connected on a three-run home run, his fifth homer of the season, that brought Kansas City back to within 7-4.
Game three of the four-game series is scheduled for Saturday night, with first pitch at 6:10. The game can be heard in the Kansas City area on 1660-AM or worldwide at tbonesbaseball.com.
