A BRIGHT SUNDAY FOR HAWKS
Tall right-hander proves he's not only a pitcherDENVER — In a rare stint as a reliever, Ryan Bright mowed down the Pioneers in 12-up, 12-down fashion. No hits. No walks.
But enough about his secondary talents.
It was Bright the hitter that made the most noise Sunday, as the Redhawks clobbered the struggling Pioneers 15-3 at Colorado Academy. Taking his first cuts of the season, Bright went 3-for-4 with a homer and five RBI to pace the Hawks' 18-hit attack.
"Light Bright was on," third baseman J.T. Ming said.
Granted, using Bright for his hitting talents would be like hiring Jenna Haze for lap dances and then discovering she was a very good painter, but it worked.
Bright actually started the game at shortstop, as veteran Paul Willis pitched the first half of the game en route to his initial win of the season. Bright then earned a save, one of those three-innings-or-more-to-close-a-game-no-matter-what-the-score saves.
Playing without regular middle infielders Sam Makovsky and Kenneth Weber, Bright began with Matt Pennel as his middle-infield partner. It proved to be a precursor of things to come, as the Redhawks (4-1) mixed and matched positions in a rare comfortable win. The Hawks had opened against the league's four premier squads.
All 12 players in attendance batted the entire game, with Chuck Gillem, Tommy Cowan, Danny Qiu, Pat Davis and Thomas Carle all collecting two hits apiece. Only Pennel (0-for-3, walk, run scored) did not register a hit.
Center fielder Garrett Steinert entered 7-for-10 this season but went 1-for-4 with an RBI double.
"This was supposed to be a stat-padding game, but I couldn't sit back," Steinert said. "I ended up sucking (schlong)."
Notes: NABA has contacted the Redhawks about playing a makeup game on May 27 and the team is interested. The game figures to be scheduled this week if the Lumberkings or Boco is available. . . . Bright hasn't allowed an earned run in 19 innings this season (five runs overall). . . . The Redhawks struck out only four times, and none until the sixth. . . . Willis allowed six hits, all singles and four of the infield variety.
Redhawks . . . . . . . . . . . . 603 120 03 - 15 18 2
Pioneers . . . . . . . . . . . . 012 000 00 — 3 6 5
Redhawks hitting (ab-r-h-rbi) — Gillem c-cf 5-1-2-1, Steinert cf 4-1-1-1, Ming 3b-rf 3-0-1-0, Cowan 1b-ss 4-3-2-1, Qiu 3b 3-3-2-2, Davis dh-c 4-2-2-2, Bright ss-p 4-1-3-5, Pennel 2b-1b 3-1-0-0, Willis p-lf 4-1-1-0, Carle rf 3-2-2-2, Lyons lf-1b 4-0-1-1, Johnson rf-2b 4-0-1-0. Totals 45-15-18-15.
Pitching (ip-h-r-er-bb-k) — Willis (W 1-0) 4-6-3-1-0-4, Bright 4-0-0-0-0-3.
E — Pennel, Cowan.
LOB — Redhawks 10, Pioneers 4.
2B — Steinert (2), Ming (1), Carle (2), Lyons (2), Johnson (1).
HR — Bright (1).
SB — Cowan 3 (3), Carle 3 (3), Gillem 2 (3), Qiu (2).
HBP — Qiu, Ming.
