Sports

'Hounds bite Peanuts, 10-5

• The Foxhounds close out their series against the Peanuts with a convincing victory.

Paul Dehner Jr.

ALBANY — Breathtaking. Powerful. Majestic.

Kelly Hunt’s two home runs and deep double off the batter’s eye in center field could be described with numerous adjectives.

Just don’t forget overwhelming.

Five RBI, three runs scored and three hits for the league’s preeminent power hitter paced a 15-hit Aiken attack Wednesday night, culminating with a 10-5 South Georgia loss at Paul Eames Park.

“If you locate pitches against Hunt, you can get him out,” Peanuts manager Wally Backman said. “If you make mistakes, he can hurt you.”

South Georgia made three monstrous mistakes on this night and consequently now has lost two games in a row heading into a key three-game series at Macon today. For that, the Peanuts can thank Hunt and his league-leading 20 home runs.

Even South Georgia’s top two starters, Jerome Gamble and Dumas Garcia, weren’t enough to slow him down.

To be fair, he didn’t see Gamble at his best. In what was his worst statistical game of the season, the hard-throwing right-hander was roughed up for five earned runs and 10 hits in just 4 2/3 innings.

“It wasn’t the way he threw the ball,” Backman said. “It was pitch selection. When he got two strikes he still threw fastballs — or breaking balls and changeups for strikes. He has to bounce one of those then come back with the fastball. He has to keep the hitter off-balance. We told him that.”

The Peanuts jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first on RBI singles by Leesburg native Kyle Keen and Jasha Balcom, but after that, Hunt began bashing.

Mistake No. 1 was a curve Gamble left out over the plate in the third inning. Hunt turned his hands and sent a no-doubter steaming at a flapping American Flag beyond left field.

It gave Hunt  two RBI and Aiken a 3-2 lead.

“(Gamble) is a really good pitcher,” Hunt said. “He’s probably the best in the league. I just got a pitch up to hit.”

Mistake No. 2 came in the form of a Garcia slider which slid a little too much over the center of the plate. Hunt promptly sent it sailing beyond the scoreboard in right center and disappeared into the woods near where the 8-2 score would soon light up the hazy evening.

“I wanted to get a rhythm early,” Hunt said. “I wanted to put some healthy swings on the ball.”

One more was to come.

As the Peanuts pulled to within 8-4 on two more Keen and Balcom RBI, reliever Derek Duclos unleashed mistake No. 3.

The high fastball turned into his third bomb of the game. It flew high in the air to center field and though this would fall shy of a hat trick, it still tallied a fifth RBI and stand-up double. It would have dropped at about 415 feet and in the bleachers at every other park in the South Coast League.

Hunt also hit a home run Tuesday and has three in the last two games.

Balcom continued what turned out to be one his best offensive games of the season in the ninth. He hit the second home run of his professional career over the wall in right field, but it was much too little too late as a Brandon Woolard pop up clinched the 10-5 final.

After the game, Backman completed one deal before the midnight trading deadline. He added utility player Josh Eachus from the Foxhounds. He will take the spot of Anthony Sandstrom, who is placed on the restricted list as he goes to play in an Olympic tournament overseas.

Eachus is hitting .248 with 11 RBI and two home runs this season.

Duclos, who was hit in the shin by a line drive earlier this week, was also placed on the disabled list to make room.

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