Werner’s Homer Not Enough, Bandits Split Series with Kernels
Davenport, Iowa – Trevor Werner’s three-run homer brought Quad Cities to within two on Sunday, but the River Bandits’ comeback fell short, as they dropped their series finale against the Cedar Rapids Kernels 5-3 at Modern Woodmen Park. The loss cements Quad Cities’ first six-game series split of the season
Davenport, Iowa – Trevor Werner’s three-run homer brought Quad Cities to within two on Sunday, but the River Bandits’ comeback fell short, as they dropped their series finale against the Cedar Rapids Kernels 5-3 at Modern Woodmen Park.
The loss cements Quad Cities’ first six-game series split of the season and the end of a three-game win streak.
For the tenth time in their last 12 meetings, Cedar Rapids grabbed the first lead of the ballgame. Rayne Doncon capped off a two-out rally against Frank Mozzicato with an RBI-single, putting the visitors ahead 1-0.
After the southpaw rebounded with a scoreless second, the Kernels got to Quad Cities’ starter again in the third, jumping ahead 2-0 on a Rubel Cespedes sacrifice-fly. While the tally would be the last allowed by Mozzicato, the River Bandits did not record their first baserunner until the fourth inning and would be held to just three through eight innings.
After CJ Culpepper worked cleanly and picked up three strikeouts in a scheduled 2.0-inning start, Jordan Carr picked up all but two of the Kernels final outs. The left-hander blanked the Bandits through 6.0 innings of relief and saw his cushion extend to 5-0, on Gabriel Gonzalez’s RBI-single off Chase Isbell in the eighth and Doncon’s two-run homer in the ninth—his seventh of the season and his fourth against Quad Cities.
Carr returned to the hill looking to close out the game, but was replaced by Nolan Santos after Werner’s three-run blast. The third baseman’s seventh of the season ended the Kernels’ shutout bid, but Santos would stamp out the rally, ending the game with back-to-back outs.
A season-high 6.1-inning effort earned Carr (3-3) his third win of the season, while Mozzicato (5-8) was saddled with the loss despite allowing just two runs in 5.0 frames. Santos (1) earned a two-out save, his first as a Kernel.
Quad Cities returns to action Tuesday night against the Peoria Chiefs, as the Bandits open a six-game series at Dozer Park at 6:35 p.m.