Thunder grab both games of doubleheader
TRENTON » Justus Sheffield was sizzling on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
The left-hander won for the fifth time in his last seven starts, tossing a 7-inning shutout and the Thunder swept a doubleheader (6-0, 4-2) with the Erie SeaWolves.
Sheffield has pitched at least six innings in his last seven starts, compiling a 5-2 record during that stretch. He was on top of his game on Sunday, finishing with three strikeouts and at one point returning 10 consecutive hitters.
“I was just being aggressive,” Sheffield said. “I know coming in from the past playing this team and watching them the past couple days, they’re aggressive team, so I wanted to go in and pound the zone as much as I could and execute my pitches.
“I knew if I could execute pitches, there would be a high chance of them getting themselves out or quick roll overs with how aggressive they are.”
The shutout was the Thunder’s Eastern Leagueleading 12th.
Meanwhile, the Thunder’s offense erupted for all six of its runs in the fourth inning. Six straight batters all reached safely after SeaWolves starter Beau Burrows — the Tigers’ No. 3 ranked prospect — had two outs and a man at first.
Billy Fleming, Abiatal Avelino, Thairo Estrada, Rashad Crawford and Miguel Andujar all had consecutive run-scoring hits.
Estrada’s RBI single made it 4-0 knocked Burrows out of the game.
Sheffield (6-4, 2.99) has allowed one earned run in his last 13 innings.
“I don’t think I’ll ever have my legs up under me at any level because when you start to think like that, that’s when things start going wrong,” Sheffield said. “It’s one of those things where you have to continue to think those guys are there for a reason. They’re in the box to try and get a hit off you, and you’re up there to try and get them out.”
In Game 2, Billy McKinney homered and drove in a pair, Mike Ford singled in the go-ahead run and the Thunder (46-23) took four of the five games.
McKinney went 2-for-3 with both hits going to the opposite field.
“When he doesn’t try and pull everything, he’s a much better hitter, and he knows it,” manager Bobby Mitchell said. “This was perfect evidence of it, and I know it was carrying to left, but he still hit the homer (well). We need his production, especially when he’s hitting fifth and sixth. We switched him from fifth to second because his plate discipline is important for him, and he’s getting better pitches to hit.”
Daniel Camarena came off the disabled list and worked the first four innings before handing off to Cody Carroll for the final three.
Camarena allowed two runs on five hits and fanned two, while Carroll only conceded a two-out walk in the seventh. Those two combined to retire 14 straight batters after A.J. Simcox led off the third with a triple.
Trenton grabbed the lead for good in the fifth on four straight hits — doubles by Estrada and McKinney to start the frame followed Andujar and Ford with singles.
The Thunder and SeaWolves (33-35) were playing a rare five-game series that featured doubleheaders on both Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. The two clubs aren’t scheduled to meet again this season, so this was the only time they could fit in the two games that were rained out in Erie and were yet to be played.