Tanner Nawrocki slides in to home safely before the Cleveland player can tag him out. Nawrocki’s teammate Garrett Anderson watches the action while umpire Tom Bromeland is ready to make the call.

The Blue Earth Pirates pounded out 19 hits and scored in every inning on their way to a 23-2 thrashing of the Cleveland Spiders on Wednesday, July 8. The win evened the Pirates’ league record at 1-1. The contest was only seven innings because of the 10-run rule.

The game, played at Veterans Field in Blue Earth, saw Cleveland jump out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning against Pirates’ starter Logan Jahnke.

Blue Earth tied the game in the bottom of the inning. TJ Schmidtke was hit by a pitch and Garrett Anderson reached base on a walk.

Tanner Nawrocki came to bat with two outs and reached base on an infield hit. A throwing error on the play allowed Schmidtke to score and even the game at 1-1.

Blue Earth took the lead for good when they pushed three runs across the plate in the bottom of the second inning.

Lee Hodges led off the inning and was hit by a pitch followed by a walk to Joe Schavey. Kaylan Legred laid down a bunt for a single which the Spiders misplayed. The error allowed Hodges and Schavey to score and Legred to reach third base. A sacrifice fly by Keegan O’Brien brought Legred home and gave the Pirates a 4-1 lead after two innings.

Blue Earth sent 14 batters to the plate and scored nine runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 13-1 lead.

The Pirates had loaded the bases when Legred had an infield hit to drive in the first run of the inning. O’Brien followed with another infield hit to bring in another run.

With the bases still loaded, TJ Schmidtke hit a double to drive in all three base runners and give Blue Earth a 9-1 lead.

A single by Brandyn Olsen and a walk to Anderson filled the bases again. Nawrocki legged out another infield hit to score Schmidtke and TJ Stallman singled to center to plate Olsen with the seventh run of the inning. A single by Hodges drove in two more runs and completed the scoring for the inning.

Jahnke walked two batters in the top of the fourth inning to put runners on first and second with two outs. An error by the Pirates allowed Cleveland to score one unearned run. Jahnke escaped further damage when he made a nice play on a ball hit to the mound and threw the runner out at first base.

The Pirates added another run in the bottom of the fourth inning when Anderson’s double drove in Olsen who had reached base on a fielder’s choice.

Blue Earth scored three more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and six more in the bottom of the sixth inning to complete their scoring.

Jahnke pitched four innings and allowed two runs, one earned, and four hits.

Zach Schonrock relieved Jahnke in the top of the fifth inning and pitched the last three innings. He gave up three hits while holding the Spiders scoreless.

Blue Earth was scheduled to travel to Lake Crystal to take on the Lakers on July 11 and then battle the Waterville Indians in Waterville on July 12.

The Pirates return home on July 15, for a game versus the Morristown Morries, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Results of these contests will be in next week’s edition of the Faribault County Register.