AUBURN - Hopefully, the sweep is as bad as it gets this season.
Glenn Gaston / Special to The Citizen
Auburn Doubleday Chris Demons slides safely back into first base.
Auburn Doubleday Chris Demons slides safely back into first base.
For a team loaded with talent, the Auburn Doubledays continued to underachieve at Falcon Park on Monday, falling 4-2 to Staten Island.
The sweep was the first one in two years for the Doubledays, who scored just six runs in the three game series.
For the third straight game, the Yankees struck first, while Auburn seemed to be stuck in neutral for most of the game.
And for the second consecutive game, the Yankees' Mike Lyon crossed home first - on a Dan Brewer RBI single off of Doubledays starter Matt Wright in the fourth inning. Wright made his fifth start on Monday, and once again came away without a decision.
He lasted just 3 1-3 innings on the hill, giving up five of the Yankees 11 hits, but striking out four. Mitch Abeita brought in the second run of the frame, on the first of his three RBIs on the night - all to score Brewer.
Auburn tied the score in the fifth, when it earned two of its four total hits.
Brian Van Kirk brought in Mark Sobolewski on a sacrifice ground out.
Sobolewski made his professional debut at third base, but went 0-for-4 and reached base on a Yankees infield fielding error.
Catcher Chris House then scored Bryan Kervin on a line drive double.
The Doubledays put runners on the bags only in the first, fifth and ninth innings.
The trio of Yankees pitchers came away with just five strikeouts, but defensively the team didn't miss a beat.
They retired Auburn batters 1-2-3 in the other six innings, which made for a quick game.
Staten Island went up for good in the sixth when Abeita cracked a two-out single to send Brewer home for the second time, but on Jay Monti's watch.
Monti got in two innings of work, but earned his first loss of the season. Abeita's outfield single in the eighth gave the Yankees some insurance that they would not need to cash in.
Auburn's defense went errorless and the five pitchers fanned seven overall.
They have a scheduled day off today before traveling to Aberdeen, which will come as a chance to regroup.
The Doubledays have been hot on the road, which is a change from last season when they held one of the New York-Penn Leagues' best home records.
The Yankees, on the other hand, have won a league-best nine straight games.
Notes: Casey Erickson got his second win in five starts for the Yankees. Erickson lasted six innings and faced just 22 batters. Tim Dennehy earned a hold after two innings and Josue Selenes got his second save of the year. ... Chris Demons and Bartolo Nicolas earned the other two Doubledays hits. Demons was left stranded on third with one out in the first inning. ... By going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, David Cooper's 11 game hit streak came to a halt. ... The Yankees' Taylor Grote went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts in the game, bringing his series strikeout count to eight.
D-days Today
Record: 12-9
Standings:
Second place, 2 games behind
Streak: 3 losses
Next: at Aberdeen, Wednesday, 7 p.m.
The sweep was the first one in two years for the Doubledays, who scored just six runs in the three game series.
For the third straight game, the Yankees struck first, while Auburn seemed to be stuck in neutral for most of the game.
And for the second consecutive game, the Yankees' Mike Lyon crossed home first - on a Dan Brewer RBI single off of Doubledays starter Matt Wright in the fourth inning. Wright made his fifth start on Monday, and once again came away without a decision.
He lasted just 3 1-3 innings on the hill, giving up five of the Yankees 11 hits, but striking out four. Mitch Abeita brought in the second run of the frame, on the first of his three RBIs on the night - all to score Brewer.
Auburn tied the score in the fifth, when it earned two of its four total hits.
Brian Van Kirk brought in Mark Sobolewski on a sacrifice ground out.
Sobolewski made his professional debut at third base, but went 0-for-4 and reached base on a Yankees infield fielding error.
Catcher Chris House then scored Bryan Kervin on a line drive double.
The Doubledays put runners on the bags only in the first, fifth and ninth innings.
The trio of Yankees pitchers came away with just five strikeouts, but defensively the team didn't miss a beat.
They retired Auburn batters 1-2-3 in the other six innings, which made for a quick game.
Staten Island went up for good in the sixth when Abeita cracked a two-out single to send Brewer home for the second time, but on Jay Monti's watch.
Monti got in two innings of work, but earned his first loss of the season. Abeita's outfield single in the eighth gave the Yankees some insurance that they would not need to cash in.
Auburn's defense went errorless and the five pitchers fanned seven overall.
They have a scheduled day off today before traveling to Aberdeen, which will come as a chance to regroup.
The Doubledays have been hot on the road, which is a change from last season when they held one of the New York-Penn Leagues' best home records.
The Yankees, on the other hand, have won a league-best nine straight games.
Notes: Casey Erickson got his second win in five starts for the Yankees. Erickson lasted six innings and faced just 22 batters. Tim Dennehy earned a hold after two innings and Josue Selenes got his second save of the year. ... Chris Demons and Bartolo Nicolas earned the other two Doubledays hits. Demons was left stranded on third with one out in the first inning. ... By going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, David Cooper's 11 game hit streak came to a halt. ... The Yankees' Taylor Grote went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts in the game, bringing his series strikeout count to eight.
D-days Today
Record: 12-9
Standings:
Second place, 2 games behind
Streak: 3 losses
Next: at Aberdeen, Wednesday, 7 p.m.
The Citizens' Say
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