Hope springs eternal with each home opener, especially when your baseball team is off to a hot start.
RubberDucks fans saw a glimpse of just how good their team might be Thursday in a 3-2 win over 2015 Eastern League champion Bowie.
It came in front of a sellout crowd of 7,671 and was the Ducks’ sixth victory in the first seven games as they stayed atop the Western Division.
“It’s obviously a great start,” Ducks right fielder Clint Frazier said. “We’re really meshing as a team right now. We’re hitting a lot of home runs and when you hit home runs, runs come along with that. Everyone was really excited to be back in Akron in front of the crowd tonight.
“When you’re on the road, the crowd isn’t necessarily there for you. I’ve never played in front of a crowd, whether it was high A or low A, that was as electric as it was tonight. It was fun to be back in Akron and playing in front of these guys.”
A look into the future came off Frazier’s bat when he planted a pitch off Joe Gunkel 350 feet over the left-field wall in the sixth inning.
The homer ignited an offense that was stagnant through the first five innings.
Gunkel (0-2) worked the first three innings to perfection before Michael Brantley, on a rehab assignment from the Indians, reached on a two-out single to right in the fourth.
That seemed to open the floodgates a bit as Jeremy Lucas laced a one-out single to left in the sixth before Frazier’s two-out heroics.
“He had been throwing me sliders all day,” Frazier said. “I swung through one. I popped one up and then I finally got one. I guess the third time is the charm.”
Ironically, the Ducks didn’t hit a home run at Canal Park in April last season, but did so this season in their 20th at-bat.
Bryson Myles followed with a triple to left and came home on a throwing error by the Baysox’s Adrian Marin to highlight the three-run sixth.
“We have an amazing team,” winning pitcher Shawn Morimando said. “We can do it all. I feel like we’re so strong. It gives you confidence out there knowing your lineup is so dangerous. One swing of the bat just gets things rolling for you.”
For the second time in less than a week, Morimando (2-0) picked up the win over Bowie (1-6).
This time, the left-hander went six innings of four-hit ball and didn’t allow a run.
He struck out six and walked two.
“Shawn battled a little inconsistency within at-bats,” Ducks manager Dave Wallace said. “There were times he could have been more aggressive in the zone and got some out earlier, but when it started to get away from him you saw him step back off the mound, go to the rosin bag, collect himself and get back at it. For a young kid, that’s pretty impressive.”
The series kicks back up at 6:35 p.m. Friday with the Ducks expected to send Michael Peoples (1-0, 1.50 ERA) against David Hess (0-1, 6.75) of the Baysox.