The Peoria Chiefs picked up another win on Saturday as they scored early and often in a 7-2 win over the Lake County Captains. With a first inning home run, two hits and four RBI, catcher Ivan Herrera was named the Pekin Insurance Beyond the Expected Player of the Game.
The Chiefs jumped all over Alex Royalty from the beginning. With one on and two out in the top of the first, Herrera launched his second homer of the roadtrip and eighth of the season for a 2-0 Peoria lead.
Peoria added on two innings later against Royalty. Brendan Donovan singled to start the inning and Delvin Perez doubled to left for a 3-0 Chiefs lead. A wild pitch moved Perez to third and he scored on a groundout by Brady Whalen to add a fourth run.
After the Captains finally tallied against Chiefs starter Connor Thomas, the Chiefs broke the game open in the fifth inning. Josh Shaw drew a leadoff walk and Donovan collected another hit to put two on with nobody out. Whalen doubled into the right-field corner to put the Chiefs up 5-1 and a single from Herrera scored two more for a 7-1 advantage. Lake County tallied a late run against the bullpen for the final score of 7-2.
Thomas (1-0) earned the win as he allowed one run on three hits over five innings in his Chiefs debut. The lefty walked one and struck out five. Thomas St. Clair threw a shutout and hitless inning with two walks issued. Logan Gragg earned a three-inning save as he allowed one run on four hits while striking out four.
Game two of the series is Sunday at 12:30 Central time. The broadcast, begins with the Pre-Game Show at 12:45 p.m. (CT) on the Peoria Chiefs Tune-In Page, which is free and also has a free app for smartphones and tablets.
The Chiefs return home on Saturday, July 27 to start a seven-game homestand.
