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MOOSIC — The short power drought is over for the baseball-bashing Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
All because Ike Davis happens to have a pretty good golf swing.
Davis drove a low, inside pitch deep over the right field wall to complete a four-run fifth inning Saturday as the RailRiders recovered from a very shaky start to rally past Durham 5-4 at PNC Field.
The RailRiders were bailed out of deep danger by reliever Jonathan Holder, who entered a bases-loaded, no-out situation in the eighth inning and retired three straight batters to protect a one-run lead.
The shot by Davis made a winner of Dietrich Enns (4-1), who was victimized by a lack of command — and some dubious defense by his teammates — while falling behind 3-1 in the game.
A throwing error by RailRiders shortstop Pete Kozma — who made a superb diving stop of J.P. Ancibia’s infield single before firing wildly past first base — allowed Daniel Robertson to score from first with the game’s first run.
And in the fifth, Durham’s Jaff Decker dumped a hit in front of Mason Williams in right field and wound up with what was generously scored a triple as the ball bounced away from Williams. It set up Dayron Varona’s run-scoring single for a 3-1 Bulls lead.
To make matters worse, the RailRiders failed to capitalize on a bases-loaded opportunity for the fourth time in two nights when Donovan Solano grounded into an inning-ending double play to finish the first.
No wonder Scranton/Wilkes-Barre manager Al Pedrique is starting to get frustrated with the way his International League North Division-leading RailRiders are suddenly starting to look a little rickety.
“We’ve got talent,” Pedrique said Friday after getting ejected as the RailRiders lost a two-run lead before recovering for a 10-inning victory. “We’ve got all the guys who play the game the right way. I got frustrated when they (the Bulls) took the lead.”
All that was erased by one swing from Davis.
The former New York Mets and Yankees slugger walloped a ball over the wall for the RailRiders’ first homer in three games — an eternity for the International League’s fourth-best long ball team. In fact, the RailRiders longest stretch without homering this season stands at three games.
Davis made sure the team didn’t match it.
Trailing 3-1 in the fifth, the RailRiders tied it when Gary Sanchez looped a single into right field to score Cesar Puello and Jonathan Diaz. Two pitches later, Davis teed up a two-run blast into the third row of stands fronting the Budweiser Railhouse in right field.
Holder made sure it stood up.
After Johnny Barbato ran into trouble by surrendering two singles and a walk to fill the bases in the eighth inning, he walked Richie Shaffer to force home a run as the Bulls pulled within 5-4 with nobody out.
Enter Holder, who held the RailRiders advantage.
He struck out Johnny Field, struck out Hank Conger, and then retired leadoff man Decker to end the threat.
Holder, who was 3-1 with 10 saves for Double-A Trenton, earned his first save for the RailRiders by retiring the side in order in the ninth. He finished with three strikeouts while setting down all six men he faced.
RailRiders 5, Druham 4
Durham`AB`R`H`BI
Decker rf`5`1`1`0
Robertson 2b`4`2`1`0
Varona lf`5`0`2`1
Arencibia c`5`1`3`1
Gillaspie 1b`4`0`1`0
Motter ss`2`0`1`0
Shaffer 3b`2`0`0`1
Field cf`4`0`1`0
Conger dh`3`0`1`0
Totals`34`4`11`3
RailRiders`AB`R`H`BI
Gamel cf`5`1`1`0
Williams rf`4`0`1`1
Sanchez c`4`1`2`2
Davis dh`3`1`1`2
Austin 1b`3`0`2`0
Solano 3b`4`0`1`0
Kozma ss`4`0`0`0
Puello lf`3`1`2`0
Diaz 2b`3`1`0`0
Totals`33`5`10`5
Durham`101`010`010`—`4
RailRiders`100`004`00x`—`5
E: Kozma (13). DP: Durham 1, RaiRiders 2. LOB: Durham 9, RailRiders 8. 2B: Robertson (13), Williams (2); Austin (17). 3B: Decker (2). HR: Davis (3). SB: Motter (13); Decker (14), Puello 3 (16). CS: Varona (3); Field (4).
Durham`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Pruitt (L, 7-6)`6.0 `9`5`5`2`5
Geltz `1.0 `1`0`0`1`1
Markel `1.0 `0`0`0`0`2
RailRiders`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Enns (W, 4-1)`5.0`9`3`2`2`2
Webb (H, 4)`1.2`0`0`0`2`1
Barbato (H, 3)`0.1`2`1`1`2`0
Holder (S, 1)`2.0`0`0`0`0`3
HBP: Puello (by Markel).
Umpires: HP: John Bacon. 1B: James Rackley. 3B: Jeremy Riggs.
T: 3:12. Att: 10,000.