Legends blank Braves 8-0 behind Marte

Lexington starter Yunior Marte allowed one hit in seven innings as the Legends blanked the Rome Braves 8-0 in front of 7,088 fans at Whitaker Bank Ballpark Sunday night.  Reid Redman also allowed one hit over the final two innings to complete the two-hit shutout.

The game was scoreless until Roman Collins hit an inside-the-park home run to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning.  Brandon Dulin singled with one out, and Amalani Fukofuka drew a walk.   Dulin came home on a single by Xavier Fernandez as Fukofuka took third.  Marten Gasparini then bunted for a hit as Fukofuka scored, giving the Legends a 3-0 lead.

The Legends added a run in the fifth when D.J. Burt reached first on an error, stole second, went to third on a ground out by Anderson Miller and scored on a wild pitch.

The Legends loaded the bases in the seventh inning on a walk to Ben Johnson, a single by Burt and a walk to Collins.   A wild pitch allowed Johnson to score, and Burt came home on a balk by reliever Bladimir Matos, who had just entered the game.

A two-run homer by Travis Maezes in the bottom of the eighth closed out the scoring.

Marte (5-3) struck out five and walked two as he earned a team-leading fifth victory of the year.

Rome starter Mike Soroka (2-7) pitched the first five innings and took the loss.

The Legends will begin a three-game series in Asheville Monday night.  First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

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