Four pitchers combine for 14 strikeouts and shutout in opening-day win for Wind Surge
Four pitchers combined to strike out 14 hitters and deliver a shutout victory in the inaugural game for the Wichita Wind Surge, a 2-0 road win over the Springfield Cardinals.
It ended a 14-year wait for an affiliated baseball team to represent Wichita again, as the Wind Surge are in their first year as a Class AA farm team for the Minnesota Twins after the franchise relocated from New Orleans.
The game was scoreless until the top of the eighth inning when Wichita pushed both of its runs across, as Mark Contreras produced the first RBI hit in team history with a two-out single to right field to plate Damek Tomscha. Andrew Bechtold delivered another clutch hit with another RBI single to right field to score Jose Miranda.
But the highlight of the debut game was the pitching staff, which manager Ramon Borrego figured would be a team strength this season. That certainly was the case on opening night.
Josh Winder, one of the top pitching prospects in the Twins’ farm system, scattered five hits and a walk across 4⅔ scoreless innings with six strikeouts. Jovani Moran finished off the fifth inning and struck out three of four batters faced, while Tom Hackimer pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth inning to earn the win. Yennier Cano struck out two in the ninth to earn the save.
Eight of the 10 batters for the Wind Surge collected a hit, while Aaron Whitefield was the only player with two hits. Gilberto Celestino registered the first hit in Wind Surge history with a lead-off single in the first inning.
The second of a six-game series in Springfield, the Class AA affiliate for the St. Louis Cardinals, continues on Wednesday night with left-hander Bryan Sammons starting for Wichita.
After a day off Monday, the Wind Surge will play their home opener at Riverfront Stadium against the Amarillo Sod Poodles, the Class AA team for the Arizona Diamondbacks, at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
This story was originally published May 5, 2021 at 2:43 PM.
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