LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Lexington Legends (27-13) took round one of a heavyweight battle on Tuesday evening, blowing out the Blue Crabs (22-19) in a showdown between first place teams. The Legends’ bats exploded in the early going and never looked back, landing on a 10-1 uppercut victory.
After struggling to begin the season, Sam Burton (L, 2-3) had been magnificent in his last three starts. The right-hander had posted back-to-back-to-back quality starts, allowing just four combined runs in over 18 innings. This evening, he ran into a buzzsaw Lexington offense that is exceptional at home.
The Legends showed why they’re 18-2 at home in their first season in the Atlantic League, pounding the ball early and often. After Burton struck out five batters in the first two innings, Lexington’s nine-hole hitter, Tillman Pugh laced out a two-out, three run homer to break open the scoring. The Legends would pour on seven more runs over the next three innings.
Despite Southern Maryland’s bullpen blanking Lexington from the fifth inning on, the Blue Crabs dropped game one by a score of 10-1. It’s just the third time in 2021 that Southern Maryland has dropped a series opener, falling to a 10-3 record in such games this season. The Blue Crabs will hand the ball to Blake Bivens on Wednesday for his first start of the season, looking to even the series.