TEXAS LEAGUE

Borenstein bashes as Travs snap skid

Zach Borenstein and the Arkansas Travelers broke out in a big way Sunday afternoon in Springfield, Mo.

Borenstein broke out of a week-long slump by hitting for the cycle, and the Travelers scored 10 runs in the final three innings to beat the Springfield Cardinals 11-3 at Hammons Field to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Borenstein hit his first home run of the season on Saturday but still entered Sunday mired in a 2-for-23 slump over his last seven games.

The left fielder singled in the first inning, tripled in the third, hit a two-run home run in the seventh and a two-run double in the Travs’ four-run eighth.

He drew a walk in the ninth and finished 4 of 5 with 4 RBI while raising his batting average from .200 before the game to .255.

He wasn’t the only Traveler with a big day as Arkansas avoided a four-game sweep to the Cardinals.

Adam Melker hit a seventh-inning home run and had four hits in his first game as a Traveler and Drew Heidhit his first home run of the year and finished 3 for 5 with 3 runs scored. Alex Yarbrough went 3 for 5 with 3 RBI, and Kyle Hudson walked three times and scored twice, for the Travs, who scored eight runs in their previous 34 innings before the late-game outburst.

Starter Mark Sappington held Springfield to 1 run on 2 hits while walking 4 and striking out 5 in 5 innings, but exited with the game tied at 1-1. Ryan Chaffee gave up 2 runs in the sixth that put Springfield up 3-1, but got credit for his second victory when the Travs scored 3 runs in the seventh.

Sports, Pages 17 on 04/21/2014

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