Delk, Rockets rob Bankers

UPLAND — Alex Delk provided the offense.
Then he closed the door on the mound.
Delk tallied four RBIs, including a three-run home run in the sixth inning, and notched the save in relief Wednesday as the Portland Rockets defeated the Twin City Bankers 8-6 at Taylor University.
“We got off to an early lead and I was hoping we could get some guys some break with a bulging lead,” said Portland manager Randy Miller, whose team evened the season series at two games apiece with the Bankers. The Rockets had lost the previous two meetings against Taylor University’s summer-league team.
Portland (15-4) had its 4-0 lead vanish in the fifth inning, as Twin City (11-8) scored three unearned runs in the frame. But Delk provided his team with more cushion in the sixth.
Facing a 2-0 count from Twin City reliever Rob Fox, Delk missed on a big hack at a fastball up and away in the strike zone, pulling his head down the left field line as he swung with all his might.
Delk didn’t miss the second time.
Fox threw another fastball, this time more over the plate, and Delk squared it up and hit a rocket over the fence in left field.
“I was just seeing (the ball) fat on that kid,” Delk said. “He gave me a high fastball, I just pieced it up.
“The pitch before that I saw I was pulling off a little bit. I was looking towards left field. I just made sure I was staying through (it) and up the middle, and I was right on it. It just worked out.”
Delk’s only hit of the game was a big one — he gave Portland a 7-3 lead. But Twin City answered with three more runs in the bottom of the eighth to make it 7-6.

The Rockets scored an insurance run on a wild pitch in the ninth inning, and Delk struck out two of the three batters he faced in the bottom of the frame to get the save.
“I know I throw hard and that is what I have been successful with,” said Delk, who has fanned six of the last nine batters he’s faced.
 Portland scored once in each of the first two innings thanks to RBIs from Dalton Tinsley and Delk, and extended its lead to 4-0 in the fourth on a two-run single from Collin Affolder, a 2014 South Adams High School graduate.
Twin City (11-8) struck for three unearned runs off Portland starter Dan Bollenbacher in the fifth inning. The Bankers took advantage of two Rocket errors in the frame, and the offense was highlighted by an RBI double by Zeth Tanner — the younger brother of former Rocket Zach Tanner.
“Dan had a five-out inning,” said Miller, whose teams hosts the Summit City Sluggers at 7 p.m. tonight. “That is tough on any pitcher. He was typical Dan … he got the next guy.
Bollenbacher lasted six innings, scattering five hits, walking one and striking out nine.
Offensively, the Rockets continued to put the bat on the ball like they did over the weekend in Dayton, Ohio. There, Portland racked up 32 hits in three games, and its hitting stayed constant, totaling 13 hits against the Bankers.
Batting from the No. 2 spot, Brandon Reamon tallied three singles and a double. Leadoff hitter Tinsley had a double and a single, and Affolder notched a pair of singles from the 3-hole to give Portland eight hits from its top three batters in the lineup.
“That is pretty special,” Miller said. “I really think after the 16-day layoff we are starting to get our legs under us a little bit.”
Portland went more than two weeks without playing, as it had nine consecutive contests canceled or postponed because of inclement weather. The Rockets have had 21 games rained out this season.
“It’s super important,” Delk said of racking up a ton of hits. “One through nine we have to have guys stepping up in spots. We did that today and we have to keep rolling with it.”
But for the second time in four games, Portland has left 13 or more runners on base.
Wednesday against the Bankers, Portland left 14 runners on base, including leaving the bases juiced in the first and fourth innings. The Rockets stranded two or more five times.
“We need to have everyone produce,” said Miller, whose team was 5-for-15 with runners in scoring position.