Wise Kraken 48.2032: Bill Lewis Pitches Shutout

[aaronweiner]

OK, so you can say that the shutout lowered his ERA from 8.41 to 6.70 on the year. You can say that Norris Rutledge didn't play and that a pitcher with 25 walks in his other 41.2 innings got lucky that they kept swinging. You could even point out that he had great defense, getting two double plays. But the box score doesn't lie in this case: Bill Lewis had one of the best games of the young season so far, throwing a complete-game shutout while facing just 30 batters, walking none, and posting a game score of 84.

Unsurprisingly, Lewis himself was completely nonplussed after the game, as the beleaguered righty has been the subject of chatter about sending him to AAA Dodge City and replacing him with one of the Kraken's young starters.

"I mean, this is just the greatest moment of my career here," said Lewis. "I don't have any idea what to say, I'm just beside myself with joy."

All five of the hits Lewis allowed were singles, and no runner reached third base in the entire game. Another member of the Kraken who has come under fire, Chris Klein, provided most of the offense for Carolina, going 2-4 with four RBI and a three-run homer in the third inning that closed out the scoring for the ballgame. Jacksonville #3 starter Mario Mendez fell to 5-2 with the loss.

"Yes, I had a good game, but today belonged to Bill," said Klein. "I'm really glad for him; he's had a lot of struggles this year, and that's the kind of game he really needed."