McClure's bat leads team to victory
By LANCE FLEMING / Abilene Reporter-News
Jason McClure can't really explain it, and Abilene manager Barry Jones would prefer he didn't try.
He'd simply rather his hot-hitting outfielder not think about the streak he's on and just go out and play.
That's what McClure did Thursday night as he collected a pair of hits, including a game-breaking two-run homer, to lift his season average to .413 as the Prairie Dogs beat Lubbock, 8-2, in front of 1,592 fans at Scott Field.
Most of McClure's damage has come against Lubbock.
While McClure leads the league in hitting at .413, he's hitting an incredible .527 (29 for 55) against the Crickets. Included in that are three home runs, 19 RBI and 14 runs scored.
"It's still the same thing," McClure said. "I've just been more patient at the plate. I'm going out there and watching the bad pitches and swinging at the good ones."
He swung at a good one in the fifth inning when he broke open a 2-1 game.
With two outs and Scott Bethea on first after a single, McClure hammered the first pitch he saw from Alonso Beltran deep over the wall in leftfield for a two-run homer and a 4-1 Prairie Dog lead.
That three-run cushion helped Abilene starter Louis Maberry pick up the victory, despite just going five innings before his right arm got sore and he left the game.
"Anytime in this league that you have two pitchers dueling like that early in a game, one hit can make a difference," McClure said. "I just wanted to do my job, and if I happen to get us started then that just happens. Today just happened to be my day."
Maberry kept the Prairie Dogs in the game for five innings, allowing just one run and tying the team's single-season high in strikeouts with seven. Four of those came in the first two innings as he had the Crickets completely off-balance.
"My curveball was working better than it has been recently," Maberry said. "But to have some success, you have to have more than a fastball.
"This team will score runs, and I knew it was just a matter of time," he said. "I figured we would eventually get some runs, and the main thing I needed to do was keep us in the game."
He did just that, and the Prairie Dogs eventually pulled away with one run in the sixth and three in the seventh.
McClure had a bases-loaded walk in the sixth, and shortstop Jeff Motes added a two-run triple in the seventh inning.
Relief pitcher Barry Takahashi pitched very well over the final four innings to earn the save, the first of his professional career.
"Louis kept us in the game for five innings, and then Barry pitched well for four innings," Jones said. "That's all I ask our starting pitchers to do: Keep us in the game and give us a chance.
"As far as Jason McClure, he's just incredible right now," he said. "I've told him to not even think about it right now and to wait until the season is over to wake up."