Evatt shows off power in Cards win

By Greg Brill -- sports@nvdaily.com

FRONT ROYAL -- Dan Evatt's home run hitting prowess in batting practice is a thing of legend around the Front Royal Cardinals dugout.

The night of each home game, many Cardinals players find themselves looking on in awe as Evatt launches another bomb way over the walls of Bing Crosby Stadium.

When it mattered Tuesday night, Evatt gave Front Royal a big surge of power against Northern Divison rival Haymarket. Evatt homered in each of his first two at-bats, accounting for four RBIs, and the Cardinals went on to slam the Senators, 10-2, in a Valley Baseball League game.

"I got some good pitches to hit tonight and just capitalized on it," Evatt said. "I saw the ball well and put some good swings on it."

Last summer, Evatt had just one homer total in the Central Illinois wooden bat league. It took Evatt just two at-bats against Haymarket to eclipse that total.

In the top of the first inning, Evatt drove a Dalles Hunes' pitch high over the right-center field wall for a 3-0 lead. An inning later, Evatt took reliever Steve Forester deep for a solo shot near the same location of his first bomb.

"You can tell when he's on and seeing it well," Cardinals manager Joe Scarano said. "When he's able to get his hands back early and really see the baseball, that's when he really hits well."

All five of Evatt's homers have come at home this season for the Cardinals (17-13, 8-7), who lead the VBL with 35 homers.

"We've got several guys that can put it out with one swing of the bat," Evatt said. "Home runs are definitely coming into play. When we hit the long ball, it's huge for this team."

Greg Van Sickler again went deep in the game and improved his record to 4-1 (3-0 at home) by going six innings and allowing just a pair of unearned runs. Van Sickler allowed six hits, walked three and struck out six.

"'Sick' fills up the zone and that's huge when you can throw strikes, get contact and get outs," said Evatt, who played first base Tuesday. "He's not a huge strikeout guy, but he fills up the zone and that's why he is so good."

Oren Rasowsky finished up with three quality innings, earning his first save despite the Cardinals having the game well in hand by the middle innings.

James Roche also had a run-scoring double and Jim Jacquot a sacrifice fly in the first, an inning the Cardinals sent 10 batters to the plate to take a 5-0 lead.

"Basically we had good pitching, good defense and the three-run homer," Scarano said. "It was Earl Weaver ball. Dan Evatt, two home runs, [Front Royal] scoring first, five runs. It helps."

Haymarket (14-16, 6-8) used seven pitchers and lost for the seventh time in its last eight road games.

Front Royal won for the ninth time in its last 10 home games, the only dent coming in 13-innings to Fauquier last Saturday night.