On the plus side, Matt Manning returned to the mound on Thursday. On the negative side, the Hens offense couldn’t do much to back up their pitching staff.
Manning tossed three innings, allowing two runs in the bottom of the first on a walk and a two-run homer. His velocity was good, sitting 94-95 mph, and he struck out three while throwing 30 of 41 pitches for strikes.
The Hens got on the board in the fourth. Eddys Leonard and Justice Bigbie singled, and a pair of fly balls allowed Leonard to tag and take a base twice.