THE Taunton Muskets Baseball Club made the trip across the River Severn on Sunday (May 28th) to face the Cardiff Merlins II for another South West and Wales Baseball League double header.

The first game was a tight affair, with the Muskets edging out 8-5 winners, before a more open contest saw the visitors take the sweep with a 19-10 victory.

After a couple of weeks off the Taunton Muskets showed no signs of rustiness, with Fumihito Yasuhara getting the away side on the scoreboard after a first pitch triple.

However the Cardiff Merlins II took the lead in the bottom of the inning and it took the visitors until the top of the third to positively affect the scoreboard; five hits and three walks led to five runs, which gave the Muskets a 5-2 lead.

Both sides added a couple of runs apiece over the next two innings, before the Muskets added one more insurance run to take their lead to 8-5. Andrés Rivas Bianco, pitching for the Muskets, then got five strikeouts over the last six Merlin outs, shutting them out, to record his fourth win of the season. 

Game two was less edgy for the Taunton side, as they put runs on the scoreboard across the first four innings.

The pick of the offense for the visitors was Chris Cranmer, hitting a long three run home run in the top of the third inning.

It was a complete performance from the Muskets, as they showed just as much skill in the field as they did with the bat, picking up a 19-10 victory.

The Tricky Cider Ltd most valuable player awards were shared amongst three worthy winners in Cardiff.

Kevin Snow showed the quality of his all round game; a few timely hits, coupled with some intelligent base running and his game calling helping Andrés from behind the plate. Pitcher Al Troake battled well during game two to secure another win, taking him to 3-1 on the season.

Lastly, Chris Cranmer, having had an injury hit start to the season, stepped up on his return with a big home run, as well as a couple of good plays in the field. 

The Taunton Muskets continue their South West and Wales Baseball League challenge hosting the Weston Jets on Sunday, June 4th, for a top of the division double header. It will be the first games at the Muskets' new field at Taunton Green.