Maris hits 2 HRs, Border Cats drop lopsided decision to Mankato

Any baseball player bearing the last name Maris is going to be expected to hit the long ball.

Mankato’s Peter Maris didn’t disappoint on Thursday night, jacking a pair of balls over Port Arthur Stadium’s right-field fence to propel the Moon Dogs to an 11-4 win over the Thunder Bay Border Cats.

The homeruns were the 20-year-old’s first two of the season, part of a spectacular 3-for-5, five-RBI night that sent the Cats back to the loss column.

The first came off Thunder Bay starter Ryan Powers in the fifth, a two-run shot that gave Mankato a 5-4 lead, an advantage they maintained the rest the way.

The second, an identical two-run blast, was just icing on the catch, stretching the Moon Dogs insurmountable lead to seven, victimizing an ineffective Tyler McKee, who took over for Charles Thielmann in the eighth.

A frustrated Border Cats manager Johnny Hernandez said his struggling squad, which slipped to 3-12 on the season has to learn to dig deep.

“The physical stuff is going to happen,” the first-year skipper said. “But the lack of focus has really, really been hurting us. We have guys going out there and they cannot finish a game. They cannot play nine innings of hard-nosed baseball, where you’re constantly thinking about what might happen or where you might be going with the ball.”

Powers, who turned down the Philadelphia Phillies offer after being drafted in the 22nd round by the National League team last month, enjoyed a strong outing, at least until Maris went deep, giving up just give hits in seven innings of work.

Add in three walks, and the fact the hits were timely, and the Ilinois native still wound up taking the loss, just his second in six appearances.

Other than Powers, the lone bright spot for the Border Cats on this night was their own half of the fifth, when they piled four runs on Mankato starter Mitchell Traver, ultimately ending his night a little earlier than planned.

Cory Kay and Robb Paller hit back-to-back doubles off Traver in the fifth, the first scoring a pair of runs, the second knotting the score 3-3.

Two batters later Tyler Rolland plated Paller with a single, and Powers and the Cats had a one-run lead.

Mankato broke open a pitcher’s duel in the top of the fifth, scoring three times to take a 3-0 lead.

As a manager, Hernandez said he’s got to find a way to motivate his players and feel the urgency to win.

“I’ve just got to keep working, challenge them mentally and find a way. There’s always a way, you’ve just got to find it.”

The Cats continue their four-game home-stand Friday night at 7:05 p.m. against the Moon Dogs.