Zack Sterner carried the shutout through the seventh and eighth innings. The steady reliever gave up two hits, but was never threatened and struck out three. Jared Simon gave up a run in the ninth, but nothing more, to close out the win and earn his franchise-best 29th save of the season.
The win, coupled with a rainout in West Virginia, moved the BlueClaws within 3 ½ games of the Power. Lakewood (40-26, 78-58) has four games remaining in the regular season, while the Power have five to go, all at home against Kannapolis.
Lakewood put the Suns in a hole in the fourth inning. Tim Kennelly came home on an Ozzie Rodriguez wild pitch to make it a 1-0 Lakewood lead. That was the only run the BlueClaws managed against Martinez (1- 2), who gave up six hits in six innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out three.
The BlueClaws extended their lead in the seventh with a run off of Hagerstown's top reliever, Dan Leatherman. Derrick Mitchell drove in Travis Mattair with his 32nd double of the season. Mattiar had a big day, picking up three of Lakewood's nine hits on the game.
The Suns (24-42, 58-77) finally got on the board in the ninth off of Simon thanks to a pair of base hits. It was the first time in the game that Hagerstown was able to pick up multiple hits in the same inning, as a Garrett Bass single scored Blake Stouffer from second to break up the clean sheet.
The BlueClaws have just one game remaining at FirstEnergy Park in the regular season. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. with Mike Cisco (2-1) starting for the BlueClaws and Cole Kimball (6-8) making his sixth start of the season against Lakewood.
Fans are encouraged to arrive early, as the Principal Family Fun Fest will begin at FirstEnergy Park at 4:00 p.m. There will also be post-game fireworks following the final out, presented by Toyota and Scion World of Lakewood.