The Chicago Hounds exacted revenge on the Yankees at Winnemac Park last night, defeating the Yankees 8-3.

Rookie Nick Schmidt (#23, P) had a fine Hounds debut on the hill, pitching 6 scoreless innings before giving up 3 in the final frame. Tim Riggenbach (#8, RF/P) cleaned things up in the final inning, securing the win. The game was never in doubt–it was a comfortable win.

The Hounds bench was packed at this makeup Wednesday game–15 Hounds made it into the field or lineup–and the Hounds had a strong showing from fans as well–a full 14 Hounds and fans made it to K’s after the win, including the first-ever sighting of Kurt Kerrigan (#12, LF) at the bar–it only took 12 years!

The Hounds offense was sparked by the bottom of the lineup as Tony “Smash” Correa (#13, C) and Matthew Steffens (#5, SS) each scored twice. Nelson Bowers (#48, DH) hat two hits on the day, including a double and run, and rookie Aiden French (#33, 3B) drove in two runs and scored as well. Riggenbach tripled, drove in 2, and scored (Riggenbach had 4 hits on the day). Matt Burch (#6, 1B) rounded out the Hounds scoring. TJ RInaldi (#1, CF) also drove in two runs with a double, and Rinaldi reached on a walk and, his favorite, a hit-by-pitch (HBP).

The Hounds defense was spectacular, with fine plays from French, Steffens, Burch, and Stephen Correa Jr. (#20, 2B) in the infield, and Kerrigan, Riggenbach, Mike DiCola (#28, LF), and Rinaldi tracking everything down in the dense outfield.

The Hounds are now 2-1 (or 2-1-4 if you count rainouts) on the young season, and they play two key games this weekend (Aviators at Winnemac at 12:15 pm on Saturday and the Orioles at 10:00 am at Walther). The Hounds have a tough May schedule, as their first 5 games are against 2017 playoff teams, so a winning May record would be an outstanding start.