Austin Riley went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs, and Mike Soroka tossed five perfect innings to lead the Gwinnett Stripers (2-1) to a 7-0 win over the Norfolk Tides (1-2) on Saturday night at Coolray Field.
Riley gave the Stripers a 2-0 lead in the first inning with his first home run of the season, an opposite-field two-run shot off Luis Ortiz. In the third, Riley belted his second homer of the game – a solo shot to center field off Ortiz – to make it 3-0.
“I felt good tonight,” Riley said. “I did some damage at the plate. I was really just focusing in on my approach. (Hitting coach) Bobby Magallanes and I talked about staying up the middle. When I am good I am up the middle and the right-center gap.”
Soroka (1-0) struck out seven in his first outing of the season. Grant Dayton and Dan Winkler each pitched a scoreless inning for Gwinnett.
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