Taunton Muskets struggle on the road against Cardiff

The Merlins went into the weekend undefeated and comfortably leading the Seven division, while the Muskets sat third in the Wessex division.

The Taunton side found the hosts to be a difficult challenge and ultimately succumbed to two defeats in the double header. A competitive game one ended 10-4, while Cardiff ran riot in game two, winning 18-2.

The two sides seemed evenly matched at the start of the double header, as Muskets pitcher Jake Palmer limited the Merlins offence.

The Muskets offence matched the Merlins in terms of hits, but struggled to convert those hits into runs at the same rate as the hosts.

The Merlins jumped out to an early lead, while the Muskets left seven runners on base as they struggled to score more than one run in an inning.

Even though they succumbed to a 10-4 loss there were positives for the Muskets, with Al Troake, Fumihito Yasuhara and Chris Cranmer having multiple hits against strong Cardiff pitching.

In game two the Cardiff Merlins showed the form that has maintained their unbeaten run so far this season. They managed eighteen runs off eighteen hits, whilst their defence limited the Muskets to just two runs and four hits.

It was not the results the visitors wanted, but it was always going to be a tough road trip to last year's league champions.

The Tricky Cider Ltd MVP recipients for both games were Chris Cranmer, for his hustle on the bases and his multi hit game, and Matthew Humphreys, who made a couple of great outfield plays and hit his first triple to cap off a solid performance in game two.

These results put the Muskets at six wins and eight loses on the season, still occupying third place in the Wessex division of the South West and Wales Baseball League.

The Taunton Muskets will be hosting the Bristol Buccaneers on Sunday the 10th of July at Victoria Park, with game one due to start at midday.