Bennett's wild arm eliminates suspense

After all, the right-hander did walk 67 in 33 2/3 innings last season at Class AA Huntsville.

But Tuesday brought a whole new meaning to the phrase. Bennett walked three, had three wild pitches and played a part in two passed balls during his two frustrating innings of work, allowing Lancaster to jump on top and take away any suspense in a 10-2 victory at Recreation Park.

The JetHawks, who had 12 hits, return home after their six-game season-opening road trip with a 4-2 mark. Lancaster opens their home schedule tonight against San Bernardino.

"I'm very proud of what I've seen so far," JetHawks manager Darrin Garner said. "Right out of spring training, I told them I wanted them to go hard. That's exactly what I've seen, is these guys giving 100 percent, and I know it's going to continue."

Garner particularly was impressed that his team kept the pressure on after jumping out to a seven-run lead in the first two innings against Bennett and the Oaks.

The first three Lancaster batters to come to the plate in the game all scored. Harvey Hargrove and Mike Marchiano scored unearned runs on a wild pitch after a strikeout and a passed ball, respectively.

The JetHawks continued to pull away in the second as the first four batters of the inning crossed the plate.

In all, Lancaster tagged Bennett for five hits and five earned runs, although he did strike out five.

Even though he struggled with some control problems of his own, the seven-run advantage was more than JetHawks starter Jeff Farnsworth would need in the first four innings.

Farnsworth, who came up one inning short of his first victory since May 7, 1997 at San Bernardino, allowed one run on three hits and five walks while striking out four.

Reliever Tim McClaskey (1-0) picked up the win after allowing one run and striking out six in three innings.

Greg Connors added to the Lancaster lead when he crushed a tworun homer to left field in the top of the sixth. The blast was the first of the year for Connors, who was one of five Lancaster batters who had a multi-hit game Tuesday.

The JetHawks also found out they would have their first promotion of the season. Infielder Joel Ramirez will leave for Class AA New Haven today, as the Mariners organization shuffles to reflect the Carlos Guillen and Alex Rodriguez injuries. The JetHawks are expected to receive Jose Moreno from Class A Wisconsin.