History was made at Security Service Field on Saturday and Matt Miller wasn’t surprised.

Like the rest of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, Miller is playing loose and confident with an expectation of victory.

Miller’s RBI single followed Matt Murton’s run-scoring double in the seventh inning to produce a 2-1 victory against Tacoma in a pitching duel.

“We put up some numbers on the road trip and everybody’s hitting good,” Miller said. “So when you’re in a pitching duel, that gives you more confidence to let it happen and you’ll eventually get something. They’re not going to shut us down the whole game.”

The Sky Sox’s 11-5 record is the best start since moving to Colorado Springs in 1988.

“Every single man in that clubhouse plays a role for this team,” Sky Sox manager Tom Runnells said. “There’s not a guy out there who hasn’t contributed.”

Three pitchers combined for the victory while blanking the Rainiers the final eight innings. Sky Sox starter Kurt Birkins allowed a home run to Prentice Redman, the game’s first hitter, but only three Rainiers reached scoring position in the final eight frames.

“All three of our pitchers did a great job,” Miller said. “They keep giving us a chance to win.”

Reliever Scott Munter (2-0) got the win and allowed two hits in three innings while Joel Peralta earned the save.

“They were all tremendous,” Runnells said. “We only had four hits but they were timely. We’ve been swinging the bats real well so this was a rarity.”

The Sky Sox had 18 hits in Friday’s 13-3 win at Reno, got up at 5 a.m. for a flight home and arrived in Colorado Springs at 2 p.m., 3 hours before they faced Tacoma.

“You usually see bad hitting days after travel days like this,” Miller said. “Their pitchers were effective, though.”

Carlos Gonzalez led off the Sky Sox seventh and was hit by a pitch. Murton, who extended his hitting streak to 11 games, plated Gonzalez with a double to right-center.

Dan Ortmeier lined out before Miller drilled a single to right-center, chasing home Murton with the game-winning run.

Photo by