Russ Canzler homered, singled and drove in three runs to back the strong pitching of Dirk Hayhurst, as Durham beat Charlotte and rehabbing Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy, 5-2.
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Durham now heads home at 4-3, winning the last two games of the opening road trip.
Peavy and the Knights took a 1-0 lead in the third as former Duke standout Jim Gallagher homered to right off Hayhurst (1-0). That was the last base runner against Hayhurst as he retired his final 11 batters. He allowed just three hits and a walk while fanning seven.
Durham tied it in the fourth. Brandon Guyer (3-for-4) doubled and move to third on a Jose Lobaton single. Guyer then scored on a double-play ball.
Canzler gave Durham the lead for good in the fifth when he hit a towering homer to center for a 2-1 advantage against Peavy. The righty went six, and departed trailing by a run.
Canzler came through in the eighth to give Durham some breathing room. After loading the bases with none out, reliever Lucas Harrell retired the next two batters, and was 0-2 on Canzler. The first baseman evened the count, and then lined a single to center to score two. Ray Olmedo followed with an RBI hit to center for a 5-1 advantage.
That was more than enough for the Bulls pitching staff, which surrendered just just five hits to the top hitting team in the league. The Knights (5-2) scored their last run with two out in the ninth on a bad-hop single. Durham pitchers struck out at least 10 batters for a fifth straight game.
Canzler led the 12-hit attack, while Lobaton went 4-for-4, and is 7-for-8 in his last two games.
Durham (4-3) will play its home opener on Thursday at 7:05 as Alex Cobb takes the mound. The game can be heard on 620 the Buzz, and tickets are still available at www.durhambulls.com.