SAL1 Hickory Crawdads

10th Inning Single Gives 'Dads 3-2 Win

Published on April 24, 2015 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hickory Crawdads News Release


Hickory, NC - The Hickory Crawdads returned home Thursday night after a 6-1 road trip and brought their winning ways back with them, as the 'Dads walked off with a 3-2 win over the Kannapolis Intimidators in 10 innings at L.P. Frans Stadium.

Hickory and Kannapolis entered the bottom of the 10th in a 2-2 tie, with the Crawdads offense having been shutout since the 2nd inning. Luke Tendler quickly got the rally going when he led off the frame with an infield single, but a sacrifice bunt and a ground out later Tendler found himself at third base with two outs. That brought Josh Morgan to the plate looking to win the game, but Morgan was hit in the shoulder to extend the inning to Jose Cardona, The right-handed hitting center fielder wasted no time in ending the game, as he lofted the first pitch of his at-bat into right field for the game-winning, RBI single.

The walk-off victory extends the Crawdads winning streak to five straight games, and pushes the 'Dads record to a South Atlantic League-best 11-3.

Early in the contest the Hickory offense looked like it would continue its hard hitting ways, as Ronald Guzman crushed a solo home run to right in the 1st before Tripp Martin pummeled a moon shot of a solo blast to left in the 2nd to give the Crawdads an early 2-0 advantage. The bats would dry up after that however, leaving the 'Dads pitching staff to carry the load.

Kannapolis center fielder James Baldwin got his team on the board with a solo homer of his own in the top of the 3rd, but that would be the only run allowed by Crawdads starter Luis Ortiz during his 4.2 innings pitched. The 'Dads bullpen picked up the game from there, with relievers Kevin Matthews and Chris Dula combining to skirt danger and hold the Crawdads 2-1 lead through the 7th. The Intimidators finally broke through in the 8th, with a leadoff hit-by-pitch coming back to haunt Dula when Kannapolis DH Toby Thomas tied the game at 2-2 with a 2-out, RBI single to center.

Prior to the 'Dads walk-off heroics, the Crawdads witnessed plenty of drama in the late innings as two Intimidators players and one coach were ejected in the 9th and 10th frames due to arguing with the home plate umpire. All that drama spilled over into the bottom of the 10th, leading to Cardona's game-winning hit and Hickory's 3-2 victory.

Cardona finished the night 1-4 with his timely base knock, while Jose Trevino extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a 1-4 game. Guzman also added another game to his hitting streak, pushing it to 8-straight contests following his 1-4 performance with a home run.

Crawdads reliever Jefri Hernandez (1-0) earned the win, with four strikeouts and only one hit allowed over two scoreless frames on the mound. Brad Salgado (0-1) took the loss for the Intimidators after allowing the winning run in the 10th.

The Crawdads (11-3) and Intimidators (6-8) will match up again Friday night in game two of the 4-game series, with first pitch scheduled for 7:00 pm.

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South Atlantic League Stories from April 24, 2015


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