Columbia Fireflies Game Note at Hickory 6.20
Published on June 20, 2026 under Carolina League (CarL)
Columbia Fireflies News Release
The Fireflies continue their series with the Hickory Crawdads tonight at L.P. Frans Stadium at 7 pm. RHP Shane Van Dam (1-4, 5.10 ERA) gets the ball for Columbia and Hickory counters with RHP AJ Russell (0-1, 3.52 ERA).
The Fireflies return home for 12 games in 13 days from June 30-July 12. The team will celebrate America's 250th birthday with the biggest fireworks show of the year, Saturday, July 4 and will continue with fireworks and a patriotic theme all weekend thanks to SC 250. The next weekend, the club is throwing it back to the 90s for the return of the Capital City Bombers thanks to Cassell Brothers Home Services. Join the team for a bobble plane giveaway Friday, July 10 and a drone show Saturday, July 11. Buy your tickets now at FirefliesTickets.com.
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FIREFLIES BESTED 10-0 IN FIRST GAME OF SECOND HALF: The Fireflies let up six runs in the sixth inning as they fell 10-0 to the Hickory Crawdads Friday night at L.P. Frans Stadium. It was the third time Columbia was shut out this season and is tied for the largest margin of defeat for Columbia this year. The Hickory Crawdads struck first in the third inning. Sebastian Baquera got a one-out single to start the frame. After that, Hickory got three-consecutive to reach against Fireflies' starter Coleman Picard (L, 0-1). Marco Argudin knocked a single up the middle to score Baquera to open up the scoring. After that, Paulino Santana walked and the two runners advanced on a wild pitch. Next, Angel Arredondo scorched a single into right to score the two runners to make it 3-0 in favor of Hickory and chase Picard from the game. Hickory added six more runs in the fifth inning. Deward Tovar had a big two out double to keep the inning alive and give the Crawdads a 6-0 lead. All-in-all the Crawdads led 9-0 off three hits, three walks, three errors and a fielder's choice where everyone reached safely. The Crawdads scored their final run in the seventh inning. Daniel Flames reached on an error from Ivan Sosa and later scored from a Yolfran Castillo single with a pair of outs to give the Crawdads their 10-0 lead.
STERLING STARTERS: The Fireflies starting rotation has the fourth-best ERA in Minor League Baseball this season. The group has recorded an 11-13 record combined with a 3.49 ERA over 286.1 innings through the first 67 games of the season. Fireflies starters have 295 strikeouts and have held opponents to a .237 AVG on the season. The Jupiter Hammerheads lead the way with a 3.29 ERA over 276.1 innings in their first 66 contests.
TWO OUT MAGIC: The Fireflies have been on a roll with their back against the wall. Last night, Columbia scored three runs with two outs in the game, but that isn't an isolated incident. In their last nine games since June 10, the Fireflies are leading the league with a .257 average with a pair of outs. They have scored 19 runs over the span.
LUMINOUS LOMBARDI: Michael Lombardi has been a master of the strikeout this season. Friday, he etched six strikeouts across 4.2 innings of work. Lombardi has the second-most strikeouts (74) in Single-A over 46.1 innings of work. Palm Beach's Cade Crossland is first with 78. Lombardi has the second-best K/9 rate in Minor League Baseball among pitchers with at least 45 innings this season (14.37). Seth Hernandez leads the way at 15.04. Lombardi also has the fourth-best strikeout percentage in Minor League Baseball among players with at least 45 innings pitched this season. Arkansas's Kade Anderson leads the way. He has struck out 43.2% of batters faced this season.
HIP HIP, JOSE: Tuesday, Jose Gutierrez worked seven innings and allowed three runs off five hits while striking out four Hickory Crawdads. It was the righty's third-consecutive quality start. The last time a Fireflies pitcher spun seven or more innings came in 2024. Jonatan Bernal worked seven frames in a 9-0 drubbing of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans at Pelicans Ballpark August 14. In the month of June, Gutierrez is 3-0 with a 2.37 ERA. He has 17 strikeouts and only one walk across 19 innings to combine with a 0.84 WHIP.
IT'S HOT IN COLUMBIA: The Fireflies have won eight of their last 11 games dating back to June 6. The club turned on the heat in June after finishing both April and May below .500. Columbia carries an 11-5 record over the first half of their June slate.
Carolina League Stories from June 20, 2026
- Poteet Launches Another Home Run, Birds Washed Away by Shorebirds, 8-1 - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Bats Go Quiet against Ballers in Saturday Shutout - Fayetteville Woodpeckers
- Guanipa Hits Walk-Off in Chaotic Soul Victory - Augusta GreenJackets
- Wilson Capitalizes on Mistakes, Walks off Charleston - Wilson Warbirds
- Shorebirds Win Second Straight Behind Herbert's Brilliance - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Flemming Drives in Three, RiverDogs Lose Lead Late in 6-5 Loss - Charleston RiverDogs
- Crawdads Blank Columbia 6-0 on Saturday Night - Hickory Crawdads
- Early Offense Propels FredNats to 10-2 Win Over Salem - Fredericksburg Nationals
- Columbia Blanked 6-0 by Crawdads Saturday - Columbia Fireflies
- Columbia Fireflies Game Note at Hickory 6.20 - Columbia Fireflies
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