Columbia Fireflies Game Notes 4.2 at Hickory
CarL Columbia Fireflies

Columbia Fireflies Game Notes 4.2 at Hickory

Published on April 2, 2026 under Carolina League (CarL)
Columbia Fireflies News Release


The Fireflies are travelling to Hickory to start a three-game set with the Crawdads. RHP Kendry Chourio takes the ball for Columbia and Hickory counters with RHP Evan Siary.

Columbia returns home for their season opener at Segra Park Tuesday, April 7 at 7:05 pm against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. Join the Fireflies at Segra Park for Neon night, including a neon rally towel giveaway Friday, April 10, 8-Bit Baseball Bash with a post-game fireworks show Saturday, April 11 and our first Budweiser Thirsty Thursday of the year with $1.50 hot dogs and Budweiser products. Buy your tickets now at FirefliesTickets.com.

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OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN: Fireflies skipper David Noworyta returns to the soda city for the 2026 campaign after leading the Fireflies to the Carolina League playoffs in his first season at the helm. Noworyta played in affiliated ball for the Detroit Tigers and climbed the ladder to Lakeland prior to being released in 2020. After that, Noworyta played in independant baseball before signing with the Royals as a coach. The University of Hawaii product spent time in Quad Cities and Omaha as an assistant coach before coming to Columbia to manage in 2025.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: Last year, the Fireflies clinched their first playoff berth after finishing the first half 36-30 in order to earn a South Division title. In the first round of the playoffs, Columbia swept Myrtle Beach in a best-of-three series. In the second round of the playoffs, the Fireflies met the Lynchburg Hillcats and fell in the third game of the series, falling one game shy of the club's first championship. This year's roster features 17 returnees from the 2025 roster, including Blake Wolters and Kendry Chourio, who both started one of the three Championship Series games for the Fireflies.

SOME SERIOUS TALENT: The Fireflies have six of the Royals 30 top prospects on their Opening Day roster according to MLB Pipeline. Blake Wolters, Kendry Chourio and Michael Lombardi are the arms in the top 30 nad Yandel Ricardo, Sean Gamble and Josh Hammond are the bats that are representing the list for Columbia. Wolters, Chourio and Ricardo are all returning to Columbia after spending time with the team during the 2025 season.

REPPING THE DRAFT: The Fireflies are welcoming nine members of the 2025 draft to bolster the roster, including each of the Royals' top three selections. Sean Gamble was selected 23rd overall in the first roud. Josh Hammond was selected 28th overall as a Prospect Promotion Incentive pick the Royals were granted after Bobby Witt Jr. finished in the top three of AL MVP voting in 2024. Michael Lombardi was selected 61st overall in the second round of the draft. In addition to those three, Brooks Bryan (C, 8th round), Shane Van Dam (RHP, 9th round), Max Martin (RHP, 10th round), J.C. Vanek (INF, 14th round), Connor Rasmussen (INF, 15th round) and Randy Ramnarace (RHP, 16th round) are also joining the team.

HOME TOWN SPIRIT: Connor Rasmussen rejoins the team after finishing the 2025 season in the Carolina League. Rasmussen is familiar with the Midlands. He grew up in Fort Mill and his brother, Cole, was the long snapper for the University of South Carolina Gamecocks last season.

FAMILIAR FACES: The Fireflies have a lot of similarities to the 2025 team that clinched their first playoff berth in franchise history. The coaching staff is nearly identical. The only difference is that bench coach Tripp Keister moved to Omaha and was replaced with an additional hitting coach, Chris Nelson. In addition to the staff, Columbia returns 17 players that were on the 2025 roster at one point. There are nine returning pitchers and eight returning hitters.

HOME OPENER: The Fireflies play their first game at Segra Park Tuesday, April 7 at 7:05 pm against their in-state rival, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. Each fan in attendance will receive a free 2026 magnet schedule thanks to Service Experts. For tickets and more information, visit FirefliesTickets.com.

Check out the Columbia Fireflies Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from April 2, 2026


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