CarL Columbia Fireflies

Columbia Fireflies Game Notes 9.1 vs Delmarva

September 1, 2023 - Carolina League (CarL)
Columbia Fireflies News Release


The Fireflies kick-off their final month of the season with a 7:05 pm showcase with the Delmarva Shorebirds. RHP Ben Hernandez (1-2, 3.86 ERA) takes the bump for Columbia and Delmarva counters with RHP Carter Baumler (1-0, 3.00 ERA).

Tonight is the long-awaited Grateful Dead Night presented by the Howling Dog Collective. The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a Grateful Dead t-shirt, we'll be auctioning off special, game worn Grateful Dead jerseys at MiLBAuctions.com and we'll even have live music at the game. If that weren't enough, we'll even have our first of three-consecutive nights of fireworks shows to cap-off our final homestand of 2023. Tickets are available at FirefliesTickets.com.

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LATE RUNS ADD UP IN 12-3 WIN: A late grand slam from Brett Squires helped Columbia pile up the runs late in a 12-3 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds Thursday night at Segra Park. Columbia flipped the script with two outs in the bottom of the second. Trailing 2-0 with no one on, Lizandro Rodriguez set the table, singling and stealing second. Dionmy Salon singled and then the shortstop Adam Crampton had a throwing error to home plate, allowing Rodriguez to score and Salon to move into scoring position. Jared Dickey drew a walk and the batters moved up a base on a wild pitch with Daniel Vazquez at the dish. Columbia's shortstop served a single up the middle to score both baserunners and flip the script, pushing Columbia's lead to 3-2. Next, Carson Roccaforte mashed his second double of the game to score Vazquez and make Columbia's lead 4-2. The Fireflies left everyone without a doubt after a six-run sixth inning. The Fireflies drew five walks off Jake Maruskin and Brett Squires put the game to bed with his first grand slam and the Fireflies first grand slam since June 25, to give Columbia a 12-3 lead.

HOT START: Carson Roccaforte started his Carolina League career on an eight-game hitting streak. Even though the hitting streak ended last Friday against Myrtle Beach, Roccaforte has reached base safely in each of his first 18 games in the circuit. The lefty is 20-65 with 14 walks and has put together a .447 on-base percentage while swiping 10 bases and driving in 11 RBI.

CAREER MILESTONES FOR RAYO: Last night, Oscar Rayo notched another quality start. The lefty is 21 years old and already in his third season in professional ball. Across those three seasons, the southpaw has now thrown 125 innings. In 131 frames he is 7-3 with a 3.02 ERA. He has held opponents to a respectable .241 average while keeping his walk rate low to earn an elite 1.11 WHIP. If that weren't enough, he also has 138 punchouts or 9.48 per nine innings pitched.

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN: Tonight, Columbia is playing their 122nd game of the 131 games they have scheduled to play. The club has one road trip remaining, as they'll play six against Myrtle Beach. They will also play five more games remaining at Segra Park this year. They'll play five games against the Delmarva Shorebirds from August 29-September 3 to close out their home schedule. With 10 games remaining, the Fireflies trail the Charleston RiverDogs by nine games in the South Division second-half standings.

WERNING OPPONENTS: Last night, a historic hitting streak ended for the Fireflies. Trevor Werner went 0-4, ending his 12 game hittings streak. On the run, Werner was 20-47 (.425) with five homers and 21 RBI in just 12 games dating back to August 14. His streak is the longest Fireflies hitting streak since Edgardo Fermin tallied a 13-game hitting streak from June 14-July 1, 2018. The streak was the third-longest hitting streak in Fireflies history. The longest belongs to Raphael Gladu, who had a 23-game hitting streak from May 9-June 9, 2018.

MASHING SQUIRES: Last night, Brett Squires capped off a fantastic month of August. The lefty leads the team in nearly every offensive category, including batting average (.263), home runs (13), RBI (61) and on-base percentage (.384). While he's had a top-10 on-base percentage all season, his August certainly helped his stock. In 25 games, the lefty mashed seven homers and drove in 23 RBI while slashing .337/.396/,630.

Check out the Columbia Fireflies Statistics



Carolina League Stories from September 1, 2023


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