Columbia Fireflies Roster Move and Game Notes at Myrtle Beach
July 13, 2021 - Carolina League (CarL)
Columbia Fireflies News Release
The Kansas City Royals have made the following roster moves affecting the Columbia Fireflies active roster:
SS Maikel Garcia has been promoted to the Quad Cities River Bandits active roster
There is no corresponding move. The Fireflies active roster now stands at 26 with three players on the injured list.
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Tonight the Columbia Fireflies begin a six-game set with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans at 7:05 pm at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Stadium. RHP Matt Stil (2-1, 5.12 ERA) toes the rubber for Columbia while Myrtle Beach sends RHP Richard Gallardo (2-4, 5.15 ERA) to the bump.
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FIREFLIES DROP SERIES FINALE 7-1 TO CHARLESTON: The Fireflies left the tying run in scoring position in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, but then gave up five runs in the ninth to fall 7-1 to the Charleston RiverDogs Sunday evening at Segra Park. After Cruz Noriega (L, 3-2) offered five strong innings for Columbia (29-27), the Fireflies found themselves in a 2-1 rut. Garrett Hiott started the scoring off. The centerfielder for the RiverDogs (40-18) roped a lead-off triple in the third and scored on a sacrifice fly from Alika Williams. Charleston inched ahead 2-0 when Hiott drove Alexander Ovalles home with a base knock in the top of the fifth. The center fielder added a two-run homer in the ninth to close out his three RBI evening.
NEGRET TABBED LOW-A EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Columbia Fireflies outfielder Juan Carlos Negret was named the Low-A East Player of the week for July 5-11 today. During that stretch, the Columbia Fireflies played the top team in the League, the Charleston RiverDogs, and the Cuba-native smashed four homers in six games played. Negret finished the week 7-27 (.259) with a league-leading four homers, seven runs scored and 11 RBI. Negret punctuated the week with an all-time performance July 8. Thursday night, Negret went 3-5 from the plate while also drawing a walk. He set career-highs in RBI (7) and runs scored (4) while recording his third two-homer game of the season, his second of the month.
REELING WITH RUNNERS IN SCORING POSITION: This season the Columbia Fireflies are hitting .206 with runners in scoring position, a mark that is last in the division. That wasn't helped much through the last homestand, where the team finished 11-71 (.155) with runners threatening. They got five of those 11 hits in Thursdays 20-run offensive onslaught with 16 opportunities.
WINDING ROAD TO THE SHOW: Today, shortstop Maikel Garcia got the call-up to Quad Cities. In 50 games with the Fireflies, Garcia held the highest average and on-base percentage on the team (.304/.411). He also smoked 13 doubles and drove in 26 RBI while scoring 40 runs in his time in the Soda City.
WILLIS RESURGENCE: After lefty Marlin Willis had a rough May, where the reliever had a 8.31 ERA across six outings, he has found his way for the Fireflies. In Willis's last five outings he has spun 10 innings, punching out 18 batters while only allowing a single run. A big part of what Willis has done well in the last few weeks has been decreasing his walk rate as the season has progressed. In his first eight innings, of the season, he walked 13 batters and hit another pair, but in his last 7.1 innings, he has walked only three batters while striking out 16. Opponents are averaging .080 against Willis in that time.
WEBB GEM ON THE BUMP: Nathan Webb dominated out of the pen Friday. The righty grinded through 3.1 innings where he inherited six runners. Three came from Luis De Avila, who left the game with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the ninth, and three more from the runner placed on second in each of the 10th, 11th and 12th innings. Webb pulled a Houdini act, keeping each of those runners from scoring and giving the Fireflies bats a chance to win the game in front of the fans at Segra Park.
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Carolina League Stories from July 13, 2021
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- Pelicans Fall One Run Short to Columbia in Series Opener - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- 'Birds Overpowered by Wood Ducks Bats - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Six-Run Fourth Pushes Wood Ducks to Win over Delmarva - Down East Wood Ducks
- Columbia Takes Opener Behind Three-Run Fifth - Columbia Fireflies
- Méndez Extends Hitting Streak in 7-5 Defeat - Fredericksburg Nationals
- Columbia Fireflies Roster Move and Game Notes at Myrtle Beach - Columbia Fireflies
- Parker and Cluff Depart Fredericksburg, Witt and Willingham Return, Paulino Signed - Fredericksburg Nationals
- Down East Wood Ducks Game Notes - vs. Delmarva - Down East Wood Ducks
- A Big-League Mentality - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Cannon Baller Chronicle: Week Ten - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
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