Columbia Fireflies Roster Moves and Game Notes 8.12
CarL Columbia Fireflies

Columbia Fireflies Roster Moves and Game Notes 8.12

Published on August 12, 2025 under Carolina League (CarL)
Columbia Fireflies News Release


The Kansas City Royals have made the following roster moves impacting the Fireflies active roster:

RHP Kyle DeGroat has been placed on the development list

OF Luke Nowak has been placed on the active roster

Nowak will wear jersey #26.

The Fireflies active roster now sits at 30.

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The Fireflies kick-off a series with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans tonight at Segra Park at 7:05 pm. RHP Hiro Wyatt (1-5, 4.73 ERA) takes the hill for Columbia and Myrtle Beach counters with RHP Alfredo Romero (2-2, 2.31 ERA).

Tonight is a Miller Lite $2 Tuesday. Fans can enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, fountain sodas and 12 oz cans of Miller Lite at the ballpark tonight. Buy your tickets now at FirefliesTickets.com.

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BULLPEN DAY TURNS INTO TWO-HIT WIN: The Fireflies bullpen threw together a two-hit 1-0 win over the Hickory Crawdads Sunday afternoon at L.P Frans Stadium. Pitching was the story of the game and Henson Leal set the tone for Columbia on a bullpen day. Leal started the game with three two-hit innings. He struck out four Crawdads before passing the ball to Fraynel Nova. The righty didn't allow a hit and struck out two with a pair of scoreless frames. Next, the two 2025 draftees got involved. Bryson Dudley worked a scoreless sixth with two punchouts and then Kamden Edge (W, 1-0) entered in the seventh. Edge only needed eight pitches to earn three groundouts to put him in line for his first-career win. After that, the Fireflies sent lefty Yenfri Sosa (S, 1) out for a six-out save opportunity and converted. He faced the minimum around a walk and a double play to complete the five pitcher two hitter.

THE YOUTH MOVEMENT: David Shields put together another good start for the Fireflies Thursday. The southpaw faced the minimum through five frames while striking out a career-high eight batters. Shields was perfect through the first 12 batters he faced. Since the start of July, Shields has a 0.75 ERA in six starts with 24 innings under his belt. The lefty has 28 strikeouts and a 0.83 WHIP on the run. He is one of four Fireflies pitchers with an ERA beneath 2.00 during the month. The other three are Jordan Woods, Dash Albus and Henson Leal.

ACOSTA'S AUGUST: Infielder Angel Acosta is turning it on at the plate over his last 10 games. Acosta is batting .333 with three walks over his last 10 contests, which is good for a .389 on-base percentage. It's the highest mark for a Fireflies player currently. In the month of August, Acosta is 5-13 with a double and an RBI.

ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS: Gonzalez has a chance to break the Fireflies career steals record in one season. Jean Ramirez had 68 steals from 2021-23 with the Fireflies. Gonzalez currently is tied for the league lead with 63 steals. Columbia's center fielder isn't far from the single-season franchise runs scored record either. Eric Torres set the mark with 70 runs scored last year. Gonzalez has scored 66 runs heading for the final full month of the season.

NUMBERS BEHIND THE CLINCH: The Fireflies finished the first-half 36-30 to win the South Division Title for the first time in team history. It is the Fireflies first playoff berth in team history. The club will play their first home playoff game September 11 at Segra Park.

RUSHFORD REACHING: Milo Rushford is currently riding a team-best 17-game on-base streak. While the lefty is only hitting .196 on the run, he has drawn 12 walks to earn a .354 on-base percentage since July 8. The streak is tied for the second-longest active on-base streak in the Carolina League. It is also tied for longest on-base streak for a Fireflies player in 2025. The other stretch belongs to Hyungchan Um. Um reached in 17-consecutive games from April 8-June 26.

BLANK SPACE: The Fireflies earned their ninth shutout of the season and their second of the road trip Sunday. Columbia also finished the 2024 season with nine shutouts. They had 12 in 2023. As a whole, the pitching staff has a 3.97 ERA this season which has been helped by the club's 3.50 ERA in the second half. The Fireflies have the fourth-best team ERA in the Carolina League in the second half. Myrtle Beach paces the pack with a 2.53 mark.

Check out the Columbia Fireflies Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from August 12, 2025


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