Crawdads Clamp Down and Slam Grasshoppers
April 28, 2007 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hickory Crawdads News Release
Hickory, NC-The Hickory Crawdads manhandled the Greensboro Grasshoppers, 9-1, Saturday evening at L.P. Frans Stadium.
RHP Mike Crotta was sensational on the mound. The Pirates 17th round pick from the 06' draft was perfect over the first 5 innings of work. The Dads' gave Crotta some run support starting with an RBI Sac-Fly from Alex Presley that scored Kent Sakamoto in the 3rd. Jumping ahead to 2-outs in the 4th, Jonel Pacheco earned a gritty double on a grounder up the middle. Pacheco flew around first and hustled into second, beating the throw from Hoppers' CF Greg Burns. The Venezuelan OF scored on a ball lifted into shallow left by Jared Keel that was dropped by Hoppers' SS Emilio Ontiveros.
With Hickory ahead 2-0, Crotta was touched for a run and a pair of hits for the first and only time all night in the 6th. C Blake Ochoa ended the perfect streak with a leadoff double to start the inning. He would later score on an RBI single dumped into left by Greg Burns. Crotta got through the 6th without any additional damage done by Greensboro.
Hickory tallied another run in the 7th. Alex Presley sliced a ball down the left field line, fair by a matter of inches. Presley reached third for his 2nd triple of the year, and then scored on an RBI bullet shot up the middle by Angel Gonzalez. The Crawdads led 3-1 at that point and through 6 innings.
Charles Benoit supplanted Crotta on the mound and the southpaw struck out the side in the 7th. In the bottom of the 7th, the Dads' offense was unleashed. Hickory scored 5 runs as the inning was punctuated by a James Boone grand slam to right. Boone's 4th HR of the year and the Crawdads' first slam of the season made it an 8-1 Dads' advantage after 7.
After LHP Mike Felix worked a scoreless 8th in his second outing as a reliever, Jonel Pacheco powered a solo shot to left in the bottom of the 8th. Pacheco's 5th homer over the past 4 games and 7th of the year put the Dads' up 9-1 at the end of 8. Jake Cuffman retired the side in the 9th as the Crawdads celebrated their 2nd straight win.
Mike Crotta allowed just 1 ER on 2 hits and struck out 7 in 6 IP as he picked up his first win in a Crawdads uniform (1-1). Tom Cowley took the loss for Greensboro (0-1). The Crawdads are now 9-11. The Grasshoppers dropped to 13-9.
The Crawdads go for the series win tomorrow at 2pm at L.P. Frans Stadium. RHP Eric Krebs is on the bump for the Dads'. He'll be opposed by RHP Kyle Winters.
The action can be heard live on 92.1 FM "The Big Dog" and on the Internet at hickorycrawdads.com. Game and season tickets are available by calling (828) 322-3000 or by logging on to hickorycrawdads.com.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 28, 2007
- RiverDogs Encrust Catfish, 7-4 - Charleston RiverDogs
- GreenJackets Shut Out Drive, 3-0 - Greenville Drive
- Suns win again - Hagerstown Suns
- Braves Over Sand Gnats - Rome Emperors
- Crawdads Clamp Down and Slam Grasshoppers - Hickory Crawdads
- GreenJackets Record Ninth Shutout - Augusta GreenJackets
- Legends win 9-1 - Lexington Legends
- Power streak snapped at 14 - Charleston Dirty Birds
- RiverDogs Add New Pitcher, Activate OF Jackson - Charleston RiverDogs
- Donald's Grand Slam Saves BlueClaws - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
