Crick, Bullpen Blank Gnats in 1-0 Win
June 23, 2012 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Augusta GreenJackets News Release
Savannah, GA - Ben Thomas provided the game's only run with a first-inning RBI double and the Augusta GreenJackets provided enough pitching to make that run stand on Saturday night. The GreenJackets picked up a 1-0 win over the Savannah Sand Gnats, Augusta's second one-run win of the second half and their league-leading 17th one-run win this year.
With two outs in the first, Shawn Payne drew a walk and then scored on the Thomas double to right-center. That's all Kyle Crick would need as the GreenJackets righty delivered one of his finest starts of the season to get the win. Crick (3-4) fired six scoreless innings of two-hit ball, walking four and striking out eight - the fifth time in his 12 starts where Crick has struck out eight or more hitters.
Against Augusta pitching, the Sand Gnats managed to get a runner into scoring position only once. ZeEric McQueen doubled with one out in the fifth inning, but was left stranded there to end the inning. An error put a runner aboard against Steven Neff in the seventh, but Jeff Arnold threw out his second would-be basestealer of the game to allow Neff to face the minimum in the inning.
After Jacob Dunnington threw a perfect eighth inning, the GreenJackets had a chance to add another run in the ninth when Payne led off the inning with a triple. However, Payne was cut down at the plate trying to score on a wild pitch for the inning's second out and the scoring chance fell by the wayside.
Cam Maron led off the ninth against Cody Hall with an infield single, but Hall got Dustin Lawley to fly out and Brian Harrison to hit into a game-ending double play to seal the win and his 12th save of the season. The save was Hall's second of the series and it allowed him to move back into a tie with Savannah's TJ Chism for the league-lead in the category.
Michael Fulmer (4-4) took a hard-luck loss for the Sand Gnats, allowing a run on two hits and three walks in six innings. He struck out a career-high eight - all in his first four innings. The Sand Gnats bullpen combined to retire all but one of the nine hitters they faced to hold the deficit at one run.
The win is the GreenJackets' seventh shutout win of the year and they are now 7-2 in shutout games. Also, the GreenJackets have won all three 1-0 games they've played this season.
In the series finale on Sunday, the GreenJackets look to take three of four from the Sand Gnats to open the second half with lefty Adalberto Mejia (4-4, 5.73) on the mound to face Jimmy Fuller in Fuller's first start of the year. First pitch from Savannah comes at 2:05 p.m. with radio pregame coverage beginning at 1:50 p.m. on ESPN Radio 1340 AM and online at www.greenjacketsbaseball.com.
The GreenJackets return home on Monday June 25th to open their longest homestand of the year with the first of a four-game series against the Asheville Tourists. Single-game tickets for any GreenJackets home game are currently available by calling the GreenJackets front office at 706-922-WINS and online at www.greenjacketsbaseball.com.
South Atlantic League Stories from June 23, 2012
- Intimidators Outlast Shorebirds in 14 Innings - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Another Unlucky Seven Costs Charleston Again - Charleston RiverDogs
- Deshields Breaks Stolen Base Record as Legends Win 5-2 - Lexington Legends
- Goodwin Goes off in Suns' 10-8 Win over BlueClaws - Hagerstown Suns
- Suns Shine Offensively with 4 Homers in 10-8 Win - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Power lose 5-2 - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Maron Extends Hitting Streak in Gnats' 1-0 Loss Saturday - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Bats Quiet Again in Tourists' 9-3 Loss to the Braves - Asheville Tourists
- 'Dads Crunch the Grasshoppers with 11-5 Win - Hickory Crawdads
- Crick, Bullpen Blank Gnats in 1-0 Win - Augusta GreenJackets
- Power Game Notes - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Shorebirds Game Notes: at Kannapolis - Delmarva Shorebirds
- De Los Santos Placed on DL - Rome Emperors
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