Davidson, Knights Walk off with Exciting 7-5 Win Monday
Published on June 30, 2014 under International League (IL1)
Charlotte Knights News Release
(Uptown Charlotte, NC) - Matt Davidson already homered in the game when he stepped to the plate in the bottom of the 10th inning with the game tied 5-5. After a long day of baseball in the Queen City, he sent everyone home with one swing of the bat.
Davidson launched a walk-off, game-winning two-run home run over the left field wall to lead the Charlotte Knights to a 7-5 victory over the Gwinnett Braves on Monday in game two of the team's day-night doubleheader from BB&T Ballpark. It was Charlotte's first walk-off win of the season.
The 23-year-old slugger finished off an impressive month of June -- one that saw him hit a team-high nine home runs and drive in 14 RBIs. After his two-home run outburst on Monday, Davidson now has a team-best 15 home runs this season. He's tied for second in the International League with Toledo's Mike Hessman.
Acquired in an offseason trade with Arizona, Davidson now has 95 home runs combined over six Minor League seasons. He hit 17 last year with Triple-A Reno in 115 games. He hit a career-high 23 in 2012 with Mobile (Double-A).
As a team, the Knights hit four home runs in game two and two home runs in game one. Davidson's second home run -- the game-winner -- was Charlotte's 100th of the season -- which is tops in the IL this year. Tyler Saladino homered in each of the games on Monday and has eight for the season. Blake Tekotte also homered in game two and now has 10 on the year.
Reliever Ryan Kussmaul (2-3, 4.10) allowed just one walk over two scoreless innings to earn the win. Matt Zaleski made his first start of the season and allowed four runs on six hits over three innings. Zaleski has now started 71 games in his Knights career, which is good for second all-time in franchise history. He's just two back of Charlie Haeger (73).
Davidson's game-winning blast came off former Knights starter Terry Doyle (0-1, 5.14), who allowed two runs on three hits over 1.1 innings pitched. Doyle, who pitched for the Knights in 2012 and was pitching for Double-A Birmingham earlier this season, was saddled with his first loss with the G-Braves.
The Knights welcomed 16,964 fans through the gates on Monday (combined over two games) and went over the 400,000 mark for the season. Overall, the Knights have welcomed 402,723 fans over 42 games this season -- the highest mark in all of Minor League Baseball.
The Knights and Braves split the doubleheader, with Gwinnett victorious in game one by a score of 11-5. The Knights have won three of their last four games against the Braves and finished the month of June at 15-15 - their first .500 month of the season. The two teams will conclude their series on Tuesday. RHP Deunte Heath (4-1, 2.65) will start the finale for Charlotte, while LHP Daniel Rodriguez (4-9, 4.81) gets the nod for Gwinnett.
Pre-game radio coverage of Tuesday's 7:05 p.m. game starts at 6:50 p.m. on ESPN Radio 730 AM, WRHI (94.3 FM and 1340 AM), and online at www.charlotteknights.com. The "Voice of the Charlotte Knights" Matt Swierad and radio broadcaster Mike Pacheco will have the call for all of the action.
Single-game tickets for the 2014 season at BB&T Ballpark are available by phone at 704-357-8071, online at www.charlotteknights.com, or in person at the BB&T Ballpark Ticket Office. Gates open at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday and fans that have a ticket to the game can come in early to watch World Cup soccer action and batting practice. Uptown Knights Are Better Than Ever!
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