SAL1 Delmarva Shorebirds

Fenter, Rom Stifle Tourists as 'Birds Cruise

Published on May 4, 2019 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Delmarva Shorebirds News Release


ASHEVILLE, NC - The Delmarva Shorebirds got a pitching gem from their tandem of Drew Rom and Gray Fenter, cruising to their fifth striaght win, 4-1 win over the Asheville Tourists on Saturday night at McCormick Field.

Fenter (2-1) was unhittable over 4.1 innings for the Shorebirds (22-4), giving up one run on no hits with three walkd and five strikeouts. Colten Schmidt (0-1) took the loss in his first start for the Tourists (10-18), allowing two runs on seven hits over five innings, walking none and fanning three.

With the game scoreless in the top of the fourth, the Shorebirds got a spark in the form of a Nick Horvath leadoff double. Seamus Curran slashed a single to right to move Horvath to third, then Jean Carlos Encarnacion sliced a double down the left field line, scoring Horvath to get Delmarva on the board and advance Curran to third. Cadyn Grenier followed with a sac fly to deep center, plating Curran to make it 2-0 Shorebirds.

The game's biggest controversy ensued in the bottom of the fifth. Daniel Montano led off for Asheville with a walk, then three batters later Cade Harris drew a two-out free pass of his own. That brought up Terrin Vavra, who extended the showdown against Rom with several two-strike fouls. On a 3-2 pitch, Vavra slashed a line drive directly down the left field line and over the fence for what was originally ruled a home run to put the Tourists up 3-2. Several Shorebirds instantly protested the call, and after convincing the umpires to discuss it, the call was reversed and Vavra's liner ruled a foul ball. Vavra eventually drew a walk to load the bases, and Fenter came on to relieve Rom and got Will Golsan to fly out to left on the first pitch, sending the Tourists back to the dugout emptyhanded.

Rom finished one out shy of qualifying for the win in an impressive start, tossing 4.2 scoreless two-hit innings while walking three and striking out seven.

Delmarva added an insurance run each in the eighth and ninth. Robbie Thorburn led off the eighth with an infield single, then Adam Hall reached on a sac bunt-turned-error. Horvath singled to load the bases, and Seamus Curran hit into a double play to score Thorburn and make it 3-0.

Ben Breazeale led off the ninth with a double, advanced to third on a groundout, and scored on a passed ball to push the Shorebird lead to 4-0.

The Tourists were able to scrape together a run in the ninth to ruin the potential shutout. Danny Edgeworth led off with a walk and took second on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Coco Montes hit a flyball deep into the extended foul territory in right. Trey Truitt bolted after the ball and made the catch on the fly, crashing hard into a chainlink fence. With Truitt down for an extended time, Edgeworth was able to score all the way from second on what becmae a sac fly by Montes, giving the game its final margin.

After drawing medical attention, Truitt stayed in the game for the final out as Fenter fanned Javier Guevara to put the game on ice.

Horvath continued his torrid pace against the Tourists, going 3-for-4 with a double and run. Moved from the nine-hole to the leadoff slot, Thorburn went 2-for-5 with a run for his fourth consecutive multi-hit game.

Golsan and Grant Lavigne accounted for each of Asheville's two hits, both singles.

The game was delayed 44 minutes at the start due to heavy rains from earlier in the afternoon.

The Shorebirds aim to remain perfect on this road trip in a Sunday matinee against the Tourists. Nick Vespi (1-1, 4.60) gets the start for Delmarva against Asheville's Alfredo Garcia (0-3, 10.35). First pitch is set for 2:05 p.m., and pregame coverage on Fox Sports 960 AM and the MiLB First Pitch App begins at 1:50 with Will DeBoer on the call.

Check out the Delmarva Shorebirds Statistics

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South Atlantic League Stories from May 4, 2019


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