GreenJackets Outshine Suns; Win 11th Straight
Published on July 20, 2011 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Augusta GreenJackets News Release
Hagerstown, MD - Two costly Hagerstown Suns errors in the eighth inning propelled the Augusta GreenJackets to four runs in the inning and a come-from-behind 5-2 win over the Suns on Wednesday night - Augusta's 11th in a row and 13th in their last 14 games.
Trailing 2-1 with one out in the eighth, Adam Duvall singled to center with Chris Lofton standing at second base. Lofton slipped on his way around third, but center fielder Michael Taylor bobbled the ball to allow Lofton to score anyway and tie the game at two. Later in the inning, with a runner at first and two outs, Josh Mazzola's fly ball to deep right-center was dropped by Taylor to allow Ryan Lollis to score the go-ahead run all the way from first and give the GreenJackets a 3-2 lead.
Augusta stretched the lead to 5-2 later that inning on Ryan Scoma's RBI triple into the left field corner to score Mazzola from third. Scoma scored on Rafael Rodriguez's RBI single through the right side to push the lead to three. Hagerstown put the leadoff man on base in each of the eighth and ninth innings, but couldn't do anything with those chances. Brett Bochy retired three of the four he faced in the ninth to earn his first professional save.
The GreenJackets took the first lead in the opening frame after Carlos Willoughby and Chris Lofton both singled and stole bases to get to second and third with no one out. After Duvall grounded out, the Suns caught Lofton in a rundown between second and third and he was there long enough to allow Willoughby to score the game's first run. Lofton was eventually safe at second, but stranded there to end the inning.
Hagerstown got five hits and a walk off Ryan Bradley in the first three innings, but couldn't do any damage against the GreenJackets lefty until the fourth inning. With two outs, Sean Nicol singled and scored on Mills Rogers's double to left field to tie the game at one. Taylor followed with an RBI single to put the Suns ahead 2-1. The GreenJackets left the tying run on base in the sixth and seventh innings before breaking through in the eighth against the Suns' bullpen.
Austin Fleet (6-3) benefitted from the eighth inning scoring splurge, getting the win with three scoreless innings of one-hit relief. GreenJackets relievers are 8-0 during the 11-game winning streak - tied with the Savannah Sand Gnats for longest win streak in the league this season. Sam Brown (2-4) allowed four runs - but just one earned - in two innings on six hits to take the loss.
The GreenJackets and Suns will play two Thursday afternoon in Hagerstown as a makeup for the rainy weather last week when the teams met in Augusta. Gaspar Santiago (3-3, 3.90) and Justin Schumer (5-4, 4.66) will get the ball for the GreenJackets as Augusta looks to keep its winning ways alive. First pitch of game one from Hagerstown comes at 5:05 p.m. with radio pregame coverage beginning at 4:50, airing on WRDW-AM 1630 and online at www.greenjacketsbaseball.com .
Single-game tickets for any GreenJackets home game are currently available by calling the GreenJackets front office at 706-922-WINS while further information can be found online at www.greenjacketsbaseball.com .
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