High Wattage: Kevin's 8th-Inning Homer the Difference in Peppers Win over Legends

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AtL Gastonia Ghost Peppers

High Wattage: Kevin's 8th-Inning Homer the Difference in Peppers Win over Legends

June 3, 2025 - Atlantic League (AtL)
Gastonia Ghost Peppers News Release


GASTONIA, N.C. - The Gastonia offense was lifeless and in need of a spark.

Lexington starter Nic Laio had allowed just two Ghost Pepper hits through seven scoreless frames.

The right-hander came back out for the eighth, facing Kevin Watson Jr. with one on and one out in a 1-0 Legends lead.

And Watson Jr. came through for Gastonia, belting a go-ahead two-run homer to right field, leading the Peppers to a 2-1 win on Tuesday night.

The first 14 Ghost Peppers batters were retired by Laio in the contest, with Narciso Crook becoming Gastonia's first base runner with a two-out single in the fifth.

However, right-hander Matt Hartman matched Laio through five. Hartman threw five shutout innings, allowing three hits and striking out four.

The game was scoreless heading to the sixth. As soon as Hartman was pulled for the lefty John Wilson, Lexington managed to strike first. Curtis Terry hit his seventh homer of the season to lead off the frame, giving Lexington a 1-0 advantage.

The Legends ended up stranding 10 runners on base over the first seven innings of the game, with eight of those runners being left in scoring position. Between Hartman, Cory Thompson and Bryan Blanton, the righty arms were all able to work into and out of jams to keep the contest close.

Watson Jr. knocked Laio out of the game with his eventual game-winning homer in the eighth to make it 2-1 in favor of the Peppers, and Nick Snyder came on the for save in the ninth.

After a one-out Pedro Gonzalez single, Xane Washington hit a routine fly ball toward the left-field line and Crook ran over to make the grab. Now why is this worth mentioning? Because Gonzalez attempted to steal second on the pitch, so he was standing up at second by the time Crook made the catch. Crook threw toward first base at the same time Gonzalez tried getting back, the throw one-hopping to Watson Jr. just in time to end the game on a double play.

Snyder picked up his fifth save of the season following the wild finish, as Gastonia won its third consecutive game and improved to 13-21 on the year.

The Ghost Peppers look to win their fourth straight tomorrow, with first pitch at 12:30 p.m.

Check out the Gastonia Ghost Peppers Statistics



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