Hjelle Goes Six Strong, But Charleston Steals Series Finale
April 20, 2019 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Augusta GreenJackets News Release
North Augusta, SC: Sean Hjelle was impressive in his 4th start of the season going six innings without allowing a run, and giving up just one hit. But the GreenJackets gave up three runs between the final two frames and fell 3-1 on Saturday evening.
The first three innings were a classic pitchers duel. Hjelle did not allow a hit until the 4th, and Luis Medina for Charleston worked around two errors from his defense to keep the game scoreless. In the bottom of the 4th though, Jacob Gonzalez doubled, and Wander Franco singled to give Augusta an early 1-0 advantage.
Hjelle ends his night after six innings, allowing just one hit while striking-out six, and walking only one. The six innings were the most Hjelle has thrown in an outing for his professional career.
Following Hjelle, it was Solomon Bates on the hill. After Bates got a three-up, three-down 7th inning, in the 8th he allowed singles to Canaan Smith and Eduardo Torrealba. With two outs, Brandon Lockridge doubled down the left field line, scoring two, and giving the RiverDogs a 2-1 lead.
In the top of the 9th, facing Franklin Van Gurp, Nelson Gomez hit his 2nd home run of the series to extend the lead to 3-1 for Charleston.
The GreenJackets struggled mightily against Charleston reliever Sean Semple. He finished the game off for the RiverDogs as he went the last four innings without allowing a run and striking-out four.
The GreenJackets finish the homestand 4-2 and will play again on Monday for the start of a seven-game road-trip as they'll face the Hickory Crawdads (Texas Rangers Single-A Affiliate). First pitch will be at 6:30 p.m. from Hickory, North Carolina on Monday.
Player of the Game: Sean Hjelle, 6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, BB, 6 SO
Sean Hjelle continued to show that his advanced command is going to make things difficult on hitters all season long. Hjelle finished the night with 11 ground ball outs to go along with his six strikeouts.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 20, 2019
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