Offense Dries up in Crawdads 3-2 Loss
May 25, 2016 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hickory Crawdads News Release
Hickory Crawdads at the Plate
(Hickory Crawdads)
Hickory, NC - The Hickory Crawdads jumped ahead to an early lead only to see the offense go quiet Wednesday afternoon, with Eduard Pinto's 2nd inning, 2-run home run proving to be the extent of the Hickory attack in a 3-2 series finale loss to the Rome Braves at L.P. Frans Stadium.
Everything looked great for the Crawdads over the first three frames, as Pinto lined his second homer of the year to right in the bottom of the 2nd inning and 'Dads starting pitcher Erik Swanson retired the first 10 batters he faced to start the game. The momentum changed in the 4th however, as the Braves got to Swanson for 3 runs on 3 hits and two walks while the Crawdads' batters were retired in 15 consecutive plate appearances en route to the 3-2 defeat.
Dylan Moore got the Hickory half of the 2nd going with a leadoff walk on a full count from Rome starter Ricardo Sanchez. Pinto followed with a low line drive to right that just cleared the fence for a 2-run shot and a 2-0 Crawdads lead. The advantage held until the top of the 4th, when the Braves finally got their first baserunner of the game on a routine ground ball that took a bad bounce away from 'Dads second baseman Andy Ibanez resulting in an infield hit. The frame seemingly fell apart from there, as Swanson walked Wigberto Nevarez on four pitches, gave up a single to Jonathan Morales to load the bases, then walked in a run with a free pass to Justin Ellison to put Rome on the board. One out later, Swanson appeared on the verge of escaping the inning with an 0-2 count on Alejandro Salazar before the Braves shortstop looped a 2-RBI base knock to center to put Rome ahead 3-2.
Neither team would score the rest of the way, with a two-out walk by Pinto in the 4th acting as the only baserunner for the Crawdads from the 3rd through the 8th frames. The 'Dads attempted a last minute rally in the 9th, when Ibanez and Moore both singled with two outs before Pinto drew another free pass to load the bases. Hickory shortstop Yeyson Yrizarri then worked the count even at 2-2 against Braves reliever Oriel Caicedo before popping out to first to end the game.
Sanchez (3-4) earned the win for Rome with 2 runs allowed on 2 hits, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts over 5.2 innings pitched, while Caicedo (3) recorded the save with 3.1 scoreless innings. Swanson (3-1) was handed his first loss of the season for the Crawdads after giving up 3 runs on 4 hits, 3 walks, and 4 Ks over 5 IP.
Pinto paced the 'Dads bats finishing 1-2 with his second home run of the season, 2 walks, and 2 RBI. Moore ended the day 1-3 with a walk and a run scored, while Ibanez went 1-4 and Ti'Quan Forbes finished 1-3.
The Crawdads (28-18) will now welcome the Greensboro Grasshoppers to L.P. Frans Stadium for a 4-game series over Memorial Day weekend, with first pitch Thursday night scheduled for 6:00 pm.
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 Hickory Crawdads at the Plate |
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