Opening Day at McCormick Field Produces 8-3 Tourists Win; Sellout
Published on April 3, 2014 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Asheville Tourists News Release
Asheville, NC-- It took only five innings for all nine Tourists batters to record their first hit of the 2014 season as the Asheville Tourists pounded out eight runs on 12 hits in their Thursday night victory over the Delmarva Shorebirds. The win came in front of a sellout crowd; nearly 4,300 fans.
After the jitters wore off in the first two innings the Tourists scored three runs in the bottom of the third to break a scoreless tie. David Dahl tripled off the right-center field wall plating the game's first run. Two batters later, Jose Briceno drove in a run with a groundout to short and Jordan Patterson followed with an RBI double.
Asheville wasted no time breaking the game open in the fourth with another three-spot. Pat Valaika and Michael Benjamin led off the frame with singles and Valaika scored on a Raimel Tapia bunt single. Ryan McMahon came through with a sacrifice fly and Briceno capped the inning with an RBI single to left.
Valaika and Benjamin each contributed RBI's in the fifth and the Tourists led it 8-0 after five.
Johendi Jiminian dominated the Shorebrids by pitching effectively all night. The Tourists righty tossed 6.0 innings of scoreless baseball while surrendering only two hits.
Delmarva was able to avoid the shutout by plating one in seventh on a two-out single from Gregory Lorenzo. The visitors added two more in the ninth, but the game was well out of reach.
Asheville began the 2014 season with a bang and the Tourists hope to continue the momentum gained in Friday night's affair between the same two teams. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm.
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