SAL1 Hagerstown Suns

Strong Start by Cole Goes by Wayside, Suns Lose 5-2

Published on July 20, 2011 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hagerstown Suns News Release


Hagerstown, MD-In their series opener on Wednesday night at Municipal Stadium, the Hagerstown Suns (53-42, 13-12) received a strong start from RHP A.J. Cole, but the Suns bullpen could not hold the lead and the Augusta Greenjackets (47-48, 16-9) won 5-2. The ‘jackets have now triumphed in eleven consecutive games. Augusta beat Hagerstown in the three standoffs at Lake Olmstead Stadium during the front leg of the latest road trip.

Cole, who did not factor into the decision, tossed 5.0 innings and surrendered just one earned run on four hits, without walking a batter, and striking out a pair.

His opposition, LHP Ryan Bradley, who also did not receive a decision, pitched 5.0 innings and gave up two earned runs on eight hits, with one base-on-balls allowed, amidst fanning two.

The Greenjackets stung first with one run in the 1st frame on a play in which 2B Carlos Willoughby, who singled to left field to lead off the ballgame, raced to home plate after a groundout to first base off the bat of 3B Adam Duvall. Suns 1B Mills Rogers stomped on the bag and then tried to back-pick CF Chris Lofton who was dancing off second base, after a single and a swipe got him in scoring position. Rogers throw to second base was late, allowing Willoughby to dart to the dish.

Hagerstown got on the board with a pair of runs in the 4th inning. An RBI double by Rogers to the gap in left center field, scored LF Sean Nicol, who punched a single to right field to get aboard. Then, CF Michael Taylor ripped a line drive back up the middle to summon home Nicol, giving the Suns a 2-1 lead.

The Suns held the lead until the top of the 8th stanza when RHP Sam Brown, the losing pitcher of record, gave up four runs while facing eight Greenjackets. Brown (2-4), who blew his first save of the season, allowed just one earned run on six base hits. Lofton sliced a single to center field and then stole second base. Duvall skipped a hard shot back up the box in center field, and while Lofton slipped coming around third base, Taylor fumbled the pickup off the heal of his glove, allowing Lofton to score. With two outs, 1B Josh Mazzola hit a deep liner off the webbing of Taylor's glove just to the left of the visiting bullpen, which brought home RF Ryan Lollis, who reached on a fielder's choice. DH Ryan Scoma, who was 3-for-4 on the night, hooked an opposite field triple inside the left field chalk that landed in the corner. The RBI three base knock plated Mazzola. Finally, LF Rafael Rodriguez punched an RBI triple through the right side of the infield to wave home Scoma, giving Augusta the 5-2 lead they would allow to stand up as the winning line.

The winning pitcher, RHP Austin Fleet (6-3), tossed 3.0 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, a single by 2B Adrian Sanchez, while walking two.

Coming in for his first save of the 2011 season was RHP Brett Bochy (1 SV), the son of San Francisco Giants skipper, Bruce Bochy. He hit DH Russell Moldenhauer with a pitch to leadoff the bottom of the 9th inning before inducing a flyout to right field by Nicol, a skied shot to center field by Rogers, and a strikeout of Taylor swinging to end the contest. Bochy now has six strikeouts in 3.0 innings pitched against the Suns.

Hagerstown will host Augusta for a doubleheader on Thursday beginning at 5:05pm to makeup a rained out game in Augusta on July 13th. The Break Away 2 Sports Lounge Pre-game Show on WJEJ AM will begin at 4:50pm. The pitching matchup will feature Suns RHP Matt Swynenberg (2-0, 3.06) against Greenjackets LHP Gaspar Santiago (3-3, 3.90) .

The Hagerstown Suns play at Municipal Stadium in Hagerstown, MD and are a Class "A" affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Season ticket packages, group outings, and corporate sponsorships are available by calling the Suns at 301-791-6266. Visit the Suns on the web at www.hagerstownsuns.com. The Suns are owned by Hagerstown Baseball, LLC.

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South Atlantic League Stories from July 20, 2011


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