(Story courtesy Augusta GreenJackets)
NORTH AUGUSTA – The Augusta GreenJackets found all their offense seemingly at once, posting six runs in the sixth inning April 16 to deliver the decisive blow to the Carolina Mudcats by a score of 7-5 at SRP Park.
Augusta brought ten men to the plate and scored half a dozen off of reliever Jeison Pena, marking the highest total in both categories in the season. RBI singles came from Diego Benitez, Drew Compton, and Leiker Figueroa, while Robert Gonzalez added a sac fly.
It was a career day for Figueroa, going 2-3 while adding a walk and a stolen base in his day. The young infielder provided the day’s first run with an RBI double that scored Gonzalez back in the third. That run would prove to be the only blemish against Carolina starter Manuel Rodriguez, but it was enough to hand him his second consecutive losing decision.
As strong as Rodriguez was, Cade Kuehler was even stronger en route to his first professional win. Last year’s 70th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft hurled six dynamic innings, allowing three hits and no runs with four strikeouts. It’s the longest outing of the career for Kuehler, who has now gone 17 innings without allowing an earned run to start his career.
Things got dicey in the back end after Kuehler departed, as Carolina put up five runs in two innings against reliever Luis Vargas, headlined by a three run homer from Kay-Lan Nicasia to right field. The Mudcats made it a two-run game in the eighth but left the tying run at first on a line out from Nicasia.
Giomar Diaz came on in the ninth and worked around a pair of walks for his second save of the season. Diaz has now worked three scoreless appearances out of the GreenJackets’ bullpen.
Augusta will send righty Davis Polo to the mound tomorrow in his SRP Park debut, as he looks for his first win in a GreenJackets uniform. The Mudcats will counter with Daniel Corniel, who pitched four innings of one-run baseball last week in a no decision, his first start at the single-A level. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m.
The GreenJackets are home all week long against the Carolina Mudcats, with tickets still available through Sunday. The fun-filled week includes Teacher Appreciation Day, Dinosaur Day and Augusta Rams Night, where the ‘Jackets take the field in special jerseys honoring the 1954 Augusta Rams and Leonard Hunt, the first Black player to play professional baseball in Augusta.
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