(Story courtesy Augusta GreenJackets)
NORTH AUGUSTA – Playing in front of the home crowd at SRP Park for the final time in 2026, the Augusta GreenJackets (33-26, 68-57) put forth a miraculous comeback, scoring nine runs in their final offensive inning against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (20-39, 47-76) to secure a brilliant 10-8 victory Aug. 30.
The game could not have started in a more difficult fashion, as the Pelicans scored two runs in the top of the first and continuously tacked on for the rest of the night. Starter Will Holmes lasted 2.2 innings in his pro debut, allowing three runs on three hits with three strikeouts before hitting his pitch count against a feisty Pelicans offense.
The GreenJackets got their lone run of the first seven innings in the bottom of the second, as Parker Brosius hammered a solo shot off of the video board to get a run back. Beyond the homer, Myrtle Beach starter Freddy Rodriguez was impressive, going through four solid innings to keep the Jackets at bay one batter after the next.
Myrtle Beach tacked on in the back half of the game against Brody Fowler, who allowed a career-high four home runs through 5.1 innings of long relief. Two solo shots from Alexis Hernandez and Derniche Valdez in the 6th advanced the lead, and the Pelicans appeared to put the game out of reach in the 8th as Darlyn De Leon went back-to-back with Valdez for an 8-1 lead.
Facing a seven-run deficit with six outs to spare, hope was all but extinct for Augusta entering the bottom of the 8th. Nevertheless, the Jackets continued to fight, and attacked new reliever Jhon Cabral to have five straight men reach and three men score without an out, as Cabral’s nightmarish outing ended almost immediately. The Jackets continued to fight against John Alkire, and brought themselves within three before loading the bases with two outs.
In the biggest at bat of the day, veteran Junior Tilien delivered his signature moment, working a six-pitch at bat with the bags full before roping a double into the gap that would empty the bases and tie the game in dramatic fashion. One batter later, Augusta had its first lead, as Manuel Campos singled to center as Tilien beat the throw home. Campos would score on a knock from Caleb Klein, and Augusta ended the inning with nine runs via thirteen batters to create a generational turnaround.
Styven Paez carved through a stunned Pelicans squad in the ninth, and Augusta had officially capped its final home game in the wildest fashion in recent memory. The inning was the biggest by runs scored of the season, and the seven-run hole was the largest the GreenJackets have climbed out of all year.
While the home slate is officially finished, there is still baseball to be played, as the GreenJackets head to Charleston to wrap up the season against the RiverDogs. Augusta will play six games at the Joe, before officially saying goodbye to this year’s roster and starting the countdown to 2027.
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