(Story courtesy Augusta GreenJackets)
NORTH AUGUSTA – A two-strike, two-run triple from Caden Merritt gave the GreenJackets the lead in the eighth, capping a comeback win for the second straight night as the Jackets knocked off the Woodpeckers 6-3 Thursday night.
For the second night in a row, Fayetteville got on the board in the top of the first, ambushing Landon Beidelschies for two runs on three hits in the first frame. Beidelschies did pick up three strikeouts in the inning, but gave up a leadoff triple to Anthony Huezo and RBI singles to Camilo Diaz and German Ramirez to take the lead.
Augusta’s bats were quiet early, as starter Javier Perez was untouchable through his first few innings. Perez did not allow a hit until the fourth inning, and struck out four in the first three frames to keep the Jackets off the board. It was not until Juan Mateo’s two-out single in the fourth that Perez proved mortal, yet he still kept Augusta off the board.
Beidelschies surrendered nothing further after the first, and the Jackets finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning. Perez had a small lapse in command with two outs, and paid the price after walking Joe Olsavsky and hitting Tate Southisene with a pitch. The two free passes put the tying run on for Alex Lodise, and he was ready to deliver, ambushing the first pitch he saw for a three-run blast to take the lead.
Augusta’s lead did not last very long, as the Woodpeckers tied the game in the very next half-inning against reliever Luis Arestigueta. Arestigueta allowed a leadoff walk, and retired the next two hitters before another free pass pushed the tying run into scoring position. Catcher Yosweld Vasquez rolled a grounder up the middle, and likely would have beaten out a throw, but no such throw came as Southisene bobbled the ball and allowed the runner to score from second.
Neither Arestigueta nor Charlie Weber allowed a run in the next two chances, keeping the game tied heading into the bottom of the eighth. After a pair of long innings, fatigue may have set in for Weber, and he allowed singles to Nick Montgomery and Mateo to start the frame. Weber got to two strikes on Merritt, but left a slider up in the zone and the young outfielder roped it into the right-center gap, splitting the outfielders and scoring two go-ahead runs. Merritt would trot home on a base hit from Cooper McMurray, and the Jackets had a healthy three-run lead to hold in the 9th.
Brad Stoll entrusted the 9th inning to Drew Christo, and he met the moment with aplomb, going 1-2-3 to secure the win and his first pro save. The win gave the GreenJackets their fourth in a row, and guaranteed a series split at minimum heading into the weekend.
Friday marks the start of Azaleas Weekend at SRP Park, as the GreenJackets don their wildly popular alternate identity from last year for three straight games. The weekend kicks off with an Auggie Gnome giveaway for the first 1,000 fans, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
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