Noah Adcock-Howeth, Augusta GreenJackets
KINSTON, N.C. – Willmer De La Cruz put Augusta in front with an RBI single in the top of the 10th, then made a phenomenal diving catch for the game’s final out as the ‘Jackets snagged their first extra inning win in three tries this week in Down East.
Wednesday and Thursday’s contests both turned into walk-off affairs in the 10th, as Down East seemed to dial in when the game got tight. Saturday painted a different picture, as Augusta’s pitching staff did not allow a hit in the final three innings and held tight for a 10-inning victory.
Both sides posted a pair of runs in the first, as neither Kolton Curtis nor Ethan Bagwell was at their best early. The Jackets put four straight men aboard with two outs, using a Titus Dumitru RBI double and subsequent E1 off the bat of Jake Steels to take a two-run lead. Facing Bagwell in his pro debut, however, the Wood Ducks attacked the 18-year-old righty for three hits in the first, recording RBIs from Jesus Lopez and Esteban Mejia to tie the game.
Curtis would survive two more innings, but was pulled before the fourth and replaced by Aneudis Mejia. Mejia missed the first four months of the season due to injury, and Augusta manufactured a run as he struggled to settle in early. The ‘Jackets loaded the bases thanks to a leadoff single from Harry Owen, and a pair of two out walks to Luis Guanipa and Junior Garcia. Mejia got two strikes against Will Verdung, but spiked a slider that bounced to the backstop to score Owen and put Augusta in front.
Bagwell was replaced by David Rodriguez with two outs in the third, and D-Rod continued his run of strong relief work by eating 4.1 impressive innings. Rodriguez left the bases loaded in the fourth, and navigated cleanly through the fifth and sixth before seeing trouble in the seventh. Down East showed off their innate ability to manufacture runs, as Chandler Pollard singled, stole second, and scored on a gapper from Echedry Vargas to tie the game.
Neither side could end the game in regulation, as Alberto Mota stranded two in the eighth and Joey Danielson posted a hitless ninth. On the opposite side, Kadon Morton came on and dominated his two innings of work, retiring all six batters he faced with three strikeouts to force extras for the third time in four games.
Augusta got the offense going quickly in the 10th against Danielson, who was battling despite throwing for the third time in five days. Mason Guerra advanced to third as the automatic runner from a leadoff groundout, and scored the go-ahead run as De La Cruz roped a grounder past the drawn in third baseman. A walk and groundout moved De La Cruz to third, and Junior Garcia added a massive run of insurance to double the lead entering the bottom half.
Jacob Kroeger was summoned to handle the save, and immediately added fuel to the fire by walking Vargas to start the inning and bring back memories of the week already. Kroeger would find his rhythm, striking out the next two men he saw, but both runners stole successfully to put the tying run in scoring position. Kroeger fired a fastball to jam Pablo Guerrero, and the big righty sliced a soft line drive to the right side. De La Cruz had been playing up the middle, but sprinted and dove to his right for a phenomenal diving catch that ended the game and gave Augusta its second straight win.
On Sunday, the 2024 season comes to a close with a 1 p.m. game. Jacob Shafer and Wilian Bormie will take the ball for one last game on the road. The game carries heavy significance for the home side, as the Down East Wood Ducks will be moving to Spartanburg next year and leaving Grainger Stadium vacant once again. The venerable ballpark has hosted baseball since 1949, and there has been professional baseball in Kinston since 1908, so the town’s uncertain future around the stadium lends itself to an emotional goodbye Sunday afternoon.
