Drive clobber Blue Rocks, 12-0 in offensive onslaught
Mikey Romero recorded five RBI with a double and two home runs, Ahbram Liendo knocked a pair of two-RBI singles for four RBI, Romero, Miguel Bleis, and Jhostynxon Garcia knocked back-to-back-to-back homers, and Elmer Rodriguez tossed five shutout innings as the Greenville Drive (19-12, 45-53) clobbered the Wilmington Blue Rocks
Mikey Romero recorded five RBI with a double and two home runs, Ahbram Liendo knocked a pair of two-RBI singles for four RBI, Romero, Miguel Bleis, and Jhostynxon Garcia knocked back-to-back-to-back homers, and Elmer Rodriguez tossed five shutout innings as the Greenville Drive (19-12, 45-53) clobbered the Wilmington Blue Rocks (16-15, 47-50), 12-0.
The trifecta of homers came in the eighth inning as the Drive teed off on Blue Rocks reliever, Thomas Schultz. On the night, the Drive forced the Blue Rocks to use four relievers who combined to give up 11 of the Drive’s 14 hits and 10 of 12 RBI knocks.
Rodriguez made his Fluor Field debut after being called up from the Salem Red Sox last week before the start of the Hickory series and he made the most of it in his five shutout innings, allowing just three hits with a walk and three strikeouts to stifle a Blue Rocks offense that produced six runs on a 11 hits with three doubles the previous night.
The Drive opened up a 2-0 lead in the third, knocking starter Marc Davis for back-to-back RBI hits via a Mikey Romero double to the base of the centerfield wall and a Miguel Bleis line drive single to center field. Davis completed the inning before being replaced in the fourth by Bryan Caceres.
The Drive greeted Caceres with a one-out walk from Allan Castro and a double from Juan Chacon, leading to a two-out, two-RBI single off the bat of Ahbram Liendo to double the lead. After a Bryan Gonzalez single, Romero barreled up a hanging breaking ball for his for the eighth homer for No. 8 this season. Caceres would be pulled for Jaren Zinn, with the Drive up 7-0.
Greenville continued it’s barrage in the fifth, with back-to-back singles to lead off the inning before Liendo notched his second RBI-single of the night, again for two runs to boost the lead to 9-0.
Romero, Bleis, and Garcia notched their homers in the eighth to lift the lead to 12-0.
Gabriel Jackson took over for Rodriguez in the fifth, working three innings of hitless relief with two walks and three strikeouts. Reidis Sena delivered the final inning for the Drive, striking out the side on 16 pitches.
The Drive return to action on Thursday, August 1st at 7:05 p.m. for game three of the six-game series against the Wilmington Blue Rocks. The series is tied at one game apiece.