Agony Of Defeat: Renegades fall in 2-1 walk-off in 11th
Greensboro, N.C. (June 22, 2024) — Despite a strong pitching performance that saw four pitchers combine to strike out 16 batters, the Hudson Valley Renegades fell to the Greensboro Grasshoppers 2-1 in 11 innings on Saturday night at FNB Field. Ben Shields turned in another stellar start for the Renegades,
Greensboro, N.C. (June 22, 2024) — Despite a strong pitching performance that saw four pitchers combine to strike out 16 batters, the Hudson Valley Renegades fell to the Greensboro Grasshoppers 2-1 in 11 innings on Saturday night at FNB Field.
Ben Shields turned in another stellar start for the Renegades, limiting the Grasshoppers to just one run on four hits across 5.0 innings. The left-hander walked only one and struck out a career-high nine batters while throwing a career-high 81 pitches. It was the second time in his last three starts that Shields allowed one-or-fewer earned runs across 5.0-or-more innings.
Greensboro jumped in front in the bottom of the third when Luke Brown reached on an infield single and scored on a double to left-center by Jack Brannigan. Shields settled down after that to retire eight of the final nine batters he faced in the game.
The Renegades got even with the Grasshoppers in the top of the sixth when Omar Martinez lined a solo home run to right off Alessandro Ercolani to tie the score at 1-1. The blast was the seventh round-tripper of the year for Martinez, and his first in the month of June.
A HOMER BY OMAR MARTINEZ TIES US UP IN THE 6TH! pic.twitter.com/4po0OXrUF4
— Hudson Valley Renegades (@HVRenegades) June 23, 2024
Matt Keating kept the game tied with two scoreless innings out of the bullpen in back of Shields with two strikeouts of his own. In the bottom of the eighth Eric Reyzelman walked Termarr Johnson to lead off the inning before striking out the next three batters to keep the game tied.
In extra innings, Mason Vinyard threw a scoreless bottom of the 10th after the Renegades failed to score against Luis Peralta, but in the bottom of the 11th, he allowed a leadoff single to Brannigan allowing the automatic runner Johnson to come in and score the winning run.
The loss was the fifth straight loss for the Renegades to the Grasshoppers to start the series. It is just the second time this season and the third time in the six-game series era (2021-present) that Hudson Valley has dropped the first five games of a series.
Hudson Valley and Greensboro complete their season series on Sunday afternoon at FNB Field. RHP Jackson Fristoe (1-3, 3.58) takes the mound for the Renegades against RHP Patrick Reilly (3-4, 3.81) for the Grasshoppers. First pitch is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. with coverage on the Renegades Baseball Network beginning at 1:45.