Rally in Late Innings Aids Kannapolis in Third Win of Week over Nationals

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – After trailing for the initial two-thirds of Friday’s contest against the Fredericksburg Nationals, the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers notched four runs on four hits in the seventh and eighth to win, 4-3, Friday night at Atrium Health Ballpark.

The Ballers now have won three in a row over Fredericksburg and seven of their last eight contests, guaranteeing a finish of over .500 in the regular season with 9 games remaining. On the other side, the Nationals, who already have clinched an above .500 finish, have now fallen in four of their last six games in Carolina League action.

LHP Frankeli Arias tossed a dependable 4.1 innings in Friday’s win, allowing two runs on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Out of the bullpen, RHP Connery Peters went a season-high 2.2 innings, holding the Nationals to one run on three hits with three strikeouts. RHP Aaron Combs earned his first professional winning decision, striking out four Fredericksburg bats in two innings.

For the first time all week, the FredNats struck first on the scoreboard, pouncing on a, 2-0, lead in the top of the fourth on a two RBI double from Brandon Pimentel.

Kelvin Diaz contributed an RBI for the visitors on a wild play in the top of the sixth. With Cristhian Vaquero at second base, a fly ball into right field sent George Wolkow sprinting in the gap to make the catch, allowing for ample time for the speedy outfielder to score. The rare two-base sacrifice fly put the Nationals ahead, 3-0, after six.

Kannapolis saw the pendulum of momentum swing their way in the seventh when Jackson Appel capped a massive inning of offense with his first professional home run. The homer also marks Appel’s first hit of the year against a left-handed pitcher for the switch-hitting catcher. T.J. McCants and Arxy Hernandez came around to score on the long drive, tying the game at, 3-3.

All the hard work from the home side paid off in the bottom of the eighth inning, with Hernandez handing Kannapolis a, 4-3, lead on an RBI single that scored Wolkow. The advantage favoring the Ballers proved to be too much to handle for the FredNats, who went down in order in the ninth against Combs.

The Cannon Ballers and Nationals will face off for the fifth time in a six-game series at Atrium Health Ballpark on Saturday night at Atrium Health Ballpark. RHP Ricardo Brizuela faces off against top 100 MLB prospect RHP Travis Sykora in the premier pitching matchup of the week in the 7:00 p.m. scheduled first pitch contest.

Fans can purchase tickets for Saturday’s game or any remaining Cannon Ballers home games at kcballers.com or at the F&M Bank Box Office located at Atrium Health Ballpark.