BlueClaws Rally But Fall Short; Hoppers Win 13-9 on Opening Night in ShoreTown
JERSEY SHORE, NJ - The BlueClaws entered the ninth inning trailing 13-4, but they brought the tying run to the plate before falling 13-9 to Greensboro on Tuesday night in front of a sold out crowd of 10,822 fans on Opening Night.
JERSEY SHORE, NJ - The BlueClaws entered the ninth inning trailing 13-4, but they brought the tying run to the plate before falling 13-9 to Greensboro on Tuesday night in front of a sold out crowd of 10,822 fans on Opening Night.
The crowd was the second biggest in BlueClaws history, following the 13,003 drawn in the final game of the 2002 season.
Jersey Shore nearly sent everyone home happy. The BlueClaws had one hit and drew seven walks in the ninth inning. But Cy Nielsen struck out Nick Ward and Marcus Lee Sang to end the game. Greensboro (3-1) took the first of the six game series with the BlueClaws (1-3).
Greensboro scored five runs in the first inning off starter Gabriel Cotto, picking up just two hits. Three walks aided the Grasshoppers, who had a bases loaded walk to Luke Brown open the scoring. Jase Bowen cleared the bases with a three-run double to give Greensboro a 5-0 lead.
Cotto (0-2) went 2/3 of an inning and was charged with five runs on two hits and three walks, taking the loss in his BlueClaws debut.
They added two more in the third on an RBI single from Bowen and a double-play groundout by Will Mathieson. Tsung-Che Cheng homered in the fifth, his first of the season, to further extend the lead.
Cheng led the Hoppers with three hits. Mike Jarvis and Luke Brown each scored three runs. On all six of their runs, the duo reached base on either a walk of a hit batsman. Bowen went 2-5 and drove in four of the Greensboro runs.
Nick Ward, leading off for the first time for the BlueClaws, went 1-4 with a stolen base, his fourth of the season. Jamari Baylor had two hits for the BlueClaws, including an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth. Lee Sang and Rixon Wingrove each drew three walks for the BlueClaws.
BlueClaws pitchers combined to walk 11 in the game, while Greensboro issued 13 walks. The 13 walks drawn by the BlueClaws match a franchise record set most recently in 2006.
The teams continue their series on Wednesday night at 6:35 pm.
-Jersey Shore BlueClaws-