Hoppers hit six HRs in win over Asheville

Henry Davis goes 3-for-5 with career-high 4 RBIs, and Maikol Escotto hits 3-run shot

Grasshoppers catcher Henry Davis had a career-high 4 RBIs. (Greensboro Grasshoppers)

By Jeff Mills

May 6, 2022

GREENSBORO ― Prized prospect Henry Davis went 3-for-5 and hit the first of six home runs launched by the Greensboro offense as the Grasshoppers beat the Asheville Tourists 13-6 on a Thirsty Thursday at First National Bank Field. The Grasshoppers (11-13) won their fourth game in a row and are

GREENSBORO ― Prized prospect Henry Davis went 3-for-5 and hit the first of six home runs launched by the Greensboro offense as the Grasshoppers beat the Asheville Tourists 13-6 on a Thirsty Thursday at First National Bank Field.

The Grasshoppers (11-13) won their fourth game in a row and are the hottest team in the South Atlantic League right now.

"We've been decent offensively all season, really, but lately we've been doing a much better job with our swing decisions and executing our team strategy," Hoppers manager Callix Crabbe said. "Every day we have a hitters' meeting to go over the day's pitcher but also to talk collectively about what we can do to attack that pitcher. The boys are starting to gain a real sense of that. ... They've been very intentional in their early work. But it takes time for work in practice to transfer over to game performance. We're moving in the right direction."

Davis, the No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, has been moving in the right direction, too. He's on a five-game hitting streak, and has homered in three of those games. His solo shot in the first inning Thursday sailed over the grassy hill in left field and landed on the patio beyond.

Davis, rated by MLB Pipeline as the No. 23 prospect in the entire minor leagues, finished with a career-best four RBIs on the home run, two run-scoring singles and an RBI groundout.

Maikol Escotto went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer, and Endy Rodriguez hit a two-run shot. Jack Herman hit a solo home run in the fourth inning. Hudson Head and Dariel Lopez hit back-to-back homers in the fifth.

It was the second straight 15-hit game for the Hoppers.

"Baseball's momentum looks very different than other sports' momentum," Crabbe said. "It's a pressure thing. You're trying to go very fast and push through the clouds, and once you get to the other side, it becomes about keeping your mindset, your intensity, your focus the right way."

The offensive firepower overshadowed a strong start by 20-year-old right-hander Jared Jones (2-0).

Jones, who MLB Pipeline rates as the No. 12 prospect in Pittsburgh's farm system, threw a fastball consistently clocked from 96-98 mph on the ballpark's radar gun, mixing in a slider at 83-85 mph.

He struck out six in 5 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs.

"Jones was really good," Crabbe said. "He was in command and attacking hitters. Jones has really matured. People forget he's just 20 years old because he has such an extremely electric arm. One of the things you have to be mindful of with a young player is his lack of experience pitching in a professional setting. But you've seen him have bounce-back opportunities after giving up some damage. You saw it tonight. He gives up the home run (to Nerio Rodriguez), but then look at the scorecard and you see he gets the next three straight outs."

Reliever Michell Miliano struck out six in the next 2 1/3 innings, and Ricky DeVito struck out three of the five batters he faced.

NOTES

Matt Gorski went 1-for-2 with a sacrifice fly and a stolen base, raising his batting average to .282. Gorski leads the South Atlantic League in runs scored (23) and RBIs (22), ranks second in home runs (8), and leads the Hoppers in stolen bases (9). He has been on base in 21 of 23 games playeds so far this season.
Henry Davis has hits in 17 of the 21 games he's played. He has nine multi-hit games, and shares the Sally League lead with 22 RBIs. Davis ranks fourth in the league with both a .350 batting average and .448 on-base percentage. Davis has reached base in 15 consecutive games, and 20 of 21 games played.
Right-hander Jared Jones ranks third in the Sally League with 32 strikeouts in 21 1/3 innings of work
Pirates prospect Endy Rodriguez ― a versatile player who has played first base, second base, left field and catcher ― is on a six-game hitting streak, going 8-for-22 (.364) with three home runs and six RBIs during the stretch. Rodriguez has seven multi-hit games in 21 starts. The 21-year-old is rated by MLB Pipeline as the No. 7 prospect in Pittsburgh's farm system.
Outfielder Jack Herman has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 games, driving in seven runs.

In his career at the News & Record, journalist Jeff Mills won 10 national and 12 state writing awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, the Society for Features Journalism, and the N.C. Press Association.