Alex Wood dominated in his AA debut, Ernesto Mejia homered twice in a Gwinnett doubleheader sweep, and David Rohm and Elmer Reyes each had 4 hits in a 10 run night for Lynchburg.
Gwinnett Braves 6, Charlotte Knights 4, Game 1
- Tyler Pastornicky SS 1-3, .714 AVG
- Ernesto Mejia 1B 2-3, 2 HR (1, 2), 4 RBI, .429 AVG
- Joe Leonard 3B 1-3, .429 AVG
- David Hale 5 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 5 K, W (1), 3.60 ERA
- Ryan Buchter 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 0.00 ERA
Gwinnett Braves 2, Charlotte Knights 1, Game 2
- Ernesto Mejia 1B 1-3, 2B, .400 AVG
- Sean Kazmar SS 1-2, 2 RBI, .333 AVG
- Daniel Rodriguez 1.1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 K, 0.00 ERA
- David Carpenter 3.2 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 1 BB, 5 K, W (1), 0.00 ERA
The G-Braves swept a doubleheader against the Knights, powered by Ernesto Mejia, who hit 2 homers in the first game and combined to go 3-6 in the 2 games, adding a double and 4 RBI. Sean Kazmar drove in both runs in the second game with a 2 run single. David Hale made his AAA debut in Game 1 and got his season off to a decent start, allowing 2 earned runs over 5 innings, striking out 5 while only walking 1. Ryan Buchter was great in relief, striking out 3 in a scoreless inning. Daniel Rodriguez started the second game, but was removed in the 2nd inning after hitting back to back batters. That allowed David Carpenter to excel in an extended relief outing, striking out 5 over 3.2 scoreless innings en route to picking up the win.
Righty Tim Corcoran will start the series finale tomorrow, facing off against Knights righty Simon Castro.
Mississippi Braves 5, Mobile Bay Bears 6
- Kyle Russell RF 2-3, 2B, BB, .333 AVG
- Edward Salcedo 3B 2-3, 2 RBI, BB, SB (1), .364 AVG
- Jose Martinez CF 3-4, 2 RBI, .714 AVG
- Alex Wood 5 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 6 K, 0.00 ERA
Lefty Alex Wood dominated in his AA debut, allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk while striking out 6 over 5 shutout innings. Edward Salcedo had his second straight 2 hit night, adding his first stolen base of the year. Kyle Russell has had a walk in each of his first 3 games. Jose Martine rapped out 3 singles and drove in 2 runs, and he's gone 5-7 with 2 walks in 3 games.
Gus Schlosser will make his AA debut Sunday afternoon against Bradin Hagens for the Bay Bears.
Lynchburg Hillcats 10, Potomac Nationals 6
- Robby Hefflinger LF 1-4, HR (1), RBI, BB, OF Assist, .286 AVG
- Kyle Kubitza 3B 2-4, RBI, HBP, E (2), .375 AVG
- David Rohm DH 4-5, 2B, 2 RBI, .556 AVG
- Elmer Reyes SS 4-5, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 E (1, 2), .625 AVG
- AJ Holland 4.2 IP, 5 R, 4 ER, 8 H, 1 BB, 5 K, 7.71
- Wilson Rivera 1.1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K, W (1), 0.00 ERA
- Ryan Woolley 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 5 K, 0.00 ERA
A series of injuries limited David Rohm to just 281 at bats with Lynchburg last season, so he's hoping for a bounceback season in 2013, and he's gotten off to a great start, with a 4 hit, 2 RBI performance in his second game of the year. Elmer Reyes also added 4 hits and 2 RBI, but he committed a pair of errors as well. Kyle Kubitza had a pair of hits and drove in a run, but committed his second error in as many games. Robby Hefflinger launched his first homer of the season. AJ Holland struggled in his season debut, allowing 5 runs, 4 earned, without making through the 5th inning. Wilson Rivera stranded an inherited runner and tossed 1.1 scoreless innings, picking up the win in relief. Ryan Woolley, signed at the end of Spring Training after being released by the Padres, pitched 2 scoreless innings in his debut appearance in the Braves organization.
Lefty Mark Pope will make his Braves organization debut in the series finale Sunday afternoon, facing off against AJ Cole for the P-Nats.
Rome Braves 6, Savannah Sand Gnats 3
- Josh Elander LF 3-4, HR (1), 3 RBI, SB (2), .385 AVG
- Aris Alcantara DH 2-4, 2B, .300 AVG
- Tyler Tewell C 1-3, BB, .500 AVG
- Blake Brown RF 2-3, 2B, RBI, HBP, OF Assist, .667 AVG
- Ronald Luna 2B 2-3, 2B, RBI, .333 AVG
- Williams Perez 5 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 4 K, W (1), 5.40 ERA
- Greg Ross 3 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 0 BB, 4 K, 0.00 ERA
- Shae Simmons 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 K, SV (2), 0.00 ERA
Josh Elander had a 3 hit, 3 RBI night that included his first homer of the year and his second stolen base. Tyler Tewell reachhed base twice and he's gone 4-8 with a walk in 2 games. Blake Brown rapped out a pair of hits, including a double, drove in a run, and threw a runner out at home. Williams Perez had a so-so debut, allowing 3 earned runs in 5 innings of work. Greg Ross struck out 4 in 3 scoreless relief innings. Shae Simmons picked up his second save with a hitless inning.
Patrick Scoggin will make his first professional start Sunday afternoon against the Sand Gnats.