Norfolk Tides 12, Gwinnett Braves 5
- Todd Cunningham, CF: 2-5, R, RBI, 2 K, PO, .304
- Tommy La Stella, 2B: 1-3, 2 BB, .303
- Phil Gosselin, DH: 4-5, 2B (13), 2 RBI, SB (3), .339
- Derrick Mitchell, RF: 0-2, 3 BB, 2 K, .237
- Christian Bethancourt, C: 1-4, R, BB, .260
- Brandon Boggs, LF: 2-5, 2 R, 2B (4), HR (1), RBI, .500
- Edward Salcedo, 3B: 0-4, BB, 2 K, .197
- Ozzie Martinez, SS: 2-4, R, RBI, .250
- Yunesky Maya, RHP: 6.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR, 98p-65s, 9:2 GO:FO, 3.68 ERA
- Ryan Buchter, LHP: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 15p-8s, 1:0 GO:FO, 4.18 ERA
- Wirfin Obispo, RHP: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 15p-11s, 1:1 GO:FO, 4.00 ERA
- Mark Lamm, RHP: 0.2 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 36p-19s, 2:1 GO:FO, 5.93 ERA
- Mitch Atkins, RHP: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 4p-3s, 0:1 GO:FO, 5.04 ERA
The Tides and Braves combined for 26 hits on Friday evening, but Norfolk was able to make the most of their hits, beating the Braves by a final score of 12-5. Brandon Boggs led the offense, blasting his fourth double and first home run of the season. Phil Gosselin continued his incredibly hot start to the season, blasting three singles and his 13th double in 2014. Christian Bethancourt had a single and, perhaps more importantly, took a walk, his sixth of the season, while Tommy La Stella also collected a single and a couple of free passes. Yunesky Maya started for the G-Braves, going six and one-third innings and allowing four runs on seven hits and a walk, striking out three. Gwinnett's bullpen struggled, highlighted by Mark Lamm's awful appearance in which he pitched two-thirds of an inning and allowed seven runs (four earned) on six hits and two walks.
Mississippi Braves 7, Chattanooga Lookouts 5
- Mycal Jones, CF: 2-4, 2 R, 2B (7), RBI, K, .316
- Daniel Carroll, RF: 1-4, R, RBI, SB (3), .212
- Cedric Hunter, LF: 2-4, 2 R, 2 HR (4), 5 RBI, BB, K, SB (1), .297
- Joe Leonard, 1B: 1-4, BB, 2 K, SB (2), .200
- Elmer Reyes, SS: 0-5, 2 K, .350
- Kyle Kubitza, 3B: 0-3, 2 BB, 2 K, .277
- Barrett Kleinknecht, 2B-LF: 1-4, 2B (7), BB, K, .243
- Braeden Schlehuber, C: 0-3, R, BB, K, .230
- JR Graham, RHP: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 77p-49s, 5:3 GO:FO, 4.86 ERA
- Eric Berger, LHP: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 22p-11s, 1:0 GO:FO, 3.48 ERA
- John Cornely, RHP: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 23p-16s, 1:0 GO:FO, 3.21 ERA
- James Hoyt, RHP: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R 0 BB, 0 K, 15p-12s, 0:2 GO:FO, 1.31 ERA
- Shae Simmons, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 0 K, 21p-12s, 1:1 GO:FO, 0.86 ERA
Two highly-touted arms from the 2011 draft in J.R. Graham and Chris Reed squared off on Friday evening in Chattanooga, with both pitchers failing to impress statistically. Specifically, Graham left after four and two-thirds innings, allowing four runs on seven hits and no walks, fanning four. Mississippi's bullpen was stellar the rest of the game, allowing a combined two hits and no runs through four and one-third innings of work. Shae Simmons finished the game and collected the save, walking two in the process. Former Padre Cedric Hunter was the offensive MVP of the game, smacking a couple of home runs and driving in five of Mississippi's seven runs. Myke Jones also collected a couple of hits, including his seventh double, while Barrett Kleinknecht also collected his seventh two-bagger of the season.
Winston-Salem Dash 4, Lynchburg Hillcats 10
- Jose Peraza, 2B: 1-5, R, K, SB (23), .326
- Kyle Wren, CF: 2-4, 2 R, 3B (2), 2 RBI, BB, 2 SB (21), .269
- Josh Elander, LF: 2-5, 2 R, 2 2B (9), RBI, K, .255
- Kevin Ahrens, DH: 2-3, 2 R, 2B (10), 2 BB, .255
- Will Skinner, RF: 3-5, 2B (15), 4 RBI, .266
- Tyler Tewell, C: 0-5, K, PB (6), .280
- Edison Sanchez, 1B: 1-4, R, 2B (6), 2 K, .221
- Daniel Castro, SS: 2-3, R, 2B (10), RBI, BB, .289
- Lay Batista, RHP: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 HR, 6:4 GO:FO, 5.31 ERA
- Navery Moore, RHP: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 4:2 GO:FO, 1.59 ERA
- Zach Jadofsky, RHP: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K, 1:1 GO:FO, 4.74 ERA
Lynchburg's offense combined for 13 hits on Friday, seven of which were of the extra-base variety. Josh Elander went 2-for-5 with a couple of doubles, bringing his season total to nine and his total in five games since coming off the disabled list to five. Will Skinner drove in four runs on three hits, including a double, and Kyle Wren laced his second triple of the season while also swiping a couple of bags to bring his season total to 21. Kevin Ahrens, Edison Sanchez, and Daniel Castro all added doubles, while Jose Peraza collected a single and stole his 23rd bag. Lay Batista went five innings, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks, while Navery Moore and Zach Jadofsky combined for four innings of two-hit, no-run baseball.
Greensboro Grasshoppers 14, Rome Braves 4
- Blake Brown, LF: 1-5, 3 K, .214
- Seth Moranda, 2B: 1-4, RBI, BB, .209
- Victor Caratini, C: 0-5, 2 K, .279
- Joey Meneses, DH: 1-3, 2B (13), K, .301
- Victor Reyes, RF: 1-4, R, .340
- Connor Lien, CF: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, K, .500
- Johan Camargo, SS: 2-4, R, 3B (1), RBI, K, .216
- A.J. Holland, RHP: 3.1 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 5:1 GO:FO, 7.27 ERA
- Tyler Vail, RHP: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 3:3 GO:FO, 3.12 ERA
- Richie Tate, RHP: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 3:1 GO:FO, 5.64 ERA
- Pete Perez, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 0:1 GO:FO, 2.00 ERA
Rome's pitching staff imploded Friday evening, allowing 14 runs on 19 hits and four walks. A.J. Holland started the game and was roughed up, leaving after three and one-third innings of work. Pete Perez was the only bright spot out of the bullpen, pitching a scoreless inning of relief and fanning two. Joey Meneses and Johan Camargo had the only two extra-base hits of the evening for Rome, collecting a double and a triple, respectively. Connor Lien made his full-season debut and shined, collecting a couple of singles and driving in a couple of runs. The 2012 12th-rounder has plenty of tools and is only 20 years old, so he automatically becomes one of the more intriguing names on Rome's roster. Check out Ian's recent write-up on him in his look back at the 2012 draft.