Drive 1 Hit by Dominate Emperor Pitching, Fall 2-0

Drive 1 Hit by Dominate Emperor Pitching, Fall 2-0

ROME, Ga. — JR Ritchie tossed a complete-game one-hitter, and the Rome Emperors scratched across a run in the fifth and another in the eighth to blank the Greenville Drive 2-0 on Saturday night at AdventHealth Stadium.

Ritchie (4-1) was dominant from the first pitch, striking out nine and walking just one in a 95-pitch gem. The right-hander faced just two batters over the minimum, retiring the final 13 hitters he faced to lock down Rome’s third win in the six-game set.

Franklin Arias accounted for Greenville’s only hit, a leadoff single in the first inning. He was later erased on a force out, and the Drive (14-18) never advanced another runner past second base the rest of the night. They finished 0-for-1 with runners in scoring position and were caught stealing twice.

Rome (18-14) finally broke through in the fifth when Dylan Shockley led off with a single and scored on Joe Olsavsky’s RBI single to left. In the eighth, Patrick Clohisy walked and scored from second on Titus Dumitru’s third hit of the night — a single to left-center that got past center fielder Nelly Taylor on a fielding error.

Greenville starter Payton Tolle (1-2) allowed one run on five hits over five innings, striking out five and walking one. Cooper Adams and Isaac Stebens worked the final three innings, with Stebens surrendering the unearned insurance run in the eighth.

Dumitru led the Emperors with a 3-for-4 performance, while Espinoza and Shockley chipped in two hits apiece as Rome outhit Greenville 11-1. The Emperors were aggressive on the bases, swiping two bags but also getting thrown out three times, including an attempted steal of home by Espinoza in the seventh.

The Emperors now lead the series 3-2, with the finale scheduled for Sunday afternoon.