Asheville Plates 13 in Third Straight Victory

ASHEVILLE- The bats remained hot for the Asheville Tourists on Friday night. Following an 11-run showing Thursday, the Tourists upped their output to 13 runs Friday en route to a third straight win over the Brooklyn Cyclones. At one point Asheville led 13-3 before settling for a 13-7 final.

Enmanuel Valdez became the first Tourist in 2021 to record a three-hit game. His initial base hit drove in Alex McKenna as part of a four-run first inning. Luis Santana continued to swing the bat well and contributed a two-run single in the frame.

McKenna blasted a towering Home Run to centerfield in the second and Santana delivered another RBI hit. Following Freudis Nova’s two-run Home run in the third, Asheville led Brooklyn 9-2. Nova connected with an RBI double his next at bat and Ramiro Rodriguez joined the party with a bases clearing double in the sixth.

The Cyclones’ Ronny Mauricio did his best to keep Brooklyn within striking distance. Mauricio hit a two-run Home Run in the third and added a two-run double in the eighth. Brett Baty also drove in a pair of Cyclones runs.

The Tourists took full advantage of some shaky defense by the visitors. Brooklyn committed six errors in the game that led to five unearned runs. Asheville remained error free for the second straight game.

Tyler Brown made his professional debut and struck out five over four innings of work. R.J. Freure, Kyle Serrano, and Layne Henderson combined to toss the game’s final five frames. Asheville’s four pitchers totaled an astounding 17 strikeouts in the win.

The Tourists and the Cyclones will take the field for game five on Saturday evening at 6:05pm.