Drive Ride Early Lead to Victory on Sunday
Greenville, SC - Behind standout performances from Tanner Nishioka at the plate and Jhonathan Diaz on the mound, the Greenville Drive defeated the Lexington Legends 7-4 on Sunday night with 5,202 fans in attendance at Fluor Field.A four-run bottom of the first for the Drive (38-31, 63-75) was powered by
Greenville, SC - Behind standout performances from
A four-run bottom of the first for the Drive (38-31, 63-75) was powered by Nishioka, who smacked a three-run home run to left-center field, giving him three straight games with a homer, as well as 11 long balls on the season.
The run support gave Diaz (11-8) plenty to work with, but he was outstanding on his own in shutting out the Legends (39-28, 76-59) for seven innings. He gave up just four hits and one walk with six strikeouts. Diaz ends his 2018 campaign as the Drive's single-season record holder with 153 innings and 147 strikeouts, and his 11 victories tie him for third in franchise history in a season.
The Drive stretched their lead to 7-0 through four innings.
Lexington received a strong relief effort from
The Legend snapped the shutout with four runs in the ninth, only one of which was earned thanks to a passed ball and a Drive error.
Nishioka finished the night 3-5 with a career-high five RBI.
The final game of the 2018 season begins at 2:05 PM on Labor Day at Fluor Field. The Drive will send right-hander
~Greenville Drive~