Greenville stable of pitchers stifle Asheville, Drive win 5-2

Jimenez homers; Meidroth, Hickey, Ferguson shine at the plate

Timely Greenville Drive (2-2) hitting was the story of Opening Night but it was the pitching that delivered the Drive’s second win of the year tonight as the bullpen delivered four scoreless and hitless innings to give the Drive back-to-back wins. Relievers Graham Hoffman and Christopher Troye combined to strikeout six Asheville hitters in a row, while Joe Jones and Joey Stock bookended those two relievers, keeping the Tourists in-check.

Starter Isaac Coffey, making his Greenville debut, would go five strong innings relinquishing six hits, two earned runs, while garnering five strikeouts and one walk in what ultimately amounted to him earning the win.

Coffey yielded only one run in the first inning after three straight Tourists’ batters reached base on two consecutive singles and a walk. He’d pick up two strikeouts and a groundout across the next three batters, escaping further damage.

Drive hitting would bolster Coffey and for the fourth straight game the Drive would score a run in the first inning, after third baseman Chase Meidroth came home on a passed ball by Asheville catcher Nerio Rodriguez.

For the second consecutive night it was a big inning that made the difference for the Drive as Greenville scratched across four runs in the second inning. Center fielder Gilberto Jimenez blasted his first home run of the year to right field to give the Drive a 2-1 lead. Meidroth continued his hot start, sending a shot to left center that bounced off the wall for a double that plated center fielder Nick Decker from second base. Designated hitter Blaze Jordan singled on the ensuing at-bat plating Meidroth. Two batters later, Miguel Ugueto sent a sacrifice fly to center scoring shortstop Marcelo Mayer to bring the lead to 5-1.

Asheville picked up only one more run from there on out off a homer by Kenedy Corona in the top of the fifth.

Jones made his Drive debut in relief of Coffey in the sixth inning, sending all three batters down on three consecutive groundouts, including snagging a hard grounder right back to the mound and promptly tossing the runner out at first.

Hoffman would get all three batters he faced on swinging strike threes in the seventh, while Troye would nab two batters in the same fashion in the eighth while adding a pitch clock strikeout. Stock would go on to pick up the save in the ninth, securing the Drive’s second win of the series.

While Meidroth’s stellar play at the plate has been the story over the first couple games, two Drive batters found their stride as Max Ferguson and Nathan Hickey both chipped in 2-for-3 performances. Ferguson would also two stolen bases bringing his total to four on the year.

The Drive continue their series with Asheville tomorrow with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m. at Fluor Field. The Drive can earn at least a split of the opening series with Asheville with a win in tomorrow’s contest.