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Pitching Struggles, Birds Fall in Series Finale to GreenJackets

July 11, 2021

By Sam Weiderhaft

By Sam Weiderhaft

The 11-0 blowout is the worst loss of the season for Myrtle Beach

Hoping to tie the series on Sunday evening, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans were dropped 11-0 by the Augusta GreenJackets as the home team took the series four games to two. The Pelicans fall to 26-33, while the GreenJackets improve to 28-31 and sit two games ahead of Myrtle Beach at third in the Low-A East, South division standings.

The Pelicans hit their second-lowest hit total of the season with only two base knocks for the game. Kevin Made (1-4) and Luis Verdugo (1-3) provided the only offense as Myrtle Beach was shut out for the fifth time this season.

The bullpen fluttered as four pitchers gave up six earned runs after Jeremiah Estrada (1-1) took the loss by starting the game and throwing just under three innings with four unearned runs. Carlos Ocampo was tagged with five earned runs off six hits in just 2/3 innings pitched.

It was a field day for the Augusta lineup as all but one hitter reached base safely. Landon Stephens (1-4, HR, 3 RBI) hit his sixth home run of the season in the third inning to bring in three runs. Bryson Horne (3-5, 2B, RBI) led the team with three hits in the victory.

The GreenJackets received six shutout innings from Tanner Gordon (3-2) who got credit for the win with five strikeouts and just one walk. The bullpen allowed just one hit to Myrtle Beach in the final three innings.

Two five-run innings put the game out of reach. In the third, it was Connor Blair reaching base on a routine ground ball to Flemin Bautista at second when his throw skipped in the dirt and allowed Blair to get to second. Cam Shepherd came up next and singled up the middle to bring home Blair and put the GreenJackets up 1-0. Shepherd would advance on a wild pitch by Estrada and score on a single by Cody Birdsong. Horne then singled to put two runners on, and everybody came home when Stephens blasted a home run to left field to give Augusta a 5-0 lead after three innings.

Five more runs came across in the sixth as the Pelicans gave up a season-high six hits in the inning. Ocampo would walk Stephens to start off his appearance, and Victor De Hoyos singled to put two runners on base. After Stephen Paolini struck out, Brandon Parker loaded the bases with a single to right. Blair kept the train moving with a single to bring in Stephens and made it a 6-0 game. After a brief mound visit, Shepherd hit the third single in a row to bring in another run and keep the bases loaded. Another run would score on an Ocampo wild pitch, and the runners would move to second and third after a balk. Cade Bunnell came up and lifted a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Shepherd to cap off the scoring with the lead at 10-0.

Augusta would get one more run off an RBI single by Horne to extend the lead to 11-0.

The Pelicans will head back to Myrtle Beach for a 12-game homestand, with the first six against the Columbia Fireflies. First pitch of game one is on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m.