Exposito's Grand Slam Leads To Offensive Explosion in 7-5 Win

COLUMBUS, GA., — Bottom four. Bases loaded. No outs. 2-0 lead. Over 2,500 people holding their breath. The pitch comes in... and E.J. Exposito blasts it off the scoreboard for his first Double-A grand slam. Exposito's slam gave the Columbus Clingstones (8-5, 34-45) a 6-0 lead over the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (7-5, 41-40), a lead that stood strong amidst a late rally attempt, and the Clingstones walked away with a 7-5 win on Tuesday night at Synovus Park.

Decisive Plays: The first three and a half innings went by like a breeze. However, the bottom of the fourth would be a different story. The Clingstones loaded the bases with no outs and Adam Zebrowski got the scoring started with an RBI single and Cal Conley drew a walk to bring in another and double the lead before Exposito blew the game wide open with his first Double-A grand slam. Lucas Braun exited the game early after being hit off a comebacker in the top of the fifth and Pensacola would score its first run of the game in the top of the sixth off a wild pitch. The score would remain 6-1 until the home half of the seventh when Ethan Workinger recorded an RBI infield single that deflected off Nigel Belgrave's glove. Pensacola would not go down without a fight and Nathan Martorella's solo home run (7) sparked a late rally. Tony Bullard brought in two more runs with a 2-RBI double (5) and Dalvy Rosario drove in Pensacola's fifth run of the game with an RBI groundout. Elison Joseph answered the call to the bullpen and notched a five-out save (3) to preserve the Clingstones' 7-5 lead.

Key Contributors: Exposito (1-for-3, 4 RBI, HR) headlined the offense with his first Double-A grand slam while McCabe (3-for-4, run, two doubles) and Drew Compton (1-for-3, two runs) kept the momentum flowing throughout the game. Jose Cuas (1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO) earned the first win as a Clingstone after entering the game early due to Braun's exit. Joseph (1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO) recorded a five-out save and slammed the door on a red-hot Pensacola offense.

Noteworthy: The Clingstones are in first place in the Southern League with an 8-5 record to open the second half. This is the first time that Columbus has led the league all season. The Clingstones are now 9-3 on Tuesday games after Tuesday night's 7-5 victory over Pensacola. Exposito joined Workinger and Geraldo Quintero as the only Clingstones in team history to record a grand slam with his fourth inning blast.

Next Game (Wednesday, July 9): Columbus vs. Pensacola, 7:05 pm ET at Synovus Park. Radio Broadcast: 6:50 pm ET on Sports Visions 92.1 FM. RHP Amos Willingham (0-0, 5.79 ERA) will start for Columbus opposed by RHP Jacob Miller (2-4, 3.75 ERA) for Pensacola.