Charleston Walks Off Against Sand Gnats
CHARLESTON, SC - Kelvin DeLeon hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to center field in the bottom of the ninth inning that scored Peter O'Brien and gave the Charleston RiverDogs a 3-2 win over the first place Savannah Sand Gnats in South Atlantic League play Tuesday night at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park in front of 2,259 fans. The win was Charleston's fifth straight.
With the win, the RiverDogs (20-15) jump into a tie for third place in the Southern Division. The Sand Gnats (21-15) fall into a tie for first place in the Southern Division with the loss, just a half game ahead of Charleston.
The RiverDogs wasted no time scoring in the bottom of the first inning. After a Cito Culver single and a Greg Bird double, Peter O'Brien made the score 2-0 with a two RBI single.
Savannah got one run back in the top of the third. With runners on first and third, following a Charleston error, Cole Frenzel singled to left field and scored Maikis De La Cruz to cut it to 2-1.
RiverDogs starting pitcher Daniel Camarena had one of his best outings of the season. He pitched five innings, allowed five hits, gave up one unearned run and struck out three batters before being relieved by Dietrich Enns.
Kevin Plawecki led off the sixth inning for the Sand Gnats with a triple and later scored the tying run on another Frenzel RBI single.
Gabriel Ynoa was impressive on the mound for Savannah. In 6.1 innings of work, Ynoa allowed two runs on six hits and recorded six strikeouts. Hunter Carnevale entered the game in the seventh inning and threw 1.2 perfect innings of relief.
The Sand Gnats threatened to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning. However, with the game tied and the bases loaded, Plawecki struck out swinging on a 3-2 pitch to end the inning and keep the game tied at 2.
In the bottom of the ninth, the RiverDogs loaded the bases with hits by O'Brien and Calderon and an intentional walk of Reymond Nunez. O'Brien (2-4, 2 RBI) then scored the game winning run on a sacrifice fly to center by DeLeon as Charleston walked off winners 3-2.
Ben Paullus (2-1) picked up his second win of the season. He pitched one scoreless inning, allowed one hit, and struck out two batters.
BALLPARK FUN: It was 2-For-$20 Date Night. For $20 dollars, fans received two tickets, two slices of pizza, two Pepsis, and a popcorn. One lucky couple was chosen to enjoy a candlelit dinner sponsored by La Fontana Italian Restaurant.
COMING UP: The final game of this three-game series against the Savannah Sand Gnats is Wednesday night at 7:05. RHP Cesar Vargas (1-1, 4.28 ERA) will be on the mound for Charleston, and he will face off against LHP Steven Matz (2-0, 1.85 ERA) for Savannah. It will be MeTV Senior Wednesday presented by AAA Carolinas. All seniors (65+) who enter the game before 7 will get a free hot dog, Pepsi, and bag of chips. Show your AAA card at the box office for buy-one-get-one-free tickets.
--RIVERDOGS--