Drive blanked by Emperors, 9-0

The Greenville Drive (20-26) were blanked for the second time in four games on the strength of the stellar arm of Riley Frey and a 4-for-5 night at the plate from Sabin Ceballos, falling 9-0 nothing to the South Atlantic League South Division leaders, Rome Emperors 9-0.

Drive starter Dalton Rogers’ issues with command have been well noted this season as he ranks among the league leaders in walks issued. It bit him in the first on Tuesday, as he walked leadoff batter Kevin Kirkpatrick, Jr. before Cabellos singled and the two advanced to second and third respectively on a passed ball. An Adam Zebrowski sac-fly and an E.J. Exposito reach on a fielding error made it 2-0 in a flash.

Frey continued his impressive start in High-A level baseball, holding the Drive hitless through three, issuing a walk as the only blemish. He ultimately went six innings, allowing three hits and four walks with one strikeout.

Greenville struggled at the plate all night, picking up just four hits with Cutter Coffey knocking the only extra base hit; a double in the sixth. Kristian Campbell extended his on-base streak to 31 games in a row, four shy of tying the Drive record held by Mookie Betts and Bryce Brentz, with a walk in the sixth.

Greenville’s only good chance at runs would come in the sixth with Coffey’s double and Campbell’s walk. But a double play off the bat of Allan Castro quickly changed the tide. Ronald Rosario walked to put runners on the corner but a groundout from Miguel Ugueto ended the threat.

Rogers extended his night to 4.2 innings, allowing four runs on five hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Two of the four runs would come with two-outs in the fifth as Gabriel Jackson took over for Rogers. Ambioris Tavarez smacked an RBI-single before his steal of second allowed Exposito to race home, boosting the Emperors lead to 4-0. Ceballos’ second RBI of the game in the sixth extended the lead to 5-0.

Jackson went 1.1 innings allowing two hits, one earned and one walk.

Rome continued to pour it on in the innings following, launching three homers to boost the lead to 9-0. Tavarez knocked his second of the season in the seventh, this time a two-run shot off Jeremy Wu-Yelland before Ceballos and Ethan Workinger lifted back-to-back homers off the batter’s eye in center field off Reidis Sena in the eighth.

Wu-Yelland tossed the solitary inning, allowing two hits while picking up three strikeouts.
Sena finished the final two frames for Greenville, ringing up three with two hits.

The Greenville Drive return to action on Wednesday, May 29th for game two of the six-game series with the Rome Emperors. Rome leads the series, 1-0.