Hoppers' balanced lineup clobbers Asheville

Matt Gorski hits his 8th home run of the season to lead a 15-hit barrage

Greensboro Grasshoppers center fielder Matt Gorski. (Jak Kerley/Greensboro Grasshoppers)

By Jeff Mills

May 5, 2022

GREENSBORO ― Center fielder Matt Gorski went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs, and the Grasshoppers' offense rapped out 15 hits as Greensboro clobbered the Asheville Tourists 14-3 at First National Bank Field on Wednesday night. Gorski's home run was a missile, a game-tying two-run shot in the

GREENSBORO ― Center fielder Matt Gorski went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs, and the Grasshoppers' offense rapped out 15 hits as Greensboro clobbered the Asheville Tourists 14-3 at First National Bank Field on Wednesday night.

Gorski's home run was a missile, a game-tying two-run shot in the third inning that came off the bat with a 107 mph exit velocity and would have traveled an estimated 383 feet if the scoreboard in right-center field didn't get in the way.

Gorski leads the South Atlantic League in runs scored (21) and ranks second in both home runs (8) and RBIs (21).

Every starter in Greensboro's lineup had at least one hit in the game, and the Hoppers offense scored nine times in the sixth inning to blow the game open.

Yoyner Fajardo went 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs, and Endy Rodriguez drew three walks and hit a monster home run, 408 feet to straightaway center field.

Jackson Glenn, Abrahan Gutierrez and Eli Wilson all had two hits apiece for Greensboro.

Right-hander Domingo Gonzalez (1-2) made an effective start. Gonzalez gave up a three-run home run to Asheville's Michael Sandle, but pitched well otherwise, striking out seven in 5 2/3 innings.

Relievers Eddy Yean and Wandi Montout retired all 10 batters they faced ― thanks to a double play in the seventh inning ― to close out the last 3 2/3 innings.

NOTES

Matt Gorski raised his batting average to .276. He's been on base in 20 of 22 games playeds so far this season.
Henry Davis, the No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, went 1-for-5 with a double and has hits in 16 of the 20 games he's played. He has eight multi-hit games, and he ranks fourth in the Sally League with both a .333 batting average and .440 on-base percentage. Davis has reached base in 14 consecutive games, and 19 of 20 games played.
Right-hander Eddy Yean's fastball reached 95 mph on the ballparks radar gun. The big reliever has struck out 13 in 11 innings this season.
Pirates prospect Endy Rodriguez ― a versatile player who has played first base, second base, left field and catcher ― has seven multi-hit games in 20 starts. The 21-year-old is rated by MLB Pipeline as the No. 7 prospect in Pittsburgh's farm system.
Yoyner Fajardo is 13-for-39 and shares the team lead with a .333 batting average, but unlike Davis he does not have enough plate appearances to qualify for the league leaders. Fajardo has hit safely in eight of 10 games played.

In his career at the News & Record, journalist Jeff Mills won 10 national and 12 state writing awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, the Society for Features Journalism, and the N.C. Press Association.