Mervis Walk-Off Home Run Gives Pelicans Game and Series over Augusta
3-Run Walk-Off Homer and Beer Bats Win the Night in Myrtle Beach
3-Run Walk-Off Homer and Beer Bats Win the Night in Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach, SC- In the Pelicans' second extra-inning game in as many nights, Myrtle Beach came out on top this time courtesy of a three-run home run by Matt Mervis to win the game 9-7 in 10 innings. The win secured the series victory over the GreenJackets with the Pelicans taking four of the six. However, Mervis' walk-off wasn't the only win of the night according to Barstool Sports and USA Today. Pelicans GM Ryan Moore stepped up to help out-of-town fans access special team beer bats.
Due to licensing rules - we can’t directly sell you the Beer Bat (unless you’re in the ballpark).
— Myrtle Beach Pelicans (@Pelicanbaseball) May 16, 2021
BUT!
Our GM has stepped up. Venmo $25 to “Ryan-Moore-843” and he’ll drink on your behalf, and send you his game used bat.
DM us a screenshot of your receipt and mailing address. pic.twitter.com/8v6aQRAs4Q
In the best offensive performance of the season, The Pelicans totaled four different players to post multi-hit games. Edmond Americaan (2-5, HR, 3 RBI) knocked two extra-base hits to drive home three runs while Yeison Santana (2-5, RBI), Ed Howard (2-4, RBI), and Pablo Aliendo (2-3, 2 R) all contributed to the 11-hit performance. Matt Mervis (1-4, HR, 4 RBI), had the biggest hit with a walk-off three-run home run to right field to win the game.
The win went to reliever Joe Nahas (2-0) who struck out three over two innings pitched. Pelicans' starting pitcher Adam Laskey threw a season-high four innings giving up four runs on seven hits to the GreenJackets.
Stephen Paolini (3-5, 4 R) picked up his first three-hit performance of the season for Augusta with fellow outfielder Brandon Parker (0-3, 3 RBI) leading the teams in runs driven in.
Alger Hodgson (0-1) suffered the loss after giving up the walk-off homer. GreenJackets starter Tyler Owens had an impressive outing going three innings with four strikeouts and one run allowed off three hits.
Much like they did on Tuesday, the GreenJackets got to Laskey early in the game with Paolini leading off with a single, and Vaughn Grissom following with a double to put two runners in scoring position. Parker grounded out to third that brought home a run and Landon Stephens did the exact same thing to make it a 2-0 Augusta lead.
The visitors would tack on one more run in the second with a Braulio Vasquez RBI single and another in the third with Javier Valdes lining a ball to center to extend the GreenJacket lead to 4-0.
The Pelicans would score their first run in their half of the third after putting runners on the corners with one out. Howard stepped up with a grounder that skipped into left field which scored Ethan Hearn to put the Pelicans on the board.
Americaan would get Myrtle Beach back in the game with his third home run of the season, a two-run opposite-field shot to bring the Pelicans closer down 4-3.
Cade Bunnell hit a solo home run to left-centerfield to get extend the Augusta lead in the seventh, and Parker lifted a sacrifice fly to center field in the inning to score another run and make the GreenJacket advantage 6-3.
Down in the seventh inning for the fourth time in the series, the Birds made another late comeback. The home half of the seventh started with Aliendo and Hearn both singling to get on base. Americaan smoked the third hit in a row to start the inning to the right-centerfield wall for a double to score Aliendo. Santana came up next and hit a liner to right field that scored Hearn. Two batters later, Mervis collected his first RBI with a game-tying sacrifice fly to left field that scored Americaan and evened the game at six.
Both teams were quiet through the ninth and for the second game in a row, Augusta and Myrtle Beach went to extra innings.
The GreenJackets led off the tenth with a sacrifice bunt from Grissom, which set up a sacrifice fly off the bat of Parker to go ahead 7-6 entering the bottom half.
Howard led off the Pelicans' half with a walk with Santana starting off at second, and on a 3-2 count, Mervis powered a ball over the right-field fence to win the game on a walk-off home run 9-7.
The Pelicans will travel to Lynchburg to face the Hillcats for a six-game series this week, with game one starting on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
Who would've thought... https://t.co/jY2NWnpUUj
— Ryan Moore (@CaptainRMoore) May 17, 2021
— OBVIOUS SHIRTS® (@obvious_shirts) May 17, 2021