Rome Blanked Out of the Break

ROME, Ga – A pair of solo home runs in the fifth, two insurance runs late, and their first shutout-worthy pitching performance of 2026 lifted Asheville to a 4-0 win Friday night over the Emperors.

Ethan Bagwell, Atlanta’s no.21 prospect (Pipeline), made his home debut on Friday, working around a first inning double from Xavier Neyens and a leadoff single from Alejandro Nunez in the third only to see his shutout spoiled in the fifth by a pair of solo home runs. Jack Moss and Anthony Huezo punished two of Bagwell’s off-speed pitches and parked them in the kids’ zone in right field in back-to-back plate appearances.

Hitless and shutout through five, Rome managed an infield single from Dallas Macias in the bottom of the sixth inning. Across the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings, Rome stranded six baserunners, including the bases loaded in the seventh with Macias back at the plate; his line drive to first base finding the pocket of Jack Moss’ glove for the third out of the inning.

Now 9-12 in the second half and one game under .500 for the season, Rome shifts its sights to the middle game of the series with Asheville set for 6:45PM ET.