Greensboro Grasshoppers Friday Night Baseball Report…
brought to us by Mike Causey for North Carolina Insurance Commissioner……
You talk about a team that must be living right, well that would probably be the Greensboro Grasshoppers….The got down 3-0 on Friday night, at First National Bank Field, and then at that point, they went to work, and did not give up another run, and by the end of the night they won, 10-3…
Down 3-0, and you out-score the opposition(Hudson Valley Renegades) 10-0 the rest of the way, well that is what you call taking care of Business, and this must be, “The Taking Care of Buisness/Bidness Tour of 2024”, because the Hoppers just clinched the First Half Title, at FNB/First National Bank Field on Thursday, and then on Friday night, they come out flat and fall behind 3-0, before they get going, and once the Hoppers got going, the end results were showing, another Hopper Victory, and Two More Hopper Homers on the night, and that gives the team 102 Home Runs for 2024, and to me that all adds up to 102 JAMZ…
On Friday night it was a solo HR from Termarr Johnson, and he hit the tar out of the ball, as his smash traveled 362 feet plus…Then Shawn Ross came up with a Grand Slam HR, in the bottom of the eighth inning and the Hoppers were home FREE, at home…I was telling Hoppers’ skipper Blake Butler back in April that his 2024 team was more of a power hitting team, than a team that hits for average, and he told me it would all even out later on, but the Hopper Homers just keep going on and on, and this has been one huge LONG GONE season…I called it, and my evaluations have been holding up so far…
Now on the heart of the matter, with tonight’s Friday night details, from our banner sponsor, Mike Causey for North Carolina Insurance Commissioner, and VOTE Mike Causey, on November 5…..
Final Score from Friday night at First National Bank Field:
Greensboro Grasshoppers 10, Hudson Valley Renegades 3
WP:Derek Diamond(4-1)
LP:Joel Valdez(1-2)
Hoppers' Line- 10- 9-1 Renegades' Line-3-10-1
Greensboro Grasshoppers(39-26/1-0)
Hudson Valley Renegades(33-33/0-1)
Hoppers down early 3-0, after one inning, and then the home team went to work to get back in the game…Two runs in second inning, with one run driven in by Termarr Johnson’s single off of Hudson Valley pitcher Kyle Carr’s leg…The other Hopper RBI in the second frame came on based-loaded walk to Kalae Harrison…Harrison scored Josiah Sightler and Johnson drove in Mitch Jebb…The Hoppers locked it up at 3-all in the bottom of the third inning when Greensboro’s Hudson Head scored on a Wild Pitch that was close to being a passed ball, with the wild one being charged to the Renegades’ Joel Valdez…
After three innings, we are all tied up at 3-each…And like we leaned to earlier, after that first inning, the Hoppers’ starting pitcher Derek Dimaond was GOLD…After the first inning, Double D/Derek Diamond only gave up three hits, with two singles and a double from HV….Diamond ends up going five solid innings, allowing overall, 3 Runs, on six(6) hits with 0 BBs, and 8 Ks…As a staff, with Jaycob Deese, Finn Del Bonta-Smith, and Ryan Harbin combining to finish up things over the last four innings for Diamond, the pitching staff came with a total of 11 strikeouts, and then walked 0/ZERO Renegade batters…Second straight night that the Hoppers gave up NO walks…After limiting the damage/LTD in first inning, Super Solid Night by the Hopper Hurlers…
So we were on the game-tracker and following the Hopper offense, before we jumped up on the mound, and got sound from the pitchers…Last we checked the game was all locked down, at 3-3, after three innings, and then came the bottom of the fourth frame, where the Greensboro Grasshoppers took over the game…Termarr Johnson lifted his shot to right field near the Flow Motors and Dream Catchers Vacation signs, and with that blast off the bat of TJ, the Hoppers seized control of this contest, and it was all theirs….New score after the Johnson Joust was 4-3, Hoppers…
Four-three Hoppers was OK with me, at FNB, but you see the Grasshoppers had other ideas how this game might end/be…We are sitting on that 4-3 Grasshoppers’ advantage, when Josiah Sightler and Shawn Ross say we will be the Boss…It was a two-run single from Sightler, and a Grand Slam from Ross, that made HV toss in the towel..
Let’s take a look at how the Hoppers got those six runs in eighth inning…
Bottom 8th
Josiah Sightler singles on a line drive to right fielder Garrett Martin. Kalae Harrison scores. P.J. Hilson scores.
HV 3,GBO 6
Shawn Ross hits a grand slam to center field. Josiah Sightler scores. Lonnie White Jr. scores. Mitch Jebb scores.
HV 3,GBO 10
So there you go, and that is how the Greensboro Grasshoppers got to that 10-run total, and with the runs, and the lock-down defense from the pitching staff after the first inning, it was a “Great Night to be a Greensboro Grasshoppers Fan”….
For Players of the Game, we are looking at Termarr Johnson, Shawn Ross, and Derek Diamond…Looks good to me, from FNB…
(We need to give props to Josiah Sightler too..And Mitch Jebb, with the 3 Stolen Bases….YES!!!)
Let’s do our nightly glance at the Hopper Hitters:Termarr Johnson 2-5/HR/2 RBI…Nick Cimillo 0-3/2 BBs…P.J. Hilson Run…Josiah Sightler 2-5/2 Runs/2 RBI…Lonnie White Jr. 2-2/3 BBs/Run…Mitch Jebb 0-3/2 BBs/2 Runs/3 SBs…Shawn Ross 2-4/HR/BB/4 RBI…Maikol Escotto 0-4/BB…Kalae Harrison 1-3/Double/BB/Run/RBI…
++++++++++One of the Wilder Numbers in this game, was the Number 12…That is the Number of times the Hoppers drew Walks…Twelve(12) Walks in this game for the Greensboro Grasshoppers…12 walks and just 11 strikeouts by the Hoppers…10 Hopper runs, on 9 Hopper hits, but the Grasshoppers walked 12 times on the night…Twelve times??? YES!!!!+++++++++++
(And the Hoppers’ pitching staff gave up 0/ZERO Walks, remember.)
Hudson Valley Renegade Hitters:Roc Riggio 2-4…Rafael Flores 2-4/Run…Oscar Martinez 2-4/Run…Jace Avina 2-4/HR/Double/3 RBI…(Avina with the three-run home run, that gave the Renegades the early 3-0 lead.)…Kiko Romero 1-4…Brenny Escanio 1-4/Double…
Of all of the HV Renegade pitchers, Trent Sellars probably felt it the worst…He gave up 5 runs, on 2 hits, with 4 BBs and 3 Ks…Sellars loaded the bases up in the bottom of the 8th inning, and Huey Morrill came in to relieve him, and on his first pitch, Morrill gave up the Grand Slam to the Hoppers’ Shawn Ross…Was an 1 2/3s of work for Sellars….HV starter Kyle Carr lasted just two innings, and then he came out due to precautionary care need for his leg…HV LP Joel Valdez worked 2 2/3s innings, and he gave up 2 runs, on 2 hits, with 3 BBs/3 Ks, and he gave up the solo HR to Termarr Johnson…
Well a lot of at-bats/ABs, and a busy night for the Greensboro Grasshoppers and we still can’t get over the 12 Walks that they drew…The Walks, the Grand Slam HR, the lockdown effort from the Hops’ pitching staff after the first inning…All Good…
Game Particulars:
Attendance-5,319
Time of Game/TOG-2:48
Game Time Temp-90 Degrees
Up Next:
Hudson Valley Renegades(33-33) at the Greensboro Grasshoppers(40-26) on Saturday night at 6:30pm…Hoppers baseball from First National Bank Field, and if can’t make it down there to the FNB Field, then tune in, and Listen Live, when you CLICK HERE, for GSOHoppers.com….