GRASSHOPPERS EDGE SPARTANBURGERS, 2-1, IN WEATHER-SHORTENED SEVEN-INNING GAME
from Callie Cline, Director of Greensboro Grasshoppers Media at GSOHoppers.com…
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Greensboro Grasshoppers defeated the Hub City Spartanburgers, 2-1, in a weather-shortened, seven-inning complete game on Friday, June 6, at First National Bank Field. With the win, the Grasshoppers improved to 36-18, while the Spartanburgers dropped to 29-26. Both teams recorded five hits, with Greensboro committing one error.
Catcher Omar Alfonzo led the charge for the Grasshoppers, going 2-for-3 with a home run, one RBI, and two runs scored. Additional hits came from Duce Gourson, Esmerlyn Valdez, and P.J. Hilson.
Luis Marquez paced the Spartanburgers’ offense, finishing 1-for-1 with one RBI. Hub City also received hits from Keith Jones II, Anthony Gutierrez, Quincy Scott, and Theo Hardy.
On the mound, left-handed starter Connor Wietgrefe turned in a solid performance for Greensboro, allowing four hits, one earned run, and one walk while striking out five over five innings. Michael Walsh earned the win in relief, improving to 3-1 on the season.
For Hub City, right-handed starter David Davalillo struck out seven and allowed three hits, one earned run, and two walks in five innings of work. Willian Bornie was charged with the loss, falling to 1-4 on the season.
The Grasshoppers continue their home series against the Hub City Spartanburgers tomorrow, Saturday, June 7 at 6:30 PM for Throwback 90’s Night and Spectacular Saturday Fireworks. To purchase tickets to any Grasshoppers home game, visit gsohoppers.com or call 336-268-2255.
from GSOSports and LONG GONE Baseball Network Notes….
“Omar was the Star”….Omar Alfonzo goes 2-4, with LONG GONE Home Run, and he scores both of the Grasshoppers runs…And he made one of the top Defensive Plays of the Game…This along with his HR, and the two runs scored, sets him up nicely for our REMAX Revolution Player/Play of the Game…But with all being said and done, the play at the plate in the Top of the Third Inning really tops off all that Omar did on Friday night at First National Bank Field…
Here is how it happened…Luis Marquez reached on leadoff single for the Hub City Spartanburgers, in the Top of the Third Inning…The fly ball got down, and it got past the Hoppers’ left fielder P.J. Hilson, and when the ball got past Hilson, Marquez ended up at second base after the error in left…Marquez advanced to third base on a Hub City ground out from Keith Jones II…The ground out goes to Hoppers’ first baseman Geovvany Planchart, who tossed to Grasshopper pitcher Connor Wietgrefe who was covering first base to record the out…One out for the Burgers, and Marquez is now at third base, and the next Hub City batter, Gleider Figuereo sends a fly ball to Greeensboro CF Lonnie White Jr., who successfully makes the fly ball catch for out number two…
Hub City is hoping to turn this into a SAC Fly RBI, so the Burgers skipper Chad Comer sends his runnner at third base home…So you have Luis Marquez headed home from third, and the throw from center field, coming from CF Lonnie White Jr. looks like it has a good chance to get the runner Marquez, as long as nobody cuts the throw off…The ball comes straight through to Hoppers’ catcher Omar Alfonzo and it looks like he might see the runner get past him, and it appears Alfonzo could not get the tag on Marquez in time…
So Marquez comes on across home plate, and everybody in the stadium is waiting for Home Plate Umpire Tatum Littleton to make the call, but he is not making a call of Safe or Out…So the runner Marquez is standing on past the plate on the first base dugout side of home…He is just standing there, and there has still not been a call of Safe or Out, soooooo Hoppers’ catcher Omar Alfonzo does the perfect thing, and makes the best Defensive Play of the Day for Greensboro, and Omar goes over tags Luis Marquez, and the Home Plate Umpire, Mr. Littleton makes the Big Call of the Game, and calls Marquez OUT, since Marquez had crossed home, but he never touched the Plate…
Marquez had raced home and he had avoided the first tag-attempt by Omar Alfonzo, but Marquez had NEVER touched home plate, and when Omar Alfonzo applied the second tag attempt, he had Marquez “Dead to Rights”, and Marquez and his Spartanburgers were done for the third with that Third Out, RIGHT THEN, RIGHT THERE, RIGHT NOW…Wow, what a Key Play by Omar Alfonzo…He was able to tag Marquez OUT, before Marquez could even think about slipping back over there and touching home plate…Omar had Marquez Dead to Rights…RIGHT THEN, RIGHT THERE, RIGHT NOW…
If Luis Marquez would have scored that run for Hub City, then the game might have had a different outcome…That have made the score, 1-0 Hub City, and who knows how the game might have gone from that point on, with Hub City in front…The Hoppers went up 1-0 on Alfonzo’s solo LONG GONE Home Run to left field, in the bottom of the fourth inning…The Burgers tied the game up at 1-1 in the fifth, and then Omar Alfonzo scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning, after he reached on a ground ball single to Burgers third baseman Gleider Figuereo, and Alfonzo ran his tail getting to first base, and beating out the throw across the diamond by Figuereo…Alfonzo came in to score what turned out to be the Game-Winning Run, on a RBI single to left field from Hoppers’ P.J. Hilson…
The game ended in the Bottom of the Seventh Inning, and 8:22pm, with the Greensboro Grasshoppers at the plate with one out…The Hoppers take the Rain-Shortened Game, and here come the game’s key details…
Final Score from Friday night:
Greensboro Grasshoppers 2, Hub City Spartanburgers 0
WP:Mike Walsh(3-1)/LP:Willan Bormie(1-4)
Hoppers' Line-2-5-1 Burgers' Line-1-5-0
Greensboro Grasshoppers(36-18)
Hub City Spartanburgers(29-26)
Game Details:
Attendance-4,830
Time of Game-2:23
Game Time Temp-89 degrees
Same two teams will go at it again on Saturday night with RHP Carlson Reed set to go for GSO, and righty D.J. McCarty ready to party/throw for Hub City…This week’s Six-Game Series is now all tied up at 2 games a-piece/2-2…If you can’t make it out to game on Saturday night, be sure to CLICK HERE to listen live, from The LONG GONE Baseball Radio Network, on GSOHoppers.com…Remember, if you are at home, or even if you are at the game, or on your way home from the game, you can CLICK HERE to listen live….Pregame, in-game Play-by-Play, and Postgame info…