RiverDogs Come from Behind, Win Sixth Straight

By: RiverDogs Media

The Charleston RiverDogs erased a three-run deficit midway through the ballgame, en route to a 7-4 win over the Augusta GreenJackets on Wednesday night at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park. The victory was the team’s sixth in a row and 12th in the last 13 games. The RiverDogs own a five-game lead over the competition in the second half South Division standings. 2,827 fans took in the victory.

For the second straight night, Augusta (11-15, 42-29) received a leadoff home run from shortstop Ambioris Tavarez. The 19-year-old increased his total to seven on the season with the early swing.

As they did on Tuesday, the RiverDogs (18-8, 45-47) answered immediately with a home run of their own in the bottom half. Cooper Kinney provided the spark this time, launching his eighth home run of the season in the second at-bat of the night against Jhancarlos Lara.

The GreenJackets jumped back ahead with a crooked number in the fourth inning, chasing Trevor Martin from the game in the process. The inning began with a two-base error on Bryson Worrell’s groundball to the right side. Jair Casanova followed by working a walk and Eliezel Stevens gave Augusta the lead with a ground-rule double. With two men in scoring position, Francisco Floyd used a sacrifice fly to drive in the second run of the inning before Dawson Dimon made it 4-1 with an RBI single.

From that point forward, the RiverDogs pitching staff held the GreenJackets off the board, allowing the offense to get to work. Jhon Diaz blasted a solo home run in the fourth inning to begin the rally. In the fifth, Edwin Barragan worked a one-out walk and raced to third on Mario Fernandez’s double. That allowed Chandler Simpson to tie the score with a two-run double down the left field line. In the next at-bat, Kinney put the Dogs on top with a line drive single to right field.

The final runs were added two frames later, via another round-tripper. For the second straight night, Xavier Isaac knocked a two-run home run out of the park to add some insurance to the lead. His team-leading 12th long ball of the season increased the margin to 7-4.

Kinney had two hits and two RBI, while center fielder Cristopher Barete also collected two hits and added a pair of outfield assists for the RiverDogs. Simpson stole his 70th base of the season to move within one of Jorge Mateo for third place in team history for steals in a season. Tyler Collins and Stevens added two hits for Augusta.

Gerlin Rosario earned the victory with 2.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen. He worked in relief of Martin, who surrendered four runs on five hits in 3.1 innings. Junior William used his high-powered fastball to get through a pair of scoreless frames and Jack Hartman faced the minimum in the ninth with help from a double play.

Ballpark Fun

The RiverDogs hosted Wine, Women and Baseball Night on Wednesday with plenty of fun for the ladies in attendance. Everyone’s favorite female mascot, Chelsea, took center stage to throw out the ceremonial first pitch and the players’ typical walk-up music was replaced by a more lady-like selection of songs. The first 250 women to enter the ballpark also went home with a special RiverDogs wine glass.

The RiverDogs look to continue their win streak on Thursday with another showdown against Augusta. RHP Marcus Johnson (3-5, 3.76) will receive the assignment for the RiverDogs against Augusta’s RHP Owen Murphy (3-3, 4.70). This Budweiser Thirsty Thursday will feature winter-themed cocktails to go along with the usual $1 beers throughout the ballpark.

RiverDogs season tickets, flexible ticket plans, and group tickets, including options to the Segra Club at Riley Park, are available at riverdogs.com/tickets or by contacting the RiverDogs front office at 843-577-3647 (DOGS)

Augusta (R-H-E): 4-8-2
Charleston (R-H-E): 7-9-1

Win: Rosario (1-0)
Loss: Lara (2-6)
Save: Hartman (1)

HR: Augusta: Ambioris Tavarez (7, 1st inning, 0 on base)
HR: Charleston: Cooper Kinney (8, 1st inning, 0 on base), Jhon Diaz (4, 4th inning, 0 on base),  Xavier Isaac (12, 7th inning, 1 on base)

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