Fireflies Game Notes: April 18 vs. Hickory (Game 14)

Chicharrones de Columbia (6-7) @ Llamas de Hickory (10-3)

RHP Christian James (0-2, 5.00) vs. RHP Ronny Henriquez (0-0, 0.00)

Thurs., April 18, 2019 — Segra Park — First Pitch 7:05 p.m. — Game 14

LISTEN: FirefliesLiveStream.com / ColumbiaFireflies.com / TuneIn App

WATCH: MiLB.TV

LAST TIME OUT: Walter Rasquin knocked in both runs on Wednesday and Columbia defeated Rome in the series finale, 2-1. The pitching was stellar again: starter Jaison Vilera set the table with six scoreless innings. The right-hander scattered three hits, struck out five and walked no one. Ronny Mauricio finished with four hits, including a triple.

SERIES WIN: The Fireflies took two out of three from the Braves from Monday to Wednesday. It’s the second straight series victory over Rome (April 8-10).

THIS KID CAN HIT: The four-hit game for Mauricio was his second in three days. The 18-year-old Mets prospect went 4-for-6 against Lexington on Sunday and 4-for-5 against Rome on Wednesday. Mauricio’s .346 batting average is 5th-best in the league and his 18 total hits are tied for 1st. Sixteen of his 18 hits on the year are singles.

CHICHARRONES DE COLUMBIA: The Fireflies have partnered with Minor League Baseball as it heads into year two if its Copa de la Diversion initiative. Columbia is one of 72 teams that’ll change their name and logo for multiple games throughout the season (in this case, April 18-20) to connect with the Latin community. As the team was searching for an identity for Columbia's Copa team, a constant culinary theme across all nations was found that is represented in our community: Chicharrónes. Chicharrones are a pork dish featuring either pork belly or pork rinds and are a staple in the diets of people throughout these countries, albeit with national variations from country to country.

FOLLOW THE LAW: Senior baseball writer at ESPN, Keith Law, ranked Columbia’s roster as the 7th-most “Loaded Roster” in all of Minor League Baseball. Law recognized the fact Columbia’s roster includes the Mets’ past two second-round draft choices (Simeon Woods-Richardson, Mark Vientos), the system’s third-rated prospect (Ronny Mauricio), according toBaseball America, and left-hander Thomas Szapucki (drafted in the fifth round in 2015) who returned after missing the entire 2018 season following Tommy John surgery.

YOUTHFUL ENERGY: Columbia’s 2019 roster features three teenagers: SS Ronny Mauricio (18), RHP Simeon Woods-Richardson (18) and 3B Mark Vientos (19). All are considered top-10 rated Mets prospects. The Fireflies roster currently includes nine players aged 21 or younger. Columbia’s opening day roster was the youngest (average age 21.6) ever. Take a look below for more information on the prospects in Columbia in 2019.