Savannah 5, Augusta 2

Augusta, GA – In a game delayed for more than an hour in the third inning by rain, the Savannah Sand Gnats pulled ahead in the sixth inning to win a battle of the bullpens by a 5-2 score on Friday night on Bark at the Park Night in front of 3,007 fans at Lake Olmstead Stadium.



What started out as a pitchers’ duel between Seth Rosin and Taylor Whitenton turned into a bullpen game as play was halted with one out in the top of the third inning by a one hour, 17 minute rain delay. When play resumed, the GreenJackets struck first with a Bobby Haney sacrifice fly that brought home a run in the third to give Augusta a 1-0 lead.

Savannah tied things in the fifth on their third hit of the inning – a Robbie Shields RBI double. In the sixth a Blake Forsythe sacrifice fly and an error brought home runs for the Sand Gnats to give Savannah a 3-1 lead. With the bases loaded on an error and two walks from Tom Vessella in the seventh, Savannah stretched the lead to four on a two-run Rafael Fernandez double to make it a 5-1 game.



The GreenJackets gave runs away and failed to capitalize off of scoring opportunities all night. The Augusta defense committed four errors – three of them in the sixth and seventh – while the GreenJackets left 12 men on the basepaths offensively.



Hamilton Bennett (1-0) threw 2.1 scoreless innings of one-hit relief for the Sand Gnats to get the win while Vessella took the loss, allowing four runs – three earned – in 1.1 innings. After an Adam Duvall RBI single in the ninth made it a 5-2 Savannah lead, Josh Edgin came on to strike out the last two hitters of the game to earn his seventh save.



Rosin struck out five – one shy of a career-best – in just 2.1 innings while Whitenton walked two but didn’t allow a hit in two scoreless frames for Savannah.



The GreenJackets send Taylor Rogers (3-5, 2.58) to the mound on Saturday night, looking to avoid being swept for the first time this season. Savannah opposes with righty Ryan Fraser (2-3, 3.21) as the GreenJackets close in on their one-millionth fan under Ripken Baseball ownership. That lucky fan will win a trip for four to Disneyworld, courtesy of Augusta Vascular Center, and will probably pass through the gates Saturday night. It’s also another Sparkling Saturday, with postgame fireworks courtesy Kicks 99 and MCG Health. First pitch will come at 7:05 with pregame coverage beginning at 6:50, airing online at http://www.greenjacketsbaseball.com/ .
 
from team press release