The Fayetteville Woodpeckers (19-27) visited City Stadium on Tuesday night to begin a six-game series against the Hill City Howlers (24-22). Jagger Beck was on the mound for Fayetteville against Aidan Major (2-1, 3.18 ERA) of Hill City.
In the bottom of the first inning, Hill City had a runner on first base when Jose Pirela hit a two-run home run to right field to give the Howlers a 2-0 lead. It was his sixth home run of the season. Later, Hill City had a runner on second base when Yeiferth Castillo hit an RBI single to left field, scoring Luis De La Cruz for a 3-0 lead.
With two outs, a groundout by Tyler Howard ended the inning. A little bit later, rain began to come down at City Stadium, and slowly picked up, causing a weather delay after the top of the fourth inning had ended.
Beck pitched three innings, allowing two hits, three runs, two walks, and three strikeouts, throwing 56 pitches, of which 31 were strikes. The rain lasted an hour before the game resumed. Ryan Verdugo pitched for Fayetteville in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Moving to the top of the fifth inning, Fayetteville left fielder Juan Sierra hit a triple to center field. A passed ball by Hill City catcher Cannon Peebles brought Sierra home. The Woodpeckers trailed the Howlers 1-0. With two outs, Xavier Neyens struck out on a foul tip, and the inning was over.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Hill City second baseman Jhorvic Abreus hit a single to left field. A wild pitch by Verdugo and a passed ball allowed Abreus to move to third base. Robert Arias followed up by hitting the ball to center field for an inside-the-park home run for a 5-1 lead. It was his fifth home run of the season. With two outs, Verdugo struck out Luis De La Cruz to retire the side.
At the top of the sixth inning, Kevin Alvarez worked a four-pitch walk, and Anthony Huezo hit a double to left field with one out. A wild pitch by Aaron Savary allowed Alvarez to score. The Woodpeckers trailed the Howlers 5-2. With one out and runners on the corners, Juan Sierra grounded into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play.
Rain picked up again at the top of the seventh. Fayetteville pitcher Ryan Verdugo went three innings, allowing four hits, two runs, two walks, and four strikeouts, throwing 73 pitches, of which 43 were strikes. The rain started to get heavier in the bottom of the seventh inning. Jackson Wells pitched for Fayetteville. He struck out one, throwing nine pitches, of which nine were strikes, to get three outs.
At the top of the eighth inning, Fayetteville third baseman Xavier Neyens hit a single to left field. Kevin Alvarez followed up by hitting an RBI double to left field. Neyens scored, and it was now 5-3. Two batters later, Anthony Huezo hit a sacrifice fly to left field. Alvarez scored, and the Woodpeckers trailed the Howlers 5-4.
After Arturo Flores hit a single, Hill City made a pitching change. With two outs, Juan Sierra grounded into a forceout at second base, and the inning was over. Jackson Wells pitched two innings with two strikeouts, throwing 18 pitches, of which 12 were strikes.
Fayetteville would go on to lose the series opener to Hill City by the final score of 5-4. The Woodpeckers finished the night with eight hits, committed one error, went 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position, and left seven men on base. Kevin Alvarez went 2 for 3 with two doubles, a walk, and an RBI.
The loss went to Fayetteville starter Jagger Beck (0-2), while the win went to Hill City pitcher Keegan Zinn (2-2), and Luke Fernandez earned his third save of the season.
The Woodpeckers and Howlers play game two on Wednesday at 6:30 pm on the MLB App. Fayetteville has yet to name a pitcher, while Nelson Keljo (0-1, 2.88 ERA) will be on the mound for Hill City.
