The Fayetteville Woodpeckers (43-43, 11-10) returned from the All-Star Break on Friday night to begin a three-game series against the Augusta GreenJackets (48-40, 13-9) at Segra Stadium. Nick Potter was on the mound for Fayetteville against Landon Beidelschies of Augusta.
In the bottom of the first inning, Fayetteville shortstop German Ramirez and center fielder Kevin Alvarez both hit singles, with Ramirez running to third base. Third baseman Waner Luciano brought Ramirez home with a sacrifice fly to center field that put the Woodpeckers up 1-0.
Fayetteville catcher Arturo Flores and first baseman Carlos Cauro worked four-pitch walks that loaded the bases. Designated hitter Jadyn Fielder was hit by a pitch, scoring Alvarez for a 2-0 lead. A flyout by Brandon Nigh ended the inning.
Fayetteville starter Nick Potter went two innings with three strikeouts, throwing 25 pitches, of which 14 were strikes. Juan Fraide pitched for Fayetteville at the top of the third inning. Fraide struck out two, throwing 16 pitches, of which nine were strikes, to get three outs.
Jagger Beck pitched for Fayetteville at the top of the fourth inning. With one out, Augusta designated hitter Conor Essenburg hit a double to right field after Josh Wakefield and Brandon Nigh collided trying to catch the ball. With two outs, a flyout by Tanner Smith ended the inning.
Moving to the top of the fifth inning, Augusta had the bases loaded when Jagger Beck threw a wild pitch, scoring Michael Martinez. The GreenJackets cut Fayetteville’s lead to 2-1. With two outs, Jagger Beck struck out Conor Essenburg to end the inning. Beck allowed two hits, one run, two walks, and four strikeouts, throwing 51 pitches, of which 29 were strikes.
Ryan Forcucci pitched for Fayetteville at the top of the sixth inning. He threw 11 pitches, of which six were strikes, to get three outs. Rafael Gonzalez pitched for Fayetteville at the top of the seventh inning. Gonzalez loaded the bases with two outs before throwing a wild pitch, scoring Cooper McMurray. The game was tied 2-2. A groundout by Alex Lodise ended the inning.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Fayetteville had a runner on third base when Arturo Flores hit an RBI single to left field, scoring German Ramirez to give the Woodpeckers a 3-2 lead. With two outs, a groundout by Carlos Cauro ended the inning.
Rafael Gonzalez went three innings, allowing a run, five walks, and struck out five, throwing 58 pitches, of which 29 were strikes, to get the final nine outs of the game. The Woodpeckers defeated the GreenJackets 3-2.
Fayetteville finished the night with six hits, committed one error, went 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, and left nine men on base. Arturo Flores went 2 for 3 with a walk and an RBI, while German Ramirez went 2 for 4 with two runs and two stolen bases. The win went to Fayetteville pitcher Rafael Gonzalez (1-1), and the loss went to Augusta pitcher Luis Arestigueta (2-2).
The Woodpeckers and GreenJackets play game two on Saturday at 7:05 pm on the MLB App and Bally Sports Live. Javier Perez (6-3, 3.17 ERA) will be on the mound for Fayetteville against Derek Vartanian (3-4, 3.81 ERA) of Augusta.
