Savannah 3 Charleston 1

The second game of the three game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Charleston RiverDogs was played Monday afternoon in front of 1,313 fans at Grayson Stadium. The first place Gnats made good use of their 5 hits to score 3 runs and win the game 3-1.

Charleston scored their only run in the 7th inning on a home run by cJeff Farnham.

Savannah scored all three runs in the 4th inning. rfRafael Fernandez walked followed by a single by 3bJoe Bonfe. 1bSam Honeck drove in Fernandez with a single. A single by cfDarrell Ceciliani scored two runs.

For the game, Savannah collected 5 hits. Honeck was 1-for-3, with a run scored and a RBI. Bonfe was 1-for-3 with a run scored. Ceciliani went 1-for-3, with 2 RBI's and a stolen base.

The winning pitcher for Savannah, was starter, Gonzalez German (4-1) pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed 1 run on 5 hits, walked 4, and struck out 6. Adam Kolarek, who joined the Gnats on May 29th, went 2/3 of an inning, gave up one hit, walked one, and struck out one. Hamilton Bennett, who earned his second save of the season, pitched 1 2/3 innings and did not allow a run or hit and struck out 1.

Photo courtesy of Ed DeVita, Editor of The Savannah Sports Monthly.

Sand Gnats 4 Riverdogs 3

The first game of the three game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Charleston Riverdogs(New York Yankees) was played Sunday evening in front of 3,069 fans at Grayson Stadium. Charleston's five errors helped Savannah win 4-3.

Savannah scored two runs in the 4th inning. Back to back walks to lfRaferal Fernandez and dhBlake Forsythe - a single by 1bJoe Bonfe scored Fernandez. cAlbert Cordero singled to score Forsythe for a 2-0 lead.

Gnats scored two runs in the 7th. Bonfe singled and advanced to second on a sac bunt. cfDarrell Ceciliani singled scoring Bonfe. ssRobbie Shields singled to score Ceciliani.

Savannah had 7 hits for the game. rfCory Vaughn was 2-for-4 and is now batting .337 and is leading the team in batting. Bonfe was 2-for-4, with run scored and a RBI. Cordero was 1-for-3 with a sac bunt and one RBI.

Starting Savannah pitcher Chase Huchingson pitched 5 innings, allowed 1 run on 5 hits, struck out 6 and walked one. Angel Cuan(W,3-1) went 2 2/3 innings, allowed 2 runs on 5 hits and struck out 5. Josh Edgin earned his 8th save, went 1 1/3 innings, gave up 1 hit and struck out 2.

Gnats shut out Drive 1-0

The final game of the four game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Greenville Drive was played in front of 3,033 fans Monday evening at Grayson Stadium. Stellar Savannah pitching shutout the Drive and allowed only 2 hits for the game. The first place Gnats won three out of four games from the Drive.

Savannah scored in the 5th inning when cAlbert Cordero led off the inning with a double to centerfield. 1bJoe Bonfe bunt single followed by a throwing error by the third baseman, allowed Cordero to score from second base.

For the Game, Savannah had 6 hits. rfCory Vaughn was 2-for-3 and leads the team in hitting at .331. 1bJoe Bonfe was 2-for-3. Cordero was 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored. 2bRobbie Shields was 0-4 and ended his hitting streak at 12 consecutive games.

Savannah starting pitcher, Chase Huchingson,(W, 2-2) pitched 5 shutout innings, allowed only 2 hits, walked 3, and struck out 7. Three relievers did not allow a run or hit. Erik Goeddel(3 innings), Gabriel Zavala (1/3 inning), Hamiliton Bennett(2/3 inning). Bennett earned his first save of the year.

Gnats Rally in the 8th for the win

The third game of the four game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Greenville Drive was played in front of 1,288 fans Sunday afternoon. Savannah scored 5 runs in the 8th inning to win the game 5-4. The win places Savannah in first place over Greenville by a half game in the Southern Division.

In the 3rd inning, the Drive had 4 hits and scored 2 runs. A triple by ssJose Garcia in the 7th inning scored 2 runs and gave Greenville a 4-0 lead.

Savannah had two hits in the first inning and went hitless until the 8th inning when they scored 5 runs. ssWilfredo Tovar and lfAlonso Harris walked. cfDarrell Ceciliani singled to drive in Tovar. ssRobbie Shields singled to load the bases. rfCory Vaughn hit a double to clear the bases and tie the game at 4-4. dhBlake Forsythe hit a single to score Vaughn and give Savannah the lead at 5-4.

The Gnats had 6 hits for the game. Vaughn was 2-for-3 with 3 RBI's and a run scored. Shields went 2-for-4 with a run scored and extended his hitting streak to 12 straight games.

Savannah starting pitcher, Ryan Fraser went 6 1/3 innings, gave up 4 runs(3 earned), 8 hits and struck out 3. Angel Cuan pitched 2 2/3 innings, gave up 3 hits and struck out 5. With the win, Cuan improved his record to(2-1).

Ranaudo shuts out Gnats for 5 innings.

Last night starting pitcher for the Greenville Drive, Anthony Ranaudo, pitched 5 shutout innings against the Savannah Sand Gnats. The 6'-7" right-hander, allowed 6 hits, 1BB, and struck out 3.

Baseball America Prospect Handbook lists Ranaudo as the second best prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization. He signed for $2.55 million at the deadline.

Photo courtesy of Ed DeVita, Editor of The Savannah Sports Mothhly.

Savannah Sand Gnats 5 Greenville Drive 3

The second game of the four game series between the Savannah Sand Gnats and the Greenville Drive was played in front of 3,810 fans Saturday evening at Grayson Stadium. Savannah won 5-3 to move within a half game of first place.

Greenville scored their first run in the 3rd inning, and scored two runs in the 6th inning.

Savannah scored 3 runs in the 6th inning to tie the game. ssRobbie Shields and lfCory Vaughn hit back to back singles and both scored on a triple by 3bAderline Rodriquez. A ground out scored Rodriquez. Gnats scored 2runs in the 8th on 3 walks, a single and a sac fly. 2bWilfredo Tovar hit a sac fly to right to score the go-ahead run. Dh Luis Nieves drove in the final Gnat run with a single.

Savannah had 11 hits for the game. Aderline Rodriquez was 3-for-3, with a triple, 2 runs scored and 2 RBI's. Luis Nieves was 2-for-3 with a stolen base and and 1RBI. Robbie Shields singled in the 6th to continue his hitting streak to 11 straight games.

Starting Sand Gnat pitcher, Taylor Whitenton pitched 4 1/3 inning, allowed 1 run on 3 hits and struck out 8. Gabriel Zavala pitched 1 2/3 innings, gave up 2 runs on 2 hits and struck out 1. Josh Edgin won his first game of the year, pitched 3 shutout innings, allowed 1 hit and struck out 4.

Photo courtesy of Ed DeVita, Editor of The Savannan Sports Monthly.

Greenville Drive 9 Savannah Sand Gnats 3

The Savannah Sand Gnats played the Greenville Drive(Boston Red Sox) Friday evening in front of 2,603 fans at Grayson Stadium. The Drive won the first game of the four game series, 9-3. Going into the game, Greenville was a half-game ahead of the Gnats for first place in the South Atlantic League Southern Division

Greenville got off to a fast start in their first inning scoring 4 runs on a walk, hit batter, and 4 hits. The Drive added another run in the 2nd. They added another run in the 7th on a home run by rfBryce Brentz. Greenville scored a run in the 8th and 2 runs in the 9th.

Savannah scored 2 runs in the 1st: ssRobbie Shields doubled and 3bAderline Rodriguez reached base on a filders choice. lfRaferal Fernandez singled driving in two runs. Sand Gnats scored a run in the 5th.

For the game, Savannah had 7 hits. ssRobbie Shields,who has hit in 10 straight games, was 2-for-4 with 2 runs scored. lfRaferal Fernandez was 2-for-4 with 2 RBI's.

Starting Savannah Sand Gnat pitcher, Greg Peavey, (L,3-2) went 5 innings, allowed 5 runs on 7 hits, walked 1 and struck out 2. Hamilton Bennett pitched 2 innings, gave up 1 run on 3 hits, struck out 2. Michael Weldon, who joined the Gnats on May 12, allowed 3 runs on 3 hits, walked 1, and struck out 1.