Tagged: matt juengel
Hoppers Found Something To Buzz About…
I had pinned this series “The Battle Of The Bugs.” This series is between the Augusta Greenjackets and the Greensboro Grasshoppers. With all the buzz about today’s game, I made it out there hoping to see a stinger of a game. And that’s what I got. It was a very low scoring defensive affair. Lee Clark and Josh Royster, two of my friends at the ballpark, did the between inning Sumo Wrestling match. It was a tough match, but Josh won all three rounds to come out victorious! I got to looking around during the match and realized the day game crowds are much different than at night. The crowd today of 4,051 was mostly compiled of Senior Citizens and School Children/Day Cares. I saw a group of Seniors posing for a photo with Guilford the Grasshopper. They looked to be having a great time. Which got me to thinking… Is it the day game “BASEBALL BINGO” they were coming for? Because I know my grandma really loves her Bingo games. That could be. Whichever the case may be, it is great to see children of all ages, young and old enjoying America’s greatest pastime.
Sumo Wrestling between innings is always a fan favorite.
Photo credit: Jordan Stowe
On to the game… I was sitting up in the Papa John’s K Zone for most of the game with Lee Clark. Lee as you may remember was one of the SuperFans we highlighted earlier in the season. He is a great guy, as well as being avid fan of the Hoppers. While out there I saw a cruise missile of a ball hit to the far left field wall. Cody Keefer doubled on that line drive to Rafael Rodriguez. Matt Juengel would score on that play. That made the game 1-0. Viosergy Rosa came to the plate that same inning and smashed a Home Run off the Marriott Hotel in Downtown. That home run made number 11 for Rosa on the year. The score was then 2-0 heading into the fourth inning. Then Mitchell Delfino hit a home run for the Greenjackets making the score 2-1. The Hoppers would make the defensive stand to go on to win, 2-1. The Hoppers are currently 27-30 on the season and in fourth place in the Northern Division. Games one and two of this three game homestand, The Battle Of The Bugs, go to the Greensboro Grasshoppers. The Hoppers look to sweep the series tomorrow night in Greensboro. The first pitch will be slung at 7:00pm. Till next time… IT’S A GREAT TIME TO BE A HOPPER!
For all the details, check out the full recap and box score of today’s game. And also don’t forget that since the Hoppers recorded 5 Strikeouts today, you can go to PAPAJOHN’S.com and order Pizza 50% off using promo code: HOPPERS. Please stop in and check out our friend Bill Hass, as he does the official “BILL ON BASEBALL” blog for the Grasshoppers.
-jordan
Heart Attack Hoppers Strike Again!
Newbridge Bank Park (Hoppers Home Stadium)
Wow! What a night at the ballpark! I don’t know where to begin… So I’ll start from the beginning of my night out there. As I walked up to the K zone tonight, where I was mostly hanging out, I saw a familiar face of my friend and Greensborosports.com radio host, Andy Durham. Andy wanted to take some time and interview Don Moore and myself. Don about the Hoppers and the Papa John’s K Zone and myself about the blog. So if you caught any of the pregame on the radio, you heard yours truly! That was a great start to the night to say the least. I love going out to the ballpark and seeing friends, and now, i guess family. After three years at the ballpark, I call it my second home. Which would make all of you, the fans, family.
As I was sitting up at the K Zone I witnessed only my second ever GRAND SLAM out of the park. Too bad it was for the opposing team. I decided then, it was a good time to move to the brighter pastures. So to speak. I’m rather superstitious about that. Thats why it doesn’t matter what my seat is, I generally am not going to sit in it. I walk around and mingle with people, talk to fans, players, coaches, families, friends, and most importantly, the vendors. And I love the Dog Pound this year at the park! If you haven’t had a Chicago Dog or a Milwaukee Brat you are missing out! Tonights special dog was the grasshopper dog. It consisted of a hot dog, slaw, baked beans, stadium sauce, and spicy mustard. I definitely miss Pat with the Taylor Made Kettle Corn. With offerings like the steak and Cheese from Pita Delite and the scrumptious pizza from Hungry Howie’s, I think we will be okay!
Onto the game… Ramon Del Orbe would start the night on the mound for the Hoppers. He pitched 4 innings, allowed 7 hits, and slung 4 strikeouts. Sadly though, one of the 7 hits allowed was the Grand Slam home run. He was quickly replaced by Jheyson Manzueta. He pitched 3 innings, allowed 2 hits, and no strikeouts.
The excitement for this game came in the bottom of the 8th inning. Here’s the scenario, Hoppers down by 1. The score is 5-4 Sand Gnats lead the game. Jesus Solorzano steps up and smashes a solo home run tying the game at 5 apiece. Cody Keefer would then triple on a fly ball to center fielder Brandon Nimmo causing Matt Juengel to score. This would make the Hoppers up by one. And you know the saying, it’s not over till it’s over… well the Hoppers were not ready for it to be over tonight! In the top of the 9th, the Sand Gnats were just like the bugs they are, and just would not go away. They would score 3 more times in the 9th inning. Putting them ahead 8-6 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. We have called them this several times on this blog, but the HEART ATTACK HOPPERS have struck again. With one out, down by 2, Viosergy Rosa would belt a three run walk off home run to win the game! That made the final score 9-8. HOPPERS WIN! HOPPERS WIN! HOPPERS WIN!
This was definitely an amazing night at the ballpark. Please don’t forget in order to listen by way of radio you must go through our friends at greensborosports.com.
Walk off Home runs, grand slams, hot dogs, and friends… thats what makes tonight… A GREAT TIME TO BE A HOPPER!
-jordan
Despite hit advantage, Hoppers drop 8-5 game to Sand Gnats
It’s Money Off Monday, and a beautiful night at the ballpark. Maybe a little cool, but I thought it was comfortable. And with hot dogs and soda just a dollar, I couldn’t ask for a nicer night for baseball.
Well, I guess there’s one thing I could have asked for: a Hoppers win. Here’s how my scoring app put it:
The Greensboro Grasshoppers lost 8-5 at Newbridge Bank Park – Greensboro, NC on Monday, despite outhitting the Savannah Sand Gnats 14 to 13.
Jesus Solorzano had a hot bat for the Hoppers. Solorzano went 3-4, drove in one and scored two runs. He singled in the second and fourth innings and homered in the fifth inning.
Jeffrey Glenn, Cole Frenzel, Jeff Reynolds and Brandon Nimmo helped lead the Sand Gnats. They combined for eight hits and eight RBIs.
The Sand Gnats stayed on top until the final out after taking the lead in the second, scoring three runs on two singles.
Three runs in the bottom of the fourth helped the Hoppers close its deficit to 6-3. An RBI double by Matt Juengel, a groundout by Tony Caldwell, and an RBI single by Yeison Hernandez fueled Hoppers’ comeback. Finally, Logan Taylor induced an inning-ending from Anthony Gomez.
One run in the bottom of the fifth helped the Hoppers close its deficit to 8-4. A solo home run by Solorzano triggered the Hoppers’ comeback. Savannah Sand Gnats stopped the rally after Matthew Koch got Caldwell to ground out.
After pushing across one run in the bottom of the seventh, the Hoppers faced just a 8-5 deficit. A solo home run by Yordy Cabrera set off a short Hoppers rally. Finally, Koch got Cameron Flynn to strike out to end the threat.
“Powered by Narrative Science and GameChanger Media. Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.” Any reuse or republication of this story must include the preceding attribution.
What went wrong? Pitching. The Hoppers pitching was just plain ugly tonight. Balls were all over the place, including hitting batters. When the Sand Gnats did connect with a ball, they were solid hits. They were up on the board with three runs in the 2nd. They extended their lead to six runs in the fourth. The rally the Hoppers started in the bottom of the fourth was pretty exciting, but that’s all they had. Check out the official box score and game recap for all the details. Bill on Baseball also has a recap of the game with some insights from the coach.
Here’s a picture of Chipper Smith, in his Hoppers debut, getting ready to pitch. Smith pitched 2 innings, allowed 5 hits, 2 runs (both earned), and managed 2 strike-outs. He ended his outing with an ERA of 9.0 and hit one batter tonight. Ouch!
Well, the night’s not all bad. The Kannapolis Intimidators also lost tonight, so we’re still tied for first in our division. Let’s hope the Hoppers can get their momentum back and start winning some more games.
Remember, you can click on any of the pictures in the post to embiggen them. Check out the photo album on Facebook for all the pictures. Join the conversation by leaving a comment — what are you thinking?
-greg
See ya at the ballpark!
Email: hoppersfan@gmail.com
Twitter: @HoppersFan
Facebook: www.facebook.com/HoppersFan
Hoppers seize victory thanks to late single, drop Blueclaws 6-4
I love that baseball is back in Greensboro. Tonight was the home opener for the Greensboro Grasshoppers, against the Lakewood Blueclaws, and the Hoppers ended up on top with a 6-4 win. I’m thrilled that I was able to make it out to the park tonight. I’ve got a new scoring app for my Kindle Fire, and it performed pretty awesomely during the game. It even wrote a nice summary after the game was done:
After five lead changes in Thursday’s game at Newbridge Bank Park – Greensboro, NC, Greensboro Grasshoppers finally pulled out a 6-4 win over Lakewood Blueclaws.
The Hoppers finally managed to grab the lead after a strong eighth inning when they scored on an RBI single by Matt Juengel off Jeb Stefan, scoring Jesus Solorzano.
Viosergy Rosa was hot from the plate for the Hoppers. Rosa went 3-4, drove in one and scored one run. He tripled in the third inning and singled in the fifth and eighth innings.
In the top of the first, the Blueclaws grabbed the early lead, 3-0. The Blueclaws caught fire after William Carmona singled. Then Art Charles homered, bringing home Carmona. The Blueclaws then tacked on more runs when Mitch Walding scored on an RBI single by Carlos Tocci.
The eighth spelled defeat for the Blueclaws, however, as the Hoppers grabbed the lead for good. More runners rounded the bases on sacrifice bunt by Cameron Flynn (that failed to collect an out, and due to a fielding error allowed Flynn to advance to second) and a sacrifice fly by Yeison Hernandez.
“Powered by Narrative Science and GameChanger Media. Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.” Any reuse or republication of this story must include the preceding attribution.
Pretty cool summary, huh? I tweaked the output of the story a bit to make it flow a little better, but the initial recap that the app provided based on my scoring the game was a really good starting point. I think I’ll continue to use this app when I’m at the ballpark. While you’re thinking about the game summary, check out the official box score and game recap from milb.com.
Sharif Othman is setting up to bunt.
Photo Credit: Jordan Stowe
There were a couple of beautiful plays tonight. The first belongs to the Blueclaws, and it was homer in the first inning by Art Charles. The sound of the ball leaving the bat was solid, and I knew it was going far. It easily cleared the net and bounced into Eugene Street and set the Blueclaws up for a 3-0 lead right off the bat. I was afraid that would set the tone for a rough night for Greensboro, but our boys caught up over the course of three innings and the score stayed tied until the eighth. Lakewood pulled ahead with another homer, this one by Brian Pointer. The second beautiful play came in the bottom of the eighth, when Cameron Flynn hit a sacrifice bunt that ended up tying the game — and didn’t collect an out due to a fielding error by second baseman Tyler Greene. Flynn even ended up advancing to second on the error. This set the Hoppers up to pull ahead with two more runs in the inning, and the Blueclaws went down quickly 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth to end the game.
I have to give a huge shout-out to Jim Scott, the Hoppers announcer. Before the games, Jim does a great job of entertaining and informing the fans. He doesn’t just read off the line-up cards, but he talks about what we might expect in the game and interacts with the fans directly as they trickle down to their seats. Tonight, he recognized Jordan and me as we were coming in and welcomed us by name. Then he proceeded to tell everyone in the ballpark to check out the Hoppers Fan blog and Facebook Page. Wow! It’s great to get that kind of publicity. We’re truly grateful, Jim.
As always, the Hoppers put on a great family show. Lots of fun between-inning entertainment, like sumo wrestling:
Sumo Wrestling between innings is always a fan favorite.
Photo credit: Jordan Stowe
And after the game, the first fireworks presentation of the year. Before the fireworks started, however, I got my picture taken with the guy who threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Olympic gold medalist and philanthropist Joey Cheek was kind enough to pose for a picture with me after the Hoppers game tonight. He threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Photo credit: Chris Cheek
Yeah, not just some random guy, but Joey Cheek. He’s a very cool guy, having used his celebrity status to bring attention to humanitarian organizations like Team Darfur and Right to Play. His mother is a fixture at the ballpark, and I always enjoy chatting with her when I’m at a game. It was great to meet Joey, and he was very gracious and humble.
All in all, a great time at the ballpark — especially with a Hoppers win. It was so good to see so many of my friends at the ballpark again. Several of you I know are prolific photographers, and I’m hoping you’ll send some of your pictures to use here at Hoppers Fan for inclusion on the blog.
Remember, you can click on any of the pictures in the post to embiggen them. Check out the photo album on Facebook for all the pictures. (BIG thanks to Jordan for taking all the pictures tonight!) Join the conversation by leaving a comment — what are you thinking?
-greg
See ya at the ballpark!
Email: hoppersfan@gmail.com
Twitter: @HoppersFan
Facebook: www.facebook.com/HoppersFan
Hoppers Fan 