Catfish 8, Greensboro 3

The Catfish bounced back from last night's 1-run loss (the 19th of the season) to blast the Greensboro Grasshoppers (Marlins) 8-3 tonight.

Only one of our two players, Dan Batz, played tonight. He had a triple and scored a run.

From the Columbus Catfish:

3B Blake DeWitt's Eighth Inning Grand Slam Leads Catfish to 8-3 Victory
Catfish Once Again Rally Late for Victory, Scoring All Eight Runs in Last Two Innings
COLUMBUS, GA—3B Blake DeWitt's towering grand slam in the bottom of the eighth inning propelled the Catfish to victory, as Columbus scored eight runs in the final two innings tonight against the Greensboro Grasshoppers to win 8-3. The Catfish had just one baserunner in the first six innings tonight, but scored three runs in the seventh and five in the eighth inning to take a 2-1 lead in the four-game series with the Marlins affiliate. RF Ryan Russ had two hits and two RBI for Columbus in the win, and LHP Liam O'Flaherty won his first game since 2003 with an inning of scoreless relief out of the pen. The Catfish improve to 33-45 overall, 5-4 in the second half with the win, as Greensboro falls to 39-39, 4-5 in the second half with the defeat.

RHP Jarod Plummer started the game for the Fish tonight, his first appearance in a Columbus uniform in 2005, but promptly allowed three runs on four hits in the first inning. The Grasshoppers have taken the early lead in each of the first three games. Plummer pitched well tonight after the first, not allowing a run over his next six innings while striking out a total of eight batters. The Fish managed just a one out single by Russ against Greensboro starter RHP Kurt Koehler in the first six innings. In the seventh, Russ drove home 2B Brandon Carter and DH Travis Denker with a two-run single to left-center to cut the lead to 3-2. Columbus tied the game at three on a RBI groudout later in the inning off the bat of SS Dominique Laurin.

In the eighth inning against RHP Patrick Hogan, CF Jamie Hoffmann led off with a single to extend his hitting streak to nine games. Carter walked and Denker singled to load the bases. On a 1-0 pitch, DeWitt hit his eight HR of the season, a grand slam to right to give Columbus a 7-3 lead. The Fish completed the scoring when 3B Dan Batz tripled and LF Ryan Carter drove him home with a single later in the eighth. O'Flaherty pitched a scoreless eighth for the win tonight, his first since 2003 after missing the 2004 season after Tommy John surgery on his left elbow.

Tomorrow the Catfish have a chance to win the four-game series as they take on the Greensboro Grasshoppers at 6:00 PM at Golden Park in Columbus. RHP Brandon Weeden (2-6, 4.74 ERA) is the scheduled starter for Columbus, who will not play at Golden Park after tomorrow until they return from a 12-game road trip on Sunday, June 17th.