Catfish fall in 9th to Greensboro

Up 3-1 going into the bottom of the 9th inning, the Columbus Catfish couldn't hold on Thursday night. The Greensboro Grasshoppers (Marlins) scored three runs to beat the Catfish 4-3.

Greensboro reliever Jay Buente (5-2) got the win after giving up two hits and striking out one over two scoreless innings. Starter Graham Taylor yielded three runs on six hits while fanning eight without a walk over seven frames. The 23-year-old left-hander tops the South Atlantic League with 128 strikeouts.

Ryan Royster went 3-for-4 with a solo homer, his fourth in as many games and 21st of the season, in the fourth and Quinn Stewart slugged a two-run shot, his 18th, in the seventh for the Catfish (27-18).

Frontz surrendered three runs on four hits without recording an out in the ninth. Starter Ryan Morse allowed a run on three hits and four walks with a strikeout over six innings.

Catfish pitcher and Columbus native Brian Baker pitched a scoreless 7th and 8th innings for the Catfish, extending his scoreless streak to 17-2/3 innings.

The Catfish and Greensboro square off tonight in game 3 of the 4-game series, with the Catfish needing to win in order to have a chance to earn a split.