It was great to be back at the ballpark for the fall opener today. Great job on the uniforms by all of the captains! The Flying Squirrels opened with Cova’s Leones and started the first with 3, thanks to a 2 run single by Brian Ortega and an RBI single by Robbie Franklin. The game was close the rest of the way tied at 7 as we entered the seventh inning. A walk to Tim Jamieson, a Brian Ortega triple, Randy Ransom single and Robbie Franklin single scored 3. The Leones failed to score in the bottom of the seventh, netting the Squirrels a 10-7 opening game win.

Alexander’s Trash Pandas were up next. A 3 run dinger by Troy Steele sparked the Squirrels to a 4-2 lead after one. The Squirrels were limited to the long ball for the rest of the game thanks to 2 Brian Ortega HR’s and one by Tim Jamieson as the Pandas exhibited home run power by several unexpected sources as they romped to a 20-8 run rule victory.

The Squirrels recognized co-POW’s today with Brian Ortega 5-5 with a triple, 2 homers, 2 walks, 6 runs and 6 RBI’s. Tim Jamieson went 5-6 with 2 doubles, 2 homers, a walk, 6 runs and 2 RBI’s. Ortega was outstanding defensively with several “Ortega like” plays. Troy Steele had a strong opening week with 4-6 and a dinger, Dustin Bone 3-5 and Robbie Franklin 3-6.