Greenville, N.C. – The Greenville Yard Gnomes powered past the Tri-City Chili Peppers in a high-scoring contest Saturday night, earning a 13-7 victory at Guy Smith Stadium. Ryker Butcher and Joe Whitaker led the way offensively, each launching a three-run homer.
The Gnomes struck first in the bottom of the first inning when David Lillis delivered an RBI single that would score Jesse Ponce. On the mound, Hunter Chambers set the tone for the Gnomes early with four shutout innings, allowing just one hit with no walks.
Greenville’s bats came alive in the fifth, scoring seven runs and forcing Tri-City to exhaust two pitchers in the frame. Brody Gardner began the run, scoring off a wild pitch, followed by a Danny Ramirez two-RBI single that brought in Jesse Ponce and Jon Howard. Butcher capped the inning with a three-run dinger to center, extending the lead to 8-3.
The Gnomes poured it on in the sixth, adding four more runs-including back-to-back home runs from Joe Whitaker and John Kiebler.
Luke Cannon earned the win for the Greenville, going one inning and allowing seven runs but never surrendering the lead. Evan Reese took the loss for Tri-City, giving up five earned runs over just one-third of an inning.
Up Next: The Yard Gnomes wrap up their exhibition schedule on Monday night when they host the Greensboro Ducks at 6:30 p.m. in Guy Smith Stadium.