ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Seven straight wins. A nine-run third inning. Fifteen batters to the plate. Every Tourist with at least one hit. Wednesday night was one of those games where everything went right.
Asheville dismantled the Hub City Spartanburgers 17-3 Thursday night at HomeTrust Park in the most complete performance of the winning streak, with Kellan Oakes delivering easily his best start of the season to anchor the win.
Oakes was in control from the first pitch, going six innings and allowing just one run, a 456-foot Maxton Martin solo shot in the second that was the lone blemish on an otherwise dominant outing. He finished with four strikeouts and two walks and gave the Tourists exactly what they needed: length, efficiency, and a chance to let the offense do its thing.
And the offense did its thing.
Jack Moss opened the scoring with a bases loaded sacrifice fly in the first. Cesar Hernandez followed with a two-RBI single to make it 3-0. After the Martin homer trimmed it to 3-1, the third inning arrived and the game was never in doubt again.
Fifteen Tourists came to the plate in the bottom of the third. Moss singled to score a run. Zach Daudet singled to score another. Hub City starter Kamdyn Perry loaded the bases and hit John Garcia to bring in another. A Cal Stark passed ball scored one more. Kyle Walker was hit by a pitch to reload the bases and Perry was pulled. Ben Detaeye came on and immediately walked Justin Thomas Jr. to force in a run. 8-1. Nehomar Ochoa Jr. scored another on a fielder's choice. Chase Call cracked a double to left to score two more. 11-1. Moss put the finishing touch on the inning with another RBI single to make it 12-1. Perry's final line told the story. 2.1 innings, ten runs, seven hits, and four walks.
Asheville wasn't done. Moss added another RBI single in the fifth. 13-1. Then Marcus Brown stepped to the plate with two runners on and launched a towering fly ball toward the right field corner. The only question was whether it was fair. It was. Brown rounded the bases and celebrated his first home run as a Tourist. 16-1.
Colby Langford allowed a Theo Hardy solo shot in the eighth to make it 16-2, and Thomas Jr. answered on the very next half inning with a solo shot of his own. 17-2. Hub City added a sacrifice fly in the ninth to set the final at 17-3.
Moss was the star of the night, going 3-for-5 with four RBIs across all nine innings. Call was quietly excellent, going 1-for-3 with two RBIs while drawing three walks and reaching base four times. Every Tourist in the lineup recorded at least one hit.
Asheville improves to 8-4 in the second half and remains in first place in the South Atlantic League Southern Division. The Tourists and Spartanburgers meet again Friday night at HomeTrust Park. Parker Smith takes the ball for Asheville against Rangers top pitching prospect Caden Scarborough. First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m.