Hickory Crawdads Win in Front of Sold-Out Crowd

The Hickory Crawdads hit three home runs for the second straight night and Mitch Bratt held off the Winston-Salem Dash (4-8, 35-43) for five innings to lift the Hickory Crawdads to a 5-1 victory in front of 4,476 fans at LP Frans Stadium.

The crowd was the largest for a Crawdads game since July 4, 2021. The crowd came looking for fireworks, and Cam Cauley provided them well before sunset.

Cauley led off the first inning with a single to left field, getting the Crawdads on the board. The home run was his third of the season and marked the start of his fourth straight multi-hit game.

In the third, he followed his first hit with a second home run to right-center field, giving the “Dads” a 2-0 lead.

In the fourth inning, Marcus Smith left the field for the second straight day with a solo shot to left-center field, extending the lead to 4-0.

From there, Bratt pitched five scoreless innings, allowing a single to Mario Camilleti in the fifth inning, the only batter in his effort. Celebrating his 21st birthday, the Canadian left-hander struck out seven batters for his fifth win of 2024.

Jesus Moreno would provide some offensive support for Bratt, as the shortstop had two RBIs on a 1-3 night that brought his average to .318 on the year.

Hickory’s victory (7-5, 35-43) is their fifth straight win, marking the second time they have achieved that feat. The previous five-game series was played June 4-8. Tonight’s win also marks the first sweep of the three-game series at LP Frans Stadium this season.

{Information provided by Hickory Crawdads}