Augusta's slim hopes of a South Atlantic League first-half championship officially ended Monday night with an 11-4 loss to the Southern Division-leading Charleston RiverDogs.
Trailing the RiverDogs by 61/2 games with seven left entering the night, the GreenJackets' first-half title hopes disappeared one extra-base hit at a time. Charleston tagged Augusta for four doubles and four triples.
"They swung the bats good. We walked too many guys and didn't make pitches when we needed to," GreenJackets manager Dave Machemer said.
RiverDogs left fielder Dan Brewer went 4-for-4 with two doubles, two triples, two RBI and four runs scored. All but one of his hits went to right field, where regular starter James Simmons was out with a knee injury. Replacements Ben Woodbury and Josh Mazzola struggled.
Woodbury, whose 10-game hitting streak came to an end with an 0-for-2 night, started in right but left after four innings with what Machemer called an ongoing problem with shin splints.
The GreenJackets trailed 5-1 heading to the bottom of the sixth, and appeared ready to make a comeback by scoring three runs. A Charleston error, along with four singles from Mazzola, Andy D'Alessio, Johnny Monell and Vladimir Friaz, allowed Augusta to bat around.
The inning ended with the GreenJackets still down a run, and Charleston quickly responded with a four-run seventh.
"When you score runs, you've got to stop the other team," Machemer said.
Instead, the RiverDogs scored eight runs with relievers on the mound. Starter Mike Loree, who left trailing 3-1 in the sixth, got the loss.
Charleston's David Phelps (7-1) struck out six in 5w innings for his second win against the GreenJackets in less than a week.
The RiverDogs kept their 1 1/2 game lead over Greenville in the Southern Division.
Reach Billy Byler at (706) 823-3216 or billy.byler@augustachronicle.com.
GAME REPORT
RiverDogs 11, GreenJackets 4
STAR OF THE GAME: Charleston left fielder Dan Brewer went 4-for-4 with four extra base hits. His two doubles and two triples came off three different pitchers.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Brewer's third extra base hit, a double off the right-field wall, drove in a run and was part of a four-run seventh that answered Augusta's three-run sixth to swing the momentum back to Charleston for good.
NEXT: The GreenJackets and the RiverDogs will play Game 2 of the three-game series at 7:05 tonight at Lake Olmstead Stadium.
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