Rockers homer Dirty Birds into submission

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Brian Parreira hit a grand slam and a solo homer and Beau Taylor added a three-run blast as the High Point Rockers drubbed the Charleston Dirty Birds 13-7 Saturday night at GoMart Ballpark. The Rockers finished with four homers on the night.

Parreira’s grand slam was the seventh of the year by the Rockers. It erased a 1-0 Charleston lead and the Rockers were never headed the rest of the way. Taylor hit his three-run homer in the eighth to put the Rockers up 9-3 and Quincy Latimore hit a two-run shot in the ninth to account for the 13-3 final.

The Rockers improved to 9-2 vs. Charleston this season and 59-33 on the season. The Rockers improved to 18-11 in the second half and hold a one-game lead over 17-12 Gastonia in the Atlantic League’s South Division.

A Bobby Bradley double scored Jalen Miller in the bottom of the first to put Charleston ahead 1-0.

In the top of the second, Charleston starter Derrick Adams yielded a lead-off single to Latimore and a single to right by Taylor. A walk to Daikan Yoh loaded the bases and Parreria hit the first pitch he saw over the fence in right center for a grand slam and a 4-1 Rockers lead.

High Point was at it again in the fifth when Adams allowed a bloop double to Ben Aklinski and a single to Latimore to put runners on the corners. Taylor singled home Aklinski and Yoh brought home Latimore with a single to left as the Rockers extended their lead to 6-1.

The Dirty Birds made it a 6-3 game in the sixth off High Point starter Jheyson Manzueta. Bradley singled to start the inning and scored on a double by Telvin Nash. Tilman Pugh then singled to left to bring home Nash.

Jheyson Manzueta (W, 5-1) went six innings and scattered nine hits while allowing three runs and a walk with four strikeouts. Charleston’s Derrick Adams allowed 10 hits in his five innings of work while striking out seven. In relief of Manzueta, Jeremy Rhoades fanned three in the seventh and Sam Selman pitched a one-two-three eighth. Joe Johnson pitched the ninth

Taylor blasted a three-run homer in the eighth to make it a 9-3 game, sending the ball out of the park following singles by Long, Jr. and Aklinski. In the ninth, Parreira hit a solo shot for his second homer of the night, Aklinski singled home a run and Latimore hit his homer, scoring Aklinski, to make it 13-3.

Charleston scored four runs in the ninth including a Jalen Miller three-run homer in the ninth to make it 13-7.

Parreira finished the game with a career-high five RBI while Taylor drove home four runs. Taylor, Latimore and Aklinski each had three hits.

Game three will be played on Sunday at 4:05 at GoMart Ballpark in Charleston. The game will be streamed live on FLO Baseball and also available on the Mixlr app.

NOTES: Brian Parreira’s grand slam tied the club record as it was High Point’s seventh slam of the season, tying the 2019 team… Manzueta has spent parts of the 2021, ’22 and ’23 seasons with the Rockers and is now 8-3.