HAMLET — Kicking off the North Carolina Legion Baseball Hall of Fame Classic Saturday morning, the Hamlet American Legion Junior baseball team suffered a mercy-rule loss.
Hosting Moore County Post 12, Hamlet struggled early on in a 10-0 loss in five innings.
Aside from allowing nine runs in the top of the first inning, Post 49 gave up just one run in the other four frames.
Head coach Robert Smith quoted “poor execution” on routine plays. Hamlet committed two errors in the first inning and allowed several runs to score by not hitting its cutoff throws.
Starting on the mound for Hamlet was Cooper Gainey, who lasted two-thirds of an inning. He allowed nine runs (four earned) on three hits and four walks.
Taking over with two outs in the top of the first, Tristan Chavis eventually ended the inning with a ground ball to first base.
Julius Bowden recorded the first of Hamlet’s five hits in the game in the home half. His one-out infield single was erased on a double play.
Chavis, who threw 2.2 innings of scoreless baseball, got some defensive help in the top of the second. Catcher Colton Nelson hosed a runner trying to swipe second base, with Jakob Trexler applying the tag to end the frame.
Watson and Colson Smith each singled in the home half of the second, but Hamlet stranded runners on the corners. Chavis dealt a 1-2-3 top of the third inning on 10 pitches.
With two runners on and one out in the top of the fourth, Colton Brown took over on the mound. Against the next two batters, Brown got a strikeout and a 4-3 putout started by Trexler to Dean Cottle at first base to strand the runners.
A leadoff double down the left field line by Drew Gause went nowhere for Hamlet in the bottom of the fourth.
Moore County loaded the bases in the fifth and scored its 10th run in a fielder’s choice. Post 49’s final hit came from Jake Veach with one out in the fifth, a line drive single to left field.
The Junior 49ers (1-3) will play another game in the HOF Classic Sunday against the Garner Nationals. First pitch from Memorial Park is set for 12:30 p.m.
The Richmond Observer will publish a photo gallery of Saturday’s game soon.
