Scarborough’s Sparkling Debut leads to ‘Burger Win 

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — A 48-minute delay nor a first-place opponent fazed Rangers No. 8 prospect Caden Scarborough, whose five shutout frames set the table for a 3-0 Spartanburgers victory over the Greenville Drive Thursday at Fifth Third Park. Gleider Figuereo delivered in back-to-back innings to bring the Hub City bats to life.

Scarborough struck out each of the first two batters he faced in the first and completed his first inning in High-A with a groundout. Despite a leadoff walk, Greenville right-hander Blake Aita tossed up a zero in the first too.

Scarborough continued to mow through Drive batters, recording at least one strikeout in each of his five innings. With one out in the third, Justin Riemer singled and reached second on a fielding error in left field. After a popout, Scarborough hit Franklin Arias to put two runners on, but he bounced back with his fifth strikeout to escape his first jam.

Aita worked around singles in the third and fourth innings to keep the game scoreless. Scarborough struck out each of the first two in the fifth on three pitches. He started off Justin Riemer with two strikes, but Riemer patiently waited out a walk. Scarborough missed an immaculate inning by one pitch, but he battled back to finish five scoreless frames.

Aita continued his work all the way through the sixth frame, not allowing a run. After Scarborough, Brooks Fowler tossed three hitless innings, striking out one.

Manuel Medina (L, 2-1) entered out of the bullpen to replace Aita, and one pitch later, the Spartanburgers led 1-0. Figuereo crushed an inside fastball into the Hub City bullpen. His 18th long ball of the season would turn out to be all the offense needed, but the ‘Burgers weren’t done. With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, John Taylor pulled a single underneath Greenville’s diving second baseman to score Casey Cook. Figuereo then stung a single into the right-center field gap to score Malcolm Moore from second. Both runs were charged to Medina.

With a three-run lead, Victor Simeon (S, 2) came in for the second time in two nights. Simeon punched out the side to secure the shutout win.

The Drive and Spartanburgers again battle for sole possession of first place in the standings on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. ET. Hub City lefty Dalton Pence (1-2, 1.67 ERA) faces off against Greenville righty Jedixson Paez (0-2, 3.38 ERA).

About the Hub City Spartanburgers

The Hub City Spartanburgers are in their inaugural season as the High-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. For more information on the Spartanburgers, visit milb.com/hub-city. For information about tickets to any of Hub City’s 66 home games, call 864-658-4206 or email: [email protected] For media inquiries, email: [email protected]. Follow along with the Spartanburgers on social media.