Kannapolis, NC - Andres Galan delivered a historic performance with seven perfect innings, while RiverDogs hitters dominated early to open the second half with a 6-4 win over Kannapolis on Friday night at Atrium Health Ballpark.
Galan’s perfect outing marked the first time since August 2007 that a RiverDog pitcher delivered five or more perfect innings to start a game.
With the win, Charleston improves to 36-31 overall and 1-0 in the second half, extending their series lead to 4-0 over Kannapolis.
The RiverDogs offense stayed red hot to open the half and put up six runs in the second inning.
After three consecutive singles loaded the bases, Narciso Polanco floated an RBI single into shallow center, scoring Ricardo Gonzalez. Nathan Flewelling followed with a booming bases-clearing double off the center field wall to give Charleston a 4-0 lead. Angel Mateo continued the hit barrage with a first pitch homer to left field that scored Flewelling, extending the advantage to 6-0. It was Mateo’s fifth jack of the season.
Kannapolis starter Ricardo Brizuela was pulled in the second inning with the bases loaded after throwing 50 pitches over just 1.1 innings. He was charged with four earned runs.
The Cannon Ballers' bullpen held firm from there, keeping Charleston off the scoreboard for the remainder of the game.
Galan was the story of the night for Charleston, as he delivered his seven perfect innings on only 74 pitches, striking out five batters. The gem adds to Galan’s remarkable start to the 2025 season in Single-A, as the 2024 17th-round pick improved to 4-0 with a 1.86 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 26 strikeouts over 29.0 innings.
In the eighth inning, Ryan Schiefer entered in relief of Galan and the perfect game was broken up on a leadoff Lyle Miller-Green double to left. With two outs, Kannapolis got on the board with a Grant Magill RBI-single. They scored another run on a wild pitch by Dalton Fowler to cut the Charleston lead to 6-2.
The Cannon Ballers mounted a late rally in the ninth, nearly pulling off an improbable comeback.
With two outs, Charleston reliever Janzen Keisel issued two walks and hit a batter to load the bases. Nathan Archer then lined a two-run single to right field, trimming the RiverDogs’ lead to 6-4 and putting the potential tying run on base.
With runners on the corners and the go-ahead run at the plate, Andy Rodriguez was called upon out of the bullpen. Rodriquez shut the door on Kannapolis, recording the final out to preserve the win and end the ballgame.
Charleston continues its series against Kannapolis tomorrow, with first pitch set for 7:00 pm. The RiverDogs return to Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park on Tuesday to kick off a nine-game homestand. Tickets are available at RiverDogs.com.