Exposito's Cycle Headlines Rome's Series-Clinching Win Over Winston-Salem

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SAL Rome Emperors

Exposito's Cycle Headlines Rome's Series-Clinching Win Over Winston-Salem

April 26, 2025 - South Atlantic League (SAL)
Rome Emperors News Release


Rome Emperors' E.J. Exposito on game night
Rome Emperors' E.J. Exposito on game night
(Rome Emperors)

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - 1,323 games had passed since Joey Meneses' cycle for the Rome Braves in 2014, and E.J. Exposito's triple in the top of the ninth inning Saturday put him in the elite company of Meneses and just one other Rome Brave who have hit for the cycle in Rome's 21-plus-year history.

Leg one of the cycle came in the bottom of the first inning on a double to left field off Seth Keener. Leg two came in the form of single, also to left field, and also off Keener in the third. Exposito then greeted the newly minted bullpen arm Jake Peppers with a big fly over the left field wall in the fourth. A couple of groundball outs later, and E.J. was rewarded with one final at-bat in the top of the ninth inning against right-hander Connery Peters. Peters' 1-1 fastball caught too much of the plate and Exposito lined a ball over the head of Winston-Salem's right fielder and E.J. legged out the hardest, and final leg of one of the rarest feats in baseball. Less than 350 cycles have been recorded in MLB history.

Saturday's 16-10 win over the Winston-Salem Dash saw a season-high 19 hits from the Emperors, marking the first time since the 2022 season that Rome has registered over 18 hits in a single game. Leadoff batter Lizandro Espinoza also had himself a career night; five hits from the former Rule 5 Draft pick up was a career-high and his leadoff homerun in the first temporarily gave him the most homeruns on the team with three. Bryson Horne's three-run homerun in the third brought him back even with Espinoza for the team lead.

For the second time this year, all nine swinging penguins in Angel Flores' order tallied a base knock. Notably, Horne finished with three base hits (3-for-5, HR, 2B, 4RBI, 2R) and Arroyo finished with two (2-for-5, 2B, 3RBI).

The Emperors are now winners of seven of their last 10 games and remain tied for first place in the South Atlantic League South Division with Texas' affiliate, the Hub City Spartanburgers. With the series against the Dash already in hand, Rome readies for one final game on the road, coming tomorrow at 2:00PM ET, before embarking on a 12-game homestand.

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Rome Emperors' E.J. Exposito on game night
Rome Emperors' E.J. Exposito on game night
   

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