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Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Pelicans Game Notes: 7:05 vs. Frederick Keys - July 22, 2014

July 22, 2014 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


LAST TIME OUT: The Pelicans defeated the Carolina Mudcats 5-1 in the series finale...ANDREW FAULKNER earned his tenth win of the season, tying Carolina's starter Ryan Merritt for the Carolina League lead. DAVID LYON'S three-run home run capped off a five-run fourth inning leading the Pelicans to victory...The Mudcats continued their trend of scoring first in the series, chalking up one run in the third inning. Faulkner struck out four Mudcats before James Roberts hit a leadoff solo shot to left field. The home run was the first allowed by Faulkner, who had not allowed a home run in 101 1/3 innings until Monday...In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Pelicans responded with four hits to register five runs. Carolina starter Dylan Baker started off the inning allowing EDWIN GARCIA to reach base by way of a single. In the next at bat, Garcia advanced to second on a wild pitch to NICK WILLIAMS. Williams struck out but reached first on the wild pitch and later stole second...With one out and runners on second and third, Royce Bolinger doubled to plate Garcia and Williams, putting the Birds ahead 2-1. Later in the inning, Lyon delivered a three-run home run, scoring Bolinger and CHRISTOPHER BOSTICK to put Myrtle Beach up for good 5-1...Faulkner went five innings, allowing five hits and one run, earned. He also struck out seven batters and did not hand out a walk...After the fifth inning the Pelicans only allowed two hits.

Between JOSH MCELWEE and CODY EGE, the relievers combined for five strikeouts. The staff registered twelve on the night...Faulkner earned the win for the Pelicans, his league-leading tenth and sixth straight. The left-hander remained the Carolina League ERA leader, now at 2.07. Baker (1-1) suffered the loss for the Mudcats in his first outing off of the disabled list.

BRINGING BACK THE MIGHTY KEYS: Only one team has a winning record against the Pelicans this season: The Frederick Keys.

Oddly enough, the team with the worst record in the Northern Division and second worst record in the league overall has beat the Birds in nine of the seventeen games this season. . The Keys have won four of seven contests on the Grand Strand. Frederick is hitting .260 as a team against the Birds with 19 home runs in the 17 contests. Many of the games have been back-and-forth affairs; the Keys have blown four saves in the season series and the Birds have blown two. The Pelicans will have to sweep the Keys to win the season-series and win at least two of the three games to split the season-set. The Pelicans have outscored the Keys 82-76 in the season set, but if you take out the 21-6 drubbing in the opener of the season series, the Birds are being outscored 70-61.

UNTIL THE MILL CUP CHAMPIONSHIP: This marks the final series with the Keys this season, and the set with Frederick is the first season-series for the Birds to complete this year. The two teams will not square off again until next year, unless they happen to meet in the Mills Cup Championship Series. Frederick is currently in last place, so it doesn't seem likely, but the Keys are only 2.5 games behind division-leading Potomac in a bunched up Northern Division.

GOTTA GETTA BUND(Y): Frederick sends Dylan Bundy to the bump today, the top prospect in the Orioles system according to Baseball America and MiLB.com. At just 19-year-old, Bundy made his major league debut in August of 2012, just 15 months after being drafted out of high school. Last year, however, Bundy underwent Tommy John surgery and is trying to make his way back. The former fourth overall pick has made six starts this season, including three with Frederick, and has allowed 12 runs, all earned, in 11 2/3 Carolina League innings.

THE AIKEN ACE STAYS ON TOP: Spinning another gem last night, southpaw ANDREW FAULKNER tossed another five strong innings on the way to his sixth straight win and tenth overall, tying him for the league lead. He dropped his league-leading ERA to 2.07 and has allowed just three runs over his last six starts.

HOMERLESS PAST THE CENTURY MARK: For the first time this season, Faulkner allowed a home run. He had gone 101 1/3 innings without allowing a long ball when Carolina's James Roberts lined a home run left field on Monday night.

ONE RUN WOES: The Pelicans won their first four one-run games this season but have not faired as well in the games decided by the razor- thin margin since. Myrtle Beach is just 5-14 in those games since then (9-14 overall) and have lost seven of their last eight one-run contests, including a 4-3 loss on Sunday.

FILLING IN: Saturday's starter was RYAN BORES, who became the 12th different starting pitcher used by the Birds this season and the eighth different starter to pitch in the first 19 games of this month. Bores was starting in the place of LHP CHAD BELL, who is not expected to pitch in this series either. The lefty, who is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, has not pitched since July 14.

A FIRST FOR LOTS OF THINGS: Saturday was a night to forget for the Pelicans. The team allowed highs in a number of categories.

The 17 runs surrendered was a season-high and the 18 hits matched a season-worst. The 15-run margin of defeat marked by far the worst loss for the club, whose previous worst loss was a 10-3 defeat on Opening Night to Salem. Furthermore, LUIS PARRA allowed the most runs (11), earned runs (11), and hits (10) of any Pelicans pitcher in a single outing this season, and KEVIN PUCETAS surrendered seven walks, also an individual high for the club.

UNPRECEDENTED DEFEAT: Not only was the loss the worst of the season in terms of run differential (-15), it was worse than any loss last season. The worst loss of the 2013 season for the Birds was a 10-0 shutout loss to the Lynchburg Hillcats on August 19. The Birds lost by 11 to Salem in 2012 and in 2010. Myrtle Beach lost by 13 at Kinston in '10 and '09. The last time the Pelicans lost by 15 runs came on June 8, 2007 when the Kinston Indians (now defunct) beat the Birds 21-6. The Indians clubbed six homers that day, including two from now Rangers catcher CHRIS GIMENEZ, who had seven RBI in the contest.

STRUTTING THEIR FEATHERS: The Pelicans roster currently features four players highlighted in Baseball America's list of the Rangers' Top 30 prospects, including two of the top 5, and two in the overall top 100 in MiLB. Catcher JORGE ALFARO (ranked No. 2 in the Rangers Top 30, No. 54 in the overall Top 100) and NICK WILLIAMS (3, 97) rank in the top 100. The other players in the Texas Top 30 are OF LEWIS BRINSON (15) and RHP JOSE LECLERC (16). Unranked in the top 30, CHRIS GARIA is the "Fastest Baserunner" and PRESTON BECK has the "Best Outfield Arm." CHRISTOPHER BOSTICK, traded from Oakland in December, was ranked No. 18 in the Athletics' top 30 by BA. Third baseman JOEY GALLO (4, 60) and RHPs ALEX "CHI CHI" GONZALEZ (5), KEONE KELA (18), and LHP ALEXANDER CLAUDIO (27) were all on the Pelicans' Opening Day Roster and are now with the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders.

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