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Wilmington Blue Rocks

Rocks Come Back to Tie it Late, but Bullpen Falters in 7-2 Loss

May 11, 2016 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Frederick, MD - The Wilmington Blue Rocks (9-22) have scored just two runs through the first two games of their series against the Fredericl Keys (14-18) and while those two runs did momentarily tie the game at 2-2 in the seventh, the bullpen allowed five runs in the bottom of the frame to let the Keys romp their way to a 7-2 win. For the second night in a row the Frederick starter went at least six innings of shutout baseball and the Rocks could never recover after falling behind early.

On Tuesday night it was Jonah Heim doing most of the damage for the Keys, but on Wednesday it was first basemen Wynston Sawyer getting to the Rocks pitching staff. Sawyer singled home a run in the bottom of the first to put Frederick up 1-0 and tacked on another to their lead in the sixth with an RBI double. The Blue Crew was able to respond in the top of the seventh by taking advantage of a shaky bullpen to knot the game at two. A wild pitch with Robert Pehl plated Wilmington's first run of the game and Pehl delivered later in the at bat with a sacrifice fly to pull the Rocks even at 2-2.

The tie though was short lived. Ashton Goudeau, who relieved Blue Crew starter Colin Rodgers after the second, came out in the seventh and immediately ran into trouble. He allowed three straight singles to begin the frame, the third of which was a bunt single that was thrown away by Wander Franco allowing a run to score. Rocks manager Jamie Quirk turned to Mark McCoy to try and put out the fire, but McCoy allowed four more runs to cross the plate, giving the Keys a 7-2 lead after seven.

The bullpen combination of Jimmy Yacabonis and Ivan Hernandez shut the door on the Blue Crew in the eighth and ninth as the Rocks dropped the second game of the series by a 7-2 score. Goudeau (2-3) took the loss while giving up four runs in four innings and Tanner Scott (2-1) picked up the win for the Keys despite giving up the lead in the seventh. The two teams will not have to wait long as the next game comes at 11 a.m. on Thursday as RHP Kyle Zimmer (0-0, 0.00) goes for the Rocks and RHP Matt Grimes (3-2, 2.03) will have the ball for the Keys. Those wishing to listen to game can hear all the action by tuning in to 89.7 WGLS-FM or online at BlueRocks.com

Pebbles of Knowledge

Wilmington manager Jamie Quirk adjusted his lineup on Wednesday. Robert Pehl batted in the lead-off spot for the first time this season and the first time in his two-year Blue Rocks career. Pehl is only the third Blue Crewer to top the lineup card this season. Corey Toups has hit first a team-high 28 times, while Humberto Arteaga has done it twice. Pehl went 1-for-3 with a double and a sacrifice fly on Wednesday. It was his third two-bagger in the last four games and after enduring an 0-for-19 slump the utility man now has five hits and five RBI in his last 13 at bats.

Despite the loss the Blue Rocks ended their longest scoring drought of the season. Wilmington did not score over the first 15.1 frames of this series in Frederick. The Rocks still do not have a hit with a runner in scoring position this week in Frederick. The Rocks went 0-for-8 with men at second and/or third base on Wednesday after they went 0-for-3 in those circumstances in the series-opener. On the season Wilmington is now batting .239 (62-for-264) with men in scoring position. The Rocks stranded seven on base and four in scoring position on Wednesday.

One of the bright spots in the Blue Rocks lineup is outfielder Elier Hernadez. Hernandez went 1-for-4 to extend his season long hitting streak to five games. It was a very tough go for Hernandez to begin the season with the average hovering close to .140 for most of the campaign, but he has apparently found his streak. The average has jumped up to .186 thanks to a 6-for-15 performance in the last five games with two doubles, three runs scored, and three walks. He has also hit safely in nine of his last eleven games for a total of four doubles in that span while going 10-for-41 with four RBI and four runs scored.

After their first series against the Keys this summer, the Blue Crew was 2-1 against their rival from Maryland. However, since that time the Rocks have dropped five straight and have now seen their road losing streak extend to a season high six games. The Blue Crew leads the Keys in series batting average (.246 to .235) and doubles (18 to 16), but are behind everywhere else in the series stats. The most noticeable is probable in team pitching where the Rocks ERA is 5.61 compared to the solid 3.63 mark of the Keys. Not helping matters is the fact the boys from Frawley are having serious trouble putting the ball in play, striking out 77 times in eight games to the 59 of the Keys.

They Said It

Blue Rocks Leadoff Batter Robert Pehl

"I wasn't expecting to be batting first. It was definitely a surprise. I thought it was fun and I have to admit I kind of liked being a lead-off hitter. This was my first time as a pro or even in college for that matter."

"Where you bat in the lineup can't change your approach. You have to stay consistent with that. But leading off a game will make you at least think about seeing some pitches. You've got to avoid that though."

"I've worked really hard with Abraham Nunez the last couple weeks in the cages. My big thing is being shorter to the ball and staying on the ball a little bit more. It's nice to see some of that hard work pay off and to feel a little more comfortable at the late. I was seeing the ball well, but I just needed to make a few adjustments."

"After rallying to tie the game that (seventh) inning was tough to take. We just couldn't find a way to get the shutdown frame."

"Those big spots (with men in scoring position) are the toughest at bats in baseball. As a team we have to find a way to come through in those situations. It's about not trying to do too much and just letting the at bat come to you. We've all struggled doing that. They're the toughest spots in the sport and that's why guys get paid so much money to drive those runs in."

"With these morning games it's all about getting your rest and getting in the right mindset. You know it's a quick turnaround and you've got to find a way to get your energy up. No BP, so it's all about showing up to the ballpark mentally sharp."

Blue Rocks Manager Jamie Quirk

"We were just trying something different with the lineup. We wanted to shift things around a little bit to at least try it. We dropped (Corey) Toupes to third to try and get him up in some RBI situations."

"(Robert) Pehl at the top did well. Some of that was we were going against a lefty, so we thought he could provide something for us to kind of get things going. Robert did a nice job."

"I'm just looking for someone to get on base (at the top of the order) and give the guys behind them a shot to drive them in. We're just trying to create things. It's not about speed up there. It's about making things happen."

"I don't know if it's frustration in those spots (with men in scoring position) as much as it's anxiety. We haven't been good in those situations all year. O'Hearn was the only one who consistently did it. It's just about learning to deal with anxiety and having patience to get in good counts in those spots. It's a learning experience. I've said it before but it's true. This is what A-Ball is about. Learning these things.

Walks are good, although I don't know if we worked walks or he gave them to us. We got three of them in the seventh and that's good because it makes stuff happen and puts pressure on them. We got the two runs that inning, although we still didn't get that big hit."

"(Colin) Rodgers left because he had trouble with his rib cage. He had a little stabbing sensation in the side so we had to take him out. We will look at him again (Thursday) and see where we are then."

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