CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Arnerich Hit with the Bases Loaded Difference in 4-3 Win

Published on July 15, 2003 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


WILMINGTON, DE – A Casey Shumaker pitch hit Tony Arnerich with the bases loaded in the eighth inning to give the Wilmington Blue Rocks a 4-3 lead and eventual win over the Lynchburg Hillcats on Tuesday night at Frawley Stadium. Chris Shelton provided all three runs batted in on two homeruns for Lynchburg.

The Lynchburg Hillcats (50-38; 13-10) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first when Shelton smashed a two-run homerun off Rocks' starter Kieran Mattison. The Hillcats left two runners stranded in scoring position to end the inning.

The Blue Rocks (50-45; 12-13) scored three times in the first inning behind a combination of one hit and one error. Lynchburg starter Bryan Bullington hit James Shanks to open the inning and then walked Andres Blanco. Chris Fallon knocked a run-scoring single through the left side, making the score 2-1. Following one out, Ruben Gotay reached when Walter Young made an errant throw to second base, allowing the tying run to score. The go-ahead run scored on a Justin Cowan RBI groundout.

The score remained 3-2 into the eighth inning when Shelton smacked the first delivery from Mike Natale (2-2) out of the park. The Rocks went ahead in the bottom of the inning when Gotay cranked a one-out double, followed by an infield single from Cowan. After a wild pitch from J.L. Higgins (7-1), the Hillcats walked Adam Keim intentionally. Arnerich got hit with the Shumaker delivery, giving the Rocks the lead for good.

Mattison went five innings in his second Wilmington start. He allowed the two runs (one earned) on seven hits, one walk and four strikeouts. Eduardo Villacis allowed one hit over two innings of relief before giving way to Natale.

Bullington, the first overall selection of the 2002 June Free Agent Draft, went six and two-third innings, allowed three runs (one earned) on four hits with two walks and six strikeouts for Lynchburg.

BLUE ROCKS NOTES: The Blue Rocks will take a day off on Wednesday. The Rocks go on the road for seven games, beginning Thursday with three games at Salem. The Rocks will play a four-game series at Lynchburg starting on Sunday. The Rocks won their 19th game when trailing and won their 12th contest in their final at-bat. Wilmington trails the Lynchburg Hillcats by two games in the Carolina League Northern Division. Blanco recorded a multi-hit game for the 14th time this season. Shelton blasted his Carolina League-leading 18th and 19th homeruns.

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Carolina League Stories from July 15, 2003


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