CarL1 Winston-Salem Dash

Blue Rocks Bullpen Silences Dash in Opener

Published on May 1, 2009 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release


Wilmington, DE - In a back-and forth contest, it was the Blue Rocks bullpen that proved the difference as Wilmington defeated Winston-Salem 6-4 in the series opener on Friday night at Frawley Stadium. Three Wilmington relievers combined to toss 4.1 innings of shutout baseball and allowed just three hits with seven strikeouts to help the Blue Rocks claim a game that endured four lead changes.

The Dash grabbed an early advantage off Blue Rocks starting pitcher Alex Caldera in the top of the first inning. Shortstop Greg Paiml registered his first triple of the season and scored on a two-out single by third baseman Brent Morel. Winston-Salem went in front 2-0 in the second inning when center fielder Jordan Danks lined a two-out RBI single that brought second baseman Dale Mollenhauer across the plate.

Winston-Salem's lead evaporated with one swing of the bat as Clint Robinson lifted a three-run home run off Dash starting pitcher Matt Long in the bottom of the third inning to give the Blue Rocks a 3-2 lead.

Another two-out rally in the fifth inning produced two runs as the Dash regained control. After Blue Rocks reliever Chris Chavez retired the first two batters, Salvador Sanchez walked and stole second base. Morel followed with an RBI single to tie the game at three. Morel also moved to second base on the throw to the plate. Next, Christian Marrero hit a slow grounder to second base that was fielded cleanly by Johnny Giavotella, but he bounced the throw to first base which allowed Marrero to reach safely and Morel to score all the way from second base to put the Dash back in front.

The Blue Rocks would answer again in the sixth inning as Mike Moustakes hammered an RBI double and David Lough contributed a run-scoring sacrifice fly to give Wilmington a 5-4 lead. Moustakes added an insurance run in the eighth inning with an RBI sacrifice fly to finalize the scoring.

Aaron Hartsock struck out the side in order in the ninth inning to garner his fourth save of the season. Blue Rocks reliever Chris Chavez (3-1) earned the win after tossing 2.1 innings out of the bullpen without allowing a run on two hits with three strikeouts.

Long (0-3) suffered the loss after surrendering five runs on seven hits in six innings of work. With losses by Salem and Kinston, the Dash (11-11) remain in a three-way tie for first place in the Southern Division of the Carolina League.

These two teams will square off in game two of this three-game series on Saturday night at Frawley Stadium with the first pitch scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The Dash will send RHP Anthony Carter (2-1, 3.75) to the mound, while the Blue Rocks will counter with LHP Danny Duffy (4-1, 4.35).

The next home game for the Dash is on Friday, May 9th when they host the Potomac Nationals in the opener of a three-game series. The first pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. Single-game tickets are available for games at Wake Forest Baseball Park through June 17 and can be purchased online at www.wsdash.com or by calling the Dash office at (336) 714-2287.

Check out the Winston-Salem Dash Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from May 1, 2009


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