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CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Blue Rocks Earn Split by Blanking Pelicans

April 12, 2015 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


MYRTLE BEACH, SC - A strong outing from Eric Skoglund coupled with some timely hitting led the Wilmington Blue Rocks to a win on Sunday night over Myrtle Beach. With the win, the Rocks move back to .500 (2-2) on the season as they hit the road, opening a three game series in Zebulon, North Carolina against the Carolina Mudcats on Monday night.

Skoglund, a third round pick by the Royals in 2014 out of the University of Central Florida, came into 2015 as the 14th best prospect in the Kansas City Royals organization according to Baseball America, showed Rocks fans on Sunday why he was so highly touted coming into 2015. The long, slender southpaw only faced one jam when he loaded the bases with one out in the first inning. Skoglund shimmied out of the jam by inducing a pop out from first baseman Jacob Rogers and a strikeout from Victor Caratini, the hero in Saturday's Myrtle Beach victory.

The Blue Rocks got a chance to play from in front as Dominique Taylor gave Wilmington the early lead with his first homerun of the season. Taylor stepped up with one out and no one on when he took a first pitch fastball and put it in the seats over the short porch in left field. Taylor, a 15th round pick in 2013, is now batting .357 (5-for-14) with a homerun and two RBIs. The Rocks hit three homers in the four game series, all three over the short fence in left.

After the first frame, Skoglund was almost unhittable as he sat down 11 Pelicans in a row, starting with Rogers' pop-up in the first. That streak was broken up in the bottom of the fifth when Ben Carhart reached on a groundball that snuck under the glove of Frank Schwindel at first. Skoglund ended up going 5.2 innings, allowing no runs on three hits and no walks while racking up three strikeouts.

In the sixth, the Blue Rocks extended what was a 1-0 lead with a two-out rally. After groundouts from Mauricio Ramos and Cam Gallagher to start the frame, Taylor continued his good offensive day with a single to left. With Daniel Rockett at the plate, Taylor showed off his speed stealing second, his second stolen base of the year. Rockett followed that up with an RBI double past Shawn Dunston Jr. in left. Robert Pehl, the designated hitter on Sunday, then followed that with a double of his own to make it a 3-0 Wilmington lead. In the ninth, the Rocks would add two more on a two-RBI double from Schwindel, the third and fourth two-out RBIs for Wilmington on Sunday.

Benino Pruneda made his first appearance as a Blue Rock, working 1.1 prefect frames in relief of Skoglund before handing it off to Robinson Yambati to close it out. Yambati pitched two perfect innings for his first save of the season. Wilmington will open up a three game series in Zebulon, North Carolina at 7:00 p.m. on Monday night against the Carolina Mudcats of the Carolina League South. Luis Rico makes his Advanced-A debut for Wilmington, he went 3-8 with a 4.38 ERA last year for Low-A Lexington.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

The Blue Rocks have enjoyed some strong outings from their last three starters. Cody Reed, Alec Mills, and Eric Skoglund combined to go 16 innings, allowing 12 hits and just two runs while striking out 10. Wilmington starters, including the start from Jakob Junis on Opening Night, are 2-1 with a 3.60 ERA in 20 innings. Blue Rocks starters have also excelled at not giving free passes, combing to walk just three hitters in those 20 innings pitched.

The Blue Rocks are showing a, "never say die," attitude in 2015, as the offense has proven efficient with two outs in an inning. On Sunday, Blue Rocks hitters collected four hits (three doubles) and four RBIs with two outs in an inning. The only run to score with less than two outs on Sunday was Dominique Taylor's solo homerun with one out in the second inning.

Catchers around the Carolina League will have to be wary of this Rocks team, as they stole another base on Sunday. Taylor's stolen base in the top of the sixth inning was his second of the season and the fifth for Wilmington, tying them with the Pelicans for second-most in the league, behind only Winston-Salem's 11 stolen bags. The Rocks also proved they are not a team to be run on either, as Cam Gallagher threw out his first base runner of 2015 when Jeimer Candelario tried to steal second with two outs in the sixth. Gallagher is now 1-for-5 in catching attempted base stealers. Gallagher, arguably one of the best defensive catchers in Minor League Baseball, threw out 50 of 125 attempted base stealers in 2014.

Fifteenth round pick Dominique Taylor continues to exceed the expectations surrounding a player taken so late. Taylor has been one of the most important factors for Wilmington offensively, defensively, and on the base paths. Taylor is now batting .357 with a homerun, two RBIs, and four runs scored while stealing two bases. Taylor has not yet made a miscue in the outfield. For Taylor, his homerun on Sunday was his first since August 13, 2014 for Low-A Lexington against Kannapolis.

THEY SAID IT:

Manager Brian Buchanan

"[Eric Skoglund] did a really nice job. He mixed his pitches up well and kept them down. That's what you want out of the starters. They've been doing great all year. They've been pitching well and getting us into the fifth and sixth and that's all you can ask for. Hopefully in the next couple of starts, when they get that pitch count up, they'll be able to go deeper in the game. With 75 pitches you've got to pitch to contact and get outs and that's what they're doing."

"[Dominique Taylor] swung the bat well and he got us on the board early with that homerun to left. He's swinging the bat well and we got four two-out RBIs and that's good to see. Like I said the other night, two-out RBIs are back-breakers for the other team. If they can keep...battling with two outs, we can win a lot of games that way."

"I am really happy. They played well, the defense was good, we swung the bats okay, and the pitching was outstanding. Hopefully we can keep it going throughout the year."

Starting Pitcher Eric Skoglund

"My job is just to get us in a good position to win, throw strikes and be efficient and that's what I try to do everyday. I threw everything for a strike and was able to get ahead and stay ahead. My defense played exceptionally well tonight, making some rally good plays."

"[Getting out of the first inning jam is] definitely a confidence booster to get you going throughout the game. Honestly, I didn't even know [Chris Denorfia] was a big leaguer until going into the dugout when I got out of it. That was definitely a big inning to get out of. It is [the first Major Leaguer I ever got out] and I switched a gear when he came up [again]. I wasn't going to let him get another hit."

" These guys are absolutely stepping up with two outs and getting some big time hits to get some RBIs. That's what wins games...those two-out RBI hits. That's absolutely key for us and I hope we continue that throughout the season. It's definitely a momentum changer. It can definitely rattle a pitcher, especially when he's in a rhythm and that breaks it."

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