CarL1 Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Crazy Comeback Gives Birds Series Win

Published on July 28, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


MYRTLE BEACH, SC. - The Myrtle Beach Pelicans keep finding increasingly inventive ways to win games in the late innings. With two outs in the ninth down 6-4, both Jared Bolden and Ryan Strausborger scored on a Ryan Buchter wild pitch, and Zach Zaneski followed with a single to give the Birds a wild 7-6 walk-off win on Thursday at BB&T Coastal Field in front of 5,057.

The rally started with a one-out bloop single by Andres James. Bolden rolled a grounder to short that looked like it would be a game-ending double play, but he beat the relay to first to extend the game. Strausborger drew a walk and Travis Adair, on a 9-for-9 streak, fell behind in the count 1-2. He battled the Lynchburg closer Buchter and worked a walk to load the bases and move the tying run into scoring position.

Zaneski, who grounded into two twin killings and struck out with the bases loaded to end the seventh inning, had a chance at redemption. Buchter (1-4) bounced an 0-1 pitch in the dirt and it scooted away from catcher Christian Bethancourt to the on-deck circle by the third-base dugout. Bolden scored easily from third and Strausborger, never breaking stride around third, hustled home with the tying run to send the big Myrtle Beach crowd into a frenzy.

Adair was able to move from first to third on the play and three pitches later, Zaneski roped a liner up the middle to give the Pelicans their eighth walk-off victory of the season. Myrtle Beach has now walked off at least once against every Carolina League team this year except for Frederick.

It was the Pelicans' second comeback of the night, they had recovered from a 4-0 first-inning deficit to tie the game in the sixth before falling behind again.

Lynchburg jumped out to a four-run advantage five batters into the game against starter Barret Loux. Joey Terdoslavich lofted an RBI single for the game's first run and Joe Leonard followed with a three-run homer to put the home team in a quick hole.

Loux lasted three and one-third innings before Kennil Gomez entered in relief. Gomez set down eight of nine and allowed the Birds to even the score with three runs in the sixth. Adair's ninth straight hit plated one and another came in on a Keenan Wiley throwing error. A sacrifice fly from Zaneski brought in Adair from third with the tying run, but the Hillcats would quickly regain the lead.

Wiley led off the seventh with a single and moved to second on a bunt. Gomez uncorked two wild pitches to allow Wiley to score and put Lynchburg back in front 5-4. Still, Gomez was solid in three and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on one hit. Zach Osborne (2-2) worked the final two frames and despite giving up an insurance run in the ninth, picked up the win after the wild comeback.

Jared Hoying kept it at 6-4 with a great throw from left field to nab Wiley trying to score from second on Leonard's RBI single and end the top of the ninth. With the victory Myrtle Beach took the set three games to one, giving them three straight four-game series wins.

Lynchburg heads home to face Salem for the weekend while the Pelicans host a three-game series against the Winston-Salem Dash. All-Star lefty Robbie Ross (9-4, 2.24) goes for Myrtle Beach in the opener on Friday night with first pitch at BB&T Coastal Field scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Tickets for all Pelicans home games, including the postseason, are available at the BB&T Coastal Field box office, MyrtleBeachPelicans.com, and by phone at 843-918-6000 or 877-918-TIXX.

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Carolina League Stories from July 28, 2011


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