CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Early Offense and Lamb's Mastery Lead Wilmington to Win

Published on June 6, 2010 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Wilmington, DE- Wilmington Blue Rocks starter John Lamb was handed an early six-run lead, but truth be told the left-hander did not need nearly that many. Lamb (2-1) equaled a season-high with nine strikeouts as he allowed only one run in six innings pitched, and the Blue Crew beat the Potomac Nationals, 9-4.

Lamb faced the minimum in five of his six frames, retiring Potomac 1-2-3 four different times. He fanned five straight at one point and retired the final eight batters he faced.

Even in the frame when he allowed a run, Lamb still managed to impress. The 19-year-old La Palma, CA native, surrendered an inning-opening triple to Steve Lombardozzi in the fourth. After he scored on a sacrifice fly, two more men reached base, but Lamb escaped the frame without further damage by whiffing back-to-back batters.

At the plate, Wilmington scored twice in the first, four times in the second and added single tallies in the fourth, sixth and seventh frames.

With two outs and nobody on, Eric Hosmer started a rally in the first inning when he lined a single up the middle. Jamie Romak followed with a check-swing infield single up the third-base line. That put two men on base for catcher Salvador Perez, who lined an 0-2 pitch off starter Adrian Alaniz into the left-field corner for a bases-clearing triple.

The Rocks saw the bottom of their order spark a rally in the second. Rey Navarro got things started with a lead-off single, that Michael Burgess misplayed, allowing the Wilmington shortstop to move into scoring position. A walk to Juan Rivera and a bunt single by Fernando Garcia loaded the bases with no outs. Patrick Norris then grounded one sharply to Lombardozzi at second base. The infielder elected to try and cut down the lead runner at the plate, but his throw was late.

Nick Francis followed with a liner up the middle that gave Wilmington a 4-0 lead as the Rocks advanced a base at a time. Alaniz (1-2) uncorked a wild pitch which scored Garcia and Hosmer then lofted a sacrifice fly to shallow left, giving Wilmington a six-run advantage after two.

The Rocks offense kept the pressure on late. Romak roped an RBI double to right-center field in the bottom of the fourth to restore Wilmington's lead to six runs. In the sixth, Perez scored Hosmer with an RBI double, while Francis added a run-scoring two-bag base hit of his own in the seventh.

After taking care of business against the P-Nats by winning three of four, Wilmington will start a new series on Monday night as the Blue Crew welcomes the Kinston Indians to town. Struggling right-hander Tim Melville (1-6, 6.54) takes the hill for the Rocks. He will be opposed by Kinston southpaw T.J. House (2-3, 3.59). First pitch is slated for 7:05 p.m.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

Jamie Romak extended his hitting streak to 14 games with his check-swing infield single in the first inning. The utility man, who manned third base on Sunday afternoon, finished the day, 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored. He is batting a blistering .434 (23-for-53) over these last 14 games. It is the longest hitting streak by a Blue Rock since Kurt Mertins compiled a 17-gamer from June 18-July 9, 2008.

The heart of Wilmington's order pounded Potomac pitching on Sunday. Eric Hosmer, Romak and Salvador Perez combined to go 6-for-12 with four RBIs, four runs scored, three extra-base hits and two walks. Perez finished just a homer shy of the cycle.

Juan Rivera got his first start of the season at DH on Sunday. He went 2-for-3 with two walks and two tallies. Rivera marked the 11th different designated hitter on a Brian Rupp lineup card in 2010.

After failing to score at least six runs in a game for 11 straight contests, Wilmington's offense plated six in Saturday night's win. Wilmington was able to accomplish the feat for the second straight outing on Sunday, scoring six over the game's first two frames. The Rocks had not scored six or more runs in consecutive contests since May 11-12.

Wilmington finished the afternoon with 14 hits, the most by the Blue Rocks at home all season. Wilmington's season-high total for hits is 17, which came on April 23 at Winston-Salem.

The Rocks scored nine runs despite stranding 12 men on base.

Wilmington, which won three of four from the P-Nats over the weekend, took its first series since sweeping Myrtle Beach May 21-23. Its series record stands at 5-10-2 now on the season. The victory on Sunday gave Wilmington sole possession of second place in the Carolina League North.

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Carolina League Stories from June 6, 2010


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