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Wilmington Blue Rocks

First-Inning Blues Doom Blue Crew, 3-1

April 8, 2011 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Myrtle Beach, SC - A three-run first inning ruled the night as the Wilmington Blue Rocks (0-1) dropped their 2011 season-opener to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (1-0) at Coastal Field on Friday night, 3-1. The Blue Rocks have lost three of their last four season openers, all to Myrtle Beach.

The first three Pelicans reached and scored against Wilmington starter Tim Melville (0-1). Chris McGuiness collected an RBI single, Mike Olt batted in a score with a ground-rule double and Travis Adair singled in the final tally. Eight of the Pelicans' nine men in the order batted in the frame. The inning came to a close when Santiago Chirino bounced into a bases-loaded inning-ending 3-2-3 double play ignited by former Texas Rangers' farmhand John Whittleman.

Myrtle Beach's offensive might would threaten many more times on the night, but failed to produce any extra tallies. Melville gave up three runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out none over four-plus innings. Manauris Baez quelled a threat by stranding a pair of inherited runners in the fifth. The repeating right-hander scattered five hits over three scoreless innings. Lefty Ryan Dennick hurled a scoreless eighth.

Conversely, the Blue Rocks toiled against four Pelicans pitchers, including a stellar effort by starter Neil Ramirez. The right-hander struck out nine, walked one and allowed just one hit over 4.2 scoreless innings. He had a no-hitter until Juan Graterol's one-out infield single in the fifth inning.

The Blue Rocks struck out 16 times on the night, whiffing multiple times in six of the first seven frames. Reliever Tyler Tufts (1-0) got the win with 1.1 scoreless innings and four of the strikeouts while southpaw Robbie Ross whiffed two in a perfect seventh.

Ryan Kelly secured the save despite allowing the Rocks' lone score over the final two innings. That run came courtesy of an Alex McClure sacrifice fly in the eighth, plating Joey Lewis.

The three-game set continues on Saturday night at 7:05 p.m. The piggybacking tandem of right-hander Tyler Sample and southpaw Justin Marks will take the hill for Wilmington against lefty Robbie Erlin, the No. 4 overall prospect on the Rangers' farm according to Baseball America. Broadcast coverage will begin with the Rocks Report Pre-game Show, presented by Wawa, at 6:35 p.m. with studio host Adam Dobrowolski on 89.7 WGLS-FM and online at wgls.rowan.edu.

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