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CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Four-Run Third Leads to Wilmington Win

April 27, 2019 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Lynchburg, VA - Four runs in the third inning put Wilmington ahead to stay in a 6-4 victory over the Lynchburg Hillcats on Saturday at Calvin Falwell Field. The win was Wilmington's second in a row and pulled the Rocks even with Lynchburg atop the Carolina League Northern Division standings.

Wilmington erased an early 1-0 deficit thanks to some sloppy defense by the Hillcats. An error by Jose Vicente allowed MJ Melendez to reach and Dennicher Carrasco to score the tying-run in the second. Wilmington then plowed ahead courtesy of four unearned tallies in the third.

Ricky Aracena jumpstarted the rally with a two-out double to left. Nick Pratto and Seuly Matias followed with walks to load the bases. Lynchburg starter Adam Scott appeared to escape the jam when he got Carrasco to hit a sharp grounder to third, but Nolan Jones booted it, Aracena and Matias both scored and the inning continued. That allowed Melendez to bring home Pratto and Carrasco with his single to center.

Matias added an RBI-single for the Blue Crew in the seventh as Wilmington scored six straight runs for the second consecutive night after failing to score five in nine straight contests.

Daniel Lynch picked up the win for Wilmington. The lefty allowed two runs on seven hits over 5.2 frames. He fanned five and walked only one. The 2018 first-round pick made his best pitches in the fourth inning when he worked his way out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam.

J.C. Cloney allowed an unearned run in his two-thirds of an inning out of the 'pen, while Daniel Duarte surrendered a score in 1.2 frames. Tad Ratliff wiggled out of first-and-third, one-out quandry in the ninth to pick up his sixth save.

Wilmington continues its seven-game road trip on Sunday at Lynchburg. Right-hander Brady Singer (1-2, 3.32) gets the start for the Rocks with first pitch slated for 3 p.m. Fans can catch all the action with the Voice of the Blue Rocks Cory Nidoh on 89.7 WGLS-FM or BlueRocks.com.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

Saturday's victory lifted the Blue Rocks back into a first-place tie with Lynchburg. The Rocks had been atop the CL North standings eight straight days until their recent six-game losing streak left them two back of the Hillcats entering this series. Overall Wilmington has been in first place for exactly half of the 2019 season- 12 of the campaign's first 24 days.

Wilmington improved its road record to 7-2 on the season with Saturday's win. The Blue Crew offense has been much more potent away from the friendly confines of Frawley Stadium so far in 2019. Despite playing five fewer games on the road this year, the Rocks have scored 13 more runs in away affairs. Eight of the Blue Crew's nine homers have also come in games contested outside of the First State.

Entering this series in Lynchburg MJ Melendez was just 5-for-48 with four RBI on the season. In the last two games Melendez has doubled his RBI total and been on base three times. The third-ranked prospect in the Royals system, according to MLB.com, capped Wilmington's biggest comeback of the season on Friday with a bases-clearing double in the eighth inning. His two-run single on Saturday provided pivotal breathing room for the Blue Crew. Despite the struggles with average, Melendez ranks third on the team in runs batted in on the year.

Seuly Matias also snapped out of an extended funk on Saturday. The sixth-ranked prospect in the Kansas City system, via MLB.com, went 2-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored. Matias had been in the midst of a 2-for-34 slump entering game two of this series. On the season Matias has fared much better on the road. He is hitting 85 points higher in away games, has all three of his homers and eight of his nine RBI.

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