Game Notes (June 24)
June 24, 2019 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release
The Power begins a three-game series against the Greensboro Grasshoppers Monday evening at First National Bank Field, with first pitch set for 7 p.m. RHP Clay Chandler (7-3, 3.56 ERA) toes the slab for West Virginia, while RHP Alex Manasa (6-1, 3.36 ERA) counters for the Grasshoppers.
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LATE BLUECLAWS RALLY SINKS POWER: Josias De Los Santos shined in his second start against Lakewood, but West Virginia's normally-sound bullpen was upended late, as the BlueClaws scored two runs in the sixth and four in the eighth to steal a 7-4 win in the series finale Sunday afternoon at FirstEnergy Park. De Los Santos was brilliant over five innings of work, allowing one run on three hits with four strikeouts. Meanwhile, West Virginia built themselves an early lead, as Julio Rodriguez got the Power on the board in the third with a broken bat single to center. After Lakewood tied it in the fifth on a sacrifice fly, West Virginia answered back with three runs in the sixth on a pair of run-scoring doubles by David Sheaffer and Onil Pena, vaulting the Power in front 4-1. Deivy Florido took over for De Los Santos in the sixth and struggled, ceding those pair of runs in the sixth before settling down in the seventh to turn in a scoreless frame. The BlueClaws fought back in the eighth, plating four runs on four hits to claim a commanding 7-4 edge. Mark Potter tossed a scoreless ninth, working around a two-out double by Charlie McConnell to claim his fourth save.
DOMINANT DE LOS SANTOS: De Los Santos turned in the best start of his season Sunday, spinning five innings for just the second time this year (May 13 vs. Kannapolis). His lone blemish came in his final frame, as Seth Lancaster smacked a leadoff triple to the wall in straightaway center that Julio had a tough read on, and Hunter Stovall quickly plated the run with a sacrifice fly to right. With this outing, the righty dropped his starter ERA to 6.04, a 1.04-point decrease.
MAKING A STRONG FIRST IMPRESSION: With his two-run double in the sixth yesterday, Sheaffer tallied his fourth and fifth RBI since joining West Virginia during their final series of the first half in Hagerstown. Overall, the utility man is averaging .500 with a home run, five RBI, four doubles and three runs scored. He has reached base in all five games he has played in with the Power, collecting a pair of multi-hit and multi-RBI contests in the process.
WELCOME BACK, JULIO: In his 11 games back since his return from the injured list June 10, Julio has surged back onto the scene with the Power. The Mariners' fourth-best prospect per Baseball America (fifth per MLB.com) is averaging .325 over this 11-game span, the highest mark on the team. Since June 10, Julio has posted two homers, eight RBI, seven runs scored and a .963 OPS, and has recorded a hit in eight of those 11 contests.
NOT THE HOMECOMING HE WAS HOPING FOR: Freehold, N.J., native Ryan Ramiz notched his second tough showing in his home state of New Jersey this past weekend, going 3-for-18 (.167) with one extra-base hit and eight strikeouts, with the latter marking the second-highest strikeout total for any Power batter in a single series this season (Pena, 9, June 13-16 at Hagerstown). In the Power's first series in Lakewood, Ramiz did not fare well either, posting a 1-for-11 (.091) mark with six strikeouts. Overall, the outfielder is 4-for-29 (.134) at FirstEnergy Park with 14 strikeouts this season.
LOOKING FOR REVENGE: West Virginia has yet to win a game against the Greensboro Grasshoppers this season, as their Northern Division foe swept them in a pair of four-game series at First National Bank Field and Appalachian Power Park. Across the first eight games of this series, the Grasshoppers have outscored the Power by 29 runs. Overall, West Virginia is averaging .212 with 84 strikeouts in 264 at-bats (32%), while Greensboro has a .323 clip against the Power. Joseph Rosa holds the best average against the Grasshoppers, boasting a .269 clip, the only active West Virginia slugger with a .250-plus average against Greensboro. Meanwhile, West Virginia's pitching staff has a 6.75 ERA vs. the Grasshoppers compared to Greensboro's 3.38 mark against the Power.
ALL-STAR ARIAS: After punching out the lone batter he faced Sunday, Dayeison Arias stretched his streak of not allowing an earned run to 20.2 innings across 17 appearances. In this stretch, the South Atlantic League Midseason All-Star has finished 11 games and picked up one hold and three saves. He has fanned 27 batters compared to six walks while only surrendering three unearned runs on eight hits and holding opposing hitters to a .118 average against him. No other pitcher in the South Atlantic League who has thrown as many innings as Arias has holds a spotless ERA during this time frame. Arias has appeared in 24 games this season for the Power, the sixth-most appearances in the SAL.
BUILDING ON AN ALL-STAR HALF: Monday starter Clay Chandler posted a very solid first half, earning his first Midseason accolade and leading the Power in wins and qualified ERA for basically the entire half. After a remarkable April with a 0.31 ERA, Chandler worked his way through a 5.70 May mark and a 4.50 June ERA, but has still thrown seven quality starts, second-most on the team to Steven Moyers (10). Chandler's 83.1 innings are third-most in the South Atlantic League, while his seven wins are tied for second. In two starts against Greensboro, he is 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA.
South Atlantic League Stories from June 24, 2019
- Road Trip Begins with a Loss Despite Solid Approach - Asheville Tourists
- Jackets Defeat Asheville in Series Opener - Augusta GreenJackets
- Legends Unable to Contain Fireflies - Lexington Legends
- Grenier Carries 'Birds to Walkoff Win - Delmarva Shorebirds
- RiverDogs Rolled by Braves in Series Opener - Charleston RiverDogs
- Birds Walk-Off on Claws 3-2 on Monday - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Anchia's Homer Not Enough to Spark Rally in 7-3 Loss - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Monday's Game Between the Drive and Intimidators Suspended - Greenville Drive
- Fireflies Game Notes: June 24 at Lexington (Game 71) - Columbia Fireflies
- Hagerstown Suns Game Notes - Hagerstown Suns
- Game Notes (June 24) - Charleston Dirty Birds
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