CarL1 Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Pelicans Game Notes: 5:00 at Potomac Nationals - July 5, 2014

Published on July 5, 2014 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


LAST TIME OUT: The Pelicans won their third straight game on July 4 with a 4-2 victory over the Potomac Nationals on Friday night at Pfitzner Stadium...CHRIS GARIA opened the ballgame with a home run to put the Pelicans ahead for good. CHAD BELL, CODY BUCKEL, and JOSE LECLERC combined to allow just six baserunners, and the staff did not allow a walk for the first time in a game this season...Garia blasted a 0-1 pitch to right field off of Potomac starter Dakota Bacus to put the Birds ahead 1-0. The Nationals then walked CHRISTOPHER BOSTICK before settling in. He allowed just two baserunners from that point until the fifth: Luis Mendez reached on a wild pitch on a strikeout and Jorge Alfaro drew a fourth-inning walk...CHAD BELL dominated for Myrtle Beach...

He set down the first ten Nationals hitters before a one-out double by Stephen Perez. The southpaw surrendered another double in the fifth to Randolph Oduber. That was all that reached against Bell in his fourth start for the Pelicans. He stuck out two...The Pelicans added run support for him in the fifth. DAVID LYON slugged a double to open the frame, moving to third on a fielder's choice. Bakus then hit Mendez and walked Garia to load the bases. Bostick lined a single to left, his first of two hits on the night, to knock in one run, and NICK WILLIAMS followed with a double to right field to plate two more...Cody Buckel entered for the sixth with a 4-0 lead. He set Potomac down in order in the sixth, including two strikeouts, and fanned the first hitter of the seventh inning...With out one, he allowed three soft singles to score a run...After a throwing error from Williams allowed Pleffner to third, Khayyan Norfork drove in a second run of the inning on a sacrifice fly to deep center field...Buckel struck out Justin Miller top complete the seventh, and the Nationals did not get a baserunner the rest of the way. Buckel pitched a perfect eighth, and JOSE LECLERC put the P-Nats down 1-2-3 in the ninth with two strikeouts to close things out...Bell (3-0) earned the victory, while Bakus (3-4) took the loss, and Leclerc earned his eighth save.

HOME IN WOODBRIDGE: Today, the Pelicans complete a suspended game from June 27, which came at home. Because the Nationals and Pelicans do not play in Myrtle Beach again the season, the game is picked up in Woodbridge, although the Pelicans are still the home team in game one. Play will resume with RYAN BORES on the mound pitching with a 6-3 lead, two men on, and one out in the inning. JASON KNAPP starts game two, which will be a seven-inning game.

LOOK MOM! NO WALKS!: For the first time this season, the Pelicans did not walk a single batter. CHAD BELL tossed five walkless innings, CODY BUCKEL posted three walkless frames, and JOSE LECLERC pitched a perfect ninth. The Pelicans lead the Carolina League in free passes handed out and have issued the sixth-most in the minors. The team's 4.4 BB/9 rate is the highest among full-season minor league clubs.

LEADOFF LONGBALL: On the second pitch of the game, CHRIS GARIA homered yesterday. It was the first time this season that the Pelicans had a home run in the first at-bat of the game. JORGE ALFARO had a home run in the first at-bat for the Pelicans in a game back on June 25, but it was at home, so it came in the bottom of the first.

INDEPENDENCE DAY PELICANS: Myrtle Beach won their third straight Independence Day game and are now 3-1 as a Rangers farm team and 4-2 over the last five years on July 4th. Their last July 4th game at Potomac came in 2008, when the club lost 6-3 to the Nationals, a game that included a delay of 1 hours and 1 minute.

RETURNING TO THE 'RIDERS: Shortstop HANSER ALBERTO and outfielder CHRIS GRAYSON both returned to Double-A Frisco on Friday. Grayson begins his third different stint with the 'Riders while Alberto earns his first trip of the year to Double-A and second of his career. Alberto began the 2013 season with the RoughRiders before returning to Myrtle Beach in August of last season. Neither played in yesterday's Double-A game.

TRIPLE-THREAT: Pelicans outfielder CHRIS GARIA is in the midst of a breakout season, hitting .292, the highest mark of his career outside of his All-Star Season in the Dominican Summer League in 2011 when he hit .315. With his triple on Monday night, he now has the most triples in the Carolina League since Alex Presley knocked 11 triples in 2009 for the Lynchburg Hillcats. The ten triples is also a career-high for Curaçao native. He is now just five stolen bases shy of his career-high in steals as well and is only two steals back of the active leader in the league, former Coastal Carolina Chanticleer Jacob May of Winston-Salem.

SHUFFLE UP AND DEAL: Counting the announcement of the initial roster as a transaction, the Pelicans had just 23 total transactions through the end of May. The club had 31 moves in June. After the longest stretch without a transaction since May 25 (13 days without), the Pelicans had their first transactions in nine days on Friday, reinstating ROYCE BOLINGER from the disabled list and receiving infielder EDWIN GARCIA from Frisco and outfielder LEWIS BRINSON from Hickory. HANSER ALBERTO and CHRIS GRAYSON were both promoted to Double-A. Brinson will not join the team until Monday.

(ONE OF) THE BEST AROUND: The Birds possess the fifth-best record in full-season MiLB. They trail the South Atlantic League's Savannah Sand Gnats (56-26) and Greensboro Grasshoppers (56-30), the Midwest League's Kane County Cougars (56-28), and the Eastern League's Portland Sea Dogs (56-29). The Pelicans have been as high as second overall, when they trailed only the Dunedin Blue Jays of the Florida State League. All four teams that played yesterday won.

SHINING UNDER THE TV SPOTLIGHT: In their National TV debut on Thursday, the Pelicans picked up the W. OF NICK WILLIAMS, who hit back-to-back homers on regional television in the Southwest in a "A" Spring Training Game, blasted a first-inning homer, and Luis Parra carved through the Dash lineup for seven-inning of one-run ball.

THE BEST CATCHER IN THE WORLD?: Just like 2013, Rangers farmhands JORGE ALFARO and JOEY GALLO were named to the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game. Neither participated last year due to injury but are both currently on their respective active rosters at the moment. Alfaro and Braves minor leaguer (and former Hillcat) Christian Bethancourt are the two catchers on the World Team. The game will be played before the on Sunday, July 13 at Target Field at 5:00 p.m. and will air on MLB Network.

STRUTTING THEIR FEATHERS: The Pelicans roster currently features four players highlighted in Baseball America's list of the Rangers' Top 30 prospects, including two of the top 5, and two in the overall top 100 in MiLB. Catcher JORGE ALFARO (ranked No. 2 in the Rangers Top 30, No.

54 in the overall Top 100) and NICK WILLIAMS (3, 97) rank in the top 100. The other players in the Texas Top 30 are OF LEWIS BRINSON (15) and RHP JOSE LECLERC (16). Unranked in the top 30, CHRIS GARIA is the "Fastest Baserunner" and PRESTON BECK has the "Best Outfield Arm." CHRISTOPHER BOSTICK, traded from Oakland in December, was ranked No. 18 in the Athletics' top 30 by BA. Third baseman JOEY GALLO (4, 60) and RHPs ALEX "CHI CHI" GONZALEZ (5), KEONE KELA (18), and LHP ALEXANDER CLAUDIO (27) were all on the Pelicans' Opening Day Roster and are now with the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders.

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