CarL1 Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Pelicans Game Notes

Published on August 20, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


LHP Mike Rayl (1-1, 3.27) at LHP Chad Bell (2-1, 3.21)

ABOUT LAST NIGHT...: In one of the stranger games the Pelicans have played this year, the Birds came back from 5-0 down in the first with six runs in the second and seven runs in the third en route to a 15-9 victory over the Kinston Indians at BB&T Coastal Field on Friday. Jesus Aguilar crushed a grand slam off Myrtle Beach starter Justin Grimm, who allowed five runs before recording an out. The home team charged back in it with two field goals in the second inning and a touchdown and extra point in the third. After three innings it was a 13-7 game. Kinston got closer with two runs in the fourth, but Andrew Clark rocked a two-run homer in the fifth to give the Pelicans a 15-9 lead. Amazingly, the offenses came to a halt after that as no runs came across for either side from the sixth through the ninth.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS: Last night's score through three innings looked an awful lot like a football game, as the Pelicans led a slugfest 13-7 on their way to a 15-9 victory over the K-Tribe. The total of 24 runs scored in the ballgame was the highest for a Kinston contest this season, and the second-highest for Myrtle Beach. The Pelicans routed Potomac 20-6 on May 3.

EVENLY DISTRIBUTED PRODUCTION: Everybody in the Pelicans lineup pitched in the 15-run, 17-hit offensive attack last night. All nine batters notched a hit and seven hitters had multiple hits, including Jared Hoying, who had three. All nine in the lineup scored a run and six players scored twice. Seven of the nine drove in a run and five knocked in more than one. Andrew Clark homered and sent in three and Santiago Chirino drove home three as well.

CLARK IN THE PARK: First baseman Andrew Clark has raked for the Pelicans since being promoted from low-A Hickory on Sunday. In six games with Myrtle Beach, the 2010 13th-round pick is batting .348 (8-23) with two homers, two doubles, 10 RBIs and four runs scored, good for a .696 slugging percentage. The former Louisville Cardinal crushed a towering two-run home run in last night's 15-9 Pelicans victory.

I'M BACK!: The Pelicans have battled injuries to key players in the second half, but tonight marks the long-awaited return of third baseman Mike Olt, who is finally back from a broken collarbone and will bat fifth tonight. Mike suffered the injury in a home plate collision with Winston-Salem catcher Jason Bour on June 6 at BB&T Coastal Field and was playing in rehab games this week for the AZL Rangers. Sunday, Olt, the seventh-best Rangers prospect entering the year according to Baseball America, played in his first contest and blasted a three-run homer in his first trip to the plate in Rookie ball. In a four-game rehab stint, Mike went 3-for-14 and slowly increased his workload at third base, going from five innings in the field to seven before playing the whole game in his last two contests. Olt left the Pelicans in early June with a .286 average, ten home runs, 34 runs batted in, and a .903 OPS. His homer total still leads all Pelicans hitters, as does his OPS. Olt has been gone for so long, he has actually played less than half the season, missing 65 of the Birds' 123 games. The Pelicans started the season 33-23, lost the night Olt went down and have since gone 33-33. If Olt returns to form down the stretch, he could be a huge stabilizing force for Myrtle Beach as they approach the postseason.

SO MUCH FOR THE CLOSE GAMES: 12 off the 16 matchups between the Pelicans and Indians this season were decided by one or two runs. But in this set, the two clubs have exchanged six-run victories. Kinston won the opener on Thursday 9-3 before Myrtle Beach answered back in a 15-9 slugfest.

A LONG WAY TO GO: Last night's wild contest featured 24 runs and 31 hits, but those totals are still a far cry from the Carolina League records. The highest single-game run total (by both a team and both teams combined) in the history of the circuit was on May 20, 1947, when Durham routed Leaksville 35-8. Three weeks later, Durham (28) and Martinsville (18) combined for the most hits (46) in a game in league history.

Check out the Myrtle Beach Pelicans Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Carolina League Stories from August 20, 2011


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central