SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

Power Game Notes

Published on May 17, 2012 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


West Virginia Power (13-26) at Greenville Drive (18-20)

Game 40 | May 17, 2012 | Fluor Field | Greenville, SC

Radio: ESPN Radio 104.5 FM & 1490 and wvpower.com Air Time- 6:45 p.m.

TONIGHT'S MATCHUP

LH Orlando Castro (1-4, 6.04) vs. RH Yeiper Castillo (3-0, 2.06)

Castro: Making first start of the 2012 season after eight relief appearances for WVP ( 17th career start)

Castillo: Allowed 1 R on 6 H with 5 K and 5 BB over 5.0 IP in 5/11-1 ND vs. AUG (2-1 GreenJackets)

POWER REPLAY: West Virginia lost to Lexington 13-7 in Wednesday's series finale. The Power held a 3-1 lead after two innings courtesy run-scoring base hits from Willy Garcia and Junior Sosa. Carlos Mesa also added a sac fly in the inning. The Legends, however, scored three runs in the third, three in the fourth, two in the fifth, and four in the sixth to build up their offensive tally. West Virginia scored individual runs in the fifth, sixth, eighth, and ninth, including solo home runs by Junior Sosa and Alen Hanson. Ryan Hafner was charged with the loss and fell to 0-3 this season.

SPOT START ME UP: Orlando Castro will make a spot start tonight for West Virginia against Greenville. Castro has made 16 starts in his career, though never for the Power in his portions of two seasons on the roster. The left-hander did make five starts in 2011 for the GCL Pirates, averageing five innings per start, with a 2-0 record and a 0-.72 ERA.

FINE AT NINE: Gregory Polanco takes a nine-game hitting streak into his next contest. The Power outfielder is batting .351 during this streak with 13 hits in 37 at bats with two home runs and four runs batted in. It is the longest current streak by any player on the roster and has surpassed Dan Gamache's late April to early May streak as the second longest this season by a Power player. Alen Hanson's 16-game April streak still remains as the longest in the league so far this season.

DRIVE TIME: West Virginia and Greenville meet for the second time this season after having not played each other since early2010. West Virginia swept a four game series at Appalachian Power Park during the Power's opening homestand of the season in April. Greenville won six times in eight games during the 2010 season to tie the all-time series at 18 wins apiece, though West Virginia now holds a 22-18 edge with four games left this season between the teams. The Power are 9-11 since 2005 at Fluor Field.

SHUTOUT STORIES: West Virginia was shutout for the second time this season on Monday. The Power were also held scoreless on April 16 in a 16-0 loss at Appalachian Power Park by the Asheville Tourists. Lexington earned its fourth shutout of the season, tying them with Augusta for the second most in the SAL behind only Savannah (6). The Power are one of three teams that have not pitched a shutout yet this season (Hagerstown and Rome).

LEADING THE FIELD: West Virginia's players are leading the Pittsburgh Pirates farm system in several important offensive statistical categories. Alen Hanson, Gregory Polanco, and Jose Osuna have the top three batting averages among Pirates Minor Leaguers (.358, .301, .289 respectively). Polanco leads the organization in home runs (7), Willy Garcia has a system-high 27 runs batted in, and Hanson is second in steals (12) behind his 2011 predecessor at shortstop Drew Maggi (13 for Bradenton).

PROMO UPDATE- MAY 25: The Power will play a day-night doubleheader on May 25 against Kannapolis. The first game will start at 11:05 am and will be the final Grand Slam School Day of the season. The 7:05 pm nightcap will serve as a Hometown Heros game with a special discounted ticket package available for local law enforcement, fire, and life safety personnel.

POWER POINTS: Jose Osuna drove in two runs with sacrifice flies on Monday night for his first game with multiple runs batted in the season...

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Pittsburgh fell 7-4 at Washington... Indianapolis was shutout for the third straight day, falling 1-0 to Lehigh Valley... Altoona beat Bowie 4-3 in 10 innings... Bradenton was swept by St. Lucie in a twinbill.

ON THE AIR: All 140 West Virginia Power games can be heard on ESPN 104.5 FM and 1490 AM in Charleston, WV, across the state on the Power Radio Network, and online at milb.com. Adam Marco will call the action for each of the 70 home games this season, while the home team will provide coverage while the Power are on the road.

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South Atlantic League Stories from May 17, 2012


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