CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Pratto Powers Rocks to Win

Published on July 1, 2019 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Wilmington, DE - Nick Pratto's three-run bomb was the exclamation point on the Wilmington Blue Rocks' five-run third inning as the Blue Crew beat the Potomac Nationals 9-4 on Monday at Frawley Stadium. The victory was Wilmington's third in its last four games.

Michael Gigliotti got the Rocks' crooked number in the third started with a one-out single. He then stole second and used two errors on the same play- one by catcher Jackson Reetz and the other by center fielder Cole Freeman- to score. The miscues tied the game, but when Kyle Johnston fanned Blake Perkins for the second out with the bases empty, it seemed like Potomac would make it through the frame with limited damage.

Then Wilmington got busy.

Brewer Hicklen legged out a bunt single and then Dennicher Carrasco worked a walk. MJ Melendez followed with a double to right which scored Hicklen. That brought up Pratto, who capped the big frame when he sent a 1-1 pitch soaring well past the left-field fence for a no-doubt-about-it three-run homer.

Blue Crew starter Kris Bubic made it hold up, although not without a little interest. The lefty yielded four runs (three earned) on six hits over 5.1 frames. Bubic did pepper the zone, fanning eight and walking only one.

Potomac pulled to within a single score thanks to two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth. Aldrem Corredor drove in a pair with his double to center and Temito Augustin scored on a wild pitch.

Carrasco came through with an RBI-single in the eighth to add some breathing room for the Rocks and then they blew it open when Rudy Martin scored on a wild pitch and Kyle Kasser plated a pair with his single to left. The infielder blooped a single to left that plated Hicklen and restored Wilmington's lead to two runs.

The Rocks continue their brief three-game homestand on Tuesday as they host Potomac again. Daniel Tillo hits the hill for Wilmington and first pitch is slated for 6:35 p.m. Tickets are available at BlueRocks.com and fans who don't make it to the ballpark can catch all of the action with the Voice of the Blue Rocks, Cory Nidoh, on 89.7 WGLS-FM.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

The Blue Crew have entered one of the strangest stretches they've encountered on a schedule in recent memory. Wilmington is playing back-to-back home-and-homes. The Rocks are hosting Potomac for three then hitting the road to visit Potomac in a three-game series. After that they play three at Salem before welcoming the Red Sox to Frawley Stadium for three more. Adding an extra layer of oddity to the two-week span is that the Rocks and Sox will play a day-night doubleheader on July 8. Game one will begin at 11 a.m. and the nightcap is not slated until 6 p.m. Wilmington is 1-0 during this stretch of 12 games versus two teams.

The Rocks are in the midst of their most impressive power surge of the season. Despite going just 3-4 on its recent road trip Wilmington hit five homers during the journey. Most of the Blue Crew's power has come away from the friendly confines of Frawley Stadium this season with 29 of their 35 dingers in 2019 coming on the road. Nick Pratto did buck that trend a little on Monday, hitting a three-run bomb in the First State. Pratto went 47 games without leaving the yard to start the season and had just one long ball entering the Rocks' June 25 doubleheader at Potomac. He hit one that night and now has three over his last seven contests.

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Carolina League Stories from July 1, 2019


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