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SAL1 Charleston RiverDogs

RiverDogs Game Notes: April 6, 2018 (Game 2)

April 6, 2018 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston RiverDogs News Release


Charleston third baseman Chris Hess roped a game-tying, solo shot in the fifth inning, but Royals No. 3 prospect Seuly Matias' two-homer game was too much for the RiverDogs as they dropped Thursday night's season opener, 3-2, to the Legends at Whitaker Bank Ballpark.

Even on a cold opening night to the season, the ball carried well in the hitter-friendly confines in Kentucky as the Legends' right fielder catapulted two long balls that both carried over 370 feet, a solo shot in the third and seventh apiece that each put Lexington (1-0) in front. The RiverDogs (0-1) jumped on Lexington's starter Nolan Watson in the first when Dalton Blaser poked an opposite field double into left to score Steven Sensley (walk) for the first RiverDogs run of the season.

After Lexington tied it up in the second and took a lead in the third, Hess, the Yankees' 17th round pick in last year's draft, pulled the RiverDogs even with his first professional home run, a leadoff jack that traveled 356 feet out to left-center. It was part of a 2-for-4 night for the former Rhode Island Ram. Garrett Whitlock struck out 7 in a 4.0 inning start; Sensley went 2-for-3, BB.

Doggie Bites:

- Hess, Who Would of Guessed?: Third baseman Chris Hess's fifth inning dinger marked the former Rhode Island Ram's first professional home run since being drafted by the Yankees in the 17th round of last June's draft and going homerless in 137 PA last year. As a collegiate player, Hess provided plenty of pop in the lineup for URI, slugging a school-record 19 triples in his career, two more than his HR total, while finishing in the top-five in school history in career extra-base knocks (82) total bases (326) and slugging (.520).

- Déjà vu All Over Again: With Thursday's loss, the RiverDogs have dropped their Opening Night contest each of the last two seasons, both times against the Lexington Legends. After Charleston had their home opener at The Joe spoiled by the Royals affiliate last season, they went on to rattle off the next seven games straight in the season series against Lexington, capped by a second-half sweep of the Legends from August 10-13 at Whitaker Bank Ballpark.

- Pinstriped Prospects: Once again, the RiverDogs will tap into one of the premier farm systems in baseball with the New York Yankees. Recently rated the second-best farm system by Baseball America pre-season and the sixth-best by MLB.com, the Bronx Bombers boast five of MLB.com's Preseason Top-100 prospects. Charleston's Opening Day roster features three of the Yankees' Top-30 prospects (MLB.com, BA): RHP Glen Otto (#20, #19), RHP Nick Nelson (No. 28, --), and INF Oswaldo Cabrera (--, #26). In 2017, the Yankees led all of baseball in organizational winning percentage (.602) between the Major and minor leagues and featured seven of their eight domestic affiliates in the postseason.

- Get to Know the Dogs: The RiverDogs' Opening Day roster is represented by nine international players (5 from Venezuela, 4 from the Dominican Republic) and 12 U.S. states (Calif, Fla, Ga, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Texas). 16 have collegiate baseball experience, including two SC products: JP Sears (The Citadel) and OF Dom Thompson-Williams (South Carolina).

- Familiar Faces: Twelve members of the RiverDogs' Opening Day roster all spent time with the Charleston club last season, including eight players who all saw action in the RiverDogs' postseason run. In a thrilling game two in Greenville of the SAL Division Series, Dom Thompson-Williams led off the seventh inning with a single in a 0-0 game and eventually scored on a Diego Castillo RBI knock. Closer Matt Wivinis pinned down the postseason save that evened the series up.

- Pitching Wins Championships: The Yankees continued to show an emphasis on pitching in last year's draft, using 28 of their 40 picks on amateur arms, despite already possessing one of the strongest MiLB pitching crops in the game (21 of the Yankees Top-30 according to MLB.com are pitchers). The Bronx Bombers convinced 17 of the hurlers taken in the draft to sign, including four who open the season with Charleston (Lehnen, Otto, Whitlock, and Zurak).

- Racking Up K's: The RiverDogs have enjoyed a dominant pitching staff the past two seasons under the tutelage of returning pitching coach Justin Pope and a talented crop of Yankee prospects. Charleston has set the franchise's strikeout record each of the last two seasons, including an unprecedented 1,252 K's in 2017, while leading the SAL in ERA each of the last two seasons. By ERA, the last two years have been the two most productive in RiverDogs history, and second only to the SAL-record set by the 1988 Charleston Rainbows in the history of the franchise.

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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.

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