CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Rocks drop home opener

Published on April 17, 2009 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks had an opportunity for their third late-inning come-from-behind win of the season on Friday night. Entering the final frame down by a run, the Blue Crew put two men on base with only one out. But then the wheels came off, and Wilmington dropped its home-opener 4-3 at Frawley Stadium.

The rally derailed when Derrick Robinson, who had an otherwise fine offensive night, was picked off of second base for the second out. The center fielder stayed in a run-down long enough to allow Johnny Giavotella to advance to second base, but the base-running blunder halted the Rocks' momentum. Three pitches later Mike Moustakas flew out to center, and the game was over.

Wilmington began the contest with runs in the first two innings. David Lough opened the scoring with an RBI single, which scored Giavotella, giving the Rocks a 1-0 lead. Clint Robinson then led off the second with a solidly smacked double. Three batters later, Derrick Robinson drove him home with a two-out RBI single. The center fielder reached base three times on the evening.

The lead lasted until the fifth. Wilmington starter Mario Santiago, who had pitched his way out of trouble in the first and third innings, ran out of magic in his final frame. Lynchburg catcher Kris Watts led off with a double. He then scored on an RBI single by Ray Chang. One out later, Jordy Mercer was hit by a pitch, and Pedro Alvarez walked. After a Matt Hague sacrifice fly tied the game, the Hillcats went ahead for good on a two-run double by Miles Durham.

That would be Santiago's final batter of the night. The right-hander dropped his second decision in as many starts on the year, allowing four runs on five hits, and walking four.

In the eighth, Wilmington crawled to within a single run courtesy of a Jeff Bianchi double, and a Clint Robinson RBI single. But that would be as close as the Rocks would get.

Starting pitcher Chi-Hung Cheng earned his first victory of the season for Lynchburg. The 23-year-old southpaw scattered six hits and two runs over five innings. He struck out six, and walked just one. R.J. Rodriguez nailed down the win in the ninth, earning his third save.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

Clint Robinson's second-inning double extended his season-opening hitting streak to eight in eight games played.

Derrick Robinson's stolen base in the second-inning moved him into sole possession of the lead in the Carolina League with six.

The Rocks' bullpen pitched 5.1 innings of shutout baseball in relief of Santiago. Jason Godin entered the game with two outs in the fifth, and allowed only one hit in 3.1 frames. Ben Swaggerty followed and pitched a perfect ninth.

The attendance at Frawley Stadium on Friday, 6,115, was the largest crowd for a home opener in Wilmington since 2005. It was the fifth largest in Blue Rocks history. The high mark came in 2004, when 6,919 fans watched the Blue Crew lose 5-4 to Salem.

Check out the Wilmington Blue Rocks Statistics

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



Carolina League Stories from April 17, 2009


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