CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Rocks Take Home Opener With Dramatic Comeback

Published on April 15, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Wilmington, DE - A hearty crowd of 7,154, which braved cold conditions and a late Wilmington Blue Rocks deficit, were rewarded in grand fashion on Friday night at Frawley Stadium. The Blue Crew plated four runs in the seventh inning to erase a 4-1 deficit and earn a 5-4 victory over the Potomac Nationals in the team's 2011 home opener.

Wilmington sent nine men to the plate in the decisive frame, which actually began with an out. Four consecutive Rocks followed by reaching base however, as Wilmington pulled even. Deivy Batista triggered the rally with a walk, then stole second, and went to third on Whit Merrifield's single. Merrifield went to second and Batista scored on a passed ball by Potomac catcher Sandy Leon. That was followed by a game-tying two-run homer to left off the bat of shortstop Alex McClure, which made it, 4-4.

The homer sent Potomac deeper into the bullpen, as out went Kyle Morrison and in came Rob Wort. Rey Navarro kept the heat on with his fourth hit of the night. After Nick Francis struck out, Navarro stole second and then came home when John Whittleman sent one off the top of the wall in right-center field for an RBI double that put the Rocks in front to stay.

The four-run frame came just one inning after Potomac had gone in front courtesy of a three-run sixth. Starter Justin Marks, who retired eight straight at one point in his outing, ran out of gas in his final frame of work. Back-to-back singles began the inning, but leadoff man Eury Perez was gunned down trying for third on Cutter Dykstra's single to right by Francis. But Marks proceeded to sandwich a pair of walks between a fielder's choice grounder and then yielded a bases-clearing triple to the right-center alley by Steven Souza.

Marks' piggyback partner Tyler Sample came on in relief to earn the win. Sample (1-0) allowed just two runners and faced the minimum courtesy of a pair of twin-killings over the final three innings.

Potomac starter Danny Rosenbaum got a no-decision despite allowing just one run on five hits and fanning six in five frames of work. The Rocks notched their lone tally off the left-hander in the opening inning on a Francis RBI single.

The P-Nats scored the night's first run on a Jeff Kobernus homer to left-center with two outs in the top of the first.

The Rocks and P-Nats will meet again at Frawley Stadium on Saturday night at 6:05 p.m. Highly regarded prospect Jake Odorizzi (0-0, 2.25) hits the hill for Wilmington. The right-hander will be opposed by Potomac righty Trevor Holder (0-0, 4.50).

The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a Blue Rocks T-Shirt, courtesy of the Delaware Department of Justice. It is also a Super Savings Saturday, which means two box seats and $20 in concession money are available for just $35.

Check out the Wilmington Blue Rocks Statistics

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



Carolina League Stories from April 15, 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