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SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

West Virginia Power: Game Notes (April 26)

April 26, 2018 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


West Virginia wraps up its eight-game homestand with the final game of a four-game series against the Rome Braves on Thursday evening at Appalachian Power Park, with first pitch slated for 7:05 p.m. RHP Gavin Wallace (2-0, 4.76 ERA) is on the slab.

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ROME SNEAKS PAST WEST VIRGINA IN GAME ONE: Travis MacGregor turned in another solid outing in game one of Wednesday's twin bill, tossing five innings and allowing three earned runs on five hits while striking out eight. Rome tagged MacGregor for two runs in the fourth, but Deon Stafford tied things up with his first home run of the year on a gulfed shot to left-center field in the bottom of the inning, and Mason Martin gave the Power a short-lived 3-2 lead by driving in Rodolfo Castro. The Braves knotted the score at three in the fifth before pushing ahead, 4-3, in the seventh on an RBI single from Derian Cruz off Matt Seelinger, who took the loss despite allowing just one hit and the unearned tally over two innings while striking out four batters.

BRAVES USE SIX-RUN NINTH TO CLAIM GAME TWO: Evan Piechota continued his dominant start to the season with a quality start in game two against Rome, hurling six shutout innings and ceding just three hits while punching out four batters and walking one. However, West Virginia's bullpen was unable to contain Rome's lineup following Piechota's strong start, as Joel Cesar surrendered seven runs (four earned) and three walks in his lone inning of work. Neither team tallied a run in regulation, but extra innings were a different story. Rome pushed ahead in the eighth with a pair of RBI singles from Riley Delgado and Jefry Ramos, but the Power fought back, as Oneil Cruz stroked a game-tying, two-run single to right in the bottom of the frame. The Braves were not done, however, striking for six runs in the ninth, the most runs given up in a single inning by West Virginia pitching in 2018, capping it off with an Izzy Wilson three-run homer that gave Rome a decisive 8-3 win and the doubleheader sweep.

MASHING MITCHELL: Calvin Mitchell went 1-for-3 in both games of Wednesday's doubleheader, extending his hitting streak to a team-best 11 games and his on-base streak to 13 games. Though he did not tally an RBI on Wednesday, his 15 RBI are tied for the most on the team with Cruz and rank highest in the Pirates system. Mitchell's 11-game hitting streak is traced back to April 14 while his 13-game on-base streak dates back to April 12 when the Power opened up their road schedule in Hickory. Over Mitchell's 11-game stretch, the 2017 second-round selection is boasting a .422 (19-for-45) clip with a home run and nine RBI. With his double in game one of Wednesday's doubleheader, Mitchell became the first Power player to string together at least a 10-game hitting streak since Carlos Munoz posted a 12-game stretch from July 9-22, 2017. Due to this recent surge, Mitchell has upticked his season average to .355, which sits at second-best in the South Atlantic League. His 27 hits top the SAL, while his .412 on-base percentage is fifth-highest and his three triples rank tied for second. The Power outfielder's superb numbers earned him SAL Player of the Week honors for the week of April 16-22, 2018.

MACGREGOR, KING OF THE K: MacGregor has been lighting up the strikeout counter in 2018 thus far, as the right-hander registered eight more on Wednesday evening to bring his season total to 28 over 17.1 innings. That number is tied for seventh-best in the South Atlantic League with Greenville's Denyi Reyes. Meanwhile, the Tampa native's 28 punchouts lead all Pirates farmhands.

EVAN THE ALMIGHTY: Piechota has marveled in his first season with the Power in 2018. Currently, the right-hander's 0.90 ERA is second-lowest in the South Atlantic League, trailing just Parker Rigler of Kannapolis (0.89), while leading all Pirates minor league pitchers. The Michigan native has not allowed a run over his last 12 innings on the mound, something only Charleston's Garrett Whitlock has also accomplished since April 17. The 24-year-old turned in his fourth career quality start on Wednesday evening.

THE PITCHING MATCHUP: RHP Gavin Wallace (2-0, 4.76 ERA) will try and salvage the series finale against Rome on Thursday, as the Power starter attempts to spin his third quality start in a row and halt West Virginia's four-game losing skid. The Braves will send RHP Huascar Ynoa (0-2, 10.38 ERA) to try and complete the four-game road sweep.

POWER POINTS: Power relievers have held the first batters they have faced in an appearance to a .200 (7-35) stroke, with 10 strikeouts... Over the last eight games, West Virginia starters have gone 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA (8 ER/45 IP), 50 strikeouts and five quality starts... The Power are now 0-4 in games facing a left-handed starter... West Virginia dropped its first game of 2018 when its starter lasted at least six innings (6-1)... The Power are 8-2 when they hit a HR.

ON THE AIR: West Virginia Power games can be heard on The Jock 1300 & 1340 AM in the Kanawha Valley, online at wvpower.com and on the TuneIn Radio App. David Kahn and John Kocsis will handle play-by-play duties in 2018.

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