West Virginia Power: Game Notes (April 7)
April 7, 2018 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release
TOUGH PILL TO SWALLOW: West Virginia jumped out to early leads of 1-0 and 2-1 thanks to RBIs from Ryan Peurifoy and Rafelin Lorenzo, but ultimately surrendered two runs to Greenville in the final frame as the Drive took game two of the four-game series on Friday evening, 4-2, at Appalachian Power Park. Power starter Travis MacGregor was stellar in his Low-A debut, going 5.1 innings and striking out a career-best 12 batters, but was saddled with the no-decision after Greenville pulled the game even for the second time in the sixth. Denyi Reyes earned the win for the Drive with a five-inning relief appearance, allowing just one unearned run with five strikeouts.
STRIKEOUT KING: MacGregor's 12 strikeouts on Friday evening were the most he has had in his career by a significant margin, surpassing his previous total of six that he accomplished on August 26, 2016, with the GCL Pirates against the GCL Braves. MacGregor became the first Power pitcher to register double-digit strikeouts in a game since Luis Escobar on April 14, 2017, when he struck out 11 Lexington Legends in Kentucky. Escobar was also the last Power pitcher with 12 strikeouts in a game prior to MacGregor, as the 2017 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game participant fanned 12 Rome Braves on April 9, 2017.
NUMBERS ARE FUN: The trio of MacGregor, Blake Weiman and Blake Cederlind combined to set down 17 Greenville batters via the strikeout on Friday evening, as Weiman tacked on three and Cederlind fanned two on the heels of MacGregor's 12-strikeout gem. West Virginia has not struck out 17 opposing batters as a pitching staff since July 7, 2017, when a group led by southpaw Oddy Nunez turned away 17 Rome Braves in Georgia, with Nunez compiling eight of them. Power pitchers have not struck out more than 17 opposing sluggers in a contest since the aforementioned April 9 affair against Rome, when Escobar captained a 20-strikeout campaign in Charleston.
THE FLIP SIDE OF THE COIN: The Power's offense has been held in check through the first two games of the 2018 season, averaging .113 (7-for-62) in that stretch while going 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position. West Virginia managed just three hits against Drive pitching on Opening Day, while the Power bats cracked the hit column four times last night versus the duo of Greenville starter Kutter Crawford and Reyes. Calvin Mitchell is the only West Virginia slugger with a hit in both contests, while Power batters have struck out 23 times in 62 at-bats this season, the most in a two-game stretch since their lone trip to Greenville in 2017, when the Drive set down 11 and 14 West Virginia hitters, respectively, on August 20 and 21.
THE PITCHING MATCHUP: RHP Gavin Wallace makes his Low-A debut on Saturday afternoon against Greenville, who will send RHP Hunter Haworth to the slab. Wallace, the brother of former Power pitcher Mike Wallace, went 3-2 with a 2.65 ERA over 15 games (13 starts) in 2017 with the Black Bears, striking out 41 batters to just five walks and holding hitters to a paltry .229 batting average. The Staten Island, N.Y., native was a 15th-round selection in 2017 by Pittsburgh out of Fairfield (CT) University. Haworth appeared in six games for the GCL Red Sox in 2017 after being taken in the 22nd round by Boston last year out of Chico State (Calif.). The 21-year-old went 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA out of the bullpen with 10 strikeouts.
THE COACHING STAFF: A pair of familiar faces headline the Power coaching staff in 2018, as Wyatt Toregas returns to the helm in Charleston for his second season as the club's manager. Matt DenBleyker also returns as the team's Athletic Trainer, while the Power welcome a new pitching coach, hitting coach and strength coach to the Kanawha Valley. Joel Hanrahan takes over for Drew Benes as the pitching coach, while Chris Petersen handles the hitters in place of Ryan Long, who moved to Triple-A Indianapolis. Nick Pressley is the new Strength and Conditioning Coach.
PROSPECT-HEAVY ROSTER: Six top-30 MLB.com Pirates prospects headline one of the most talent-laden rosters in Power history, led by 10th-ranked prospect outfielder Lolo Sanchez. Joining Lolo in Charleston are #14 INF Oneil Cruz, #16 OF Cal Mitchell, #25 RHP Travis MacGregor, #26 OF Mason Martin and #29 LHP Braeden Ogle.
BIG TIME CALL-UP: After being recalled by the Pirates on April 2, former Power pitcher Clay Holmes made his MLB debut on Friday against the Cincinnati Reds. The 2011 draftee tossed two innings, allowing two hits and one run.
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.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 7, 2018
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- Suns Ninth Inning Push Comes up Short in 5-2 Loss - Hagerstown Suns
- Third Straight Win, Braves over Suns 5-2 - Rome Emperors
- Fireflies Game Notes: April 7 vs. Augusta (Game 3) - Columbia Fireflies
- Holmes Makes MLB Debut with Pirates on Friday - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Saturday's Game Postponed, Intimidators Will Play Doubleheader on Sunday, April 8th - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Legends-RiverDogs Game Postponed - Lexington Legends
- Saturday's Drive-Power Game in West Virginia Postponed - Greenville Drive
- Snow Postpones Game Three in Lexington for the RiverDogs - Charleston RiverDogs
- Saturday's Game against Greenville Postponed - Charleston Dirty Birds
- West Virginia Power: Game Notes (April 7) - Charleston Dirty Birds
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