SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

West Virginia Power: Game Notes (June 23)

Published on June 23, 2018 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


West Virginia goes for its third series sweep of the season tonight against the Hickory Crawdads, with first pitch set for 7 p.m. from L.P. Frans Stadium. RHP Hunter Stratton (2-3, 6.25 ERA) toes the rubber for the Power and below.

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FOUR-RUN SECOND, ROBLES GIVE POWER 6-4 WIN: West Virginia's offense came out hot again Friday evening, as the Power plated five runs over the first two innings and received another quality start from Domingo Robles that led to a 6-4 West Virginia win, and a series victory, over the Hickory Crawdads at L.P. Frans Stadium. Oneil Cruz once again led the way offensively, as the Power infielder went 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored, including the game's first tally on a missed catch error by Hickory starter Reid Anderson. The Power were able to tack on four more in the second as Cruz drove in John Bormann with an RBI single before Rodolfo Castro lofted a sacrifice fly to score Lolo Sanchez. The next two batters, Ryan Peurifoy and Deon Stafford, ripped back-to-back triples, the second time West Virginia has done that in 2018, to extend the lead to 5-0. After a three-run fifth by the 'Dads to shrink the lead to 5-3, Robles settled down and pushed through the seventh inning. The Power added a run in their seventh after Crawdads reliever Joe Barlow issued four straight two-out walks, but Hickory responded with a run in the eighth against Drew Fischer. Matt Seelinger tossed the ninth and slammed the door with a 1-2-3 frame.

CRUZIN RIGHT ALONG: With his 3-for-5 day in the series middle match, Cruz extended his hitting streak to 11 games, the longest active streak on the Power. During his streak that dates back to June 8, the Pirates' 13th-best prospect per MLB.com is averaging .420 (21-for-50) with a home run and 10 RBI. This 11-game stretch is Cruz's third hitting streak of 10 games or more in 2018. The Dominican native recorded his 22nd multi-hit game of the season Friday, the most on the team, and has now posted multi-hit efforts in five of his last six contests. Cruz holds the fourth-highest average in the SAL at .315, while his 43 RBI are tied for second and his 31 extra-base hits and .535 slugging percentage are fourth-highest. His .315 average and 43 RBI are also second-most in the Pirates system.

STREAKING SHARPE: Sharpe also extended his hitting streak Friday with his 1-for-2 night. The Burlington, Mass., native is riding a season-best 10-game streak with a .424 (14-for-33) clip, his second streak of six games or more this year. Sharpe has posted a multi-hit or multi-RBI game in four of his last five games.

ROLLING ROBLES: With his seven stellar innings last night, Robles notched his team-leading seventh quality start of the season. The Dominican native has six quality starts in his last nine outings, including four consecutive in May. Robles has tossed seven innings four times in 2018, tying his career-high that he set last season with rookie-advanced Bristol. Robles leads the team in ERA (3.22), which is fourth-best in the Pirates system, and strikeouts (59).

SAVE ME SEELINGER: Since the departure of Blake Weiman to Bradenton, Seelinger has assumed the team's primary closer role in 2018. Seelinger locked down his fifth save in as many opportunities Friday, the most on the team. In 18 appearances, the Farmingdale State College product holds a 1-2 record and a miniscule 2.05 ERA, the best mark among all current Power relievers. Over his 22 innings with West Virginia, he has struck out 32 batters and walked just seven while holding opposing sluggers to a .217 clip against him. Seelinger has only allowed a run in five of his 18 relief outings with the Power. The New York native's ninth-inning ERA has been superb, with the righty posting a 0.90 mark (1 ER/10 IP) while striking out 17 batters to just three walks. He has fared much better against lefties in 2018, holding them to a .190 (8-for-42) clip versus a .244 (10-for-41) average for righties.

BREAK OUT THE BROOMS: With a win Saturday, the Power would secure their third series sweep of the season. West Virginia's first sweep of the year was from May 9-11 in Hagerstown, where the Power took all three games in the midst of a six-game winning streak, tied for the team's longest of the season. West Virginia also broomed the Augusta GreenJackets in a four-game series at SRP Park from June 11-14, the team's first four-game sweep since August 3-6, 2017, when they broomed the Delmarva Shorebirds at Appalachian Power Park. The Power last swept Hickory in early April 2017, when West Virginia claimed all three games at L.P. Frans Stadium from April 17-19. The Power outscored the Crawdads 35-11 in that three-game sweep.

POWER POINTS: West Virginia is 28-12 when they score first... The Power are 22-16 in games decided by two runs or less... Robles turned in West Virginia's sixth start of seven innings or more in 2018, in which the Power are 5-1... West Virginia's other back-to-back RBI triples in 2018 came in game one of a doubleheader against the Lakewood BlueClaws on April 10, when Stafford and Calvin Mitchell accomplished the feat in a three-run first inning... Peurifoy recorded the second triple of his career Friday night, while Stafford posted his fourth (third in 2018)... Saturday starter Hunter Stratton allowed just one hit in his last start (5 IP) against Augusta, a fourth-inning home run, to earn his second win.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 23, 2018


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