SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

West Virginia Power: Game Notes (June 26)

Published on June 26, 2018 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


West Virginia goes for its fourth straight series victory in the season series finale tonight against the Lakewood BlueClaws. First pitch from Appalachian Power Park is set for 7:05 p.m. with RHP Gavin Wallace (5-1, 3.59 ERA) on the mound and below.

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THREE-RUN SIXTH LEADS TO WIN IN OPENER: Kyle Watson's two-run single in the sixth inning broke a one-to-one tie, as it brought in Chris Sharpe and Ryan Peurifoy to give West Virginia a 3-1 lead it would not look back from, with the Power ultimately taking game one, 4-1, against the Lakewood BlueClaws Monday evening at Appalachian Power Park. Lolo Sanchez provided the final tally of the sixth with an RBI single of his own, the fourth straight hit of the inning for West Virginia against Andrew Brown. The Power struck for their first run of the night in the second as Sharpe and Peurifoy singled to put runners at the corners against Lakewood starter David Parkinson. Parkinson then balked for the first time in 2018, sending in Sharpe to make it 1-0 West Virginia. Meanwhile, Cody Bolton was dealing once again for the Power, shutting down the 'Claws for six innings and allowing just one run on eight hits while striking out five. Beau Sulser nabbed the save in the seventh with a 1-2-3 frame.

POWER SILENCED IN GAME TWO: Ramon Rosso spun a six-inning gem in the doubleheader finale for Lakewood, holding the Power to four hits as the BlueClaws claimed game two, 1-0, Monday evening at Appalachian Power Park. Connor Brogdon notched his first save of the season with a scoreless seventh, handing West Virginia its fifth shutout loss of the year. Sanchez was the only batter to manage more than one hit in the contest, as the Power center fielder went 2-for-2 with two singles. Sergio Cubilete took the loss after allowing the only run of the game in the fifth on Nick Maton's sacrifice fly with the bases loaded. Drew Fischer tossed the final 2.1 innings, scattering three hits.

BOLTON BACK ON TRACK: After back-to-back starts without a decision, Bolton secured his third win of the year with his stellar six-inning performance, the second time in his career he has twirled six innings, with both registering as quality starts. The Tracy High School product started his time with West Virginia by throwing 19.1 scoreless innings before allowing a home run in Augusta on June 13. Overall, Bolton has ceded just three runs over 26.1 innings pitched with 25 strikeouts to four walks. At home, the 2017 sixth-round pick has a miniscule 0.82 ERA in two starts with a 2-0 record. He has not allowed a run in the first three innings during any of his five outings with the Power.

SHUTDOWN SULSER: Sulser has been a fantastic addition to the Power bullpen since joining West Virginia April 27 along with Fischer. Through 16 appearances, the Dartmouth product has a 3-3 record with a 2.30 ERA and four saves. Over 27.1 innings, Sulser has struck out 30 batters and walked none. Since his worst outing of the season May 23 in Columbia, when he allowed four runs on six hits in an inning of work, the reliever has surrendered just seven hits and two runs (one earned) over 12 innings (nine appearances) with 15 strikeouts, lowering his ERA from 3.52 to 2.30, a difference of 122 points. West Virginia has won the last eight games Sulser has appeared in. The California native has collected a save in four of his last five appearances.

ONE-RUN NO FUN: West Virginia dropped a contest by a score of 1-0 for the second time in 2018, with the other occurrence coming April 17 in Charleston, South Carolina. The Power have fallen in their last three 1-0 decisions, including an April 27 defeat at the hands of the Lakewood BlueClaws last season at Appalachian Power Park. Overall, West Virginia is 11-11 in one-run games in 2018, which is seventh-best in terms of winning percentage in the SAL.

CRUZ CONTROL MALFUNCTIONS: With his 0-for-6 effort in Monday's twin bill, Cruz's hitting streak ended at 12 games. During this streak that dated back to June 8, the Pirates' 13th-best prospect per MLB.com averaged .426 (23-for-54) with two home runs and 11 RBI. This 12-game stretch was Cruz's third hitting streak of 10 games or more in 2018. Despite his struggles Monday, Cruz's .311 average is still fifth-best in the SAL and his 44 RBI are second-most, while his 32 extra-base hits and .534 slugging percentage are ranked fourth in the league.

BROKEN SHARPE: Sharpe also saw his hitting streak come to a close Monday after going hitless in game two of the twin bill. The Burlington, Mass., native compiled a season-best 12-game streak with a .425 (17-for-40) clip, his second streak of six games or more this year. Sharpe has posted a multi-hit or multi-RBI game in five of his last eight games.

POWER POINTS: West Virginia is 30-12 when they score first... The Power are 23-16 in games decided by two runs or less... West Virginia is 10-8 in doubleheader games this season... 16 of the Power's 25 runs in the second half have come with two outs in the inning... West Virginia has won three consecutive series (AUG, DEL and HIC)... A win tonight would give the Power their second consecutive winning record against the BlueClaws in a season, and sixth in the last seven years... Sanchez swiped his team-leading 14th stolen base of the season in game one Monday.

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