NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, CFL stats



Charleston Dirty Birds

West Virginia Power: Game Notes (May 23)

May 23, 2018 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


The Power continue their four-game series against the Columbia Fireflies this morning with an 11:05 a.m. first pitch from Spirit Communications Park. RHP Gavin Wallace (3-0, 4.01 ERA) is on the mound and below.

-----------

BULLPEN SPOILS ROBLES' GEM IN 5-4 LOSS: Domingo Robles tossed a shutout for 6.2 innings against the Columbia Fireflies on Tuesday evening at Spirit Communications Park, but the Fireflies' offense rallied late as Edgardo Fermin eventually walked it off for Columbia with a single to center field in the ninth that gave them a 5-4 win. Robles lasted seven innings overall, but did allow two runs with two down in the seventh, as Scott Manea roped a double into the right field corner to close the gap to 3-2. Overall, Robles pitched well again, ceding six hits his in seven frames while walking one and striking out two. He was a mark of efficiency on Tuesday as well, using less than 10 pitches in five of his first six innings. West Virginia had built a 3-0 lead through the first six frames on Deon Stafford's third career triple and a wild pitch in the third, as well as Brett Pope's first career hit in the SAL, a run-scoring double in the fourth. However, Columbia would not fade over the final three innings, as the Fireflies got to the Power bullpen. Blake Cederlind entered in the eighth and allowed a leadoff home run to Fermin that knotted the game at three. After Kyle Watson vaulted West Virginia back in front in the ninth, Ike Schlabach faltered in the bottom half, as Manea and Fermin each registered RBI singles to hand the Power their first walk-off loss of 2018.

MULTI-HIT MITCHELL: Calvin Mitchell's 2-for-4 showing Tuesday marked his 12th multi-hit game of the season. The Pirates' 15th-best prospect per MLB.com is one of two Power batters with double digit multi-hit efforts in 2018 (Oneil Cruz, 10). Mitchell has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 games, and in 13 of his 18 May contests, although his May average sits at .246, 118 points below his torrid .364 April clip.

ROLLING ROBLES: Robles continued his outstanding stretch in the month of May for the Power, spinning his fourth quality start in as many outings. Since his April 29 scuffle against Lexington, the Dominican native is 2-1 with a 2.42 ERA over 26 innings pitched, during which he has struck out 14 batters and walked just five. Robles now has five quality starts on the season, the most of any West Virginia starter in 2018. His 3.06 season ERA is eighth-lowest among all Pirates farmhands.

ONE RUN NOT SO FUN: Following Tuesday's 5-4 loss to Columbia, the Power are 9-6 in one-run games in 2018, posting a .600 winning percentage, third-highest in the league (Augusta, .615; Greensboro, .667). In games decided by two runs or less, West Virginia is 15-10 (.600), fourth-best among South Atlantic League teams.

GETTING STRANDED: In Tuesday's walk-off loss to Columbia, the Power were 2-for-8 (.250) with runners in scoring position and stranded six runners on base. Over their last six games, West Virginia has gone 9-for-62 (.145) with runners in scoring position, lowering their season average to .226. That mark is the second-lowest in the South Atlantic League, ahead of only the Charleston RiverDogs, who hold a .210 season average with RISP.

TOREGAS, THE ROAD WARRIOR: Power manager Wyatt Toregas has had a knack for faring better on the road during his coaching career, and 2018 has been no different. West Virginia currently sits at 12-5 away from Charleston and sports a .255 batting average, 30 points higher than their .225 home clip. The Power are also averaging nearly half a run better on the road than they are at home [4.94 (road) to 4.52 (home) RPG]. Last year, West Virginia was one of three teams in the Northern Division to have an above .500 record away from their friendly confines (35-31).

APRILS SHOWERS DON'T BRING MAY FLOWERS: After hitting .245 in April and scoring 5.2 runs per game, the Power bats have slowed down in May, averaging .228 and scoring just 4.1 runs per game, bringing West Virginia's season mark to .226, second-lowest in the SAL to Lakewood. On the year, the Power are 13-1 when scoring more than six runs in a game, but they have only tallied six runs once in their last 10 affairs, a 7-6 loss to Lexington.

THE PLAYOFF RACE: Despite a 5-1 Delmarva loss on Tuesday, West Virginia was unable to pick up any ground in the South Atlantic League standings, as they fell 5-4 to Columbia while Kannapolis sailed past Greensboro, 9-3. The Intimidators boast a 3.5 game lead over the Power in the SAL first-half standings. West Virginia has yet to play either Kannapolis or Delmarva in 2018, but will meet both teams before the first half concludes. After their series in Columbia, the Power will head home to face the Intimidators in a four-game set in Charleston from May 25-28.

POWER POINTS: The Power dropped to 14-2 when leading after six... West Virginia is 10-3 after a starter goes six IP... Fermin's homer against Cederlind was the first given up by a Power reliever to the first batter they faced in 2018.

Check out the Charleston Dirty Birds Statistics

• Discuss this story on the South Atlantic League message board...

South Atlantic League Stories from May 23, 2018


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