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CarL1 Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Wheeler Becomes Pelicans' All-Time Winningest Manager As Birds Come Back For Win

September 5, 2009 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Myrtle Beach Pelicans News Release


MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - In a disappointing 2009, the Pelicans had done one thing well: close out games with late leads. After suffering their first home defeat in 20 games in which they led after the eighth inning Friday night, Myrtle Beach rallied late to capture a revenge win in the same vein against the Winston-Salem Dash.

The Pelicans got three in the bottom of the eighth to snap a season-long ten-game losing streak with a 5-4 victory over the Dash with 2,859 in attendance at BB&T Coastal Field. The win gave Myrtle Beach manager Rocket Wheeler his 272nd win with the team, more than any other Pelicans skipper.

Winston-Salem took a 1-0 lead in the top of the opening frame after loading the bases against Pelicans starter Cole Rohrbough. Myrtle Beach's left-hander plunked Seth Loman with the sacks packed to score Greg Paiml for the Dash's early advantage. Winston-Salem added two more in the fourth when C.J. Lang knocked a double for the last of three consecutive one-out hits, scoring John Curtis and Joe Persichina.

Trailing 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth, the Pelicans got a one-out single from Michael Fisher and a two-out, two-run homer from Gerry Rodriguez to cut their deficit to a single run. Both runs went charged to Dash starter Anthony Carter who allowed only that pair while scattering seven hits and not walking a man over seven innings. In the sixth, the Dash got one run back, cashing in a leadoff Justin Greene walk to build a 4-2 lead that held until the eighth.

Working with one gone after Cole Miles grounded out to lead off the frame, the Pelicans offense came alive. Fisher singled and went to third one batter later on a Linares double. Rodriguez then grounded out to third, allowing the Pelicans' second baseman to come home and cut the Dash lead to 4-3. With two out, Jesus Sucre worked a walk, and he and Linares advanced to second and third for Adam Milligan, to that point the owner of one hit in 16 Pelicans at-bats since his promotion to the Carolina League earlier in the week. Milligan delivered, lacing a two-run single to give Myrtle Beach its first lead of the night and the only one it would need.

Benino Pruneda (2-3) worked the eighth and ninth for the win. Tyson Corley (0-1) suffered the blown save by allowing all three runs on three hits in the eighth.

The win pushed Wheeler in front of Randy Ingle in the Pelicans' managerial record book with 272 career wins in Myrtle Beach. Ingle, the current manager of the Rome Braves, went 271-285 (.487) from 2002-2005 with the Pelicans.

Game three of this four-game series pits Winston-Salem's Jacob Rasner (4-6, 4.16) against the Pelicans' Erik Cordier (6-8, 3.80) with postgame fireworks scheduled to follow. First pitch is set for 6:05. Tickets for all Pelicans home games are available at the BB&T Coastal Field box office, by calling (843)918-6000 or by visiting the Tickets page at MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.

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