CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Wilmington Blue Rocks Game Notes

Published on June 9, 2013 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


TOUGH SLEDDING IN WINSTON-SALEM: For the second straight night the Winston-Salem Dash jumped out to a big opening-inning lead and never looked back. Wilmington starter John Lamb surrendered four runs in the bottom of the first as the Blue Rocks dropped a 9-5 decision to the Dash on Saturday night at BB&T Ballpark. The loss dropped the Rocks to .500 on the season (31-31) and may have ended their first-half CL North hopes. The Rocks trail the Potomac Nationals by six games with just eight contests remaining in the season's opening half.

ROUGH FIRST INNING PART DEUX: Just like on Friday, the Dash got three straight hits to open the bottom of the first. This time Winston-Salem added the long ball to its repertoire in staking out to the early edge. Joey DeMichele opened the game with a single and came home on Chris Curley's two-run homer to left-center. Kevan Smith than doubled, and one out later Courtney Hawkins sent a mammoth 423-foot homerun over the left-field fence to give the Dash a 4-0 edge.

STRUGGLING STARTERS: Wilmington's starting pitching has not fared well over the first two contests of this three-game set in Winston-Salem. Kyle Zimmer was chased after just two-thirds of an inning on Friday, and John Lamb failed to make it into the fifth frame on Saturday night. Lamb and Zimmer have combined to go 0-2 with a 23.57 ERA on the series. Lamb made it through just four innings, surrendering six runs on nine hits. Seven of the knocks went for extra bases as the southpaw fanned only two on his way to a second straight loss. He also allowed three homers, and has now yielded a team-high nine long balls for the season. Wilmington's rotation has a collective ERA of 4.25 on the season.

DASH OF DOMINANCE: With the loss, Wilmington falls to 1-8 against the Dash in 2013. The Rocks have been out-scored by a combined 41-17 in those games. The Blue Crew have been blanked three times in five tries this season at BB&T Ballpark.

MATEO CANNOT FIGURE OUT WINSTON-SALEM: Daniel Mateo's struggles against Winston-Salem continued as well. The switch-hitter went 0-for-4 and made the final out of the game. Mateo is now 0-for-26 on the season against the Dash. The first baseman did manage to drive in a run on his fielder's choice grounder in the third. Mateo has a team- high 33 RBIs on the season.

BULLPEN'S SCORELESS STRETCH COMES TO A CLOSE: The Rocks bullpen saw its scoreless stretch come to a close on Saturday. After Cody Fassold retired the first six batters he had faced, Wilmington relievers had gone a combined 9.2 frames without sur- rendering a run dating back to Thursday. Even with the rough seventh inning, the bullpen's season-long numbers are still superb. In 237 innings pitched Wilmington relievers have posted a scant 3.04 ERA.

BIG BLAST FROM SCHLEHUBER: Jared Schlehuber showed signs of life at the plate late in the game for Wilmington. The designated hitter, who had been stuck in a 2-for-22 slump entering his eighth-inning at-bat, sent a two-strike, two-run homer soar- ing over the left-field fence. It was Schlehuber's third dinger of the season and his first since a May 15 game at Potomac.

LOOKING AHEAD...: The Rocks will send left-hander Sam Selman to the hill on Monday against Salem. Selman has a live arm, but control issues plauged him throughout most of his career at Vanderbilt. The Austin TX native pitched just 12 innings during his first two collegiate seasons because he could not locate his fastball. His struggles with command persisted into his junior campaign, as he lost his spot in the weekend rotation. He finally turned the corner that May, regained his spot in the rotation and lived up to his immense potential. The southpaw won critical late-season starts at Florida and South Carolina, and scouts were so impressed Selman was drafted in the second round by the Royals and given a $750,000 bonus. He led the Pioneer League in strikeouts in his first season as a pro and would have topped that league in ERA as well had he worked one more inning. In 2013, command continues to be his biggest concern. Selman has issued four more free passes (37) than any other pitcher in the Carolina League. He has earned wins in three of his last four starts, going five frames in each outing. Over that span he has allowed just four earned runs in 20 frames.

Tonight's Probable Starters

WIL: RHP Kyle Smith (4-1, 1.92) vs. W-S: RHP Bryan Blough (3-4, 5.00)

Kyle Smith was the only Blue Rock named to the Carolina League All-Star team on Friday afternoon. He will represent the league in the annual Carolina League-California League All-Star game on Tuesday, June 18. This year's event will take place at Municipal Stadium, home of the California League's San Jose Giants. In his second professional season, Smith, 20, is making his first All-Star game appearance. The Blue Rocks most consis- tent starter in 2013, Smith enters the weekend with a 4-1 record, over 11 starts. All four of Smith's victories came in the month of May, a stretch where he went 4-0 with a 1.82 ERA over six starts. Presently, he ranks second in the Carolina League in earned run average (1.92), trailing only Potomac's Blake Schwartz, and holds the seventh-best ERA at the Advanced-A level. He is also tied for fourth in the CL in WHIP (1.11). The right-hander has turned in seven quality starts this season, and is coming off his longest start of the season against Carolina, a game where he tied a career-high with seven innings pitched.

Bryan Blough makes his 13th start of the year and his second against the Blue Rocks. Facing Wilmington on April 27, Blough turned in his finest outing of the season and perhaps the best of his career. Tossing seven shutout innings in a winning effort, Blough carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning, before Justin Trapp broke up the no-no bid with a single. Since that start, it has been a mixed bag for the righty. In six May outings, he went 1-1 with a 5.24 ERA. Left-handed hitters remain a struggle for Blough, who collectively have hit .350 against him (compared to righties who are batting only .222). Hardly the "new kid on the block", this is Blough's second tour of duty with the Dash, after the native Georgian pitched 10 games (all in relief) for Winston-Salem in 2012, posting a 3.93 ERA in 18,.1 innings pitched. Originally an 18th round draft pick out of Kennesaw State in 2011, Blough comes right at hitters with an over-the-top delivery. He show- cases a fastball (88-92) and a slider with solid depth.

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