CarL1 Wilmington Blue Rocks

Wilmington's Win Streak Comes to a Close

Published on May 23, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Wilmington Blue Rocks News Release


Wilmington, DE - Delaware native Tyler Townsend had two extra-base hits, two RBIs and scored a run as the Frederick Keys beat the Wilmington Blue Rocks, 4-1, on Monday night at Frawley Stadium. The loss ended Wilmington's season-high tying seven-game winning streak.

It was a wire-to-wire victory for the Keys, who got a solo homer from Bobby Stevens during the game's second at-bat. It was part of a rocky beginning to Blue Crew starter Elisaul Pimentel's outing. The right-hander surrendered a pair of deep fly-ball outs along with two extra-base knocks in the opening inning. He also allowed an unearned run in the third courtesy of two Wilmington miscues defensively.

John Whittleman misplayed a hard grounder to first that allowed Townsend to reach safely. He went to third one batter later when Pimentel (3-2) fielded Tyler Kolodny's perfectly placed bunt and fired errantly into right field, putting runners at second and third with only one out. Dale Mollenhauer brought Townsend home when he lifted a sacrifice fly into right, but Pimentel stranded another potential tally in scoring position.

Monday's game was all about squandered opportunities for both teams. Pimentel forced Frederick to leave five runners on base and four in scoring position during his six frames of work. The Keys ended their evening with nine men left on the base paths.

Wilmington let two golden chances go by the wayside late. The Rocks put together their best inning of the night in the sixth. Deivy Batista and Whit Merrifield opened the frame with back-to-back singles, but Carlo Testa failed to sacrifice them into scoring position, instead bunting into a fielder's choice that cut Batista down at third.

Rey Navarro regained the momentum for the Rocks when he lined a single into right that loaded the bases, and Whittleman scored Wilmington's first run of the game with his ensuing sacrifice fly to right. After Tim Ferguson walked to reload the bases, the Blue Crew seemed poised to take the lead, but Yem Prades' pop out to the shortstop ended the inning.

Frederick starter Nathan Moreau (4-3) followed with a one-two-three seventh, but it proved to be the left-hander's final frame of the evening. He ended his outing with four strikeouts and only one walk, before giving way to Jacob Rasner in the eighth.

The Keys' reliever promptly walked Merrifield and then hit Testa with a pitch as he was attempting to sacrifice. That was all for him, as he gave way to Chris Petrini. Petrini induced a fly out to right from Navarro. But both runners advanced on the play as Merrifield tagged up to third and Testa alertly moved to second on the throw in. Petrini quelled some of the fire though when he fanned Whittleman for a critical second out.

Again Frederick manager Orlando Gomez went to his bullpen, calling on 28-year-old Ryohei Tanaka to end the rally. He did exactly that by getting a soft fly to right from Ferguson, and then tossing a scoreless ninth.

The Rocks stranded six runners over the final four innings. Frederick ended their hopes in the eighth when Townsend came through with a two-run double to the left-centerfield alley.

Wilmington hosts the Keys again on Tuesday at 6:35 p.m. Opening Day starter Tim Melville (4-4, 4.57) hits the hill for Wilmington against Frederick right-hander Ryan O'Shea (3-2, 3.79). Broadcast coverage begins at 6:05 p.m. as studio host Adam Dobrowolski brings fans the Rocks Report Pre-game Show, presented by Wawa, on 89.7 WGLS-FM and online at wgls.rowan.edu.

It is a Tworrific Tuesday at Frawley Stadium, which means fans can get two box seats, two hot dogs, two sodas and two baseballs for only $26. For tickets call 302-888-BLUE or visit bluerocks.com.

PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:

Carlo Testa continues to excel in the two-spot of manager Brian Rupp's batting order. Testa had another hit on Monday and has now gone 8-for-16 with four extra-base knocks and six RBIs in the first four games of this homestand. Since being elevated to second in the lineup, Testa is hitting .357 (20-for-56) with 10 extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in 15 games.

The Blue Rocks saw their six-game errorless streak come to a close on Monday night. The team had not played error-free baseball in that many consecutive contests since an eight-game run from June 2-9, 2009. Wilmington committed three defensive miscues in the three-run loss, its most errors in a single game since committing four in a 3-2 loss to the Lynchburg Hillcats on April 26.

The Blue Rocks own a 20-6 record against Southern Division competition in 2011, but have not fared nearly as well against their intra-division rivals. Wilmington is just 6-11 in games played against C.L. North squads this year.

The Blue Crew just cannot seem to solve the riddle that is the Frederick Keys in 2011. Wilmington has lost all five contests against the Keys this season, and has managed just seven total runs against Frederick. The Keys' staff has posted a 1.10 earned run average against Wilmington on the year, while the Rocks are hitting below the Mendoza line at .198 in the five encounters between the teams. The latest loss cut Wilmington's lead in the division down to a pair with only 27 games remaining in the season's first half.

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Carolina League Stories from May 23, 2011


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