Winston-Salem Dash: Game Notes (April 25 V. Lynchburg)
Published on April 25, 2013 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release
WINSTON-SALEM DASH (10-9) vs. LYNCHBURG HILLCATS (9-9)
RHP Terance Marin (2-0, 2.65 ERA) vs. RHP Mark Pope (0-1, 11.81 ERA)
7 p.m. - BB&T Ballpark (Winston-Salem, NC)
HEFFLINGER HOMERS 'CATS PAST DASH Lynchburg's Robby Hefflinger, the Carolina League's leader in home runs, clubbed his sixth and seventh long balls of the season in the Hillcats 4-1 victory over the Dash Wednesday afternoon at BB&T Ballpark. Winston-Salem's lone tally came on Courtney Hawkins' sixth homer of the season in the home half of the seventh. The Dash are now in danger of dropping their first home series of 2013 after losing only three at BB&T Ballpark a year ago.
ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END Right-hander Chris Beck turned in his third straight quality start Wednesday, but he suffered his second loss by giving up three runs, two of which were earned, in six innings. Beck had not allowed an earned tally in his first 18.2 innings before Wednesday, which was good for the second-most innings thrown by a minor league pitcher without allowing an earned run thus far this season. Still, Beck's ERA sits at 0.73, which is 15th in the minors and second to Kannapolis' Myles Jaye (0.72) among White Sox farmhands.
ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END #2 Winston-Salem's defense had not committed an error in 36 consecutive innings until the first inning of Wednesday's contest. The Dash had recorded four straight errorless games before the early miscue. The Courtney Hawkins throwing error led to an unearned run, which snapped a run of eight straight games without giving up an unearned tally. The Dash let in a CL-high 15 unearned runs in their first 10 games. Despite this long run of defensive success, Winston-Salem is still only sixth on the circuit with a .968 fielding percentage.
PITCHING PROWESS Winston-Salem boasts the CL's best earned run average (2.76), which is almost a run better than the second-best pitching staff on the circuit (Myrtle Beach, 3.55 ERA). The Dash are second to Dunedin (2.49), Toronto's Florida State League affiliate, among the 30 High-A squads.
CLOSE CALLS Since the 2011 season, Winston-Salem and Lynchburg have played 47 regular season or playoff games, and the Dash own a slight 24-23 edge. Of those 46 games, 27 of them, or 59 percent, have been decided by only one or two runs. The Dash own a slim 14-13 advantage in those 27 contests. Before Lynchburg's three-run victory Wednesday, the Dash and 'Cats had played six straight one- or two-run decisions.
RELIEF ON THE HOME FRONT Winston-Salem's bullpen has been a strong unit throughout the 2013 season, but Dash relievers have pitched particularly well during this eight-game homestand, which ends tonight. The 'pen has allowed only two runs, both of which were earned, in 19 innings of work, which works out to an earned run average of 0.95. Dash relievers have whiffed 20 batters in those 19 frames. Winston-Salem's bullpen boasts a team ERA of 2.09 to go along with 67 strikeouts in 60.1 innings (10.0 strikeouts per nine innings).
OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES While the pitching staff has thrived, Winston-Salem's offense has limped out of the gate in 2013. The Dash are last on the circuit with a team batting average of .219. Winston also looks up at every other team in the league in runs per game (3.9). Winston has only scored more than five runs in two of its 19 games after doing it a league-best 67 times a year ago.
HAWKINS' HIGHS AND LOWS Dash outfielder Courtney Hawkins is tied for ninth in Minor League Baseball with six home runs. Stockton's Max Muncy is alone at the top of the minors in home runs with eight. However, Hawkins paces the minor leagues with 37 strikeouts, including three in Wednesday's loss. Hawkins has been retired in 46 of his at-bats this season, which means that 80 percent of his outs have come via whiffs. The White Sox first-round pick in 2012, Hawkins has struck out in 37 of his 55 total at-bats, which calculates to 67 percent.
Carolina League Stories from April 25, 2013
- Lipka Cycles in 15-8 Hillcats Win - Hill City Howlers
- Seventh Inning Sends Blue Crew to Third Straight Loss - Wilmington Blue Rocks
- Lipka's Cycle Lifts Lynchburg to Series Win - Winston-Salem Dash
- Roberts Shines as Mudcats Claim Series - Carolina Mudcats
- Roberts Turns in Stellar Outing to Outduel P-Nats in Finale - Potomac Nationals
- Salem Surges Past Wilmington 7-3 to Take Series - Salem RidgeYaks
- Two Hits Not Enough in Myrtle Beach - Frederick Keys
- Asher's Pitching, Skole's Hitting Powers Pelicans to 5-2 Win - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Salem Red Sox Game Notes - Salem RidgeYaks
- Dash Announce Roster Moves - Winston-Salem Dash
- Keys Announce Five Military Appreciation Days - Frederick Keys
- Hillcats Game Notes - Hill City Howlers
- Winston-Salem Dash: Game Notes (April 25 V. Lynchburg) - Winston-Salem Dash
- Pelicans Game Notes vs. Frederick - Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Missed Opportunities and Three-Run Ninth Ruins Rocks - Wilmington Blue Rocks
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