Winston-Salem Dash: Game Notes (september 5 At Buies Creek, Game 1)
September 5, 2018 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release
Winston-Salem kicks off its playoff run (which is presented by Pepsi and NCDOT) against the Buies Creek Astros on Wednesday night.
Game one of the Southern Division Championship Series is slated for 6 p.m. at Jim Perry Stadium.
_______
WINSTON-SALEM DASH (43-25, 84-54) at Buies Creek Astros (43-25, 80-57)
RHP Nate Jones (rehab start) vs. RHP Abdiel Saldana (8-2, 3.25 ERA)
6 p.m. - Jim Perry Stadium (Buies Creek, N.C.)
Southern Division Championship Series - Game 1
DASH CLINCH SECOND-HALF TITLE
Behind a career-high four hits from Nick Madrigal, Winston-Salem clinched a second-half Southern Division title with a 5-3 win over Down East on Monday afternoon at Grainger Stadium. The White Sox first-round pick has now posted a hit in eight consecutive games. Down 3-2 in the seventh, Gavin Sheets tied the game with a solo homer to right. In the eighth, Madrigal doubled, and Blake Rutherford followed with an RBI single to make it a 5-3 contest. Meanwhile, the Winston-Salem bullpen kept the Wood Ducks from scoring, as Danny Dopico, Blake Hickman, Mike Morrison and Tyler Johnson polished off the game by combining to throw four scoreless innings.
RECAPPING THE SEASON
After earning a first-half title on June 14, the Dash have won both halves for the first time since 2012, and the fourth time in the Dash era (2009-present). The Dash finished the second half with a 43-25 record, and they finished the regular season 84-54, good for the best record in the Carolina League and the fourth-best record in all of Minor League Baseball.
SILVER MEDALIST
While the Dash did not best the 2012 team in overall wins (87), the 2018 Winston-Salem Dash are now the second-best team in the Dash era (2009-present) with 84 wins, overtaking the 2010 team, which went 81-58 overall under manager Joe McEwing. While the Dash have played in the Mills Cup Championship Series twice, this year's club will try to be the first to claim a Carolina League title.
A TRUE RIVAL
Winston-Salem kicks off its playoff run with a best-of-five matchup against the Buies Creek Astros on Wednesday. While the Dash finished 3.5 games ahead of Buies Creek in the overall standings, the two teams split their season series 10-10. The Dash are 3-5 at Jim Perry Stadium this year, but the club did take two out of three against the Astros in Buies Creek from August 24-26.
A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE
2018 marks the fifth time in the Dash era (2009-present) that the club has made the playoffs. The franchise has not claimed a Carolina League title since their moniker was the Warthogs in 2003. Here's how the team has fared in each of its last four trips to the playoffs:
2009 (73-65 record; first & second-half titles): Lost 0-3 vs. Salem in the SDCS
2010 (81-58 record; first & second-half titles): Won 3-0 vs. Kinston in SDCS & Lost 3-1 vs. Potomac in MCCS
2012 (87-51-1 record; first & second-half titles): Won 2-1 vs. Myrtle Beach is SDCS & Lost 3-1 vs. Lynchburg in MCCS
2015 (75-63 record; second-half title): Lost 2-1 vs. Myrtle Beach in SDCS
BALLOTS FOR BLAKE
Blake Rutherford made a strong case to be named Carolina League MVP. The 21-year-old helped lead the best offense in the league with 131 hits (2nd), 76 RBIs (2nd) and a .293 average (T-4th). A first-round pick by the New York Yankees in 2016, Rutherford was traded to the White Sox in 2017 along with Tyler Clippard, Ian Clarkin and Tito Polo in exchange for David Robertson, Todd Frazier and Tommy Kale.
MAJOR LEAGUER AND AN INNING EATER
Big league pitcher Nate Jones will make a rehab start in game one of the Southern Division Championship Series on Wednesday. Jones posted a 2.55 ERA in 27 appearances for the White Sox this year before being placed on the disabled list with a pronator muscle strain in his right arm on June 13. Jones pitched in Winston-Salem from 2008-2010. The righty will be replaced by Luis Martinez, who led the Dash in innings pitched this year. Martinez is coming off an outing in which he allowed just two hits over 6.2 shutout innings against Salem on August 30.
DASH DOTS
This will be the Dash's first playoff game since September 11, 2015.
Carolina League Stories from September 5, 2018
- Five-Run Second Paces Hillcats to Game One Win - Lynchburg Hillcats
- Five-Run Second Inning Downs Potomac in Game One NDCS Loss - Potomac Nationals
- Buies Creek Ekes Past Winston 5-4 in Game 1 - Winston-Salem Dash
- Winston-Salem Dash: Game Notes (september 5 At Buies Creek, Game 1) - Winston-Salem Dash
- Former Wood Duck C.D. Pelham Called up to the Rangers - Down East Wood Ducks
- Baumann Recognized as Carolina League Pitcher of the Week - Frederick Keys
- Wells Named Orioles Minor League Pitcher of the Month - Frederick Keys
- Royals, Blue Rocks Agree on Two-Year PDC Extension - Wilmington Blue Rocks
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.
