CarL1 Winston-Salem Dash

Winston-Salem Dash Game Notes

Published on June 1, 2010 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release


This is How a Heart Breaks: The Dash's comeback bid ended in dramatic fashion yesterday, when Jason Bour, representing the tying run, was thrown out at the plate by centerfielder Nick Moresi to end the ballgame. Winston had tied the game two other times, but Potomac scored a pair in the seventh inning off Hector Santiago to take the lead for good. Robby Jacobson, who placed the tag on Bour that ended the game, also hit a key solo home run.

Nevin's Heaven: Nevin Griffith has returned to his early-season form lately. Yesterday, Griffith allowed two runs over six innings. In his last four starts, the Brandon, FL native has an ERA of 1.50 (4 ER, 24 IP). Griffith posted an ERA of 0.90 in his first three starts, then a 5.93 ERA in his next three prior to this recent hot stretch. Despite pitching well lately, he is winless in his last six starts.

Road Weary: Yesterday's loss dropped the Dash to 2-5 on its nine-game road trip, guaranteeing the team a losing record on its stretch away from home. Winston-Salem needs to win its next two games to avoid dropping three straight series for the first time all season.

May Recap: Winston-Salem finished the month of May with an 18-12 record, which tied Frederick for the second-best mark in the league (Kinston was first at 19-11). The Dash's best stretch spanned 5/8-5/25 when the team went 14-3. Winston led the Carolina League in batting average (.289) and ranked fifth in ERA (3.84) over the course of the month.

Seth Loman: High Priority Target: Dash 1B Seth Loman is two-thirds of the way to breaking a 21-year-old Carolina League record. Loman has been hit by a pitch three times during this road trip and 16 times this season. He is now eight HBP's away from tying the CL record for most times hit by a pitch in one season. Former Winston-Salem Spirit Rusty Crockett was hit 24 times in 1989 to set the current mark.

First Half Playoff Race: With less than one-third of the season's first half left to play, the race for the playoff spot in the Southern Division is heating up. Winston owns a three-game lead over Salem and a five-game advantage over the surging Kinston Indians. Winston's magic number stands at 17. Any combination of 18 Dash wins or Red Sox losses over the final 19 games in the first half will give Winston-Salem the first half crown and a playoff spot.

On the Road, Again: The Dash is currently on its longest road trip of the season, a nine-gamer that brings Winston to Salem, Kinston, and Potomac for three three-game series. This is final leg of a long stretch of road games that the team began in late April. Following this trip, the Dash will have played 23 of its last 33 away from BB&T Ballpark. Playing on the road hasn't seemed to bother Joe McEwing's squad much this year, as its 17-11 road record is the best in the Carolina League this season.

Best Record Watch: Despite a 2-5 start to its road trip, the Dash is still tied for the second-best record in all of minor league baseball. Only the High-A Lake Elsinore Storm (35-17) has a better record in the minors.

Dropping Like It's Hot: Winston's team batting average has been slowly, but steadily falling over the last two weeks. The Dash's season average stands at .299 after yesterday's game, marking the first time the team's average been below .300 since April 21. Despite the drop, the batting average is still the third-best in professional affiliated baseball. The AAA Albuquerque Isotopes (.311) and Advanced-A High Desert Mavericks (.299) are the only teams with higher averages. Winston's average is still the best in the Carolina League by 27 points (Lynchburg is the closest with a .272 average). Winston has five players in the top ten in the league in batting average: Brandon Short (1st, .352), Drew Garcia (5th, .323), Jon Gilmore (6th, .321), Ozzie Lewis (7th, .314), and Justin Greene (10th, .312). The Dash is the second highest scoring team in baseball with 307 runs, trailing only High Desert (311).

Greene Keeps Going: Justin Greene is the only player in the Carolina League who has played in every game this season. He has started all 51 Dash games in 2010.

Today's Opposing Starter: RHP Adrian Alaniz (1-1, 2.55) makes his second start of the season and his first against the Dash. He has been mostly used as a reliever this year and made his only start on 5/21 at Salem. He did not get a decision, allowing two runs on three hits in four innings. Alaniz has made one appearance against Winston-Salem in a relief role, giving up one run on one hit with four strikeouts over 1.2 innings pitched. He was primarily a starter during his professional career prior to a bad stretch in 2009. While with AA Harrisburg in May of 2009, Alaniz went 1-3 with an 8.14 ERA in six starts. He was moved to the bullpen and posted a 1.14 ERA over 39.2 innings during the rest of the season. This season is Alaniz' second in Potomac. He spent half of 2008 with the P-Nats (12 GS, 9-0, 2.62) before a promotion to Harrisburg (13 GS, 0-5, 3.93). Alaniz was selected by the Nationals in the eighth round in 2007 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Texas. In his junior year with the Longhorns, he went 12-3 with a 2.59 ERA and 91 strikeouts in 104.1 innings pitched and was named Big XII Conference Pitcher of the Year. Alaniz' strengths are his array of pitches, his ability to throw them all for strikes, and his ability to work the strike zone.

Check out the Winston-Salem Dash Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from June 1, 2010


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