CarL1 Winston-Salem Dash

Winston-Salem Dash Game Notes

Published on June 4, 2010 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release


Happy Homecoming: Last night the Dash returned to BB&T Ballpark for the first time since May 23 and quickly found its comfort zone. Winston-Salem drilled three home runs off Kinston starter Marty Popham and blew the doors off the K-Tribe in an 11-4 win. The Dash was buoyed by a trio of big innings; Winston scored three runs in the second, four in the fifth, and three more in the sixth. The team owns the best home record in the Carolina League record at 17-6 and the second-best home mark in all of minor league baseball. Low-A Cedar Rapids is first with an 18-4 record at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

First Half Playoff Race: Winston-Salem is in control of the race for a Southern Division title with the first half winding down. The Dash owns a five-game lead over Salem and a six-game lead over Kinston with 16 games to play. The team's magic number stands at 12. Any combination of 12 Dash wins and Red Sox losses will give Winston the first half crown and a playoff spot.

Two in a Row for LoJo: Logan Johnson was the offense's catalyst for the second straight game last night. A day after going 4 for 4 with a two run home run, Johnson blasted another two-run shot in the second inning to give Winston-Salem its initial lead. Later in the game, Johnson, who finished a triple shy of the cycle, helped the Dash pull away for good when he hit a three-run bases-loaded double in the fifth to give his team a 7-3 lead. In his last two games, the Owensboro, Kentucky native is 7 for 9 with a double, two home runs, seven RBI, and four runs scored.

Sights for Sore Eyes (and Cold Bats): The Dash was boosted last night by the return of two regulars who started their first games since being activated off the disabled list. Drew Garcia, who missed 18 games with an ankle injury, went 3 for 4 and hit a solo home run on the first pitch he saw last night. Kenny Williams, Jr. sat out 35 games with a knee injury and chipped in with an RBI double in the fifth inning.

Ax Man: Dylan Axelrod had one of his most impressive relief performances of the season last night. The Santa Barbara native tied his season-high with six strikeouts in three innings pitched. In his last four outings, Axelrod has struck out 17 batters in 14 innings, allowing just three hits and posting a 0.64 ERA (1 ER, 14 IP).

BB&T Blastoff: With last night's three-home run barrage, the Dash has now hit three or more home runs in each of its last three home games. Dating back to the last two games of last month's Lynchburg series, Winston has pounded 11 homers its last three games at BB&T Ballpark. The team hit only three total home runs over the course of its recent nine-game road trip.

Best Record Watch: At 35-19, the Dash owns the fourth-best record in all of minor league baseball. Only the AA Altoona Curve, High-A Lake Elsinore Storm, and Low-A Lake County Captains (all 36-18) have better records in the minors.

Better than "300" (Don't tell Gerard Butler): With last night's 15-hit assault, the Dash pushed its season batting average back over .300 for the first time in three days. The team is now hitting .301 in 2010, good enough for the second-best batting average of any team in professional affiliated baseball. The AAA Albuquerque Isotopes (.307) is the only team with a higher average. Winston's average is still the best in the Carolina League by 28 points (Lynchburg is the closest with a .273 average). Winston has four players in the top ten in the league in batting average: Brandon Short (3rd, .343), Jon Gilmore (5th, .328), Justin Greene (6th, .315), and Ozzie Lewis (8th, .310). Drew Garcia would also be among the league leaders (.336 average), but he does not have enough at bats because of the time he missed with an ankle injury. The Dash has scored the most runs in all of affiliated baseball with 331 (62 more than Salem, the next-closest Carolina League team).

Unbreakable: Justin Greene is the only player in the Carolina League who has played in every game this season. He has started all 54 Dash games in 2010.

Today's Opposing Starter: RHP Joe Gardner (3-0, 1.95) makes his sixth start for Kinston and his second straight against the Dash. He picked up the win against Winston-Salem on Sunday, allowing two runs on seven hits in six innings. Gardner started the season in Lake County, where he went 1-0 with a 3.24 ERA in six starts, registering 38 strikeouts in 25 innings. In his professional debut earlier this season, he went four innings and struck out 11 batters. Gardner was Cleveland's third round pick in last year's First-Year Player Draft out of UC-Santa Barbara. He did not pitch professional last year as he recovered from an upper torso injury he suffered while still in college. He made his organizational debut in the Fall Instructional League, throwing seven shutout innings with no hits or walks and 11 strikeouts in his only outing. Gardner throws a heavy two-seam fastball with sinking action that sits 91-94 as well as a slider and changeup. He considers his slider to be the better of his secondary pitches and he likes to throw it to righties. Gardner spent one season at UCSB and became the Gauchos' ace, going 7-1 with a 3.40 ERA and earning a nod to the All-Big West First Team. He was drafted 94th overall, the highest a UCSB player had been drafted since Chris Valaika was taken by Cincinnati with the 84th pick in 2006. Prior to pitching for the Gauchos, the Fremont, CA native spent two seasons at Ohlone College (CA) where he was named to the All-Coast Conference Team his sophomore year. Gardner ended up at UCSB after playing for Gauchos pitching coach Tom Myers in the Alaskan Summer League with the Kenai Peninsula Oilers in 2008. He went 6-0 in the league with a 0.60 ERA and was named Co-MVP.

Check out the Winston-Salem Dash Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from June 4, 2010


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