CarL1 Winston-Salem Dash

Winston-Salem Dash Vs. Blue Rocks

Published on June 18, 2010 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Winston-Salem Dash News Release


Sweep Dashed: Winston-Salem could not complete the three-game sweep last night against Frederick, as the Keys picked up a 6-3 win in the Dash's final home game of the season's first half. Buck Britton went 4 for 5 and snapped a 2-2 tie with a two-run double in the sixth inning. The difference in the game was that Frederick was able to take advantage of a bases loaded, no-out situation to score three runs, while Winston was held scoreless in the same situation later in the game. The game marked the first time that the Keys have won a game in six chances at BB&T Ballpark.

Let's finish what we started: Before Winston-Salem and Wilmington play their regularly scheduled game tonight, they will resume this past Sunday's suspended game. The Blue Rocks led 6-0 after three innings when a severe thunderstorm forced the umpires to halt play. Following the completion of the suspended game, the two teams will play a seven-inning game.

Could Clinch Tonight, part II: Neither of the results the Dash was hoping for went the team's way on Thursday night, as Winston-Salem lost to Frederick and Salem defeated the Blue Rocks. Winston's Southern Division lead was cut to 2.5 while the magic number stayed at two. For the Dash to capture the first half Southern Division title, the team needs any combination of two Winston wins or Red Sox losses this weekend. The Dash can clinch tonight if it wins both of today's games at Wilmington, or if it wins one and Salem loses its home game against Kinston.

Jon-Stoppable: Jon Gilmore extended his hitting streak to 16 with a 2 for 5 game last night. He had a great series against Frederick, hitting .467 (7 for 15) with five RBI and three runs scored. He is batting .377 during the streak, which will officially become a 17-game streak upon the conclusion of today's suspended game (Gilmore went 2 for 2 before the rains came). Gilmore has now had three separate hitting streaks of 15 games or longer. He had a 15-gamer in April and hit in 17 straight games last month.

La Playa Party: Winston-Salem had a team-record seven players selected to the Carolina League-California League All-Star Game on June 22 in Myrtle Beach. SS Eduardo Escobar, RHP Gregory Infante, 3B Jon Gilmore, OF Justin Greene, RHP Nevin Griffith, 1B Seth Loman, and OF Brandon Short were chosen to represent the Dash in the game. Griffith, however, will not make the trip after landing on the disabled list last week. No other Winston-Salem team has sent as many as seven players to the All-Star Game in the team's 66-year history. The Dash has also tied the known league record for All-Stars on one team. The 2008 Myrtle Beach Pelicans, 2002 Lynchburg Hillcats, and the 1995 Kinston Indians also had seven All-Stars.

Santos From Above: Dash reliever Santos Rodriguez extended his personal scoreless innings streak to 11.2 on Tuesday with 2.2 perfect frames. During the streak, which has occurred over his last eight outings, he has allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out 17. Batters are 2 for 35 against Rodriguez over the stretch, posting a .057 batting average. After posting a 10.80 ERA in his first nine outings, his ERA is 0.92 (2 ER, 19.2 IP) in his last 14 appearances, lowering his season ERA to 3.86. He has allowed three hits since May 4. Charlis Burdie has also been on a roll lately. Burdie has not allowed an earned run in his last nine appearances, totaling 16 innings.

Swingers: The Dash's season batting average of .298 is the second-best of any team in professional affiliated baseball. The AAA Albuquerque Isotopes (.309) are the only teams with a higher average. Winston's batting average is arguably the most impressive of any squad. The Dash's average is 42 points higher than the Carolina League average, the biggest difference between any one team's batting average and the average of its respective league. Albuquerque's is 38 points higher than the Pacific Coast League average. Winston's average is the best in the Carolina League by 33 points (Lynchburg is the closest with a .265 average). Winston has four players in the top ten in the league in batting average: Jon Gilmore (3rd, .336), Brandon Short (6th, .332), Justin Greene (7th, .321), and Ozzie Lewis (8th, .317). The Dash has scored the third-most runs in all of affiliated baseball with 379, behind only Albuquerque (400), and Advanced-A High Desert (400).

Powered by Holmium: Justin Greene is the only player in the Carolina League who has played in every game this season. He has started all 67 Dash games in 2010.

Waiting for Pain: Seth Loman has been hit by a pitch 20 times this season. He needs to be hit just four more times to tie the league record of 24, the mark former Winston-Salem Spirit Rusty Crockett set in 1989. His pace, however has slowed down. Loman has gone eight straight games without getting plunked, his longest "drought" of the season. If Loman stays in the Carolina League all season and keeps up his current pace, he would demolish the record by getting hit by a pitch 41 times.

Today's Opposing Starter: RHP Tim Melville (2-6, 5.86) makes his 14th start of the season and his fourth against the Dash. After two poor starts against Winston-Salem six weeks ago, Melville was good last Saturday in a start at BB&T Ballpark. He allowed just one run on six hits with three walks and four strikeouts in a no-decision. Overall, he is 0-2 with a 10.22 ERA against the Dash, allowing 23 hits and 16 runs (14 earned) to go with eight walks and eight strikeouts in 12.1 innings. After posting an ERA of 9.76 in his first seven starts, Melville has been much better over the last month. In his last six outings, he has an ERA of 2.27. A Missouri native, Melville was the top high school pitching prospect entering 2008. He turned down a scholarship offer from the University of North Carolina to sign a $1.25 million bonus after the Royals selected him in the fourth round of the 08 draft. Baseball America ranks Melville as the sixth-best prospect in the Kansas City organization. He made his professional pitching debut with Low-A Burlington, going 7-7 with a 3.79 ERA in 21 starts. He registered good strikeout numbers (96 in 97 innings) and also gave up ten home runs. Melville attended Holt HS in Wentzville, MO, the same alma mater of Washington Nationals pitcher Ross Detwiler. He throws a 92-93 mph fastball, a 12-6 curveball, and a changeup.

Check out the Winston-Salem Dash Statistics

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Carolina League Stories from June 18, 2010


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