SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

WV Power Game Notes - April 9, 2015 vs. Savannah

Published on April 9, 2015 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


Savannah Sand Gnats (0-0) at West Virginia Power (0-0)

Game #1 | April 9, 2015 | Appalachian Power Park | Charleston, WV

Radio: Charleston's ESPN 104.5 & 1490 - wvpower.com Airtime: 6:45 p.m.

TONIGHT'S MATCH-UP

RHP Corey Oswalt (No Record) vs. RHP Jake Burnette (No Record)

Oswalt: Went 6-2 with a 2.26 ERA in 12 games (11 starts) with short-season Brooklyn

Burnette: Appeared in five games and went 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA with Bristol & West Virginia

THE LEAD OFF: West Virginia opens up the 11th season of the franchise tonight against the Savannah Sand Gnats at Appalachian Power Park. Taking the bump for the Power is RHP Jake Burnette who is entering his fifth professional season. The Georgia native was drafted by the Pirates in the 7th round of the 2011 draft but has been limited to 21 games (18 starts) over his career due to various injuries. Last season, Burnette recovered from labrum surgery and appeared in two games with the Power in August. The 22-year-old will be opposed by LHP Corey Oswalt, who went 6-2 with a 2.26 ERA with short-season Brooklyn in 2014.

THEY'RE HERE: The current 25-man roster features 16 players taken in the MLB Draft. Of the 16 athletes, 14 were taken in last year's draft alone. Eight players who were signed as non-drafted free agents and one player selected in the Rule 5 draft will suit up for the Power this year. Additionally, six countries are represented on the Power including the United States, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Colombia, Lithuania, and Australia.

OPENING DAY HISTORY: Opening Day has not been kind to West Virginia over the last decade. Since the franchise began in 2005, the Power have garnered an Opening Day record of 3-7. The last time the Power won an Opening Day game was in 2008 when they defeated the Hickory Crawdads on the road in game one of the doubleheader. Savannah has twice been the first team that West Virginia has faced, though both of those times have come during the Power losing skid. In 2010, West Virginia was trumped 9-3 at Grayson Stadium and couldn't turn the tide at Appalachian Power Park in the 2011 opener against the Gnats by falling 8-0.

GNAT ATTACK: West Virginia will battle Savannah seven times in the 2015 season with four of the games being played during Opening Week. Last season, the Power dropped all three games played against the Sand Gnats but still hold the lead in the all-time series with a 26-21 record.

NEW CAPTAIN AT THE HELM: The Power open up their season with a new manager replacing Michael Ryan, who is now managing up in High-A Bradenton. Brian Esposito becomes the eighth manager in West Virginia Power history after he spent all of last season with short-season Jamestown. Last season, the 36-year-old led Jamestown to a 35-40 record in his first year ever as a manager. Originally selected in the fifth round of the 2000 MLB draft, Esposito played professionally for 13 years, including time with the Colorado, Houston, and Chicago Cubs organizations before joining the Pirates as a player/coach in 2013.

WHO TO WATCH FOR: West Virginia's 2015 Opening Day roster features several prospects featured in popular publications. Leading the prospect rankings is shortstop Cole Tucker. Rated by Baseball America as the number eight prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, Tucker was drafted in the first round (24th overall) in last year's draft. Joining Tucker in the prospect rankings is outfielder Tito Polo who is tabbed by B.A. as the No. 29 prospect in the Pirates farm and catcher Taylor Gushue is rated by MiLB.com as the No. 28 prospect.

POWER PROMO UPDATE- SEPTEMBER 25: The West Virginia Power will honor the 1990 Charleston Wheelers, the last team to bring a South Atlantic League title to Charleston. The entire team will be inducted into the Charleston Baseball Hall of Fame and the first 1,000 fans will receive a commemorative t-shirt celebrating the 25th anniversary of the championship.

POWER POINTS: Catcher Kevin Krause and outfielder Carl Anderson are currently listed on the Power Disabled List...Cole Tucker is the youngest player on the Power and is also the only teenager on the current roster...The average age of the Power team is 22 years old.

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Pittsburgh fell victim to a walk-off in the 11th inning to the Reds, 5-4...Nick Kingham gets the Opening Day start for Triple-A Indianapolis against Columbus at 7:05 p.m...Altoona gets their season started in Harrisburg at 6:30 p.m...Cody Dickson takes the hill for the Bradenton Marauders

ON THE AIR: West Virginia Power games can be heard on Charleston's ESPN 104.5 FM and 1490 AM in Charleston, online at wvpower.com and on the TuneIn Radio App. Adam Marco will call the action once again and will be joined by Mike Baggerman when the team plays at Appalachian Power Park.

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