SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

WV Power Game Notes: April 13, 2015 vs. Hagerstown

Published on April 13, 2015 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


Hagerstown Suns (1-3) at West Virginia Power (3-1)

Game #5 | April 13, 2015 | Appalachian Power Park | Charleston, WV

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

TODAY'S MATCH-UP

RHP Phillips Valdez (No Record) vs. LHP John Sever (0-0, 0.00)

Valdez: Went 2-0 with a 3.68 ERA in 18 relief outings with Hagerstown

Sever: Went 1-3 with a 1.33 ERA in 16 games (3 starts) with Rookie-level Bristol

THE LEAD OFF: Sharp pitching by all three arms and a big hit by Trace Tam Sing delivered a win and a series victory over Savannah for the West Virginia Power on Sunday afternoon at Appalachian Power Park. Austin Coley made his South Atlantic League debut and tossed five innings with the only damage against him coming in his final inning on a two-run home run. Offensively for the Power, Tam Sing delivered the big hit, a bases-clearing double in the fourth, to give West Virginia a 4-0 lead. With the victory, the Power have won the opening series to begin a year for the first time since 2011 when they accomplished the same feat against the Sand Gnats.

HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN: For the first time this season, West Virginia will do battle with the Hagerstown Suns. Last season, the Power battled the Nationals' affiliate ten times and lost seven of the matchups. This year, West Virginia will see the Suns a total of 17 times with six total games played in Charleston and 11 in Maryland. Since 2005, Hagerstown has had West Virginia's number as the Power trail the all-time series 72-61

SEE THE SOUTHPAW: Left hander John Sever will make his first start of the 2015 season tonight against Hagerstown. The 23-year-old appeared in Thursday's game and struck out the side in order. Sever was drafted by the Pirates in the 20th round of the 2014 draft from Bethune-Cookman University where went 3-5 with a 4.27 ERA. Last year with Bristol, Sever went 1-3 with a 1.33 ERA in 16 games (three starts).

HEAVY WORKLOAD: West Virginia's bullpen has seen a lot of action early on in 2015. Of the 37 total innings West Virginia has played, the bullpen has tossed 22.1 innings. While the starting pitchers are currently limited to five innings maximum per start, only two of the four have reached the five-inning limit.

MODERN GENTLEMAN'S ARMOR: West Virginia first baseman Jerrick Suiter has been on a tear since joining the Power. On Opening Day, the first baseman went 2-for-4 and delivered a walk-off fielder's choice. Friday night saw the 22-year-old snag his first triple of the year and Saturday's game the former TCU Horned Frog barrelled his first home run of the season. Suiter was drafted by the Pirates in the 26th round of last year's draft.

NEW CAPTAIN AT THE HELM: Brian Esposito became the eighth manager in West Virginia Power history after he spent all of last season with short-season Jamestown. 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- APRIL 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: Cole Tucker is the youngest player on the Power and is also the only teenager on the current roster...Chase Simpson, Michael Suchy, and Jerrick Suiter have reached base safely in all four games

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Andrew McCutchen returned to the Pirates lineup with a three-run homer in Pittsburgh's 10-2 victory in Milwaukee...Mel Rojas Jr. went 3-for-4 in Indy's 2-1 win against Columbus...Chad Kuhl struck out five over five innings in Altoona's 2-1 victory in Harrisburg...Bradenton scored three in the sixth in a come-from-behind, 7-5, victory against St. Lucie

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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South Atlantic League Stories from April 13, 2015


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