SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

WV Power Game Notes: August 3, 2015 vs. Greenville

August 3, 2015 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


Greenville Drive (17-19, 55-51) at West Virginia Power (25-11, 62-43)

Game 106 | August 3, 2015 | Appalachian Power Park | Charleston, WV

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

TONIGHT'S MATCH-UP

LH Luis Ramos (SAL Debut) vs. RH Austin Coley (12-5, 4.00)

Ramos: Owned a 1-1 record and a 4.89 ERA in eight starts with short-season Lowell

Coley: Surrendered three runs on three hits over 5.0 IP with BB and K in 7/28 W @ HAG (13-3 Power)

THE LEADOFF: A grand slam by the Lakewood BlueClaws was the biggest damage done against Colten Brewer and the West Virginia Power in the 5-3 loss on Sunday afternoon. With West Virginia leading 1-0 in the fourth, Brewer walked each of the first two batters he faced and eventually loaded the bases. The right-hander battled in the tough situation with back-to-back strikeouts but surrendered the grand slam to Joel Fisher on the first pitch to the batter. The Power were in a 4-1 deficit at that time and battled back with runs in the sixth and ninth but it wasn't enough as the Power failed to complete the four-game sweep. Chase Simpson and Connor Joe each had two doubles in the loss.

BET THEY CAN'T DRIVE STICK: For the first time this season, West Virginia will square off against the Greenville Drive, South Atlantic League affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Over the past 11 years the Power and Drive have battled only 55 times with West Virginia edging the all-time series 29-26. Last year, the club went 4-1 against the Drive. Greenville is 17-19 in the second half and 4.5 games back in the Southern Division.

LET'S MAKE HISTORY: A victory tonight by Austin Coley would put the right hander ahead of Evan Anundsen for sole possession of first place by any Power pitcher ever. If Coley can get the win tonight, he would also be in a three-way-tie for sixth place in wins during Charleston's tenure in the South Atlantic League. He would match Tim Sossamon from the 1987 Charlston Wheelers and Cedric Allen from the 1995 Charleston Alley Cats with a victory tonight. John Ray from the 1991 Wheelers has the most wins at 16.

TRIP-TRIP-TRIPLE: In Saturday's victory, Taylor Gushue led off the seventh inning with his team-best fourth triple of the season, tied with Michael Suchy. In the 11-year history of the West Virginia Power, the only catcher to lead the club in triples was Reese McGuire last year who hit four, tied with Erich Weiss and Michael Fransoso.

RISPY BUSINESS: In the Lakewood series, the Power went 12-for-45 with runners in scoring position and left 36 men on base. West Virginia is hitting .261 this season with runners in scoring position.

HOME SWEET HOME: West Virginia has more home wins and fewer home losses than any other club in the South Atlantic League this season. The Power are 36-19 at home and average 4.7 runs per game at Appalachian Power Park this season. West Virginia is 26-24 on the road and averages 4.3 runs per game on the road.

MONEYBALL: Tito Polo is currently riding a 17-game on-base streak, a season best for the first-year Power outfielder. Polo's streak began prior to his participation in the Pan-Am games on June 25, though the 20-year-old has not played in a game since Friday.

PROMO UPDATE- AUGUST 4: Tuesday's game features a guest appearance by NASCAR Infinity driver and West Virginia native Cale Conley. Conley will be signing autographs and throwing out the first pitch on a Tailgate Tuesday.

POWER POINTS: Nick Neumann is three saves away from passing Nathan Kilcrease's franchise mark of 15 set during the 2012 season...West Virginia hit 62 wins this season faster than any other club during the Pirates-affiliated era...The 18 hits by the Power on Friday night were the most in a game since August 16 at Lexington in 2014....Dovydas Neverauskas has not allowed a run in 16 innings...Michael Suchy is currently on an eight-game hit streak and has a league-best .333 batting average since June 1...West Virginia last beat Greenville in a season series in 2013 when they went 6-1 against the Drive.

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Pittsburgh shutout Cincinnati 3-0 and return to PNC Park to battle the Cubs...Indianapolis...Josh Bell went hitless in his second Triple-A game but Indianapolis beat Charlotte 4-2 thanks to solo homers from Willy Garcia and Keon Broxton...Altoona beat Akron 7-2 thanks to Hunter Morris' three RBIs and six innings from Steven Brault...Luis Heredia lasted two innings in Bradenton's game one, 5-2, loss (4 R, 7 H) but the Marauders took the nightcap 10-5 thanks to Jeff Roy and Jordan Steranka's three hit game.

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 August 3, 2015


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