SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

WV Power Game Notes: June 25, 2015 vs. Greensboro

Published on June 25, 2015 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


Greensboro Grasshoppers (0-0, 29-40) at West Virginia Power (0-0, 37-32)

Game 70 | June 25, 2015 | Appalachian Power Park | Charleston, WV

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

TONIGHT'S MATCH-UP

RHP Colten Brewer (1-4, 5.66) vs. RHP Luis Castillo (3-2, 3.24)

Brewer: Allowed six runs on nine hits over 4.2 IP with 3 K and 2 BB in 6/17 L @ CSC (6-5 RiverDogs)

Castillo: Tossed 5.0 shutout IP with two hits, 6 K and 2 BB in 6/16 W vs. GVL (12-4 Grasshoppers)

THE LEAD OFF: West Virginia stumbled into the all-star break with a 10-5 loss on Sunday to the Hickory Crawdads. The Power held a 5-3 lead after six complete, but the Crawdads offense exploded for seven runs on nine hits in the seventh off reliever John Sever. West Virginia saw multi-hit efforts on offense from Cole Tucker, who extended his hit streak to nine games, Jerrick Suiter, and Elvis Escobar. Power starter Stephen Tarpley received a no-decision after his best start at home this season where he went 5.2 innings and allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits with six strikeouts.

IT'S FIVE O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE: West Virginia begins the second half with a five-game series against the Greensboro Grasshoppers, Class A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. The Power have had mixed success against the Hoppers this season, losing the first two games but taking three of the next five. This five-game series is longest home series the Power have this season and will play a five-game set in Greensboro from July 8-12.

A PIRATES LOOK AT 40: West Virginia shortstop Cole Tucker is currently riding a team-best nine game hit streak. Since June 4, Tucker has a .368 batting average (14-for-38). All told, Tucker is hitting .282, good for second-best on the Power team among all qualifying batters. The 18-year-old is hitting .326 this month, his best month of the season. The first overall selection by the Pirates last year, Tucker will turn 19 on July 3.

CHEESEBURGER IN PARADISE: At the All-Star Game, Power reliever Junior Lopez worked a perfect third with a pair of strikeouts while Yeudy Garcia allowed a run on two hits in the fourth inning. Offensively, starting center fielder Elvis Escobar played the entire game and went 0-for-4 while Chase Simpson went 1-for-2 with a single in the seventh.

COME MONDAY: 2009 Power pitcher Diego Moreno made his MLB debut with the New York Yankees on Monday night against the Philadelphia Phillies and worked a scoreless seventh inning in a losing effort. Moreno went 1-3 with a 2.60 ERA in relief during his stay in West Virginia. The Venezuelan may be best remembered for concluding the first and only nine-inning no-hitter in franchise history against the Charleston RiverDogs on July 27, 2009 in relief of Hunter Strickland. With his MLB debut, Moreno became the 45th Power player to appear in the majors.

KNEE DEEP: West Virginia concluded the first half of the season with a winning record for the fifth time in franchise history. The 37 wins put up by the Power are tied with the 2013 club for third most in the first half during franchise history. However, the 2013 club had one more less, meaning the 2015 club owns the best winning percentage (.536) in Power-Pirates affiliation history. Only the 2006 (39 wins) and 2007 (48 wins) West Virginia Power had better first halves. The Power have twice won a divisional title in the second half (2008 & 2013).

PENCIL THIN MUSTACHE: Close games have been a trademark of the Power this season. Of the 69 games the Power played, 40 were decided by two runs or less. In the 11-year history of the franchise, the most games decided by two runs or less was 67 which occurred in the 2011 season.

PROMO UPDATE- JUNE 27: West Virginia's 7:05 p.m. game against Greensboro on Saturday will feature a duffle bag giveaway to the first 1,000 fans thanks to Thomas Health Systems. Additionally, ZOOperstars will put on their national act at Appalachian Power Park and fans can enjoy another batch of postgame fireworks.

POWER POINTS: The Power have laid down 48 total sacrifice bunts this season, the most in affiliated baseball...Taylor Gushue has 14 passed balls in 48 games, three shy of tying Angel Salome's 2007 club record.

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Gerrit Cole allowed five runs over 4.2 innings in Pittsburgh's 5-2 loss to Cincinnati...Gorkys Hernandez had three RBIs but Indy lost to Gwinnett 8-5...Altoona beat Erie 3-2 thanks to Matt Benedict's quality start...Bradenton beat Charlotte 6-3 as Luis Heredia earned the first win of his FSL career.

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 June 25, 2015


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