SAL1 Charleston Dirty Birds

WV Power Game Notes

Published on April 3, 2014 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston Dirty Birds News Release


West Virginia Power (0-0) at Lexington Legends (0-0)

Game 1 | April 3, 2014 | Whitaker Bank Ballpark | Lexington, KY

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

TONIGHT'S MATCH-UP

RH Shane Carle (No Record) vs. RH Jake Junis (No Record)

Carle: Went 1-0 for Jamestown in 2013 with a 2.15 ERA, 43 SO & 6 BB over 50.1 IP (15 G - 4 GS)

Junis: Played Exclusively for Idaho Falls, going 2-6 with a 7.39 ERA with 55 K & 17 BB over 59.2 IP

THE LEAD OFF: West Virginia begins its tenth season this evening on the road at Lexington. The club played their first game as the Power on April 7, 2005 at Hagerstown. The 2014 edition open the campaign with a seven game road swing. After four games at Lexington, West Virginia travels to Asheville for three. The Power play their home opener one week from tonight against the Legends; the first of a seven game homestand starting April 10.

ROSTER RUNDOWN: The initial Power roster for the 2014 season features seven players rated in Pittsburgh's Top 30 prospects according to Baseball America, 15 players drafted within the last two years, and six players with South Atlantic League experience. Reese McGuire (8th best in the Pirates system according to BA) highlights the Opening Day roster and is joined by Harold Ramirez (9th), Luis Heredia (10th), Wyatt Mathisen (12th), Barrett Barnes (13th), JaCoby Jones (19th), and Cody Dickson (20th). In addition to Heredia, Mathisen and Barnes, Chris Diaz, Francisco Diaz and Clario Perez also return to the roster from the 2013 playoff club.

OPENING HISTORY: West Virginia enters its tenth with a franchise regular season record of 637-606. Opening Day, however, has not been as kind. The Power are 3-6 during their first game of the season since 2005 and have not won an Opening Day contest since 2008; their final year as a Milwaukee Brewers affiliate.

RECORD RETURNS: West Virginia will be skippered by Michael Ryan for the second consecutive season. Ryan led the Power to the best overall record in the Northern Division during the 2013 season with an 82-58 mark. The win total matched the 2007 club for the most in Power franchise history. Ryan was selected in the fifth round of the 1996 MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins out of Indiana High School in Indiana, PA. Ryan played in 1,345 games in the Minors over 15 seasons and 149 in the Majors while playing within the Twins, Braves, Pirates, Marlins, and Angels organizations, as well as 60 in independent ball.

COACHING STAFF CHANGES: The Pirates have assigned one veteran and two new coaches to the Power staff for the upcoming season. Jeff Johnson returns as West Virginia's pitching coach in 2014, his seventh within Pittsburgh's system and fifth with the Power. Keoni De Renne moves up in the organization after having served as a Player/ Coach for Pittsburgh's Dominican Summer League team. De Renne was a 12th round draft choice in 2000 by Atlanta and played professionally for 11 seasons. Miguel Perez will serve as the player/ coach on the 2014 staff. Perez played in over 600 games during his career after being signed by Cincinnati in 2000.

REWIND RECAP: West Virginia won the 2013 Second Half Northern Division crown and fell to Hagerstown in a best-of-three playoff series 2-1. The Suns went on to lose to the Savannah Sand Gnats in the SAL Championship Series 3-1 in a best-of-five. The Power had six mid-season all-stars and had two players honored at the end of the year. Tyler Glasnow was named as the league's best right handed pitcher while Josh Bell was one of the top outfielders.

FAMILIAR FOE: The Power have played Lexington more than any other opponent during their nine previous seasons. The cross-division rivals are only two-and-a-half hours apart across I-64 and have played 174 times since the start of the 2005 season. West Virginia leads the all-time series 90-84 after having gone 11-9 against Lexington last season. The Power are 52-40 at Whitaker Bank Ballpark, including a four game series sweep to close the 2013 regular season.

PROMO UPDATE- APRIL 12: The first 1,000 fans on Saturday, April 12, will receive a Starling Marte Bobblehead. Please note the 2:05 pm first pitch that day.

POWER POINTS: Copies of the 2014 Media Guide are available upon request... The Power and Legends meet 19 times this season. In nine previous years, West Virginia has only lost two season series to Lexington (2005 & 2012).

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION: Pittsburgh bested Chicago 4-3 in 16 innings. Pinch hitter Tony Sanchez drove in Jose Tabata to give the Buccos the walk-off win... Indianapolis, Altoona and Bradenton all begin their 2014 seasons tonight. The Indians play at Columbus while the Curve open home against Erie and the Marauders travel to Charlotte.

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 for all 140 games and will be joined by Jacob Corrigan when the team plays at Appalachian Power Park.

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