Early Offense And Good Pitching Is Successful Formula In 4-1 Win
WILMINGTON, DE - Some early offensive output against one of the best pitchers in the Carolina League paced the Wilmington Blue Rocks on their way to a 4-1 victory on Sunday afternoon over the Winston-Salem Dash. Dash starter James Dykstra came into the day with a 3-0 record an impressive 0.78 ERA, but he was out-dueled by Alec Mills for the Rocks who got through five innings, allowing just one unearned run. Sunday was the first outing of Dykstra's season where he allowed more than a single run.
Wilmington did not waste any time getting to the starter Dykstra. In the bottom of the first, after Mills got through the top of the Dash' order 1-2-3 in the top of the inning, Ramon Torres led off the game with a single and moved to second on a Jack Lopez groundout. The three-hole hitter Frank Schwindel then stepped up and ripped a double down the left field line to plate Torres and make it 1-0. Zane Evans, the designated hitter on Sunday, then pulled a double of his own past Nick Basto in left to score Schwindel and give the Rocks the 2-0 advantage.
The Rocks added on in the third inning off of Dykstra. With one out, Lopez drew a walk and moved up to second on an error from third baseman Trey Michalczewski. The ball, hit by Schwindel, probably would have been an inning-ending double play, but it extended the inning with a runner in scoring position and just one out. Evans then hit his second RBI double of the game to give his team a three run lead. The double from Evans moved Schwindel to third and he would score on a sacrifice fly from Dominique Taylor to make it 4-0.
The Dash did get on the scoreboard against Mills in the top of the fifth, although you could say they got on the board against the Rocks defense. Keenyn Walker reached with a one-out single and then, with two outs in the inning, took off for second base. Schwindel's throw down was wild, went into center, and allowed Walker to move up to third base. Adam Engel then hit a grounder to short that looked like it would get Mills out of the inning, but Lopez' throw to first was wild and allowed Walker to cross home plate with Winston-Salem's first run of the game. Robert Pehl then missed a pickoff throw from Mills allowing Engel to move to second. Mills would strand him there but the three errors in the inning was the most in a single frame for the Rocks this season.
The Wilmington bullpen followed up Mills with some more stellar pitching. Benino Pruneda entered in the sixth, and after giving up a leadoff walk to Michalczewski, struck out the side in order. He added another strikeout in a 1-2-3 seventh inning. Pruneda is still the only Rocks pitcher to not give up an earned run through the first month of the season. Estarlin Cordero took over for Pruneda in the eighth and worked two minimum faced frames for his first save of the season. On Monday night the Rocks will look for a series win over Winston-Salem. Eric Skoglund takes the hill for the Rocks against Jace Fry for the Dash. Skoglund is coming off his longest outing of the season. He took a no decision after going seven scoreless against the Pelicans last Wednesday. Fry comes into Monday 1-3 but with a good 2.49 ERA. First pitch from Frawley Stadium is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
PEBBLES OF KNOWLEDGE:
In the fifth inning on Sunday, the Blue Rocks defense matched their error total over the last ten contests. Behind Mills in the fifth, the defense committed three errors, which led to the first Dash run of the game. The three errors in the fifth are the most errors committed by the Blue Rocks in a inning this season. Before Sunday the most errors committed by the Blue Rocks in a game was two, which they committed in four contests in mid-April.
After making his first appearance at catcher in relief of the injured Cam Gallagher on Thursday night against Myrtle Beach, Frank Schwindel made his first start of the season behind the plate on Sunday. Schwindel did not have his best defensive day on Sunday, committing a throwing error and allowing two stolen bases in two attempts. Schwindel did have a good day at the plate, though. After his nine game hitting streak came to an end with an 0-for-4 day on Saturday, he picked up right where he left off with an RBI double in the second inning. Schwindel leads the team with nine doubles.
The Blue Rocks' starting five continues to dominate Carolina League offenses. Alec Mills got through five innings on Sunday without allowing an earned run before handing it off to the bullpen. This season, Wilmington starters have now worked 122.1 innings while posting a good 2.80 ERA. They've given up fewer hits (120) than innings pitched. They have struck out 105 hitters while walking just 23, Mills posted a season-high in strikeouts on Sunday (6) while not walking a batter.
Zane Evans continues to set the Carolina League ablaze with his bat. Evans added three more extra-base hits to his ledger on Sunday, along with two more RBIs. Evans is now has seven doubles this season, two behind the team-leader Schwindel. With his three long balls, Evans is leading the team with ten extra-base hits. Evans also had a single, ending his day 4-for-4. Evans is the first Blue Rock this season to collect four knocks in a single game.
THEY SAID IT:
Manager Brian Buchanan:
"We jumped on (James Dykstra), and that was good. We got some pitches left up, and we put some good swings on them. It's good to get on someone of that kind of ability…to get on him early and hold on for the win."
"Any time you can score runs early it's good, because it builds some confidence. I thought they had good at-bats the whole game. It's always nice to jump on the other team early."
"(Alec Mills) did okay, I don't think he had his best stuff. I don't think his control was quite as it has been in the past, but he made pitches when he needed to. He threw a lot of pitches in five innings, we'd like to see him go deeper into games, but he did a nice job. (Benino) Pruneda came in and shut the door, and (Estarlin) Cordero came in and threw the eighth and ninth. The bullpen has been doing great. When they do get in there, they're doing a nice job, and we just (have) to continue working at it."
"(Three errors in one inning) is just going to happen. The throw from (Frank Schwindel) and then the missed pick and the error from (Jack Lopez)…You got to remember, this is A-ball, so those things are going to happen. I've been happy with the defense up to this stage, and I'm not too concerned about it, they've been doing a nice job."
"It's nice to have a winning homestand, but we're not going to come out and lie down. We (have) to keep this momentum going. It's a new day, and (we'll) get as many wins as we can…We're still going to need to come out, stick to our approaches, and they (have) a good team over there, so we (have) to keep going."
Designated Hitter Zane Evans:
"I felt pretty good today. I got some good pitches to hit, I worked with the hitting coach before the game on some stuff. I just felt good at the plate, it was a good day. I got some good pitches to hit, and I didn't miss them."
"(James Dykstra) had some good stuff. He was throwing all his pitches for strikes. Luckily for me, he just left a couple pitches up, and I was able to get the bat on it, and got some good results from it."
"I don't know (if the team likes playing during the day). It could just be coincidental. Maybe we're seeing the ball a little better, something like that, but there's no telling. Maybe we're just more relaxed."
"It's always good (to secure a winning homestand before) going on the road, getting some good wins a home. We've been playing pretty well. We've been swinging the bats well. Early, some things weren't falling, but we're all playing pretty well right now. Hopefully we get this win tomorrow and take it to the road."