Hedges pitches Pelicans to 2-1 triumph in Lynchburg

LYNCHBURG, Va. (June 11, 2016) - Zach Hedges worked a season-high 7.2 innings of one-run baseball to pitch the Myrtle Beach Pelicans to a 2-1 win over Lynchburg Saturday, denying the Hillcats of the Northern Division title at Calvin Falwell Field at Lynchburg City Stadium. 

With the game tied at one and both starters still in the game in the top of the seventh, Myrtle Beach (33-28) got a double to right-center from Jason Vosler to put the go-ahead run into scoring position with one out. After a pitching change, Vosler advanced to third on a wild pitch. Daniel Spingola followed and chopped a ball back to reliever Matt Whitehouse. Whitehouse's throw was low and hit off first baseman Bobby Bradley's mitt, allowing Vosler to score and give the Birds a 2-1 lead.

Hedges retired the next five batters for Myrtle Beach before Tommy Thorpe got the final out in the eighth. Hedges surrendered just five hits and one walk while striking out four. The right-hander has posted a 1.27 ERA over his last four starts, walking only three batters. 

With the score still 2-1 Pelicans in the bottom of the ninth, Thorpe retired the first two batters. With the Hillcats (39-22) down to their final out, Bradley followed and cranked a liner off the top of the wall in right field. He was held to a single on the play, missing a game-tying home run by inches. Ryan McNeil came in and got Yu-Cheng Chang to fly out to shallow right to end the game and earn his fourth save.

In the bottom of the first, Hedges allowed a single to Greg Allen to begin the inning, but was able to strand him at third to keep the game scoreless.

Hedges and Lynchburg starter Julian Merryweather (7-2) traded zeroes through the first two innings.

With one out in the top of the third, Pelicans catcher Gioskar Amaya clobbered a pitch over the left-center field wall to give Myrtle Beach a 1-0 lead.

With the same score in the bottom of the fourth, Hillcats right fielder Taylor Murphy singled up the middle to start the frame. Two batters later, Bradley bounced a hit up the middle to get Murphy to third. The next hitter was Chang, who hit a high hopper to third, allowing Murphy to score on the groundout to tie the game at one.

The Pelicans will try and earn a split with Lynchburg on Sunday, with first pitch happening at 2 p.m. RHP Trevor Clifton (4-3, 2.08 ERA) will be on the mound for Myrtle Beach, while LHP Luis Lugo (2-2, 4.78 ERA) goes for Lynchburg. Coverage begins at 1:45 p.m. on MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast, the MiLB First Pitch app and TuneIn.  

The 2016 season is the 18th season for the Pelicans franchise and second as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For information on tickets to see the Pelicans in 2016, please call (843) 918-6000, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.

ABOUT THE PELICANS: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and play their home games at TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in each of the last five seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences in all of sports in each of the last five years and the best in the Carolina League for five straight seasons as well. In May 2015, TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark won the 2015 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. The Pelicans are the defending Mills Cup Champions, winning the title in 2015 as well as 2000 and co-Mills Cup championship honors in the inaugural 1999 season. The Pelicans have made nine postseason appearances behind 11 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season, as well as five Southern Division titles, most recently in 2015. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or emailing [email protected].