SALISBURY, MD - The Delmarva Shorebirds had another shot at a game-changing eighth inning, but the Rome Braves held on to win 3-2 on Sunday evening at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium.Alan Rangel (5-6) picked up the win for the Braves (24-30, 63-59), stifling the Shorebirds (26-28, 61-60) for the second
SALISBURY, MD - The Delmarva Shorebirds had another shot at a game-changing eighth inning, but the Rome Braves held on to win 3-2 on Sunday evening at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium.
Alan Rangel (5-6) picked up the win for the Braves (24-30, 63-59), stifling the Shorebirds (26-28, 61-60) for the second time in two weeks. The reigning SAL Pitcher of the week scattered three hits over seven scoreless innings, walking none and striking out seven. Factoring in his August 8 win over Delmarva, Rangel gave up just five hits over 14 scoreless innings, striking out 16 Shorebirds.
Cameron Bishop (9-6) took the loss for Delmarva, surrendering three runs on six hits while walking none and striking out three. Troy Bacon earned his second save of the year, surviving a late Shorebird flourish to finish off the eighth and ninth.
Rome drew first blood against Bishop in the second inning. Drew Lugbauer led off with a single, and Trey Harris took Lugbauer's place on a fielder's choice. Hagen Owenby singled to put runners two on, then after a wild pitch, Marcos Almonte hit into a groundout at short, scoring Harris to make it 1-0 Braves.
Justin Dean sparked a pair of Rome runs in the third and fifth innings. In both frames he punched a one-out single to right and stole second base. In the third, Jefry Ramos doubled him, and in the fifth it was an AJ Graffanino single to plate Dean, boosting the lead to 3-0.
For the third straight night, the Shorebirds put themselves in position for a big eighth inning. Kirvin Moesquit rolled a one-out single up the middle, then Mason McCoy belted a double to right field, putting runners on second and third. Branden Becker came up next and knocked a liner to left for a single, scoring both Moesquit and McCoy to cut the Braves lead to 3-2.
Zach Jarrett then singled to put the tying and winning runs on base and bring up Jean Carlos Encarnacion. With memories of his go-ahead shot from Friday night still fresh, Encarnacion gave a 2-2 pitch from Dean a ride to deep left, but Shean Michel had enough room in front of the wall to make an easy catch. Dean then struck out Ryan Ripken to end the threat, and the Shorebirds went quietly in the ninth.
McCoy went 2-for-4 with a double for the Shorebirds, while Becker finished with the team's only two RBIs on the night.
Dean served as sparkplug for the Braves at the top of the order, finishing 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three stolen bases in four chances.
The Shorebirds will look to get back in of the series against the Braves on Monday. Brandon Bonilla (0-2, 4.00) of Delmarva squares off against Keith Weisenberg (1-3, 4.60) of Rome. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. with gates opening at 6:00 p.m. Monday is a 47 ABC 2 Buck Monday, presented by Wicomico Heating and Air Conditioning. Pregame coverage on Fox Sports 960 AM and the MiLB First Pitch App begins at 6:50 with Will DeBoer on the call.
