Going as far as they ever had in pursuit of history, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers came just eight outs shy of a no-hitter on Wednesday. The Woodpeckers settled with a 7-0 shutout in the middle game of the three-game series, following five hitless innings from Shawn Dubin on the mound, and
Going as far as they ever had in pursuit of history, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers came just eight outs shy of a no-hitter on Wednesday. The Woodpeckers settled with a 7-0 shutout in the middle game of the three-game series, following five hitless innings from Shawn Dubin on the mound, and four scoreless innings in tandem from Nivaldo Rodriguez. Chandler Taylor blasted a three-run home run in the fourth innings, while continued pitching woes from Wood Ducks bullpen arms allowed Fayetteville to pile on for the rest of the night.
Making his second consecutive start against Down East, Shawn Dubin was out for blood after he allowed a career high six runs against the Wood Ducks a week prior. Dubin (W, 4-5) cut down two batters in a perfect first inning, but he allowed a one-out walk to Sherten Apostel in the second inning. Apostel's walk would be the last blemish for Dubin on the evening, as the right-hander recorded eleven consecutive outs following the walk, finishing his day on just 58 pitches in the near-perfect outing. In tandem, Nivaldo Rodriguez took over to try and preserve the no-hitter, and he tossed a perfect sixth inning on just eight pitches to carry the performance. Rodriguez (SV, 2) was unfortunately scratched for one in the seventh inning after a quick flyout. A Texas-Leaguer to left field by Curtis Terry would turn to be one of only two hits on the evening for the Wood Ducks, as Nivaldo never allowed a runner to reach third base in route to the save.
Offensively, Fayetteville was silent against spot starter Scott Engler to open the contest, as the right-hander faced the minimum over his first three frames. As the usual bullpen arm tried to stretch out a fourth inning, Engler (L, 3-1) ran in to obvious trouble quickly when Jeremy Pena led off the fourth inning with a double. Following an infield single, Chandler Taylor gave Fayetteville the ultimate lead when he blasted a ball well over the right field wall. Taylor's 12th home run of the season made it 3-0. After a pitching change brought in Sam Hellinger for his Advanced-A debut, the newest Wood Duck struggled to locate the zone in his first full inning. Hellinger walked the first four batters of the inning, gifting Fayetteville another run as Hellinger was chased from the game. Scott Manea drove in another pair for the Woodpeckers with a single against Francisco Villegas to close the Woodpeckers' second straight three-run inning. Fayetteville finished the day on the board with a pair of early singles against Michael Matuella to open the ninth inning, followed by a groundout to finish the seven-run output.
Just their first win at Grainger Stadium after dropping their first four tries, Fayetteville moves back to 2 ½ games from Down East in the South Division standings. The win forces a rubber match between the two sides for the first time this season, as Fayetteville will make an attempt to return to .500 on the year. Cody Deason will climb the hill for Fayetteville in the finale, with the first pitch scheduled for 7:00PM.
The Fayetteville Woodpeckers are the Advanced Single-A affiliate of the 2017 World Champion Houston Astros and play in their Inaugural Season at beautiful Segra Stadium in downtown Fayetteville. Segra Stadium, a $40 million state-of-the-art sports and entertainment venue, features space for over 5,200 fans, natural grass, a 25x70 LED video scoreboard, six luxury suites, four field boxes, the premium AEVEX Veterans Club level, Healy's Bar and outdoor party deck, a kid's zone, and more. With a rich history of baseball in the city of Fayetteville and Cumberland County, the Woodpeckers are thrilled to write a new chapter with their inaugural campaign on Hay Street. Fans are encouraged to visit FayettevilleWoodpeckers.com to purchase tickets, learn more about the team, and find out about upcoming events and promotions at the ballpark. Fans may also reach the Woodpeckers by visiting the BB&T Box Office in front of Segra Stadium, calling (910) 339-1989, or emailing [email protected].
