Pelicans shutout by Red Sox in series opener

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (August 16, 2019)- The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were blanked by the Salem Red Sox 1-0 in the series opener on Friday night at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark. 

Ryan Kellogg (L, 2-8) got off to a dominant start for the Pelicans (27-27, 48-73) in the series opener on Friday night. The southpaw faced the minimum through four innings before he ran into trouble in the fifth inning. 
The Red Sox (31-22, 56-64) led off the inning with back-to-back singles from Keith Curcio and Victor Acosta and they took a 1-0 lead when Devlin Granberg lifted a sacrifice fly to right and Curcio came in to score.
Thad Ward (W, 3-2) was dominant for the Red Sox as he fired five shutout innings and allowed just one hit while striking out seven in the win.
After a double by Curcio to lead off the top of the seventh inning, the rains came and the tarp went on the field. A 52-minute rain delay ensued before the Birds and Sox resumed play. 
After the delay, the Red Sox bullpen finished out the shutout as Salem completed the 1-0 win over the Birds to open up the three-game series.
The Pelicans and Red Sox will play game two of the series on Saturday night at 6:05 p.m. The Pelicans have yet to announce a starter, but Salem will send RHP Daniel Gonzalez (5-8, 4.18) to the hill. Television coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. on The CW21 and MiLB.tv. A radio broadcast starts at 5:50 p.m. on MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast and the MiLB First Pitch and TuneIn Apps.
Saturday will also be an Embrace Veterans Saturday presented by Embrace Hospice in addition to a Palmetto State Saturday. South Carolina fans receive $3 off of their game ticket by showing their local ID at the Anderson Brothers Bank Box Office, courtesy of Food Lion, Sparks Toyota, WMBF, The Sun News and NASH FM. The night will also include the Locals Dice Roll Extravaganza where, each Saturday, one local fan will have a chance to win up to $25,000 courtesy of HTC and Sparks Toyota and a Postgame Fireworks Extravaganza, presented by East Coast Pyrotechnics.
The 2019 season is the 21st season for the Pelicans franchise and fifth as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For tickets visit MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/tickets, call (843) 918-6000, or visit the Pelicans Box Office.
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. Since being acquired by a group led by Chuck Greenberg during the 2006 season, the Pelicans have repeatedly set team attendance records and become known as one of Minor League Baseball's most innovative and creative franchises. The team and its employees have been dedicated to making a difference in the Myrtle Beach community, specifically giving back over $2 million in donations, fundraising proceeds, in-kind services and community service since launching the Pelicans Play It Forward Community Initiative in 2013. TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in six of the last seven seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences and the best in the Carolina League for six of the past seven seasons. In June 2017, the Pelicans won the 2017 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. On the field, the team has won four Mills Cup Championships, including claims to back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000, and again in 2015 and 2016. The Pelicans have made 11 postseason appearances behind 13 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season, second half of 2016 and first half of 2017. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or email [email protected].