Wooten strikes again, Pelicans on the brink

WOODBRIDGE, VA. (SEPTEMBER 9, 2014) - The Myrtle Beach Pelicans, Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Texas Rangers, fell in Game Three of the Mills Cup Championship Series 12-7 to the Potomac Nationals on Tuesday night at Pfitzner Stadium. John Wooten, who provided all of the scoring on Sunday, hit two more home runs, as the Nationals rallied back from a five-run deficit to win and take a 2-1 series lead. The Pelicans are on the brink of elimination and need a win on Wednesday to force a decisive Game Five.

Despite an early Potomac (4-1 in postseason) lead, the Pelicans (3-3 in postseason) took a big edge in the third inning. John Wooten's second home run in two games put the P-Nats up 2-0 on Sam Wolff and the Pelicans in the first. Michael De Leon singled in a run to cut the deficit to one in the second, and a six-run inning for Myrtle Beach put the Birds ahead in the third.

With one on and two outs, five straight Pelicans reached off of the combination of starter Matthew Spann and reliever Kylin Turnbull. A single from Ryan Cordell and a walk from Lewis Brinson loaded the bases for David Lyon.

The Pelicans catcher then turned on a 2-2 pitch and sent it deep to left for his first grand slam of the season, putting the Birds ahead 5-2. Edwin Garcia then greeted Turnbull with a line drive single before De Leon smacked a home run as well, extending the lead to 7-2.

That's the last time that the Pelicans would score, however.

The Nationals failed to score in the second despite a double and went without a run in third after two singles, but Potomac plated six runs in the fourth to take the lead for good. The first three men reached on Wolff to open the frame, including an RBI single from Stephen Perez, his first hit of the series.

With two on and one out, Issac Ballou tripled into the right field corner to cut the deficit to 7-5. With two outs, a close play at first went Potomac's way, as an infield single off the bat of Shawn Pleffner brought home another run and extended the inning for Wooten.

The right fielder then crushed his second homer of the night off Wolff, once again putting his club ahead, this time by an 8-7 score, and chasing Wolff from the ballgame. All three of Wooten's home runs in the series have been go-ahead longballs.

Potomac scored two more off Justin Sprenger in the fifth and a pair off of Ryan Bores in the sixth to move ahead 12-7, which held as the final score.

Myrtle Beach mustered just two hits and a pair of walks over the final six innings. Turnbull (1-0) went 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball in relief on three hits and one walk; he fanned eight and picked up the win.

Prior to Tuesday's defeat, the Pelicans had allowed just seven runs in 46 innings in the playoffs. The club allowed 12 runs, all earned, in just eight frames on Tuesday, raising the team's postseason ERA from 1.37 to 3.72.

In his second postseason start, Wolff (0-1) shouldered the loss, allowing a career-high eight runs, all earned, on a career-most 11 hits, including the two homers, and a walk. He struck out four.

The best-of-five series continues in Woodbridge, Virginia on Wednesday night. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Luis Parra (1-0, 1.59 ERA) gets the ball for the Birds in the elimination game against Potomac southpaw Hector Silvestre (1-0, 1.29 ERA). The game can be heard live on WRNN AM 1450 ESPN Myrtle Beach, on the TuneIn Radio App, and via the MiLB First Pitch App, beginning with the Hampton Inn Pregame Show at 6:45 p.m.

The Pelicans return to TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in 2015 for their 17th season, looking to defend their Southern Division Championship. For information on tickets to see the Pelicans in 2015, please call (843) 918-6002, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.