Bundy, Five-Run Fifth Anchor 7-2 Win

Asheville, N.C. - The Delmarva Shorebirds used a dominating three innings from Dylan Bundy and a five-run fifth inning to drop the Asheville Tourists, 7-2, in the season opener at McCormick Field on Friday night. The Shorebirds bullpen held the Tourists scoreless over the final five innings.

Bundy, the Orioles top prospect according to Baseball America, struck out all three batters he faced in the first inning. In the second, Bundy induced a groundout to first by Harold Riggins, got David Kandilas to fly out to right field and struck out Jared Simon looking with a breaking ball. In the third, Bundy completed his outing by striking out two more batters and inducing a routine ground out to short. In total, Bundy retired all nine batters he faced with six strikeouts.

The Shorebirds scored first in the fourth inning. Gabriel Lino hit a one out double. After Lino advanced to third on a wild pitch, Mychal Givens hit an infield single to give the Shorebirds a 1-0 edge.

Asheville took their only lead of the night in the bottom of the fourth inning. Miguel Chalas entered for Bundy and issued a one out walk to Taylor Featherston. Then, Sam Mende doubled down the left field line to score Featherston from first. With two outs, Kandilas hit a double to give the Tourists a 3-2 lead.

The Shorebirds regained the lead powered by a five-run fifth inning. The Shorebirds sent 11 batters to the plate and forced the Tourists to make two pitching changes in the inning. Glynn Davis led off with a bunt single. Then, John Ruettiger drew his second walk of the night. With one out, Wynston Sawyer drilled a double into the right-center field gap to give the Shorebirds a 3-2 lead. Brenden Webb followed with a double off the right field wall to score Sawyer, which gave the Shorebirds a 4-2 lead. Later in the inning, Sammie Starr doubled home Gabriel Lino to increase the lead to 6-2.

The Shorebirds added a run in the eighth inning on a single by Lino to score Sawyer.

Matt Taylor and Jake Cowan each threw two scoreless innings to close out the contest.

Chalas picked up the win over two innings on the mound. He allowed two hits and two runs.

The Shorebirds offense recorded ten hits and seven RBIs. Webb, Lino and Starr each recorded two hits. The Shorebirds stole seven bases and drew nine walks on the night.

The Shorebirds and Tourists will square off in a doubleheader on Saturday, April 7 with game one scheduled for 6:05 p.m. LHP Tim Berry is scheduled for game one while RHP Parker Bridwell will get the ball in game two.

Delmarva Shorebirds
The Delmarva Shorebirds are the Class "A" Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. The Shorebirds are owned by 7th Inning Stretch, L.P., the same company that owns the Stockton Ports of the California League and the Everett AquaSox of the Northwest League. The Shorebirds were the proud hosts of the 2011 South Atlantic League "Strike Out Hunger" All-Star Game presented by Perdue that drew 7,410 fans. For more information, call the Shorebirds at 410-219-3112.

The Shorebirds are celebrating 17-years of professional baseball on the Eastern Shore. During the 2009 season, the Shorebirds finished with an average attendance of 3,567 fans, the largest average since the 2002 season. In 2007, The Shorebirds had the top attendance based on market size in Minor League Baseball(tm), according to Sports Business Journal (Aug. 2008). In 2010, more than 6,000 fans packed Arthur W. Perdue Stadium nine times including a season high of 8,993 fans on August 7th. In 2011, the Shorebirds welcomed ten crowds of over 5,000 fans.

The Shorebirds were established in 1996 by an investor team headed by legendary chicken company owner, the late Frank Perdue. The Shorebirds have called Arthur W. Perdue home ever since. For more information about the Delmarva Shorebirds call 410-219-3112 or visit www.theshorebirds.com.