Bassitt Shuts Down Blue Crew, Dash Pull the Sweep
WILMINGTON, DE- In a game that looked strikingly familiar to Saturday's affair, the Blue Crew were no-hit until the sixth inning, and recorded only one run against Dash pitching, as Winston-Salem completed the sweep 4-1 on Sunday at Frawley Stadium. Dash righty Chris Bassitt (3-0) mirrored his teammate Bryan Blough from the night before, tossing seven innings and allowing only two hits in the process. The first did not come until the sixth frame, when Chris Elder broke up the no-no with a single to right. The loss marks the first time Wilmington has been swept all season, while the team has now lost a season-worst six consecutive games.
For the second straight night, a Blue Rocks hurler got off to a slow start in the first frame. Despite having good command, Aaron Brooks (0-3) worked a 30 pitch first inning. Over one-third of those pitches went to Adam Heisler, who eventually won an 11-pitch at-bat with a single to right. Brooks then walked the next batter, before Chris Curley doubled off the right field fence to make it 1-0 Dash.
Following the first inning though, Brooks settled into a groove, retiring eight straight at one point, but the Wilmington bats remained silent against Bassitt. Twice in the first three innings, the Blue Crew put the leadoff man aboard, but never got him past first base. Meanwhile, the Dash righty found his groove in the fourth, setting down six in-a-row.
Still hitless after five innings, the Blue Crew put an end to the no-hit bid in the sixth. Still in search of his first hit of 2013, Elder lined a 2-2 offering from Bassitt into right field. It marked the second time in as many days a Blue Crew leadoff man ended a no-hit bid in the sixth. The Blue Rock's left-fielder then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Justin Trapp, but Wilmington could not convert with a man in scoring position, as Bassitt recorded consecutive groundouts to close out the inning.
Winston-Salem tallied a run in the eighth via a home run by Chris Curley, but the Blue Rocks answered in the bottom-half. A two-out walk to Justin Trapp proved costly, as the speedster stole second and eventually scored on a double by Jack Lopez.
Unfortunately in the ninth, the Dash got the run back and added one more. A pair of singles by Martin Medina and David Herbek coupled with an error by Cheslor Cuthbert allowed one run to score, while a sac-fly by Heisler pushed the Dash lead to 4-1. Faced with one last chance, Wilmington loaded the bases against Cody Winiarski following singles by Cuthbert and Kenny Diekroeger and a walk to Lane Adams. However Winiarski managed to escaped unscathed, getting a strikeout of Kenny Swab and a ground out by Chris Elder to end the game.
The Blue Rocks begin the back end of their homestand on Monday night when the Salem Red Sox visit Frawley Stadium at 6:35. RHP Kyle Zimmer (0-1, 3.38) gets the start for Wilmington and will be opposed by Salem lefty Henry Owens (1-1, 1.71) after the Red Sox were rained out on Sunday at LewisGale Field. Fans can hear the broadcast on 89.7 WGLS-FM or BlueRocks.com. For ticket information call 302-888-BLUE or visit Bluerocks.com
Pebbles of Knowledge:
Held without a run on Saturday night, the Blue Crew appeared in danger of being shutout for the second straight game. However Jack Lopez put that thought aside, recording his first double of 2013 off Dash reliever Cody Winiarski, scoring Justin Trapp from second. Besides breaking the shutout, the run ended Wilmington's largest scoring draught of the season at 19.2 innings without a run. Prior to Sunday, the Blue Crew had not pushed a run across since Friday night, when Cheslor Cuthbert collected an RBI double in the seventh inning.
For the second straight day, and the third time at home this season, a visiting pitcher carried a no-hitter against the Blue Rocks into the sixth inning. Dash starter Chris Bassitt accomplished the feat on Sunday, before the leadoff hitter Chris Elder drove a single into right. Bryan Blough followed suit on Saturday. He did not yield a hit until the sixth when leadoff hitter Justin Trapp ended the no-hit bid (and a string of seven in-a-row retired) with a base hit to center. The Blue Crew were also held hitless into the sixth by Frederick Keys starter Tim Berry during the home opener on April 12. Once again, Trapp played spoiler with a sixth inning single.
Like Sam Selman on Saturday, Aaron Brooks struggled to get out of the first inning on Sunday. Needing 30 pitches to get out of the inning, Brooks recorded 21 strikes, but went 11 pitches deep against the game's first hitter Adam Heisler, who eventually singled. That long first frame would come back to hurt Brooks later, as he would have to exit with two outs and the bases loaded (to go along with 93 pitches) in the fifth inning. On Saturday, Sam Selman threw 29 pitches in the first inning, but struggled more with command. Only 12 of his first 29 pitches entered the strike zone.
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