Pelicans fall to Salem in first two games of the series

SALEM, Va. (August 24, 2019) - The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were swept on Saturday by the Salem Red Sox as they fell 6-5 on a walk off in the conclusion of game one and lost 5-1 in the nightcap at Haley Toyota Field.

The Pelicans (32-29, 53-75) and Red Sox (34-27, 59-69) picked up game one in the top of the 11th inning with the score tied at 4-4 to begin the doubleheader on Saturday and after both teams went without a run in the 11th, the Pelicans broke through in the top of the 12th inning. Joan Martinez (W, 4-4) walked a pair to load the bases and Kevonte Mitchell drew a bases-loaded walk to put the Pelicans in front 5-4. 
In the bottom of the 12th, Devlin Granberg singled to right on the first pitch of the inning from Ryan Lawlor (L, 0-2) and Ryan Fitzgerald scored to even the score at 5-5. Lawlor then retired the next two batters and intentionally walked Victor Acosta to get to Michael Osinski with runners at first and second with two outs. Osinski bounced a ball to short, but Aramis Ademan could not field it cleanly and Granberg scored from second and gave the Sox a 6-5 win in game one of the series that began on Friday.
In game one, the Pelicans fell behind early as they allowed four runs on four hits in the first inning and spotted the Red Sox a 4-0 lead after one. 
The Pelicans responded in the fourth inning with three runs of their own. After Delvin Zinn  singled to open the frame, Grant Fennell  blasted a two-run homer to left that cut the gap to 4-2. 
Myrtle Beach tacked on another run when Cam Balego  grounded into a double play which allowed Miguel Amaya  to score from third and after four innings, the Birds trailed 4-3. 
In the sixth inning, the Pelicans evened the score at 4-4 on a solo homer from Amaya to lead off the inning. 
Late in the contest, the bullpens buckled down and kept hitters at bay and the game went to extra innings with the score tied at 4-4. 
After the Pelicans and Sox each went without a run in the tenth inning, the heavens opened and the tarp was put on the field. After a delay of 40 minutes, the field was deamed unfit to finish the game and it was suspended prior to the 11th and it was resumed on Saturday with the Red Sox winning 6-5.
In the second game of the series, the Red Sox got to Javier Assad (L, 4-10) early. In the second, Jagger Rusconi reached on a single and advanced to second on an error. The next batter, Garrett Benge, lined an RBI single that scored Rusconi and made it 1-0 in favor of Salem.
Assad settled in and did not allow another run through 5.1 innings of work before he gave way to Enrique De Los Rios in the sixth. 
In the seventh, the Red Sox bolstered their lead with three-straight hits to lead off the inning. Benge and Fitzgerald both reached to start the frame and Benge scored on an RBI single from Granberg that extended the lead to 2-0.
The Pelicans found the scoreboard in the eighth inning when Carlos Sepulveda delivered an RBI groundout to second that plated Jhonny Bethencourt and made it a 2-1 game.
The Red Sox added on the insurance they needed in the bottom of the eighth inning and put the game away. A pair of runs came in to score on a two-run double from Benge that made it 4-1 and Benge later scored on a throwing error and the Red Sox hung on to win 5-1.
Myrtle Beach will look to salvage the final game of the series on Sunday at 2:05 p.m. RHP Alexander Vargas (2-4, 5.03) will take the hill for the Birds against RHP Dylan Thompson (5-8, 5.68) for the Red Sox.   
Coverage starts at 1:50 p.m. on MyrtleBeachPelicans.com/Broadcast and the MiLB First Pitch and TuneIn Apps.
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].