Another walkoff win for Potomac Nationals

3B Oscar Tejeda gave the Potomac Nationals (58-46, 20-15) their second straight walk-off and fourth straight win with his 11th inning home run to defeat the Carolina Mudcats (48-56, 19-18) 6-5 on Sunday night.

Tejeda became the first National to hit two home runs in a game this season with his two-run dinger in the first inning. The P-Nats took a 4-0 lead in the second with a 2B Tony Renda single and DH Shawn Pleffner sacrifice fly. They would add a fifth run in the third on a 1B Justin Miller RBI-single.

LHP Hector Silvestre twirled a quality start in his first outing since being called up from Low-A Hagerstown earlier this week. Silvestre struck out six without allowing a walk over six innings. His three earned runs came on a pair of home runs by Mudcats’ RF Luigi Rodriguez and 1B Joe Sever.

Mudcats’ starter RHP Dylan Baker left the game in the third inning after being hit in the head by a bouncing ground ball off the bat of RF Estarlin Martinez. Baker fractured his leg at Pfitzner Stadium back in April on his way to the mound, and this was his second start for Carolina since returning from the injury. RHP D.J. Brown relieved Baker for 5.1 innings without allowing a run.

The Mudcats rallied in the sixth and seventh by scoring four runs to tie the game at five. Sever’s home run in the sixth made it a 5-3 game, and RBI-hits by CF Todd Hankins and SS Yhoxian Medina tied the game in the seventh.

From the seventh inning on, the game remained scoreless until Tejeda’s walk-off blast. The home run came off RHP Clayton Cook (L, 2-4). LHP Jake Walsh (W, 3-0) tossed three scoreless innings into the 12th to keep the game tied for Potomac.

The Potomac Nationals Baseball Network, which is accessible at www.potomacnationals.com, will broadcast the first game of a three game series against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans on Monday, July 28th. Broadcast coverage will begin with the P-Nats Leadoff Show at 6:50pm in preparation for the 7:05pm start. The P-Nats will send RHP Dakota Bacus (3-5, 3.58) to the mound while the Pelicans will throw RHP Chad James (1-1, 5.59). Monday’s game will be another Dollar Monday at The Pfitz with $1 general admission tickets available at the box office.