The Mudcats (34-32-Overall, 16-20-Road) broke a 3-3 tie with the P-Nats (30-37-Overall, 15-17 Home) in the top of the eighth, scoring twice and the Carolina bullpen made the 5-3 lead stand up for the win at PFitzner Stadium on Thursday night.
RHP John Simms got the nod in the series opener with Carolina and turned in his seventh quality start in his last eight outings, logging six innings and giving up three runs (all earned) on six hits, three walks and he tied his season high with four strikeouts, but did not factor into the decision.
Carolina sent LHP Blair Walters to the mound in his eighth start of the season and 15th appearance overall. Walters matched Simms every step of the way allowing three runs (two earned) in six innings on the mound on seven hits with one walk and three strikeouts. Walters did not factor into the decision either.
A scoreless first inning on both sides of the diamond led to the second. 3B Carlos Franco singled to begin the frame. With CF Connor Lien batting Potomac’s C Craig Manuel fired a bullet to first base and 1B John Wooten applied the tag on the pick-off courtesy of the strong right arm of Manuel for the first out of the inning. Lien then put a ball in the air in foul territory up the third base line that Manuel tracked down and made a basket catch with the glove out in front of him for the second out. After a two out double by DH Sal Giardina, C Jose Briceno struck out to end the frame.
Potomac missed a golden opportunity in the bottom of the second when Wooten singled, followed by a 3B Drew Ward single. RF Brandon Millerwalked to load the bags and 2B Adrian Sanchez hit a fielder’s choice ball that Franco at third gloved and put Wooten at the plate on. Manuel came up and hit a floating line drive towards 2B Keith Curcio who made the catch in shallow right field. Ward had strayed too far from the third base bag and was doubled up by Curcio to end the threat.
Carolina scored three times in the top of the third to jump out in front. Beginning with a lead-off walk to SS Reed Harper. Two batters later Curcio walked and LF Dustin Peterson hit a fielder’s choice ball that Curcio was put out on at second base with Peterson moving to third. 1B Jacob Schrader came up and laced a two-run double to the left-centerfield gap and it was 2-0 Carolina. Franco followed with a dump-shot single into shallow centerfield for an RBI single scoring Schrader and the lead was 3-0.
Potomac answered in the bottom of the third. DH Khayyan Norfork doubled and moved to third on a passed ball. With one out SS Stephen Perez hit a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 3-1. For Perez it was his 27th RBI, tying Ward for the team lead and his fifth sacrifice fly, giving him the club lead in that category.
Simms turned in a one, two, three top of the fourth, his best inning of his six total innings of work. Potomac rewarded their starter with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Miller connected for a shot over two tiers of signage in left field for his seventh home run of the season and Sanchez doubled for his first hit as a P-Nat in 2015 right behind Miller. Manuel, who finished 2-for-4 with an RBI, knocked in Sanchez with an RBI single to tie the ballgame at 3-3.
RHP Tyler Mapes came in for Simms in the seventh and pitched a scoreless seventh frame dancing out of a bases loaded jam to preserve the 3-3 tie.
For Carolina it was RHP Jorge Zavala (1-0, 0.71) who threw a perfect bottom of the seventh. Zavala earned the win for his 1.2 innings of work allowing no runs on two hits, a walk and he struck one out.
RHP Derek Self (2-1, 4.34) entered for Mapes in the eighth after Mapes pitched one inning of one hit, no run ball adding two free passes and a strikeout.
Self, with one out, had Giardina reach on an infield single and on the play a throwing error charged to Perez at short gave Giardina the second base bag. For Potomac it was their 74th error in 67 ballgames this season. Briceno followed with an RBI single and it was 4-3 Carolina. After a hit batsman and another singled loaded the bases, Curcio hit an RBI fielder’s choice ball that scored Briceno for the insurance run and a 5-3 Mudcats lead.
In the bottom of the eighth still 5-3 in favor of Carolina, got a LF Isaac Ballou base on balls and Wooten singled behind him. The rally ended their as Carolina brought in RHP David Peterson (5 SV) and he struck out Ward to end the threat.
In the top of the ninth with one out and one on and Self still in the game a rolling brown out hit the Woodbridge, VA area causing the entire Stadium and the County Complex to lose power for roughly 20 seconds. Slowly but surely the lights came back on and the game suffered just a 21 minute delay. Lien was the hitter when play resumed and he fouled out followed by a Giardina strikeout to end the top of the ninth.
Potomac mustered a two-out Manuel single in the bottom of the ninth against Peterson who struck out all four men he retired to ink his fifth save in as many opportunities and seal the 5-3 Carolina victory in Game One.
Peterson pitched 1.1 innings and gave up just the one hit to Manuel and had the four strikeouts in his outing.
There are now just three games remaining in the first-half of the 2015 season before the All-Star break.
Carolina improves 26-11 when scoring first and Potomac falls to 10-25 when the opposition tallies a run first.
Game Two of the four-Game Set features RHP Phillips Valdez (0-2, 7.94) for Potomac against LHP Yean Carlos Gil (1-8, 6.47) for Carolina.
First pitch at 7:05 pm from Pfitzner Stadium with gates opening at 6:00 pm and you can listen live starting at 6:50 pm beginning with the “P-Nats Lead-Off Show” via the TuneIn Radio App or at www.potomacnationals.com.
Tomorrow at the ballpark is Cowboy Monkey Rodeo night presented by Farmers Insurance, Country Night and Kids Run the Bases courtesy of Glory Days Grill.
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