The Potomac Nationals (33-39-Overall, 0-2-Second Half, 15-22-Road) were downed by the Wilmington Blue Rocks (40-32-Overall, 2-0-Second Half, 22-15-Home) in both ends of their suspended game double header at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium 6-4 in the resumed game and 5-1 in the nightcap on Friday night.
RHP Yender Caramo made the start for the Blue Rocks against RHP Lucas Giolito for the Nationals in the game that was ultimately suspended.
The game was scoreless when suspended heading to the bottom of the third but for Caramo he was perfect through his three innings of work, retiring all nine P-Nats that came to the plate with six of the nine going down on ground balls.
Giolito committed an error in the bottom of the first that put runners on second and third for Wilmington with nobody out. The righty then dispatched 3B Mauricio Ramos on a ground out before striking out both DH Cody Stubbs and 1B Frank Schwindel to dance out of the jam. In the bottom of the second, his final inning of work, Giolito once again pitched through a miscue. With one out RF Dex Kjerstad reached on an error charged to 1B John Wooten. Then with LF Logan Moon at the plate Kjerstad broke for second base on a steal attempt. The ball snuck past C Craig Manuel and went to the backstop. Kjerstad seemed to think it was a foul ball and headed back to first base as Manuel fired to Wooten who then relayed to SS Stephen Perez, who applied the tag to a sliding Kjerstad at second base. Moon then popped out to end the inning before the rain became too much.
Giolito went two scoreless innings without allowing a hit and pitching through the two miscues while issuing one walk and striking out two.
When play resumed at 5:03 pm from Wilmington on Friday evening RHP Tyler Mapes (1-1, 2.84) took the mound, lasting four innings and giving up four runs (all earned) on seven hits with no walks and he set a new season high with five strikeouts in his outing but unfortunately took the loss in the ball game.
Mapes continued the scoreless streak for the P-Nats in his first 2.1 innings on the mound but it came to an end after 25.0 innings going back to Friday June 19th against Carolina and set a new season standard.
The rally for Wilmington against Mapes began in the bottom of the fifth when Kjerstad began the frame with a single. Two batters later CF Dominique Taylor singled moving Kjerstad to second base. 2B Carlos Garcia, who had a fantastic evening began it with a two-run triple scoring both Kjerstad and Taylor and giving Wilmington a 2-0 lead. SS Jack Lopez was hit by a pitch and then back-to-back to singles ensued from 3B Mauricio Ramos and DH Cody Stubbs for a 4-0 Blue Rocks advantage.
LHP Justin Thomas came out of the bullpen for Potomac and gave up two runs in the eighth inning. With one out 1B Frank Schwindel doubled and scored on C Cam Gallagher’s RBI single for a 5-0 lead. Gallagher moved to second on Kjerstad’s single and then to third on Moon’s fielder’s choice ball before coming home to score on Garcia’s RBI single. Garcia had three hits on the evening including the three-bagger and knocked in four across both games. The single gave Wilmington a 6-0 lead.
RHP Ashton Goudeau began the resumed portion of the ballgame and was great out of the bullpen, pitching five scoreless innings allowing six hits, no walks and he added two strikeouts. He gave way to RHP Robinson Yambati in the ninth and Potomac beat him up.
With one out Yambati drilled Wooten and then two batters later with two outs he walked DH Brandon Miller. 2B Adrian Sanchez followed with a single that brought home Wooten to break up the shutout and make it 6-1 Blue Rocks. C Craig Manuel was then hit by a pitch, the second of the inning to load the bases and RF Estarlin Martinez drew an RBI walk to cut the lead to 6-2 when Miller scored. Wilmington skipper Brian Buchanan had seen enough and he went to the bullpen bringing in RHP Kevin McCarthy (SV 3). Yambati pitched .2 of an inning and on one hit, two walks and two hit batters gave up four runs while striking out two. McCarthy came in and faced CF Narciso Mesa in the ninth and Mesa slapped a two-run single scoring both Sanchez and Manuel and cut the lead to 6-4 Wilmington. The Next batter, Perez, then hit a hard comebacker that went off the leg of McCarthy but he was able to recover and throw Perez out to end the ballgame and seal the 6-4 win.
Game Two saw the P-Nats send RHP Reynaldo Lopez (4-4, 4.88) to the hill to take on LHP Matthew Strahm 1-0, 1.50) for the Rocks. Strahm, who was making his first start of 2015 after being recently promoted from Class-A Lexington pitched 5.0 innings with nine strikeouts, while only giving up two hits and a walk and one run (earned) on Sanchez’s first blast of the season that gave Potomac a 1-0 lead in the third.
Lopez ran into trouble in the bottom of the third when C Santiago Nessy led-off the frame with a single. Moon then was issued a free pass and Taylor, on a bunt attempt, reached on a fielder’s choice ball when Lopez fielded the ball and fired to third to retire the lead runner. SS Ramon Torres, who has hit P-Nats pitching well all season came up and stroked a two-out, two-run single and reclaimed the lead for Wilmington at 2-1. Ramos then doubled home Torres for a 3-1 lead after three frames. Of the nine hits Lopez gave up in his complete game loss seven of them were singles, he walked one batter and struck out one batter while allowing five runs (all earned).
LF Afredo Escalara began the fourth with an infield single followed by a 3B Robert Pehl single. In between the two singles a wild pitch by Lopez moved Escalara to second base and then he moved to third on the one-bagger. Nessy hit into a twin killing but with nobody out Escalara came home from third for a 4-1 advantage.
The final run of the ballgame came against Lopez in the bottom of the fifth frame after Taylor began the inning with a triple. He scored one batter later when Garcia knocked him in for the 5-1 Wilmington lead.
That was your final in the nightcap as RHP Andrew Edwards entered in relief of Strahm in the sixth and gave up three hits, all singles, to Potomac over the final two frames and sealing the 5-1 win in the backend ballgame and sealing the defacto double header sweep for the Blue Rocks.
Potomac is now 5-9-7 in series in 2015 and looks to salvage one win in the opening three-gamer against their Northern Division Rival Blue Rocks
Tomorrow night features RHP Phillips Valdez (1-2, 6.35) for Potomac vs. LHP Eric Skoglund (6-2, 2.74) for the Blue Rocks, who look for the series sweep.
First pitch set from Daniel S. Frawley Stadium at 7:05 pm and you can listen live via the TuneIn Radio App or at www.potomacnationals.com starting at6:50 pm with the “P-Nats Lead-Off Show.”
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