In need of a series win with the season’s final week approaching, the Potomac Nationals (32-29, 62-66) earned their second consecutive shutout victory over the Winston-Salem Dash (30-31, 68-57) by a score of 4-0 on Sunday afternoon.
RHP Jackson Tetreault (W, 3-2) was sharp in his return to Northwest Federal Field, tossing 6.0 scoreless innings while striking out seven for his first Carolina League win since April. With the win, Potomac will be no more than 2.5 games behind first-place Salem with nine games remaining in the regular season.
Potomac jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first against LHP Taylor Varnell (L, 1-2), turning a leadoff walk from LF Jack Sundberg into a run when 1B Ryan Zimmerman ripped an RBI double to left-center. It would be the first of two hits for the rehabbing Zimmerman, who also added a walk in his fourth game with the P-Nats.
Making his second consecutive start against the Dash, Tetreault remained in control throughout his outing. Winston-Salem loaded the bases with one out in the second, but Tetreault fanned 2B Tate Blackman and CF Steele Walker to preserve the 1-0 lead. Seven strikeouts marked a P-Nats season high for the lefty, who began the year in the Potomac rotation before spending three months at Double-A Harrisburg.
The P-Nats added to their lead in the middle innings, as SS Gilbert Lara led off the fifth with a single before CF Cole Freeman hit his third home run over the season over the left field wall. The two-run shot highlighted a 2-for-3 afternoon for Freeman, who also added his team-leading 28th stolen base in the seventh inning before a wild pitch scored him to put the P-Nats ahead 4-0.
RHP Jorge Pantoja pitched a scoreless seventh and LHP Hayden Howard got the final six outs to finish off the combined shutout, marking the first time in 2019 the P-Nats have shut out an opponent in back-to-back days. The P-Nats end their season series against the Dash with a 9-10 record, with 19 head-to-head games the most of any opponent outside the Northern Division.
The P-Nats continue their homestand on Monday night as they begin a series against the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, Advanced-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. LHP Tim Cate is set to get the start for Potomac opposite Pelicans LHP Brailyn Marquez in the opener of a four-game set. First pitch from Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium is set for 7:05, with the P-Nats Leadoff Show hitting the air at 6:50. Fans can listen to the Potomac broadcast at potomacnationals.com or on the TuneIn Radio App.
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