Winston-Salem Spoils Early Chances & Fails to Recover

By Staff

 

Winston-Salem failed to take advantage of some early scoring chances, opening the door for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans to roll to an 11-2 win at BB&T Ballpark on Tuesday night.

The Dash (11-18) squandered an opportunity in the bottom of the first inning. Adam Heisler tripled to lead off the frame but was stranded there by Myrtle Beach starter Victor Payano (2-1) to keep the game scoreless.

Winston-Salem failed to capitalize on a leadoff extra-base hit in the second inning as well. Jason Coats started things with a double off the right field fence. After advancing to third on a fielder’s choice, Coats was cut down at the plate on a ground ball to third baseman Joey Gallo by Nick Basto. At that point, neither team had pushed a run across.

Myrtle Beach (18-12) dented the scoring column in the top of the third inning. Four consecutive hits by Hanser Alberto, Chris Garia, Odubel Herrera and Christopher Bostick against Dash starter Tony Bucciferro (2-3) plated two runs, giving the Pelicans a 2-0 lead.

The Birds added to their advantage in the top of the fifth. Alberto started the inning with a single to left. After stealing second base, Alberto advanced to third on a bunt single by Garia. He later scored on a sacrifice fly by Herrera, pushing the Pelicans’ advantage to 3-0.

Myrtle Beach blew the game open in the top of the sixth. Jorge Alfaro, Gallo, Royce Bolinger and Nick Williams strung together consecutive hits to score a run and chase Bucciferro to the Dash dugout. Reliever Jefferson Olacio fared no better, allowing all three inherited runners to score and two of his own batters to cross home plate. By the end of the inning, the Pelicans ballooned their lead to 9-0.

Bucciferro was tagged for seven runs on 11 hits in five-plus innings, only surrendering one extra-base hit in the process.

The Pelicans added two more insurance runs in the ninth against reliever Brad Goldberg. Back-to-back walks to Christopher Bostick and Alfaro helped set up consecutive RBI groundouts later in the frame by Bolinger and Williams, making it an 11-0 game.

The Dash showed no signs of quitting in the bottom of the ninth, however. A leadoff walk to Courtney Hawkins led to a run-scoring single by Coats to get Winston-Salem on the board. Basto’s RBI single to left field chased Coats home, bringing the final score to 11-2.

It was the first Dash loss to Myrtle Beach in their last seven meetings, dating back to last season. The Pelicans improve to 11-4 on the road this season, while Winston-Salem drops to 6-11 at home.

The Dash and Pelicans will meet in the rubber game of the series Wednesday morning at BB&T Ballpark. Winston-Salem will send right-hander Braulio Ortiz (0-2, 4.15 ERA) to the mound against Myrtle Beach lefty Luis Parra (3-1, 5.54 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for a special start time of 11 a.m.

For tickets, visit wsdash.com or call 336/714-2287. Fans can also catch pregame coverage on wsdash.com/broadcast beginning at 10:45am