Doubleheader Preview: Power at Legends
POWER LINEUP (Game 2):
Billy Cooke — CF
Caleb Ricca — SS
Ryan Ramiz — RF
Matt Sanders — 2B
Bobby Honeyman — 3B
Dean Nevarez — C
Onil Pena — 1B
Anthony Lepre — DH
DeAires Moses — LF
Benjamin Onyshko — LHP
Games #133 and #134 — Road Games #67 and #68
West Virginia Power (30–32, 67–65) at Lexington Legends (26–36, 63–68)
Wednesday, August 28–12:05 p.m.
Whitaker Bank Ballpark (Lexington, Ky.)
JOHNSON SHINES IN 6–4 WIN TO CAP SWEEP: Evan Johnson fired a career-best 7.2 innings and picked up his first career win and quality start as the Power pushed past the Lakewood BlueClaws, 6–4, to finish off a three-game sweep Sunday afternoon at Appalachian Power Park. West Virginia struck first in the second inning, as Matt Sanders singled to lead off the frame and Onil Pena brought him in with a two-out knock to make it 1–0 Power. West Virginia extended its lead in the third, as Taylor Lehman walked the bases loaded with one down before issuing a free pass to Charlie McConnell to plate a run. Nick Rodriguez then stroked a two-run single that allowed Ryan Ramiz and Sanders to come around the bases and push the lead to 4–0. Meanwhile, Johnson cruised through his outing, as he did not allow a hit until the third inning and spun seven scoreless frames rather efficiently. The Power tacked on two more insurance runs in the seventh that would eventually mark the difference, with Pena and Manny Pazos each providing an RBI single to make it 6–0. However, Johnson wavered in the eighth slightly, giving up a run and leaving with two men on and two down in the frame. Reeves Martin came on to try and close out the inning, but Luis Garcia blooped a double into no-man’s land in shallow left to bring in two more runs and close the lead to 6–3. Martin gave up a run of his own in the ninth, but battled back to strand the tying run on base and cap the sweep-clinching win.
PITCHING MATCH-UP:
RHP Juan Then (0–1, 1.50 ERA) heads to the hill for West Virginia in game one, while Lexington sends RHP Carlos Hernandez (2–4, 6.31 ERA) to the bump. LHP Benjamin Onyshko (3–3, 3.84 ERA) toes the slab for the Power in game two, while Lexington counters with RHP Charlie Neuweiler (6–10, 4.51 ERA).
Then makes his second Low-A start in Monday’s series opener after hurling a quality start against the Charleston RiverDogs in his debut August 21. In that outing, Then took a perfect game into the fifth inning and ultimately struck out six batters while allowing just one earned run. The Mariners’ 16th-best prospect per MLB.com was traded back to Seattle from the New York Yankees June 15 of this year in the deal for Edwin Encarnacion. He is 0–4 in nine games (seven starts) between the AZL, Everett and the Power this season.
Onyshko makes his first career Minor League start in his 52nd career overall appearance. The southpaw has been a very serviceable reliever for West Virginia this season, appearing in 36 games out of the bullpen, second-most among all Power relievers in 2019 (Dayeison Arias, 39). Onyshko last appeared August 20 at Charleston, when he fired 4.1 innings of emergency relief and only gave up one run on three hits with five strikeouts in a no-decision. In three games against the Legends this year, he is 0–1 over six innings of work with seven strikeouts compared to two walks, and has only allowed one unearned run.
Hernandez, meanwhile, has combined to make 13 starts between the AZL, rookie-level Burlington and Lexington. In his five previous outings for the Legends, the righty is 2–2 with a 4.50 ERA, along with 27 strikeouts compared to five walks in 24 innings of work. Though he has yet to face the Power in 2019, Hernandez contended with them four times in 2018, going 3–0 with a 3.32 ERA and 19 strikeouts compared to five walks. Last time out, Hernandez spun six shutout innings against Lakewood, scattering four hits and striking out six to pick up the win.
Neuweiler faces the Power for the third time this season, and first since July 6. Last time he took on West Virginia, he suffered the loss after allowing two runs on five hits over 5.1 innings of work. The right-hander had fired off three consecutive quality starts from August 4–15, but got roughed up against Lakewood in his last start. The BlueClaws tagged him for eight runs on nine hits over just three innings of work.
POWER LINEUP (Game 1):
Billy Cooke — CF
Caleb Ricca — SS
Ryan Ramiz — LF
Matt Sanders — 3B
Bobby Honeyman — DH
Charlie McConnell — RF
Nick Rodriguez — 2B
Onil Pena — 1B
Manny Pazos — C
Juan Then — RHP
GAME NOTES:
GOOD ENOUGH TO POST ON TWITTER: Johnson was outstanding in his eighth Low-A start for West Virginia, blowing past his previous career-high of 5.2 innings (July 24 at Hickory) with his 7.2-inning gem Sunday afternoon. The former Creighton Blue Jay recorded four 1–2–3 stanzas, and registered a career-best 101 pitches. Johnson wrapped up a phenomenal turn through the rotation, as the Power starting staff has posted a 1.53 ERA (5 ER/29.1 IP) over the last five games with 31 strikeouts and just 12 hits allowed.
YOU SHOULD FOLLOW THIS GUY’S PROGRESS: N-Rod is in the midst of a season-best six-game hitting streak, which he extended Sunday afternoon with his 2-for-3, two-RBI game. The Power utility man is averaging .500 (8-for-16) with five RBI during this stretch that dates back to August 20. He has two multi-hit and multi-RBI games across this run as well. N-Rod now possesses the 20th hitting streak of six games or more by a West Virginia slugger this season.
RETWEET “SOLID SERIES FOR THE BULLPEN”: West Virginia’s bullpen was impressive throughout the entire Charleston series and carried their momentum through their three-game sweep of Lakewood. The Power relief corps has surrendered just two earned runs in their last 22.0 innings of work (0.82 ERA) on 12 hits over the last six games.
GOTTA LIKE THAT: Sanders continued his consistent month of August for West Virginia Sunday afternoon, going 1-for-3 with two runs scored and two walks. The infielder has hit safely in 23 of his last 26 contests and is boasting a .320 (33-for-103) clip, the sixth-best batting average in the SAL in that span (July 28-current), with three homers and 11 RBI. Sanders is tied with Pena for the team lead with three homers and 10 RBI in the month of August. He is one of three active Power hitters to have an average above .300 (.326) in the season’s penultimate month.
TRENDING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION: With their win in the series finale over Lakewood, West Virginia secured its sixth series sweep of the season, as well as its second against the Lakewood BlueClaws (April 15–17 in West Virginia). The Power has only broomed one other team in the second half (Columbia Fireflies, July 15–17), while they have been swept once as well (Delmarva Shorebirds, July 9–11). West Virginia is averaging a run differential of +9.8 in series sweeps this season, as well as +3.1 runs per game. The Power claimed at least 13 wins in a season series against Lakewood for just the third time in series history (13, 2012 and 20, 2013).
GETTING VERIFIED: On Tuesday, infielder Bobby Honeyman was tabbed as a South Atlantic League Annual All-Star at third base, the lone Power player to take home the league’s year-end honor. Honeyman snagged his second Year-End All-Star selection, as he was named to the Northwest League’s Postseason All-Star squad in 2018. Honeyman is the third Power player ever to be named an Annual All-Star at 3B, joining Mat Gamel (2006) and Taylor Green (2007).
POWER POINTS: McConnell has not committed an error in 76 straight games (dating back to 5/15 at CSC)… To follow the Power’s final road trip is a four-game homestand against the Greensboro Grasshoppers… Honeyman is mired in a 0-for-13 slump currently, though he did not play in the three-game Lakewood set… West Virginia was not effective with runners in scoring position Sunday, going 4-for-12 and stranding 10 men on base… Much like a trend on Twitter, the Power are in the midst of a four-game winning streak, their longest winning stretch of the second half.
ON THE AIR: West Virginia Power games can be heard on The Jock 1300 and 1340 AM in the Kanawha Valley, online at wvpower.com and on the TuneIn Radio App. David Kahn and Kyle Youmans will handle play-by-play duties in 2019. Wednesday’s pregame coverage begins at 11:45 a.m. on the West Virginia Power Baseball Network.
