Game #54 Preview— Power vs. Legends
Game #54 — Home Game #32
Lexington Legends (31–24) vs. West Virginia Power (27–26)
Wednesday, June 6–7:05 p.m.
Appalachian Power Park (Charleston, W.V.)
LATE LEXINGTON RALLY SINKS POWER IN GAME ONE: The Power jumped out to an early 3–0 lead behind a two-run shot from Oneil Cruz in the third inning and an RBI double from Mason Martin in the fourth, but the Legends plated seven unanswered runs over the fifth and sixth innings to steal game one of Tuesday’s twin bill at Appalachian Power Park, 7–4. Max Kranick was marvelous through the first four innings, allowing just two hits and striking out four Legends batters in that span. In the fifth, however, Lexington’s offense came alive, as they tied the score at three with Ricky Aracena’s first of two RBI singles and a two-run jack from Travis Jones. The Legends poured on four more in the sixth to chase Kranick from the game after not recording an out in the frame. Matt Seelinger was forced into the game with no outs and the bases juiced and was unable to strand the runners, despite giving up just one hit. Carlos Hernandez earned the win with five innings of work, while Tyler Zuber secured a one-out save after he was summoned to relieve Holden Capps in the seventh, who let the lead drop to three on Chris Sharpe’s RBI single.
OFFENSE BACKS SCHLABACH IN GAME TWO WIN: Ike Schlabach spun five scoreless innings and struck out a career-best eight batters, while the Power’s offense exploded for 10 runs on 11 hits to secure a doubleheader split over the Lexington Legends with a 10–1 thrashing in the nightcap. West Virginia put the game away with a six-run second inning, the most runs they have scored in an inning since a seven-run ninth on April 14 at Hickory. The Power sent 11 men to the plate in the second against Legends starter Collin Snider, who could not escape the inning. Ryan Peurifoy plated the first run after he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, then Kyle Watson and Sharpe each stroked two-run doubles before Calvin Mitchell drove in Sharpe to make it 6–0. In the fourth, West Virginia sent nine men to the dish and tacked on four more runs, with Cruz kicking things off with an RBI double. Ben Bengtson joined the fun with a two-run two-bagger before newly-acquired John Bormann singled Bengtson in to cap the scoring. Beau Sulser and Joel Cesar each pitched an inning in relief of Schlabach, who earned his third win of the season.
PITCHING MATCHUP: LHP Domingo Robles (3–4, 3.61 ERA) will get the nod for West Virginia. Lexington is countering with LHP Garrett Davila (3–2, 3.08 ERA).
POWER LINEUP:
Oneil Cruz — SS
Brett Pope — 2B
Cal Mitchell — RF
Deon Stafford — C
Ben Bengtson — 3B
Chris Sharpe — LF
Kyle Watson — 1B
Ryan Peurifoy — CF
Lolo Sanchez — DH
Domingo Robles — LHP
ODDS AND ENDS:
MULTI-HIT MITCHELL: After his 2-for-3 effort in Tuesday’s finale, Mitchell has 17 multi-hit games in 2018, the most of any West Virginia batter. The Pirates’ 15th-best prospect per MLB.com is one of two Power batters with double digit multi-hit efforts in 2018 (Cruz, 15). Mitchell has hit safely in 14 of his last 17 games, and in 22 of his last 29 contests since May 1. Overall, Mitchell’s .323 stroke is fourth-best in the SAL, while his 14 doubles are tied for second-most with Kannapolis’ Luis Gonzalez and Charleston’s Steven Sensley. His .323 average also ranks second in the Pirates system (Albert Baur, .333 with Bradenton). Mitchell has found more success on the road in 2018, boasting a .356 (31-for-87) clip (21 games) compared to a .297 (33-for-111) stroke at home (31 games). Mitchell was recently tabbed as the 99th-best prospect in baseball in Baseball America’s newly-minted Top 100 rankings. The San Diego native is currently riding a six-game hitting streak that dates back to May 29, during which he is hitting .360 (9-for-25) with a home run and three RBI.
CRUZIN FOR A BRUISIN: Cruz went 4-for-8 with a home run and three RBI in Tuesday’s doubleheader. He hit his eighth home run of the season in game one, the most on the team and his first since May 20, also against Lexington. Cruz is in the midst of an eight-game hitting streak, his second streak of six games or longer in 2018. During this span, he is hitting .484 (15-for-31) with a home run and five RBI, as he notched his team-best eighth multi-RBI game in the twin bill opener. Since May 1, the Dominican native is averaging .345 (39-for-113) with four home runs, 15 RBI and 15 extra-base hits. Cruz has been a leadoff catalyst for the Power, boasting a .414 stroke (29-for-70) with two of his team-leading eight homers and nine RBI when beginning an inning. The infielder’s .292 season average is eighth-best in the Pirates organization, while his eight long balls are tied for second with Baur of Advanced-A Bradenton.
HOLY HOMERS: Cruz’s third-inning dinger was West Virginia’s 48th home run of the season, which is third-most in the South Atlantic League behind Asheville (57) and Lexington (60). Every Power batter has at least one homer this season except for Raul Hernandez, who is on the disabled list, and Bormann, who has played in one game.
HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR: Deon Stafford and Mitchell were named South Atlantic League All-Stars Tuesday, with the pair set to represent the Power at this year’s Midsummer Classic in Greensboro, N.C., on June 19 at First National Bank Field. Stafford received his second consecutive All-Star nod, while Mitchell secured his first mid-season accolade. Stafford is the first Power catcher to garner an All-Star selection since Reese McGuire in 2014.
POWER POINTS: The Power are 10–0 when scoring seven or more runs… Sharpe collected his first multi-RBI game of 2018.
ON THE AIR: West Virginia Power games can be heard on The Jock 1300 & 1340 AM in the Kanawha Valley, online at wvpower.com and on the TuneIn Radio App. David Kahn and John Kocsis will handle play-by-play duties in 2018. Wednesday’s pregame coverage begins at 6:45 p.m. on the West Virginia Power Baseball Network.
