MYRTLE BEACH PELICANS 9 WILMINGTON BLUE ROCKS 1
In a game that was a testament to the wonderful power of catharsis, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans finally had the chance to watch the other team self-destruct as the Birds tallied their second-most runs of the season in a 9-1 victory over the Wilmington Blue Rocks.
Even though the Pelican offense finally stirred from their prolonged slumber, the story on this Saturday night was starting pitcher J.J. Hoover who notched a season-high with eight innings of shutout baseball while striking out seven and not walking a batter. That eight-inning outing matched the longest for a Pelican starter this season, equaling Matt Crim's eight-frame complete game last Friday night in Wilmington. Hoover (2-3) has now allowed just two earned runs in his last 27 innings pitched, good for a 0.66 ERA in that time frame.
The Birds got on the board in the bottom of the first on an RBI groundout off the bat of Mike Jones to make it a 1-0 Pelican lead. In the third, the Birds added two more to their advantage on Samuel Sime's first Carolina League home run, a two-run shot to left off Chris Dwyer (2-3) to make it 3-0.
Three more runs came around in the sixth inning for Myrtle Beach as James Thompson balked in the game's fourth run, and Travis Jones laced a two-RBI single to left to push the Pelican advantage to 6-0. Another triplet of Birds crossed the plate in the eighth as the Pelicans batted around.
The Blue Rocks tallied an unearned run in the ninth to deny the Pelicans just their second shutout win of the season, but it was still enough of a blowout to match their second-largest margin of victory on the season. For Wilmington, the visitors committed five errors and walked five batters to greatly aid the Pelican charge while the Birds were nearly flawless on the night, committing just one ninth inning error and walking just one batter in the ninth as well.
Sunday's 6:05 ET affair gives the Pelicans another chance to win a series as the team will send ace Randall Delgado to the hill for a chance to give the Birds their first series victory since taking two of three from the Lynchburg Hillcats 5/7-5/9.
