Winston-Salem 8, Frederick 5 (F/8)
W: Luis Ledo (1-0)
L: Scott Burke (0-1)
S: None
FREDERICK, Md. (April 6, 2019) – Thanks to a go-ahead, three-run homer from Johan Cruz, Winston-Salem pulled out an 8-5 victory in eight innings over the Frederick Keys in game two of Saturday’s doubleheader at Nymeo Field to secure a twin bill sweep and a series victory.
With the win, the Dash are off to a 3-0 start for the first time in the Dash era (2009-present). Meanwhile, the series win marks the first time Winston-Salem (3-0) has won a season-opening set since the Dash took two out of three against Kinston in 2011.
With two on and nobody out in the top of the eighth, Cruz blasted the game-deciding shot over the wall in left-center against Scott Burke (0-1). Luis Ledo (1-0), who allowed a run in the bottom of the seventh to extend the game, locked down his first win of the season by tossing a scoreless eighth in his High-A debut.
Overall, the Dash registered 14 hits in Saturday’s finale, with Luis Robert, Zach Remillard and Craig Dedelow each stroking three hits. Robert, who is rated the 39th-best prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline, is 7-for-13 through the first three games of the season with two homers and seven RBIs.
After taking the doubleheader opener 4-1 on Saturday, Winston-Salem would once again jump out to an early lead in game two. After Cruz walked with two outs in the second against Keys starter Cameron Bishop, JJ Muno lined a single to center to put runners on first and third. Robert then grounded an RBI infield single to third to put Winston-Salem ahead 1-0.
However, in the bottom of the frame, the Keys (0-3) grabbed their first lead of the day. Against Dash right-hander Jake Elliott, Trevor Craport blasted a two-run homer to left field to give Frederick a 2-1 lead.
Winston-Salem tied the contest with a run in the top of the third, but JC Escarra drilled a two-run shot to right against Elliott in the bottom of the third to make it a 4-2 game.
Alec Hansen relieved Elliott in the fourth, and, in what was his first outing of 2019, he recorded a perfect inning before the Dash offense rallied in the fifth.
Robert doubled to start the inning, and, two batters later, Remillard bounced an RBI single to cut the deficit to one. Following a Remillard steal and a Dedelow infield single, Yrizarri brought home the tying run on an RBI groundout. Jordan George followed with an RBI single to give Winston-Salem a 5-4 advantage.
Kevin Escorcia, who made his Dash debut on Saturday, registered two scoreless innings in relief of Hansen, but Frederick managed to tie the game in the seventh against Ledo. After Ledo hit Jake Ring in the helmet with two outs, Mason McCoy smacked an RBI double down the right-field line to knot the contest at five. The tally marked the first earned run allowed by the Dash bullpen in 2019, ending an impressive stretch of 14.1 innings pitched to start the year without giving up an earned run.
Winston-Salem wraps up its series at Frederick at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The Dash will send right-hander Blake Battenfield (first start of 2019) to the hill against Keys righty Matthias Deitz. Pregame coverage begins at 12:45 p.m., and fans can catch all of the action on wsdash.com/broadcast and the TuneIn Radio App.
The Dash kick off their 10th anniversary season at BB&T Ballpark on Thursday, April 11, against the Potomac Nationals. Thursday’s home opener will be a Thirsty Thursday, presented by Lowes Foods, and a Pups in the Park outing, presented by Handy and Handy Orthodontics. Following Friday’s game, there will be a postgame fireworks display, presented by PTI. A Food Truck Festival and a Chick-fil-A Four Pack Night are on deck for Saturday, while a Rayados Day (presented by Univision) and a Craft Fair are on tap for Sunday. For tickets and more information, call the Dash at (336) 714-2287 or visit wsdash.com.
