Game #80 Preview — Dash at Wilmington
Game #80 — Road Game #41
Winston-Salem Dash (4–5, 32–47) at Wilmington Blue Rocks (4–6, 31–48)
Sunday, July 3–6:05 p.m.
Frawley Stadium (Wilmington, Del.)
GAME BACKGROUND:
Nick Basto posted a three-RBI game, but the Wilmington Blue Rocks scored four in the seventh to knock off Winston-Salem 6–3 on Saturday night at Frawley Stadium. Thus, the Dash will attempt to split this four-game series and finish this rain-shortened six-game road trip with two victories in Sunday’s finale.
STARTING LINEUP:
Nick Basto drove in all three Dash runs in a losing effort on Saturday night (Jody Stewart/W-S Dash).
Hunter Jones — CF
Chris O’Dowd — C
Mason Robbins — RF
Nick Basto — LF
Marcus Davis — DH
Telvin Nash — 1B
Toby Thomas — 2B
Danny Mendick — 3B
Cleuluis Rondon — SS
Kelvis Valerio — RHP
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DASH DOTS:
- For the second time this year, Basto has gone deep in back-to-back games. He strung together three consecutive contests with a long ball from April 27–29 during his first stint with Winston-Salem. Basto has only played 49 games with the Dash, but he is tied with Gerson Montilla for the team lead with nine homers, while Basto’s 31 RBIs are third-most on the roster (Montilla — 46; Marcus Davis — 34). Earlier this weekend, Basto re-qualified for the CL’s batting average race, and his .309 mark is second-best on the circuit.
- Dash infielder Toby Thomas went 3-for-4 on Saturday to continue his recent tear. In the first three games of this series in Delaware, Thomas is 8-for-13 (.615), while the Alabama native is 17-for-30 (.567) since the All-Star break. This eight-game surge has pushed Thomas’ overall average from .231 to .269 (an increase of .038). Thomas has also doubled in five straight games, giving him 23 on the year (3rd in the CL).
- Thad Lowry had permitted exactly one earned run in his previous five starts before Saturday’s six-inning, four-earned-run effort. Lowry suffered his first loss since May 28 at Potomac, which was the start that immediately preceded that brilliant five-outing surge.
- Sunday marks the final meeting of the regular season between Winston-Salem and Wilmington. No matter what happens in this finale, the Dash have clinched the overall edge, which currently stands at 8–6. The Dash and Blue Rocks did not meet for the first time until June 4, and they proceeded to duel 15 times over the course of 30 days. Winston-Salem will still have 60 games on the docket after this contest. The Dash will not conclude another season series until July 24 with their final clash against Potomac.
- Winston-Salem churned out the most prolific offensive effort in the Dash era (2009-present) in Friday’s 18–5 win at Wilmington. The Dash’s previous high-water mark for runs in a game was 17 (May 28, 2013, vs. Frederick). Winston had not surpassed 17 runs since April 27, 2006, when the Warthogs walloped the Keys 19–2. The Dash clubbed a record-tying five homers, while the 13-run margin of victory was one shy of the biggest since the nickname change.
- Following Sunday’s game in Wilmington, the Dash return to BB&T Ballpark for the annual Fourth of July extravaganza. The last two years, more than 8,000 fans have attended the Fourth of July game at BB&T Ballpark, and these are the only two such occurrences of 8,000-plus fans at the downtown facility. A year ago, a crowd of 8,009 fans were on hand for Omar Narvaez’s walk-off single to sink Frederick. In 2015, a record crowd of 8,184 fans saw the Dash’s loss to Wilmington.
- Thanks to his six innings Saturday, Lowry pulled within 7.2 frames of teammate Spencer Adams (99.2) for the top spot in the league in innings pitched (92.0).
- Kelvis Valerio has worked into the sixth inning in each of his first two starts of the year (11.1 IP, 6 R, 4 ER).
BROADCAST INFORMATION:
Sunday’s game will be broadcast live on wsdash.com/broadcast and the TuneIn Radio app. The Pregame Dash will begin at 5:50 p.m., with the first pitch set for 6:05 p.m.
-Joe
