Wahoos Move Into Second Place

July 22, 2015

The Pensacola Blue Wahoos played good defense, received clutch hitting and relied on strong pitching to hand the Jacksonville Suns its sixth straight loss.

It all came together to propel the Blue Wahoos to a 6-5 victory Tuesday in front of 3,290 at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.

On defense, Pensacola turned four double plays and now leads the Southern League with 119 total.

At the plate, Blue Wahoos shortstop Zach Vincej hit a solo home run in the first inning to knot the game at 1. Second baseman Ryan Wright singled in the fifth to score third baseman Seth Mejias-Brean to tie the score, 4-4. Finally, right fielder Juan Duran smashed a double down the third baseline in the sixth inning to put Pensacola ahead, 6-4.

On the mound, Barrett Astin lasted a career-long seven innings in his fifth start in Double-A, setting down the last seven Suns batters he faced. Then, Blue Wahoos closer Zack Weiss struck out two with the bases loaded in the eighth and two more in the ninth to earn his 12th save on the season.

Pensacola leads the Florida rivals’ race for the Golden Skillet, 9-6. The Blue Wahoos, who have one more five-game series left with the Suns, have never won the trophy since its inaugural season in 2012.

Pensacola manager Pat Kelly is intent on winning the Golden Skillet, which he has a picture of on his Twitter account. But he said he’s not savvy enough to print it out.

“It would be the first time we’ve won it,” Kelly said. “It really tells us how much Jacksonville has dominated Pensacola the last four years. We want to win every series and win the division. That’s our goal. That’s what we’re shooting for.”

The Blue Wahoos are in second place at 15-10 in the Southern League South Division, one game behind the Mississippi Braves. They were 24-43 and in last place in the first half.

Duran provided much of the clutch hitting for Pensacola Tuesday. He went 3-5 with three doubles and three RBIs. He also generated a run on his own in the fifth when he reached on an error by the third baseman, stole second, stole third and then scored on a wild pitch that cut Jacksonville’s lead to 4-3. His two stolen bases came after he had one in his previous 118 games in Double-A.

Duran is hitting .270 with one homer and 13 RBIs for the Blue Wahoos since returning July 1 to the team after injury rehab at Goodyear, Ariz.

“I’m feeling very good,” said Duran, who played pepper with a Cincinnati Reds hitting coach Tuesday. “This is one of the best games in my life. That’s what I’m working on — being consistent.”

In his fifth start with the Blue Wahoos, Astin overcame a three-run fourth inning, to retire nine of the last 10 Suns he faced. Astin improved to 2-1 with a 3.73 ERA, after giving up four runs, three unearned, on seven hits and two walks, while striking out four.

“A good manager would have left him in the game,” Kelly said jokingly. “Astin did a really nice job, pitching through the seventh inning. We needed what he could give us.”

Jacksonville went on top with three runs in the fourth off Astin to go ahead, 4-2. He walked Suns third baseman Zack Cox to score right fielder Carlos Lopez. Suns catcher Chadd Krist then hit a double to left field that drove in shortstop J.T. Riddle and second baseman Terrence Dayleg.

Pensacola shortstop Zach Vincej tied the game, 1-1, in the bottom of the third when he lined a solo home run to left field. Vincej has hit in 13 of his last 14 games, going 4-7 in the series, with a home run and double. He’s batting 20-50 or .400 with five RBIs in those games and has raised his season average to .261.

The first game of the five-game series is scheduled at 6:35 p.m. Wednesday with the Milwaukee Brewers Double-A affiliate Biloxi Shuckers. LHP Wandy Peralta (5-7, 5.72) takes the mound for the Wahoos and is scheduled to be opposed by Shuckers RHP Johnny Hellweg (0-2, 6.23).

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News, Sports, TOP sports