Wahoos Win Over The Shuckers

July 11, 2016

Pensacola Blue Wahoos first baseman Eric Jagielo has struggled at the plate all year but he never stopped working on his swing.

It paid off Sunday when Jagielo hit a rocket over the head of Biloxi center fielder Brett Phillips for a walk-off single that scored Blue Wahoos shortstop Zach Vincej for a 4-3 Pensacola victory over the Shuckers in front of 3,451 at Pensacola Blue Wahoos Stadium.

Jagielo said he has worked with hitting coach Alex Pelaez and has made his swing more compact. His average has steadily risen from .146 on May 9 to .208 Sunday, which is his highest average this year for the former first round pick in 2013.

The hot-hitting Jagielo, who has played 13 games at first base after playing the position just three times before coming to the Cincinnati Reds organization, also hit his second homer in three games on Saturday. Jagielo has six homers and 21 RBIs this season.

“I’m getting back to where I was last year,” said Jagielo, who was an All-Star in his last three minor league seasons in the New York Yankees organization. “I’m hitting pitches I was missing before.”

It was Pensacola’s third straight victory and the Blue Wahoos’ eighth walk-off hit this season — a franchise record. Jagielo also had Pensacola’s last walk-off, or “Wahoo Way” as the team has dubbed it, came on Father’s Day June 19 when he singled down the line to drive in Pensacola utility player Brandon Dixon for a 2-1 victory over the Mobile BayBears.

Pensacola manager Pat Kelly likes that his hitters made the most of their opportunities Sunday. The Blue Wahoos are now 8-9 in the second half and 49-38 on the season in the Southern League South Division.

“It’s not the way we planned it, but it’s nice getting a victory in the end,” Kelly said. “The only shame is that Rookie Davis doesn’t get a W out of it.”

The Blue Wahoos also tied another less desirable franchise record Sunday by striking out 18 times in a game. The last time Pensacola had that many was June 9 in a 14-inning game against the Jackson Generals.

Davis admitted he was looking to redeem himself. Davis lasted two innings, giving up seven runs, four earned on nine hits, walked one and had no strike outs in his last start against Mobile.

Sunday, he became the third Blue Wahoos starter to pitch into the seventh inning in the last 35 games. in June and July. The last two came back-to-back after righty Tyler Mahle went seven Saturday.

Davis pitched seven strong innings. He shutout Biloxi on six hits and struck out five, lowering his ERA to 2.84.

“It was a big difference from the last game,” Davis said. “I tried to come out and pitch aggressively.”

You can’t blame Biloxi right hander Taylor Jungmann, the 12th pick overall in the 2011 draft, if he didn’t want to face Pensacola on Sunday. He had faced Pensacola three times in his career and was 0-1 with a 7.71 ERA, giving up 12 earned runs in 14 innings.

Although, Biloxi’s Jungmann gave up three runs on six hits in 4.2 innings Sunday before being pulled with men on first and third, he did strike out a career-high 12 Blue Wahoos, including eight of the first nine outs.

Pensacola tagged Jungmann — who got blistered by Major League and Triple-A hitters for more than nine runs per game — for two runs in the third inning. Blue Wahoos center fielder Brandon Dixon doubled in the left center gap to score Davis and second baseman Alex Blandino for a 2-0 Pensacola lead.

Blue Wahoos Vincej hit a long fly ball off the wall for a triple to start the fourth inning. Pensacola left fielder Juan Duran then drove Vincej in to put the Blue Wahoos up, 3-0, with a deep sacrifice fly to right field that didn’t even draw a throw from the Biloxi outfielder.

Vincej went 3-4 with a triple and double, scored twice and stole his fifth base of the year. He is now 16-42 or .381 in his last 11 games and is hitting .276 on the season.

In the ninth inning, though, Biloxi pinch hitter Johnny Davis tied the game, 3-3, with a leadoff home run to right field. It was his first career home run in fourth professional season.

Biloxi had pulled within one run, 3-2, when third baseman Gabriel Noriega smacked a single up the middle that scored Phillips. Biloxi second baseman Chris McFarland then hit a chopper in front of the plate that Blue Wahoos catcher Joe Hudson decided to throw to first base and let Shuckers left fielder Garrett Cooper score.

That’s when Jagielo delivered his second Wahoo Way this season, driving in Vincej who had doubled in the ninth.

“He’s a big time player,” Davis said of his teammate. “Some guys want to step away in that situation but he’s not one of them. He’s been working hard since the first day of the first half.”

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