Pensacola Blue Wahoos Rally To Top Jacksonville, 7-4

August 29, 2016

The Pensacola Blue Wahoos spotted the Jacksonville Suns four runs in the first inning Sunday at Blue Wahoos Stadium.

But after that, the Blue Wahoos bullpen combined on 8.1 innings of shutout ball to deliver a 7-4 victory over the Suns. With eight games left in the season, the Blue Wahoos have won three straight games and seven of its last 10.

Pensacola manager Pat Kelly said there was no panic in the dugout after digging themselves into a four-run hole.

“It was early,” Kelly said. “We emphasized they didn’t have to make it up all at once. Mentally, the guys never felt they were out of the game.”

In fact, the Blue Wahoos cut the lead in half, 4-2, in the bottom of the first inning when left fielder Brandon Dixon smashed a fly ball into the left center gap to drive in Blue Wahoos second baseman Alex Blandino to make the score, 4-1. Pensacola shortstop Zach Vincej then delivered a single to center to score Dixon and put the Blue Wahoos right back in the game.

Vincej entered the game in a 4-29 slump but got on base all four times with two singles, a double and a walk Sunday, plus he scored and drove in a run.

Vincej said his swing had gotten “too big and too long” and he concentrated on having a quicker swing.

“The end of the year is the time to heat up,” said Vincej, who hit .370 in July. “Every single day we’re trying to compete. We still want to have pride in what we’re doing. We want to go into the playoffs with a hot streak.”

Pensacola pitcher Jackson Stephens uncharacteristically had his shortest outing of the season, lasting just 0.2 innings while giving up four runs on three hits and three walks.

But the Blue Wahoos bullpen came through after that. Pensacola reliever El’Hajj Muhamad pitched 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing four hits, one walk and striking out three. He was followed by 2.2 scoreless innings from Evan Mitchell, who earned the victory and is 3-1 on the year. Abel De Los Santos walked two and struck out two in one shutout inning and then Kyle McMyne earned his fifth save by pitching a scoreless ninth inning.

“I thought (Muhammad) did a tremendous job,” Kelly said. “Eight and a third scoreless innings. You can’t ask for more than that.”

Vincej said “El” fired up the offense with his performance.

“El came in and did a phenomenal job,” he said. “Everyone kind of got fired up after that. You want to put up runs for guys competing their butts off like that.”

Chad Wallach hit a two-out, two-run bomb over the left field fence in the fourth inning to tie the game, 4-4. All of Wallach’s seven homers this season have come at home in Blue Wahoos Stadium.

Three innings later in the seventh inning, Ronald Bueno scored the go ahead run, 5-4, when he smacked a pinch hit single up the middle, reached second on Pensacola second baseman Alex Blandino’s single to third and then scored from second base on a passed ball and throwing error by Jacksonville catcher Sharif Othman. Right fielder Sebastian Elizalde doubled in Blandino for a 6-4 lead.

Elizalde now has hit in 13 straight games, which is one game short of his 14-game streak last season with the High-A Daytona Tortugas. The 24-year-old is 22-52 or .423 during his current streak.

Derek Dietrich, who is doing a Major League rehab assignment for the Miami Marlins with Jacksonville, was 2-4 with a walk and scored the first run of the game for the Suns. In two games, he is 2-8.

The Mississippi Braves snapped its seven game losing streak with a 6-4 win over the Chattanooga Lookouts and improved its record in the second half to 34-27 in the South Division. It remains 1.5 games ahead of Pensacola, which won the South Division in the first half, and is now 33-29 in the second half.

“If we can win both halves that would be a pretty impressive thing to do,” Vincej said.

Comments

Comments are closed.

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