Dash vs. Greensboro: Game #52 Preview
Winston-Salem Dash (26–25) vs. Greensboro Grasshoppers (22–28)
Tuesday, June 7–7 p.m.
Truist Stadium (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
Game 51 Recap
The Winston-Salem Salsa narrowly missed a series sweep against Greenville, dropping the finale 5–2.
The game held scoreless until the top of the third inning, which began with a Joe Davis single. A fielder’s choice groundout pushed Davis to second base, then Tyler McDonough walked to put two runners on. Ceddanne Rafaela then smoked a 1–1 offering into the right-field corner, it hopped over the low wall for a ground-rule double to score Davis, and the Drive pulled ahead 1–0.
In the top of the fourth, Alex Binelas opened the frame with a leadoff home run to push the Drive lead to 2–0. Then in the fifth, Alex Erro and Tyler McDonough both picked up singles. A groundout by Rafaela put runners on the corners before Matthew Lugo drove Erro home on an RBI groundout to first.
Winston-Salem was able to cut into the deficit in the bottom of the sixth.
Duke Ellis and Moises Castillo singled back-to-back to open the inning. Then, Oscar Colas lifted a bloop single into center field, with Ellis scoring and Castillo advancing to second base. Castillo moved to third on a double-play ball, and then Alsander Womack plated him with a well-placed single down the right-field line.
After Greenville saw their lead slashed from 3–0 to 3–2, they answered back in the seventh inning. First, Stephen Scott walked then moved to second base on a slow-rolling ground ball in front of the mound. Later in the inning with two outs, Rafaela doubled down the right-field line to push Scott across, with Rafaela moving to third base on the throw home. A wild pitch allowed Rafaela to scamper home, and Greenville pulled ahead 5–2.
In the bottom of the ninth, Winston-Salem put together a rally to try and win the game. It began with a leadoff walk by Womack, who got pushed to second base on a ground out. Shawn Goosenberg, in his first game back from the injured list, also worked a walk, then with two outs, Duke Ellis did the same. That set the table for Moises Castillo as the go-ahead run, up with the bases loaded and two outs. Castillo battled, fouling off a handful of pitches, but ultimately grounded out to third base to end the game.
Chih-Jung Liu got the win for Greenville, with Cody Scroggins nabbing his fourth save, and Chase Solesky took the loss for Winston-Salem.
BATTLE OF I-40
The Dash and Greensboro will engage in the second Battle of I-40 this year when the Grasshoppers visit Winston-Salem for the second time this year. In the previous meeting between the two teams, the Dash had control of the series three games to one heading into game five but Greensboro stole the last two games to split the series.
ONE-RUN BALL
In the previous series between the I-40 foes, three of the six games were decided by one run, all wins by the Dash. The latter one-run game was a 10-inning walk-off in which the Dash scored in both the ninth and tenth innings to take the win and nab their third win of the series.
BRYAN BOMBS
In the last 15 days, Bryan Ramos has been a nightmare for pitchers. Ramos has hit four home runs, the most on the Dash, and tied for the second-most in all of the South Atlantic League, driving in seven runs in the process.
MIESES MANIA
Luis Mieses has been hitting the ball and making the most of his efforts. This year, Mieses is second in the South Atlantic League in hits with 57 while leading the league with 19 doubles. Not only has he been getting himself on base though, but he’s also been driving in runs off of his hits as well, tied for sixth in the league with 34 RBI.
First pitch is slated for 7:00 p.m.
