KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — The Kannapolis Cannon Ballers stole a victory against the Fayetteville Woodpeckers Wednesday night with a 4-3 win thanks in large part to starter Chase Solesky’s strong outing.
Kannapolis looked to rebound after dropping their series opener on Tuesday. Solesky took to the mound and had things working for him early on. The Tulane product recorded five strikeouts in the first two innings and was keeping the Woodpeckers on their heels at the plate. One thing that Solesky was utilizing was targeting the down and away breaking pitches to keep the opposition out on their front foot, making the Woodpecker bats look silly.
Jose Rodriguez returned to the lineup after his near-week absence from the diamond as a result of what the team called “muscle tightness.” He was tested early in the contest as he picked up an error on an bad throw to first baseman Harvin Mendoza, allowing the Woodpeckers’ Jordan Brewer to reach base. The rust was very apparent for the Dominican, collecting another two errors later in the contest.
While the glove work needed to shake off the rust, his bat picked up where it left off in the first inning. He lined a double down the left field line and eventually scored later on a Luis Mieses sac-fly. Rodriguez would go on to record another hit in the fifth inning for his 14th multi-hit game of the year.
After cruising through two innings, Solesky hit a rough patch in the third. The Woodpeckers grabbed a one-run lead thanks to a walk, single and triple. Solesky was ahead in the count on both the single and triple, with the triple coming with two outs in the inning.
The Florida native rebounded with a 1-2-3 4th inning, but hit a wall in the 5th inning. Rodriguez’s second and third errors both came in the frame which put Solesky in a tough spot, accumulating two runners and reaching north of 80 pitches on the night. Manager Guillermo Quiroz had seen enough and pulled his right hander.
Quiroz had a long chat with Rodriguez while they waited on southpaw Ty Madrigal to come in relief. Madrigal was able to close out the inning with two pop-outs. Solesky ended his night with a decent final line: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 8 K, BB.
He is slowly joining the conversation as the top arm in Kannapolis to date in the 2021 season.Â
The Cannon Ballers scuffled at the plate after getting the early run. They combined for three baserunners and eight strikeouts between the end of the first inning and the beginning of the seventh. The approach had to change for Kannapolis to have a chance at the win. The team diverted to the small ball approach, led by Harvin Mendoza.
Mendoza had been trying to beat the shift to the right field pull side all night long. The lefty tried to bunt opposite the shift, but found himself collecting two hits by poking the ball through the left side hole with his second hit leading off a frame. Cabera Weaver followed up with an infield single to put runners on first and second base. Samil Polanco reached base for the eighth straight contest on a single up the middle that scored Mendoza.
WIth the game knotted at two runs, Daniel Millwee wanted to get in on some small ball and lay down a bunt. Woodpeckers pitcher Alfredi Jimenez fielded the ball and fired it just out of the reach of the first baseman. The throw careened down towards the home bullpen and scored both Weaver and Polanco on the play, giving the lead back to Kannapolis 4-2.
Homer Cruz had taken over for Madrigal in the seventh but almost lost the lead in the eighth inning. A single, hit-by-pitch and walk loaded the bases for Fayetteville. Quiroz’s hand was forced as he called for closer McKinley Moore.
The fire-throwing Moore was used to coming in for an inning plus of work, having two outings longer than an inning previously. Moore did allow a run on an error by Bryan Ramos at second base. The 19-year-old Ramos had single digit appearances in the field coming into Wednesday’s contest.
Aside from the error, Ramos looked quite comfortable on the diamond with mostly routine opportunities. We know how impressive his adjustment to Low-A ball has been at the plate, but the next step in his development will to handle a defensive position.
With a 4-3 lead, Moore closed the door on the Woodpeckers in the eighth and ninth to record save No. 5 on the year to secure the win. Kannapolis returns to the diamond Thursday to take the series lead against the Woodpeckers. Look for Jesus Valles, a June 1 call-down from Winston-Salem, to take to the bump for the Cannon Ballers.Â
Photo credit: Michael Guariglia/FutureSox
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