Orioles bid adieu with win

BLUEFIELD — Wednesday was a night of farewells. Jim Pettus was presiding over his final game as Bluefield Orioles general manager and Andrew Hill entertained the fans for the final time as the Bluefield Orioles' mascot.

Both men went out on a winning note. Brenden Webb tripled in the eighth inning and scored the game-winning run and Andy Deain and Sam Taveras provided strong innings as Bluefield beat the Pulaski Mariners 5-4 Wednesday night at Bowen Field.

"The team started hitting right now," said Bluefield manager Einar Diaz. "The thing is with the pitching right now, but the team is still hitting, competing at the plate and we need to pull it all together right now."

"What can you say?" said Pulaski manager Eddie Menchaca. "We came in too confident and that's what happens. You can't show up and play thinking you're going to win easy. You've got to come out here and play baseball and I don't think we did this whole series."

The clubs had played evenly for the 3 1-2 innings leading up to the bottom of the eighth. Staring at a 2-1 pitch, Webb lined it through the gap in right center field then motored around to third base. Moments later, a pitch got away from Pulaski catcher Hassiel Jimenez and Webb capitalized, scoring the winning run.

"It was lucky that it was a time that the catcher missed the ball," Diaz said. "The catcher missed the ball and we scored the winning run."

Bluefield starter Jarret Martin got off to a shaky start, allowing three runs in the first inning and four over four innings of work. It fell to Deain and Taveras to pick up the slack and they responded with five combined shutout innings. Taveras earned his second win in as many decisions.

"They gave us a chance to win the game," Diaz said. "They kept us in the game after Martin had trouble in the first inning and they came and played well."

Pulaski starter Nolan Diaz was shaken early, giving up a home run to the second batter he faced, Moises Ciriaco. He recovered, not allowing a runner for the rest of his first three innings. But he fell apart in the fourth and was pulled with two outs in the inning. He scattered four runs and four hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

However, the decision fell to Preston Vancil (1-1), who gave up a run and a hit in his lone inning of work, the eighth.

No member of the Orioles had multiple hits, but they did contribute big hits. In addition to Webb's triple and Ciriaco's two-run homer, his second of the season, Luis Ramirez contributed a key two-RBI single in the fourth that tied the game.

The lone player with multiple hits was Pulaski's Ramon Morla, who finished 2-for-4 and scored a run in the first inning.

Martin struggled out of the gate, allowing the first five Pulaski batters to reach base and walking four of them. Three of them eventually scored, one on an error by first baseman Joseph Velleggia, one on a bases-loaded walk and one on a double play.

But according to Menchaca, the three-run outburst may have done more harm than good.

"You've got to play baseball after the first inning," Menchaca said. "You've still got to hit and you've still got to play 27 outs.

"I just think we didn't come to play to be honest with you. I think this is the last three games on the road for nine games. That shouldn't be an excuse, but we didn't show up at all."

The Orioles got two of those runs back immediately. Ciriaco smacked a two-run homer to left that also scored Kyle Hoppy, who had reached on an infield single.

Pulaski extended their lead by a run in the top of the fourth inning. Mario Yepez singled to right to bring in Jabari Blash from second base.

But Bluefield was able to limit the damage in the top of the fourth. Then in the bottom of the frame, they drew level. Ramirez delivered the game-tying hit, a single to left center, that allowed Brenden Webb and Brad Decater safe passage home.

The Orioles threatened for more, loading the bases with two outs and chasing Diaz in the process. But Hoppy struck out to end the frame.

All the strikeout did was build suspense for Webb's eighth-inning heroics.

Pulaski (19-17) returns home for a three-game series against Kingsport beginning tonight.

"You've just got to go out there and play baseball," Menchaca said. "I guess you've got to come out and play. We're coaches and we're not players, so our job is to just come out, think positive, just keep on moving up and saying, 'Hey, you know what? We're all right.'"

Bluefield (12-24) travels to Burlington for a three-game series also beginning tonight.

"We've got to keep playing, you know," Diaz said, "try to win more games."

—Contact Jed Lockett

at jlockett@bdtonline.com

At Bowen Field

Pulaski..............300 100 000 — 4 8 0

Bluefield........200 200 01x —5 5 1

Nolan Diaz, Tim Griffin (4), Preston Vancil (8) and Hassiel Jimenez. Jarret Martin, Andy Deain (5), Sam Taveras (8) and Michael Ohlman. WP—Taveras (2-0). LP —Vancil (1-1). HR—Moises Ciriaco (2). Att—714.

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