BlueClaws Pitching Too Much in 4-1 Loss

LAKEWOOD- The Asheville Tourists had no answer for the Jersey Shore BlueClaws pitching on Sunday afternoon. Asheville was held to five hits, all singles, and struck out 14 times in their attempt to salvage a series split. Jersey Shore ended up with a 4-1 win.

Joey Mancini allowed a run in the bottom of the first inning but did a nice job settling in. Mancini went 4.1 innings and limited the BlueClaws to only the first inning run.

Asheville loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the fifth but were limited to one run that came on a Ryan Wrobleski groundout. Jersey Shore turned an inning-ending double play to keep the game tied up 1-1.

In the bottom of the fifth, a mental miscue cost the Tourists a run and put the BlueClaws back in front. Jersey Shore added two more runs in the sixth on a pair of two-out RBI hits. Asheville did not put a runner in scoring position during the final four frames.

John Garcia was the lone Tourists player with a multi-hit game. Garcia went 2-for-4 and finished the series with a team-high six hits. No other Tourists player had more than four hits throughout the six-game series.

The Tourists offense has gone 18 straight games without a double-digit hit performance and are batting .185 with 195 strikeouts, 31% of their plate appearances, during that stretch. During the same stretch, the Tourists pitching staff has posted a respectable 4.38 ERA to consistently keep Asheville in ballgames.

The Tourists open up a six-game series at McCormick Field on Tuesday night against the Brooklyn Cyclones. The first pitch is slated for 6:35pm ET.