Blue Rocks Head Into The All-Star Break With A Loss

The Wilmington Blue Rocks couldn’t build on their momentum from Saturday, July 8, being defeated by the Brooklyn Cyclones 7-2 on Sunday, July 9. The loss marked the Rocks’ eighth in their last nine games.

Despite the hefty run total by the Cyclones, the early portion of this game featured a pitcher’s duel between Wilmington’s Kyle Luckham and Brooklyn’s Cameron Foster. Luckham went six innings, allowing three hits and striking out three, allowing just one run on a Chase Estep sacrifice fly in the fourth inning. Foster saw similar success, going 5 ⅔ innings, allowing four hits and striking out a career-high nine batters. Foster allowed just one run on a Will Frizzell RBI single in the sixth inning.

From that point forward, the Blue Rocks began to falter. Wilmington took the lead in the bottom of the seventh with a Lucius Fox RBI single, making it a 2-1 game, but it was quickly followed up with a four-run top of the eighth inning by Brooklyn.

It was kicked off by Estep, as he struck again with an RBI single to score William Lugo and tie up the game at two. Then, Omar De Los Santos singled in the very next at-bat to score Drake Osborn and give the Cyclones a 3-2 lead. They were not done there, as Cesar Berbesi doubled to right field, scoring two and giving Brooklyn a 5-2 lead.

The Cyclones were able to plate some insurance runs in the top of the ninth, with Lugo ripping an RBI double to left to score Kevin Parada. The Rocks then committed a self-inflicted wound, as Jordy Barely was unable to corral a ground ball to shortstop which allowed Stanley Consuegra to reach safely and score Lugo, making it a 7-2 game.

Fox led the Rocks’ lineup with a multi-hit game, adding in his seventh inning RBI. For the Cyclones, Berbesi recorded a three-hit game to go along with two RBI. Lugo and Estep also tallied multiple hits, with Estep also mixing in two RBI.

The loss secured a series loss for the Blue Rocks, and they will head into the All-Star break with a 34-45 record.