WILMINGTON, Del. (6/24) – The Wilmington Blue Rocks received another encouraging performance from their pitching staff, but their offensive struggles continued in a 2-0 loss to the Frederick Keys Thursday night at Frawley Stadium.
With top prospect Eli Willits out of the lineup and Wilmington coming off a scoreless performance the night before, the Blue Rocks needed a bounce-back effort at the plate. Instead, they managed just two hits and were shut out for a second consecutive game.
Despite the lack of offense, starting pitcher Miguel Sime Jr. kept Wilmington within striking distance after a rocky opening inning.
Frederick scored both of its runs in the first, but Sime quickly settled in, striking out seven batters over three and two-third innings while preventing any further damage.
“I was a little shaky after those first two hitters got some good swings off me,” Sime said. “After that, I kind of settled in and got back to doing what I do.”
The Blue Rocks’ lineup, however, could not solve Frederick’s pitching staff.
Keys starter Caden Hunter dominated over five scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out eight. Relievers Richard Guasch and Riley Cooper combined to finish the shutout, tossing four scoreless innings with six strikeouts.
Wilmington had now gone 18 consecutive innings without scoring and collected only two hits over its last two games, but defensive coach Mitchell Boe said there was little concern inside the clubhouse.
“I think we just keep showing up and putting in the work,” Boe said. “Those guys are going to get the bats rolling. It’s baseball. We ran into some really good arms. They were throwing strikes and executing. We just have to keep showing up.”
While the offense struggled, Wilmington’s pitching continued to provide positives.
Bryan Polanco, who opened the season in the starting rotation, delivered four scoreless innings in relief. The right-hander allowed just one hit while striking out four and gave the Blue Rocks every opportunity to climb back into the game.
“After every inning, it was just, ‘Send him back out there. He’s doing great,'” Boe said. “So we just kept rolling with him.”
Outside of Frederick’s two-run first inning, Wilmington’s pitchers surrendered only two hits and struck out 10 batters, matching the Keys’ strikeout total while holding one of the South Atlantic League’s top offenses in check.
Although the losing streak reached two games, the Blue Rocks left encouraged by another strong showing from their pitching staff. Their focus now shifts to rediscovering an offense that had been among the league’s hottest entering the series.
Wilmington will look to snap both its scoreless streak and two-game skid Friday night when it hosts Frederick for Game 3 of the series.
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