The Delmarva Shorebirds barely edged out a 4-3 winning record this past week vs Salem.
The series was filled with crazy moments, as the Shorebirds walked off three of the four wins and even ended the series with a doubleheader.
Delmarva moves to a 5-10 record during the second half, tied for last with Lynchburg and currently eight games back of first. The Shorebirds are going to need to turn something around to fix this down season.
When talking about this series you need to bring up second baseman, Luis Valdez. Although in the series Valdez was a one trick pony, That one trick really helped “speed” up the number of runs scored.
Valdez really used his speed to control the game, as in the series he stole five bases, including four in the first game Sunday before the fifth inning. He would have two doubles in the series as well and rack up four RBIs, as Valdez now currently leads the Carolina League in stolen bases with 41.
What else is there better to talk about than the second overall pick in 2020? Another amazing series for Heston Kjerstad.
Kjerstad batted .529 in the series against Salem with a OBP of .652. He included this with nine hits, six walks and five RBIs! The stud outfielder was once again proving why he was the O’s top pick, and we love to see it.
Kjerstad performed so well at Delmarva that he received a promotion to High-A Aberdeen. Congratulations, Heston!
One of the underrated, impactful players of the series was starting pitcher, Deivy Cruz. Now as a starter, he only pitched one game, but he pitched a pretty phenomenal game, which is, of course, different than the final score.
Cruz went 4.1 innings, gave up three hits, two earned runs, four walks and struck out seven. Now as for the actual game of a 12-4 final going Salem’s way, it didn’t fully help. But it did help show a little brighter future moving forward.
Deivy is only 18 years of age, and in only his third game, second start with Delmarva, he has kept a 2.19 ERA and a WHIP around 1.30, while having an opponent average of just .174.
We will see that as the rest of the season progresses, the Shorebirds are going to be a team that must be watched. Between what Luis Valdez is doing at the plate and the chance of seeing FCL stars like Samuel Basallo and Maikol Hernandez, Delmarva will get back on track in no time.
The Shorebirds begin their new series tonight against the Carolina Mudcats, with first pitch at 6:05 p.m. EST.
Who stood out to you for Delmarva this week? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook and Twitter! And make sure to use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content to show your Birdland swag!
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