18 Strikeouts, Five-Run Seventh Lifts Salem Past Pelicans, 8-5

SALEM, Va. – The Salem RidgeYaks (28-45, 3-5) erased a two-run seventh inning deficit with a five-run bottom of the frame, storming past the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (31-41, 4-4), 8-5 on Saturday night at Carilion Clinic Field.

After falling behind 5-3 in the top of the seventh, Salem responded with its biggest inning of the night, capitalizing on timely hitting and a costly Myrtle Beach error to complete the comeback.

Myrtle Beach struck first in the fourth inning against Salem reliever Yermain Ruiz. Ezequiel Pena lined an RBI single to left to score Derniche Valdez before Alexis Hernandez drew a bases-loaded walk later in the frame, giving the Pelicans a 2-0 advantage.

The RidgeYaks answered immediately in the bottom half. Skylar King reached and eventually scored on Louis Andujar's sharp RBI double into center field, trimming the deficit to 2-1.

Salem grabbed its first lead an inning later without recording an extra-base hit. Andrews Opata and Givian Sirvania both reached before King delivered a two-run single to left. A fielding error by left fielder Edward Vargas allowed King to advance to second as both runners crossed the plate, putting the RidgeYaks in front 3-2.

The Pelicans evened the score in the sixth when Alexey Lumpuy lined an RBI single to right, scoring Pena to make it 3-3.

Myrtle Beach appeared to seize the game in the seventh. Valdez opened the inning with a one-out single before Vargas ripped a triple to center that scored Valdez. An errant throw allowed Vargas to come all the way around to score, extending the Pelicans' lead to 5-3.

Salem's offense wasted little time responding.

Avinson Pinto worked a leadoff walk before Opata followed with another free pass. With two runners in scoring position and two-outs, Andujar lined a two-run single to left, tying the game at five.

The inning extended with an Andruw Musett single and Anderson Fermin reaching on a throwing error by first baseman Michael Carico, allowing Andujar to score the go-ahead run while Musett advanced to third. The very next batter, D'Angelo Ortiz lined a two-run single into right field, plating Musett and Fermin to cap the five-run outburst and give Salem an 8-5 lead.

Adam Bates (2-4) earned the victory in relief, allowing two runs over two innings while striking out five. Joey Gartrell worked a perfect ninth inning with three strikeouts to record his first save of the season.

Christian Foutch delivered his best start of the season, striking out five over three innings hitless and scoreless.

Salem pitchers totaled 18 strikeouts, matching a season high, while limiting Myrtle Beach to four runs earned despite six RidgeYaks errors.

Offensively, Andujar enjoyed his best game of the season, going 2-for-4 with three RBIs, including the game-tying two-run single in the seventh. King finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and scored once, while Musett collected three hits. Ortiz delivered the decisive blow with a two-run single, and Opata reached base twice and scored twice in the victory.

The RidgeYaks will look to finish the six-game series with another win on Sunday afternoon at Carilion Clinic Field. Salem needs a win to force the series split as southpaw Jason Gilman gets the baseball.

Game Notes:

• Salem pitchers struck out 18 batters tying for the most in a single game this season (April 9 vs Wilson)
• The pitching staff has accumulated double digit punchouts for the 11^th straight game and 13 of their last 14 contents
• Andruw Musett went 3-for-4 to extend his on-base streak to 16 games
• The 16-game on-base streak since May 24 is the longest on-base streak by any 2026 Salem RidgeYaks player
• Musett has now reached base safely in 19 of his 20 games this season with Salem
• Musett has recorded at least one hit in 14 of his 20 games this season
• Skylar King stole three bases on the night marking a new career high in stolen bases
• King went 2-for-4 for his third consecutive game this week and now owns 10 multi-hit games this season
• King is 7-for-16 (.438) through three games of the series so far
• Louis Andujar set a new Single-A career high with his three RBI
• Andujar saw just one RBI through his first 20 game with Single-A Salem, and three RBI on Saturday night alone
• Salem’s six errors in the field marked a new season high and the most in a game since July 18, 2025 vs Fayetteville (6)
• Salem’s five-run seventh inning marked the most runs Salem has scored in a seventh inning this season and the first time since June 9 the Yaks have scored 5+ runs in a single frame