Pelicans sweep P-Nats in openers

Knowing there were at least 14 innings ahead of them entering the day, the Potomac Nationals needed their starting pitchers Jhonny Nunez and Terrence Engles to throw deep into their respec-tive doubleheader games against visiting Myrtle Beach Tuesday evening.

Thanks to a rainy Monday, the Carolina League’s top two teams began their three-game series with two seven-inning affairs a day later.

Both Nunez and Engles did their parts to limit Potomac’s bullpen usage, eating up 11 innings be-tween the two contests in front of an announced crowd of 797.

Nunez, who was acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers for Marlon Anderson in 2006, tossed five innings of shutout baseball in the first game, one of his best starts in 2008.

Of course, Nunez had no control over the relief corps’ performance once the call was made and the bullpen gave up six runs in the sixth. He also had no control over an offense that went silent as Potomac was one-hit by Myrtle Beach starter Deunte Heath and lost, 6-1.

In the second game, Engles looked every bit like the pitcher he was with Hagerstown, holding Myrtle Beach to one run on three hits in six frames of work, his best outing at the High-A level. After going 3-0 with a 1.89 ERA at Low-A, Engles (0-3) struck out seven Pelicans, including Brandon Hicks — Atlanta’s No. 14 prospect — three times in a 1-0 loss.

Potomac manager Randy Knorr saw Carlos Martinez (0-1) load the bases in the sixth with two outs in Game 1, resulting in a call to closer Adam Carr who then worked Brandon Powell to a full-count before walking the Pelicans third baseman and tying the game. The Myrtle Beach offense awoke with the walk and went on to tally four hits in the frame and all their runs.

But Nunez showed marked improvement over his last three starts, a stretch that spanned just 10 innings. Against Myrtle Beach May 7, Nunez allowed five earned runs on seven hits in just four innings of work.

“He’s got great stuff,” pitching coach Randy Tomlin said of Nunez. “He’s learning to get out there and pitch, not to overthrow and that’s what’s hurt him in the past. He tries to overpower guys in-stead of trusting his stuff.”

Washington’s No. 25 prospect, Nunez struck out four and did not issue a walk last night. It was the only appearance at Potomac this season that the 6-foot-3 right-hander did not allow a run but still failed to register his first win of the year.

“It was a good outing for him,” Tomlin said, “and it’s something we can build off of and hopefully keep him going.”

Offensively, Potomac was down to its final strike in the seventh inning of the first game when Francisco Plasencia lined a single up the middle ahead of Seth Bynum’s game-ending strikeout. The only blemish on Heath’s 5-1 record was courtesy of the Nationals, a 4-1 Potomac win at Myrtle Beach in his last start.

“The pitching’s been outstanding but the offense, they’ve just got to get it going,” Knorr said.

In the nightcap, Potomac wasted no time jumping into the hit column with two in the first inning and had hits in each of its first four turns. But Myrtle Beach starter Kyle Cofield (2-4) worked out of trouble each time, stranding seven Nationals on the bases in five innings.

Potomac left 10 on base in the game.

Engles, who missed all of 2007 with personal issues, retired the Pelicans in order four times, us-ing a sharp curveball to keep the opposition guessing.

“I’ve had that pitch and it’s been my best pitch,” Engles said. “I’ve got it now where I can throw it for strikes and it keeps the hitters off balance.

“A couple times I left it up,” he added, “but I worked down in the zone with my fastball the first couple pitches and then I can use my curveball. It felt really good.”

Engles said he feels like he’s settling in at the High-A level after initially struggling and Knorr likes what he is seeing from a pitching staff that has lost top prospects Jordan Zimmermann, Zech Zinicola and lefty Cory VanAllen.

“We lost some quality guys but they’re filling in well,” Knorr said. “They’ve done a nice job and it’ll be nice to get Nunez rolling a bit here. Like I said, the pitching’s been outstanding.

“These guys are better than what they’ve been showing,” the manager said of his offense. “I don’t know if they’re disappointed that they’re here. Regardless of what it is, they’ve got to get over it — if this is how they’re going to play then they’re going to be here all year.”