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Nunez throws two-hitter over seven innings

 BY RONNIE GALLAGHER
SALISBURY POST

Wow!

It’s a simple word, one the 22-year old right-hander from Ricon, Dominican Republic should know by now. He has been hearing it since the season started.

The fans were again yelling it Tuesday night in Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium after the Boll Weevils won their sixth straight game. The Cape Fear Crocs, one of the top hitting clubs in the South Atlantic League, were saying it after being stymied on two hits in a 4-0 loss.

While Nunez has trouble speaking to the press about his golden arm, other team members are more than happy to oblige.

‘‘The kid can pitch,’’ whewed manager Ken Oberkfell. ‘‘When he gets his curveball over, he’s nasty.’’

Catcher Jeremy Salazar had a closer view of Nunez’s two-hitter over seven innings.

‘‘He came out with a lot of control,’’ Salazar said. ‘‘As far as his offspeed pitches, his curve and changeup were exceptional. And he was throwing 94, 96 miles per hour. When you’ve got that kind of stuff, it’s hard to lose.’’

Losing is not in the Weevils’ vocabulary right now. The win upped the SAL record to 21-17. Coupled with Columbia’s 17-2 loss to Macon, the surging Weevils are now within 3*z12 games of first in the Central Division.

Salazar said there is no exact science when it comes to a winning streak.

‘‘It’s baseball,’’ he shrugged. ‘‘You’ll have ups and downs. You just have to keep it on an even keel because you’ll have valleys. You can’t get too high.’’

Nunez retired the first eight Crocs in order before allowing a skipping single in the third and a double in the fifth. But Cape Fear, hitting .264, got only one man to third and one to second against the top-rated staff (2.70 ERA) in all of minor league baseball.

When Nunez gave way to Jonathan Rose in the eighth, he already had 10 strikeouts. Rose and Clay Eason, who pitched the ninth, never lost stride, combining for five more.

‘‘Usually good pitching will stop good hitting the majority of the time,’’ Oberkfell said. ‘‘We’ve got great pitching. We’ve had great pitching since Day 1.’’

The hitting is beginning to come alive as well. In the first two innings, Piedmont had a runner caught stealing and one picked off. A runner was thrown out at the plate and one rally was doused by a double play.

Earlier in the year, that spelled doom for a stagnant offense. Now, as the hottest team in the SAL, the Weevils are bouncing back. Instead of losing focus after the early troubles, Oberkfell turned to Alejandro Giron for some quick offense.

‘‘We stayed aggressive and I’m happy with that,’’ Oberkfell said.

In the fourth, Giron, getting the start in rightfield, slugged a two-run homer, also scoring Carlos Duncan, who had singled. It was all the runs Nunez would need.

‘‘I wanted to get Giron in the lineup and get him some at-bats,’’ Oberkfell said. ‘‘Our offense wasn’t exactly the ‘27 Yankees so I figured, ‘Let’s make some changes and see if we can get a spark. Giron’s been that spark.’’

The final two Piedmont runs came on sacrifice fies. Duncan scored Uriel Casillas in the fifth and Salazar brought home Giron in the seventh.

Salazar, one of the oldest Weevils, said the youngsters were finally growing up.

‘‘We have a lot of young guys,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s a ballclub that’s learning as it goes.’’

But in the overall scheme of things, pitching is still the key.

‘‘By far, it has carried us,’’ Oberkfell said. ‘‘With our pitchers, we’ve got a shot to win every night.’’

That’s easy enough to understand in any language.

NOTES: The Weevils are 17-5 when the starters get at least three runs. ... Cape Fear fell to 20-17 in the Northern Division. ... Jason Johnson had two hits and leads the team with 45. ... The starters have given up just six runs in the last six games. ... When reminded that the hard-luck Nunez is only 3-4, Oberkfell shook his head. ‘‘That’s amazing,’’ he said. ... Piedmont has given up just 141 runs in 338.2 innings. ... Cape Fear was hot until last night, having scored 27 runs in its previous four games. ... Greg Kubes (4-2, 2.68) will pitch tonight. ... It is Nick Maddox Night at Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium.