Record-setting home runs pace Pelicans

The Pelicans smashed the franchise record for team home runs, blasting three in an 8-6 victory over the Frederick Keys on Tuesday night. The Birds have hit 108, besting the previous record of 105.

The Keys got immediately after Pelicans' starter Scott Diamond, registering two runs on four consecutive hits in the first inning. Danny Figueroa led off with a single and advanced to second on a single from Miguel Abreu. Brandon Snyder followed with a double down the right field line to extend his personal hit-streak to 15 games and score Figueroa for a 1-0 lead. Chris Amador followed with a flair-single to right field to score Abreu and the Keys led after one inning, 2-0.

Frederick doubled their advantage as the defense let down Diamond in the second inning. Brandon Tripp led off with a single before errors on Travis Jones and Ernesto Mejia on back-to-back ground balls allowed him to score to make it 3-0. Figueroa then laid down a sacrifice RBI-bunt for a 4-0 advantage.

Myrtle Beach got on the board as Willie Cabrera belted a first pitch fast ball over the wall in left field off of Brandon Erbe in the fourth inning. With the blast, the Pelicans broke the franchise record for team home runs in a season with their 106th. The record had been established in the Pelicans' inaugural season of 1999.

The long-ball led the Pelicans back in to the ballgame in the fifth. With two away, Erbe conceded a double to Concepcion Rodriguez before Jon Mark Owings golfed his 15th home run of the season just over the wall in left field to trim the Keys lead to one run, 4-3. Owings' home run ties him with Brandon Hicks for the team lead.

Diamond (8-1) departed after five tumultuous innings, conceding four runs - two earned - on eight hits for the evening. He won, however as the Pelicans rescued him in the sixth.

The Pelicans robbed the Keys of the lead in the sixth, again due to the long-ball. With Tyler Flowers aboard at second base and one away, Mejia lined a double to the opposite field to tie the ballgame. Erbe lingered in the ballgame and Jones took him deep to left field to give the Pelicans a 6-4 lead. The home run also ties Jones for the team lead with 15.

Erbe (6-9) conceded all three home runs and six total runs as he departed following the Jones home run after 5 2/3 innings. He was tagged with his ninth loss of the season.

The birds tacked on an unearned run off of reliever Freddy Deza in the top of the seventh inning, but the Keys got two back in the bottom of the inning to close to a one-run game. Chris Vinyard homered to right field off of reliever Michael Broadway to trim the lead to 7-6.

Deza conceded another unearned run in the eighth as the Pelicans stretched the lead back to two on a sacrifice fly from Gorkys Hernandez that scored Jones.

The Keys loaded the bases against Tyler Wilson in the eighth inning, but he froze Amador with a lethal breaking ball to end the threat. Nick Fellman then worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning to secure the victory and his third save of the season.

With the win, the Pelicans successfully took the season-series over the Keys, winning for the 11th time against Frederick in 2008.