If the first week of the season is any indication of how the entire year will turn out, then the Wilmington Waves have certainly lived up to their promise.

The Waves opened the season in Asheville, where they took three of four from the Colorado Rockies’ Single-A affiliate. In those four games, Waves’ hitters combined to produce 35 runs and placed themselves atop of the South Atlantic League with the highest team batting average.

“We’ve been very impressive in the box and swinging the bats real well,” said Waves’ hitting coach Tony Harris, about the Waves’ overall offensive performance.

After the successful series in Asheville, the Waves traveled to Columbia, S.C., to take on the Capital City Bombers in another four-game series. This time the first two games were played in Columbia and then the final two were played in Wilmington, which included the Waves’ inaugural home opener.

In Columbia, the Waves won the first game, 9-7, but then fell in the second as Waves’ starter Fernando Rijo and the Bombers’ David Musser battled to a 2-1 Capital City victory.

Finally after six road games, the Waves were able to come to their new home and play under the lights at UNC Wilmington’s Brooks Field. They strolled into the Port City boasting a 4-2 record and excited about getting the new relationship off to a strong start.

Wilmington welcomed their new team with a capacity crowd on opening night, and the Waves repaid their fans with a stellar 1-0 shutout as 5’10” thoroughbred Jose Rojas gave up only one hit in seven innings of work.

“It was exciting,” manager Dino Ebel said. “The fans got loud…they were enjoying themselves.”

Taking part in the inaugural festivities was one of baseball’s all-time greatest legends, “Mr. Baseball” Tommy Lasorda. Lasorda, who is senior vice president of the parent Dodgers, was one of four who threw out the traditional first pitch – pitches in this case.

“We couldn’t have written a better script then what we had here tonight,” Lasorda said about the 1-0 pitcher’s duel.

Waves’ closer Greg Bauer, who earned his fourth save in the home opener, was also enthused by the showing at Brooks Field.”Outstanding! Playing in front of a full crowd, one that was into it all nine innings, was an enjoyable experience,” Bauer said.

The Waves came back the next night and treated the fans again to yet another superb pitching performance. Even more exciting than the previous night, the Waves closed out their 2-1 win with a run in the bottom of the tenth inning.

The early success has earned the Waves one of the top records in the southern division of the Sally League and given them the added confidence – if they even needed it – to expect to be there all season long.

Ebel knows his team is stocked and is focused on making them better, both as a team and as individual players. “We need to keep working harder and getting better, so we can develop these players so they can get to the next level,” Ebel said.Lasorda and the parent Dodgers share the same excitement for their up-and-coming prospects.

“These young men that we have, they’re gonna keep getting better,” Lasorda said. “Anybody that plays for Dino (Ebel), by the middle of the season, he’s a better ballplayer.”

The season is still young, but the Wilmington Waves are playing with a lot of confidence showing that they plan to be contenders right from the start. Moreover, if nothing else, they promise to provide great entertainment for area baseball fans.