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Dayton Dragons

Dragons Gameday July 13th

July 13, 2009 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Dayton Dragons News Release


The Dayton Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) meet the Cedar Rapids Kernels (affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels) in the third game of a three-game series and the wrap-up to a 10-game road trip for Dayton.

Season Series: Cedar Rapids 5, Dayton 0 (first three games at Dayton).

Dayton on the Current Road Trip: 3-6 (Dragons lost three of four at West Michigan; won two of three at Clinton).

Last Game: Cedar Rapids defeated Dayton 11-7. Dayton's Byron Wiley went 4 for 4 with a home run, double, and four runs batted in. Cody Puckett added a solo home run for Dayton. The Dragons led 5-0 after three innings before Cedar Rapids mounted their comeback. The Kernels took the lead for good in the fifth when they jumped ahead 7-6.

Today's Starting Pitcher: Midwest League All-Star Matt Fairel makes his 17th professional start tonight. Fairel has 10 quality starts this season, exactly half of the team's total of 20. His last start was Wednesday at Clinton when he earned a win (6.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO). Fairel pitched one perfect inning in the All-Star Game at Clinton. Fairel was the Midwest League Pitcher of the week for April 20-26 (1-0, 1.38, 13 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 20 SO). Fairel was selected by the Reds in the 35th round in June, 2008 but did not sign in time to play professionally last summer. Fairel was drafted after his sophomore year at Florida State University (eligible to be drafted because he turned 21 years old within 30 days of the draft). Fairel enjoyed a great college season last spring at Florida State, posting a record of 12-2 (second in ACC in victories). He was honored as a 2nd Team All-Conference choice and was also named Academic All-Conference.

Skipper: Todd Benzinger makes his professional baseball managerial debut in 2009. Benzinger enjoyed a nine-year major league playing career from 1987-1995 with the Reds, Red Sox, Royals, Dodgers, and Giants. Todd is a former first baseman who recorded the final putout of the 1990 World Series with the Reds to complete their four-game sweep of the Oakland A's. Benzinger is a native of the Cincinnati area and currently resides in West Chester, Ohio. He has enjoyed a highly-successful career coaching girls' high school basketball since 1999.

Individual Notes

- Byron Wiley is batting .403 with seven doubles, a triple, eight HR, and 27 RBI in his last 19 games, posting a slugging percentage of .861. In the nine games on the road trip, Wiley is batting .485 with five homers and 12 RBI with a .919 slugging percentage. Wiley is batting .426 in the second half.

- Kevin Coddington is batting .321 over his last 30 games, raising his average from .281 to .296.

- Andrew Means is batting .326 over his last 23 games, raising his batting average from .216 to .275.

- Miguel Rojas is batting .500 in his last six games (11 for 22) and is hitting .349 in the second half.

- Josh Fellhauer has hit in five straight games, going 11 for 22, .500.

Team Notes

- After 16 games in the second half, the Dragons are tied with Great Lakes for the second (final) seed in the second half playoff race.

- The Dragons have gone 4-10 over their last 14 games. They are 25-28 over their last 53 games.

- The Dragons are 3-9 in July with a team batting average of .268 and a team ERA of 6.18.

- Twenty-two of the Dragons 48 road games this season have been one-run games. They are 6-16 in one-run road games.

Team Batting Notes

- The Dragons are batting .284 as a team over the last 25 games.

- The Dragons are batting .280 in the second half (17 games) after batting .250 in the first half (70 games).

- The Dragons are batting .287 on the current road trip (9 games).

Team Pitching Notes

- From Opening Night (April 9) through May 15, Dragons starting pitchers were a combined 4-14 with a 5.87 ERA. From May 15-June 12, Dragons starting pitchers went 10-6, 2.75. Since June 12, Dragons starting pitchers are 7-11, 5.63.

- The Dragons have posted a 3.97 ERA as a team in their last 53 games. However, the team ERA over the last 27 games is 5.37.

- The Dragons second half team ERA is 5.03.

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Midwest League Stories from July 13, 2009


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