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Round Rock Express

Round Rock Express Game Notes

July 17, 2011 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Round Rock Express News Release


TONIGHT'S GAME

Round Rock concludes a five-game series at Memphis (St. Louis Cardinals) with a 6:05 p.m. CDT first pitch at AutoZone Park. The Express lead the series three games to four after a 3-2 victory last night. Round Rock is 5-5 in its last 10 games, while Memphis 4-6 in that time. The teams have played eight straight against each other with the Express winning five times. Round Rock is 26-20 on the road, while Memphis is 28-19 at home.

RADIO BROADCAST INFORMATION

Tonight's game airs on 104.9 FM The Horn ESPN Radio Austin. Online audio also is available at www.espnaustin.com. Express Director of Broadcasting Mike Capps handles play-by-play duties.

EXPRESS-REDBIRDS SERIES

This is the third of four series between the Express and Redbirds; Round Rock leads the series 6-5 and has won three of four in the current series. Round Rock dropped two of three in a rain-shortened series April 28-30 at Memphis, and the teams split a four-game series at The Dell Diamond last weekend. Only one of the 11 meetings was not decided by three runs or fewer. The teams have played five one-run games - two of which were extra-inning games. Memphis makes a return visit to Round Rock in late July.

EXPRESS STARTER

LHP Zach Jackson (6-3, 5.59 ERA)

Last Outing: Suffered loss in relief July 8 vs. Memphis, a 3-1 Redbirds win ... Relieved Neil Ramirez, who made a predetermined three-inning start ... Allowed two runs on six hits over 3.2 innings with one walk and two strikeouts ... Surrendered second-inning solo homer to Andrew Brown ... Also hit one batter ... Used 66 pitches, 43 strikes.

2011: Makes 19th appearance, 16th start tonight ... Express are 11-4 in his starts - best on staff ... Averages 6.40 runs of support per start ... Logged 96.2 innings with 50 strikeouts against 30 walks and a .302 opponents' average ... 4-2 with a 4.89 ERA (23 ER / 42.1 IP) over last nine outings with a 2.74 ERA (7 ER / 23.0 IP) in the four wins ... Express are 6-1 in his last seven starts, winning each of the last four ... Worked at least into the sixth inning in 13 of 15 starts, going at least 7.0 innings three times ... Carried no-hitter into the eighth inning April 20 at Oklahoma City; bid broken up on first pitch of eighth inning ... Wins April 9 vs. Iowa, April 20 at Oklahoma City, May 27 vs. Iowa, June 1 at Oklahoma City, June 12 at Iowa and June 20 vs. Omaha ... Losses May 16 at Las Vegas, June 6 vs. Albuquerque and July 8 vs. Memphis ... 9.39 ERA in three losses (14 ER / 11.2 IP) ... 3.44 ERA in six wins (14 ER / 36.2 IP) ... 3-1, 5.09 ERA, .255 opponents' average in seven starts on the road ... Nine of 12 home runs allowed at home ... Seven of 12 home runs allowed were solo shots, including six of last eight ... First-inning ERA is 9.60 (16 ER / 15.0 IP) ... 3.25 ERA (22 ER / 61.0 IP) during innings two through five ... Opponents hitting .216 (8-for-37) with runners in scoring position and two outs with two home runs, two walks and nine strikeouts ... Allowed three hits, a walk and two sacrifice flies with one double play in 10 bases-loaded situations ... Opponents hit .358 (34-for-95) with three home runs, seven walks and seven strikeouts when leading off an inning.

2011 vs. Memphis: No-decision in April 30 start at Memphis, a 10-7 Redbirds victory ... Left game leading 5-3 ... Memphis scored seven runs in the inning following his exit, including one bequeathed runner ... Allowed four runs on six hits over 6.1 innings with one walk and four strikeouts ... Also hit three batters ... Suffered loss in relief July 8 at The Dell Diamond (see above for more information).

2010: Spent entire season with Triple-A Las Vegas in the Toronto Blue Jays organization ... 2-3 with a 5.64 ERA in 35 games, five starts; 49 strikeouts over 81.1 innings.

Notable: Drafted by Chicago White Sox in 50th round of 2001 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of high school but did not sign ... LaTrobe, Pa., native began collegiate career at Louisville before transferring to Texas A&M ... Toronto Blue Jays first-round pick in 2004 after one season at Texas A&M ... MLB debut June 4, 2006, with Blue Jays vs. Washington Nationals ... Also spent time in Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Indians organizations ... Was part of the July 7, 2008, trade that sent C.C. Sabathia from Milwaukee from Cleveland ... Signed minor league contract with Rangers in January.

LAST NIGHT'S GAMES

Martin Perez earned the victory in his first career Triple-A start as the Express clipped the Redbirds 3-2. It was the fifth one-run decision in 11 games between the teams this season. Joey Butler's sixth-inning solo homer that gave Round Rock a 3-1 lead proved to be the game-deciding hit. Perez allowed one run on six hits over 5.0 innings with no walks and four strikeouts. Leonys Martin was 3-for-4, including a third-inning RBI single that snapped a scoreless tie and gave the Express a lead they would never relinquish.

DIVISION STANDINGS UPDATE

Round Rock (55-39, .585) holds a six-game lead over Albuquerque (49-45, .521) in the American Southern Division. While the Express won 3-2 at Memphis last night, the Isotopes won two games at Nashville - concluding Friday's suspended game (8-4 in 13 innings) and winning the regularly scheduled contest (3-2). Albuquerque snapped a four-game losing streak with last night's wins. The Express are 18-8 since June 18; the Isotopes are 10-16 in that time. Round Rock has at least shared the division lead following 72 of 94 games this season. New Orleans (46-48, .489) snapped a six-game winning streak last night, losing 9-5 at Omaha; the Zephyrs trail Round Rock by nine games. Oklahoma City (40-54, .426) is 15 games back. The Express are 17-14 against their division foes.

EXPRESS AMONG TOP PCL TEAMS

At 55-39 (.585), Round Rock owns the PCL's second-best record behind Reno (56-36, .609). Furthermore, the Express are four games ahead of Omaha (51-43, .543) in the overall American Conference standings. Round Rock is two wins shy of matching last year's season total; the 2010 Express - then the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros - posted their 55th victory Sept. 3 - four games from the end of the season.

ROUND ROCK vs. AMERICAN NORTHERN DIVISION

The Express are 31-16 against American Northern Division teams this season, winning 12 of their last 15 such games. Round Rock has completed its season series against Iowa, winning nine of 16 meetings. The Express are 7-1 against Omaha - all at The Dell Diamond - and 9-3 against Nashville. Round Rock leads the season series against Memphis six games to five.

MEMPHIS vs. AMERICAN SOUTHERN DIVISION

The Redbirds are 25-21 against American Southern Division foes; Memphis had won eight straight against such opponents prior to dropping five of eight against Round Rock. Memphis has concluded its season series against New Orleans, winning seven of 16 meetings. The Redbirds are 11-1 against Oklahoma City and 3-5 against Albuquerque. The Redbirds currently trail division-leading Omaha by two games in the American Northern Division.

NO REST FOR THE WEARY

Tonight's game continues a 29-game, 28-day stretch for the Express. With only one off-day between the All-Star break and the end of the regular season, Round Rock will play 54 games in 54 days. The Express are 3-1 during this stretch.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Round Rock (26-20, .556) owns the best road record in the American Conference. The Express and Omaha (24-23, .511) are the only American Conference teams above .500 on the road; in fact, each of the other six American Conference teams are at least five games under .500 on the road. Sacramento (30-13, .698) owns the PCL's best road record. After winning three of the first four games in this series, the Express have clinched their first road series since taking three of four June 9-12 at Iowa. Round Rock is 4-4 in road series with three splits.

PITCHING STRONG AGAINST MEMPHIS

After surrendering at least 10 runs in all three games July 4-6 at Albuquerque, Round Rock pitchers have held Memphis to four or fewer runs in seven of eight games. The Express staff owns a 3.90 ERA (29 ER / 67.0 IP) during that time. Round Rock is seventh in the PCL with a 4.88 ERA and third with 689 strikeouts.

BIG-FLY GUYS

The Express enter tonight's game with 124 home runs on the season. Round Rock - the first PCL team to 100 home runs this season - is tied with Reno (124) for the league lead. Albuquerque (113) and Nashville (102) are the only other American Conference teams with at least 100 home runs. The Express clubbed 40 homers over the last 26 games after being shutout in consecutive games. Round Rock already has eclipsed the franchise's season totals from 2009 (97) and 2010 (108). The Express hit 170 home runs in 2006, an average of 1.18 per game and still the club's Triple-A era (since 2005) record. The 2011 Express average 1.32 home runs per game and are on pace to hit 189 on the season.

OFFENSE STRUGGLES WITHOUT HOMERS

The Express have homered in 62 of 94 games this season, going 41-21 in those games. However, Round Rock is just 14-18 when failing to hit at least one home run. The Express average 3.75 runs per game (120 total) when failing to homer. Round Rock has not scored more than six runs in a game without a home run since an 8-4 win June 3 at Oklahoma City. Meanwhile, Round Rock averages 5.95 runs per game (369 total) when hitting at least one home run. The Express have homered in 25 of their last 36 games and scored a total of 29 runs in the other 11 games, getting shutout three times and scoring one run three times.

MORE HOME-RUN NUMBERS

Round Rock has won 14 of its last 17 games when hitting at least one home run. ... Only twice this season have the Express gone more than two straight games without a home run - a four-game stretch in mid-April, and a three-game stretch earlier this month. ... Round Rock has homered at least twice 36 times, going 27-9 in those games. Twelve of the 36 games were on the road, and the Express were 9-3 in those games. ... The Express are 15-2 when hitting at least three home runs and 6-0 when hitting at least four home runs. ... Round Rock has two five-homer games (June 18 vs. Omaha, June 19 vs. Omaha), two five-homer games (May 15 at Las Vegas, June 28 vs. Oklahoma City) and one six-homer game (April 9 vs. Iowa). ... The six-homer game was the second-best game total in franchise history, a single-game Dell Diamond record and one homer shy of the club record set at Albuquerque in 2006.

ROUND ROCK PERFECT FOLLOWING CONSECUTIVE LOSSES

The Express have not suffered a three-game skid this season, going 12-0 following consecutive losses. Every other PCL team has suffered three consecutive losses at least once. Reno lost three straight only once. Eleven of the other 14 teams have lost at least five straight at some point this season. Albuquerque and Las Vegas both suffered 10-game skids, the league's longest this season. Nashville and Sacramento both lost nine straight.

NO LATE LOSSES AS OF LATE

The Express have won 19 straight when leading after seven innings and 19 straight when leading after eight innings. Round Rock is 42-3 this season when leading after eight innings; all three losses came in a 12-game span in the second half of May. The last time Round Rock lost when leading after eight innings was May 28 when Iowa posted three ninth-inning runs for a 6-4 win at The Dell Diamond. The Express have not lost a game when leading after nine innings.

BIG-INNING THEORY

Round Rock is 19-5 this season when scoring at least four runs in an inning and 36-34 when failing to do such. However, the difference in record is even more pronounced based upon what the opponent does. The Express are 50-23 when not allowing an inning of at least four runs but 5-16 when the opponent posts such an inning. Round Rock posted an inning of at least four runs in three of the five victories when allowing an inning of at least four runs. Likewise, the opponent had an inning of at least four runs in three of Round Rock's five losses with an inning of at least four runs.

COMEBACK KIDS

The Express have 30 comeback wins this season (trailing at any point in the game). Round Rock has won 10 times when trailing after five innings, seven times when trailing after six innings, seven times when trailing after seven innings and four times when trailing entering the ninth inning.

FIVE IS THE KEY

Round Rock is 46-12 this season when scoring at least five runs. Only nine times have the Express won when scoring fewer than five runs. Meanwhile, Round Rock is 34-13 when allowing fewer than five runs and 21-26 when allowing five or more.

EXPRESS LEAD PCL IN ATTENDANCE

Round Rock leads the PCL in attendance, averaging 8,503 fans per game. Sacramento is second with a 7,977 per-game average, while Albuquerque (7,725) is third. The Express have finished second or third in the PCL each season since joining the league in 2005.

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