EL1 Altoona Curve

Altoona Curve Game Information: August 1, 2014 vs. Richmond

Published on August 1, 2014 under Eastern League (EL1)
Altoona Curve News Release


ABOUT YESTERDAY: The Curve downed the division-leading Richmond Flying Squirrels 8-5 on Thursday night in the first game of the series at Peoples Natural Gas Field. Altoona got off to a quick start in the game thanks to three runs in the first inning. The offense exploded even more during the second with four more runs which included a solo home run to the opposite field by Willy Garcia and a two-run double by Stetson Allie. Zack Dodson pitched well but didn't get much help from his defense, which committed five errors (tying a season-high) in the win. The southpaw went 5.2 innings and allowed five runs (two earned) but picked up his fourth win of the season. Jeff Inman picked up his first save by working a perfect eighth and ninth innings.

CURVE/SQUIRRELS SERIES: It's been a good nearly two months since the division rival Richmond Flying Squirrels have locked horns with the Curve and much has changed since that time. The first place Squirrels enter this series with 10 wins in the 14 games played so far versus Altoona. However, three of the four Curve wins in the season-series have come here at Peoples Natural Gas Field. With the win last night for Altoona, they lead the all-time series versus Richmond 50-49.

FOR ALTOONA: RHP Pat Ludwig will take the hill for the Curve in game two of the series versus the Squirrels. The 24-year-old is 2-4 with a 6.09 ERA this season with Altoona and is coming off his second quality start of his Double- A season five days ago in Bowie. In that outing, Ludwig battled for six innings and allowed three runs to earn his second win of the season with Altoona. The Lansing, Michigan native has split some time between the Bradenton Marauders and the Curve in both the rotation and out of the bullpen. Ludwig was drafted in the 10th round of the 2012 MLB Draft from Yale University. For more on Ludwig, see page two.

FOR RICHMOND: The Squirrels will toss LHP Ty Blach in game two of the series. Blach has been one of the top pitchers in the league by holding a 7-5 record and a 3.11 ERA in 19 starts. Entering today, Blach ranks sixth in the league in ERA but had a rough July where he went 1-1 with a 4.21 ERA in four starts. In his last start on July 26 in Erie, Blach gave up five runs (four earned) on a season-most nine hits and suffered the loss. Against the Curve this year, the 23-year-old is 0-1 with a 5.59 ERA in two starts and has never exited the sixth inning in any of his starts. Blach was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB Draft from Creighton University in Omaha.

FROM THREEEEEEEEEE: With a victory in the series finale on Wednesday, the Curve have won three straight series for the first time all season and for the first time since June 12-20, 2013 when they won three straight series at New Britain, vs. Trenton and vs. New Hampshire. POINT BREAK: The Curve are 10-5 in their 15 games played since the All-Star break entering play tonight. In those 15 games, the Curve have hit .295 as a team with Willy Garcia (.397, 15 G), Gift Ngoepe (.350, 12 G) and Dan Gamache (.333, 10 G) leading the charge. The team ERA during the stretch is 3.25.

THE BRAHMA BULL(PEN): A large part for the success of the Curve since the break has been the bullpen, who have a collective ERA o f 1.91 in the 15 games since the break. They've given up fewer than a hit an inning (34 hits in 45.0 IP) and opposing hitters have hit .202 off them in the 15 games. Ryan Beckman (five games), Jeff Inman (five games) and Kenn Kasparek (six games) all have not yielded a run in that time frame. Another major factor from that bullpen has been in late-game situations. After a blown save on July 17 in the first game after the All-Star break, the Curve 'pen hasn't blown any saves in seven opportunities.

#WINNING: July was the best month for the Curve in the past two seasons. In the 31 games played, the Curve went 18-13 and batted .294 as a team, which was the best average in the league that month. With the win on Monday, the Curve clinched a winning month for the first time this season and the first time since July of 2013 (15-11). The 18 wins in a month is also the most for a Curve team in the Carlos Garcia era, which began in 2013. The last time the Curve won more than 18 games in a month was back in the 2010 season when the Curve won 20 games in August and 19 that May.

WILLY BREAK IT?: Curve outfielder Willy Garcia notched his 17th outfield assist of the season in the loss on Tuesday night to Erie when he hosed Dixon Machado at second base trying to stretch a single into a double. Garcia's 17 outfield assists are the most in the Eastern League. The 21-year-old is just one shy of matching Starling Marte's franchise record of 18 set back in the 2011 season.

BIG WILLY STYLE: On the offensive side of the diamond, Willy Garcia was no slouch in the month of July. After winning the Ghostman Games for the West as part of the E.L. All-Star Stop, Garcia has gone on a tear in the first 15 games of the unofficial second half. In those 15 games, Garcia is hitting .397 (23-for-58) with five doubles, three homers, ten RBI and ten runs scored. Since June 1, Garcia has hit .316 (56-for-177) with 21 extra-base hits (12 doubles, one triple and eight home runs). He's riding a season-best, 11-game hit streak into today's game. It's only the second time this season that a Curve player has had a hit streak of 10 or more games this season.

OMGAMACHE: Altoona infielder Dan Gamache has also been on a tear since joining Altoona in early July. The 23-year-old is batting .324 through his first 18 games and has already clubbed three home runs and 15 RBIs. He's been dominant on the road this year with all three of his long balls coming away from Curve, Pa., while all but one of his RBIs have come on the road too. Gamache has also seen some time at third base for the first time in his professional career, but has committed six errors at the position.

TEN FEET TALL: All-Star closer Kenn Kasparek has been a rock at the back end of the Curve bullpen since re-joining the team from Triple-A in early June. In 19 games total this season in Double-A, Kasparek is 1-0 with nine saves in nine opportunities while boasting a 0.69 ERA. He's whiffed 24 in 26.0 innings while opponents bat just .161 off him. The unorthodox-sling- ing righty stands at 6-feet-10-inches tall and was acquired by the Pirates as a minor league free agent on May 28, 2012.

HERE TO STAY: Josh Bell got off to a slow start after he was promoted to the Curve in the middle of July with a .111 batting average through his first five games. Since then, Bell has hit safely in nine of his ten games. The 21-year- old (who turns 22 this month) is on a seven-game hit streak and is currently batting .271. He is still aiming for his first Double-A homer but is hitting .407 (11-for-27) during his current hitting streak.

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Eastern League Stories from August 1, 2014


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