CarL1 Down East Wood Ducks

April 5 Game Information

Published on April 5, 2019 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Down East Wood Ducks News Release


Tonight the Wood Ducks will host the Mudcats for the second game of their four game series, at 7 p.m. Lefty Tyler Thomas (0-0, -.--) will make the start for Down East, opposed by righty Nelson Hernandez (0-0, -.--) for Carolina. The game will be broadcast on 960AM The Bull, and online at 960thebull.com as well as on TuneIn Radio and the MiLB First Pitch apps, beginning at 6:50.

LAST TIME OUT: The Wood Ducks picked up an opening day win over the Mudcats, 6-4, led by five shutout innings from Tyler Phillips, and clutch hitting from Leody Taveras. Down East Led 4-0 after five innings, but Carolina drew even in the seventh. The Woodies then responded with two runs in the home seventh to reclaim the lead. Joe Barlow got the win in relief, and Peter Fairbanks earned the save.

TAVERAS CAREER DAY: Leody Taveras opened the season by going 4-4, with a double, a triple, and four runs driven in. The four hits are a career-high, while the four RBIs match a career-best. Taveras finished a home run away from becoming the first player in franchise history (including Kinston Indians records) to hit for the cycle. Three of his four RBI came with two out.

PHENOMENAL PHILLIPS: Tyler Phillips was excellent in his first start of the season, going five shutout innings, allowing just an infield single, and a hit batter to reach against him. Phillips endued an inning-ending double play in the second, facing just one over the minimum on the night, on just 57 pitches (11.4-per-inning).

THE 3 T's: The Woodies were led on opening day by the trio of Leody Taveras, Bubba Thompson, and Anderson Tejeda. They combined to go 6-10, with two doubles, a triple, five RBI, and two stolen bases.

D is KEY: The Wood Ducks were the only team in the Carolina League not to commit an error on opening day. Conversely the Mudcats com-mitted four errors defensively, the most by a Wood Duck opponent since the Frederick Keys made five defensive miscues on August 10, 2017.

AND THE AWARD GOES TO: The 2019 Wood Ducks are a heavily decorated bunch. Tyler Phillips was recognized as the Rangers Nolan Ryan Pitcher of the Year after posting an 11-5 record and a 2.67 ERA in Single-A Hickory. He struck out 124 while walking just 14 in 128.0 innings. Demarcus Evans was named the organization's Reliever of the Year. In 35 appearances out of the Crawdads bullpen, Evans pitched to a 1.77 ERA and struck out 103 batters while walking just 27. He also converted all nine save opportunities. Infielder Ryan Dorow earned the Rangers defensive player of the year honors. He started games at all four infield positions, in addition to a game in the outfield, committing just 9 errors in 418 chances for a fielding percentage of .978.

RAGS AT THE HELM: Corey Ragsdale takes over as skipper for the Wood Ducks in 2019. Ragsdale will remain the Rangers Minor League Field Coordinator, while assuming a managerial seat for the first time since 2015, when he led the Hickory Crawdads to a South Atlantic League Championship, the second of his career.

YEAR CLUB LEAGUE W-L FINISH

2012 AZL Rangers AZL/R 34-22 League Champs

2013 Hickory South Atlantic (A) 76-63 5th Place

2014 Hickory South Atlantic/A 41-28 5th Place

2015 Hickory South Atlantic/A 44-24 League Champs

TOTALS 237-179 (.570)

SPRINGS HAS SPRUNG: Former Wood Duck Jeffrey Springs was named to the Rangers opening day roster for the 2019 season. Springs made his MLB debut last season, and is one of three former DEWDs to make it to the show, along with Ricardo Rodriguez and C.D. Pelham. A 30th Round selection out of Appalachian State in 2015, Springs is the first Wood Duck to appear on a Major League Roster on Opening Day.

SWITCH IT UP: After leading the Rangers organization with 74 RBI last season, Anderson Tejeda returns to the Wood Ducks, but this time as a switch hitter. Signed by the Rangers in 2014, Tejeda hit from the left side of the plate exclusively for the first four season in pro ball.

YOUTH MOVEMENT: Five players on the Wood Ducks opening day roster are just 20 years of age. The handful includes RHP A.J. Alexy, INF Yonny Hernandez, INF Anderson Tejeda, OF Leody Taveras, and OF Bubba Thompson.

NEED FOR SPEED: The 2019 Wood Ducks will possess a lot of speed, especially in the outfield. Last season Leody Taveras, Eric Jenkins, and Bubba Thompson combined to steal 86 bases and hit 21 triples. Infielder Yonny Hernandez also ranked second the South Atlantic League with 44 stolen bases, and his 46 overall led the Rangers organization.

TOP-30 in Kinston: The Wood Ducks open the 2019 season with sev-en players on the MLB Pipeline Rangers Top-30 list on their roster:

4. Anderson Tejeda, 5. Bubba Thompson, 6. Leody Taveras, 14. Tyler Phillips, 19. Diosbel Arias, 20. A.J. Alexy, and 24. Demarcus Evans

Check out the Down East Wood Ducks Statistics

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