MWL1 Dayton Dragons

Dragons GameDay July 1st

Published on July 1, 2009 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Dayton Dragons News Release


The Dayton Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) host the Fort Wayne TinCaps (affiliate of the San Diego Padres) in the second game of a four game series. Season Series: Fort Wayne 11, Dayton 1. (Dayton has won the only meeting at Fifth Third Field).

About Fort Wayne: The TinCaps won the Eastern Division First Half title to qualify for post-season play. They are 26-2 vs. Dayton and South Bend; 23-24 vs. the other 11 MWL teams.

Last Game: The Dragons earned their first win of the season against Fort Wayne in the 12th meeting of the year between the clubs, defeating the TinCaps 5-3. Byron Wiley had two hits and two RBI to lead a nine-hit Dayton attack. Fort Wayne scored all three of its runs in the first inning. The Dayton bullpen combined for five scoreless innings as Andrew Bowman earned his first win of the season (3 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 SO) and Aguido Gonzalez tossed two perfect innings for his eighth save.

Today's Starting Pitcher: Oscar Castro makes his 17th Midwest League appearance and eighth start tonight. In his last appearance Saturday at Lansing, Castro was not involved in the decision (1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO). Castro's last start was June 9th at Great Lakes and he was not involved in the decision (6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO). Castro is a 20-year-old native of Mexico. He was signed as a free agent by the Reds in December of 2005 at the age of 16. Castro spent the 2008 season at Billings, going 4-2, 4.14 in 13 starts. He walked only 18 batters in 67 innings.

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

- Outfielder Byron Wiley is batting .371 with four doubles, a triple, three home runs, and 15 RBI in his last nine games, posting a slugging percentage of .800.

- Catcher Kevin Coddington is batting .359 over his last 18 games and has hit safely in eight straight games.

- In 11 games played with the Dragons since joining the club, first baseman Mike Konstanty is batting .381 with three homers, three triples, and 14 RBI.

- Outfielder Dave Sappelt is batting .317 over his last 11 games.

- Second baseman Kevyn Feiner is batting .385 over his last eight games.

Team Notes

- The Dragons are 22-19 over their last 41 games. They are 30-32 over their last 62 games after starting the season 1-12.

- Nineteen of the Dragons 39 road games this season have been one-run games. They are 5-14 in one-run road games.

- Seventeen of the Dragons' 44 losses have come by one run. The Dragons are 9-17 in one-run games overall.

Team Batting Notes

- The Dragons are batting .299 as a team over the last 13 games, averaging 5.5 runs per game.

- The Dragons are batting .310 in the five games in the second half.

Team Pitching Notes

- From Opening Night (April 9) through May 15, Dragons starting pitchers were a combined 4-14 with a 5.87 ERA. Since May 15th, Dragons starting pitchers are 15-11 with a 3.49 ERA.

- The Dragons have posted a 3.35 ERA as a team in their last 41 games.

- The Dragons have a second half team ERA of 2.30.

Remembering June: The Dragons went 12-13 in the month of June. The .480 winning percentage was their best in the three months played this season. The record ranked ninth among 14 MWL teams...The Dragons hit .262 as a team in June to rank fifth in the league after ranking tied for ninth in both April and May...The Dragons team ERA of 3.71 ranked ninth in the league...Among player with the Dragons all month, Kevin Coddington lead the team with a .343 batting average...Byron Wiley led the team in RBI with 15. Mike Konstanty had 14 despite not joining the team until June 15th...Andrew Means led the team in extra base hits (10) and stolen bases (10 for 10)...Lance Janke went 3-0 to lead the team in wins...Josh Ravin led starting pitchers with a 1.80 ERA...Andrew Bowman had a 1.65 ERA in 16.1 innings out of the bullpen...Aguido Gonzalez notched four saves to lead the team.

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics

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Midwest League Stories from July 1, 2009


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