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MWL1 Dayton Dragons

Dragons Gameday July 24th

July 24, 2009 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Dayton Dragons News Release


The Dayton Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) meet the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers) in the third game of a three-game series and game three of a six-game road trip for Dayton.

Season Series: Dayton 4, Wisconsin 1 (first three games in Dayton). Dayton on the Current Road Trip: 2-0.

Last Game: The Dragons scored three runs in the top of the first inning and went on to a 4-1 victory over the Timber Rattlers on Thursday. The win was the Dragons fifth straight. Cody Puckett's two-run double in the first gave the Dragons all the runs they would need. Dragons pitchers J.C. Sulbaran, Andrew Bowman, and Aguido Gonzalez combined to scatter eight hits and limit Wisconsin to 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position.

Today's Starting Pitcher: Lance Janke makes his 15th start and 20th appearance of the season for the Dragons tonight. Janke's last start was last Saturday vs. Beloit when he earned the win (7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO). Janke had an excellent month of June, going 3-0, 2.79 in five starts, but despite his strong outing six days ago, he is just 1-2, 5.96 in four starts in July. Janke has made one start vs. Wisconsin this season when he suffered a loss on May 26th (5.1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO). Janke spent 13 days on the disabled list with a sprained ankle from May 3-15. Janke was a 14th round draft pick in 2008 by the Reds out of San Diego Christian College. He is a 22-year-old native of Santee, California. Janke was a starting pitcher last season at Billings, going 3-2, 5.60 in 11 games.

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 .366 with 12 doubles, two triples, eight HR, and 34 RBI in his last 28 games since June 14, posting a slugging percentage of .752 and raising his batting average from .211 to .276. Wiley is batting .373 in the second half.

- Miguel Rojas is batting .460 in his last 15 games (23 for 50) and is hitting .374 in the second half.

- Josh Fellhauer has hit in 14 straight games, going 22 for 57, .386. (See more on the hitting streak below).

- Tony Brown has hit in eight straight games, going 10 for 29, .345.

- Carlos Mendez has hit in six straight games, going 9 for 25, .360.

- Cody Puckett has hit in six straight games, going 8 for 23, .348.

Fellhauer's Hour: Josh Fellhauer's current 14 game hitting streak is tied for the third longest in franchise history and is the longest by a Dragons player since 2005. The club record is 19, set by Cody Strait in 2005. Adam Rosales had a 15 game hitting streak in 2005. David Espinosa hit in 14 straight in 2001. There have been three 13 gamers in club history with the most recent by Brandon Waring in 2008. Fellhauer has the longest current streak in the league.

Stars over July: Miguel Rojas ranks second in the league in batting in July at .397...Byron Wiley is fifth at .364...Fellhauer is tied for 10th at .325...Wiley is tied for the league lead in homers with five and tied for third in RBI with 19. He is tied for second in total bases with 48...Curtis Partch is 12th in ERA at 1.80.

Team Notes

- The Dragons have won five straight games to establish their longest winning streak since July 20-25 of 2008.

- Despite an overall record of 40-56, the Dragons are 31-31 over their last 62 games since starting the year at 9-25.

- The Dragons have scored at least six runs in four of five games during their winning streak. They have allowed four runs or less in all five games.

- After 26 of 70 games in the second half, the Dragons are tied with South Bend for the second (final) seed in the second half playoff race.

- The Dragons are 9-12 in July with a team batting average of .274 and a team ERA of 5.49.

Team Batting Notes

- The Dragons are batting .283 as a team over the last 34 games. They are now fourth among 14 teams in the league in base hits in 2009.

- The Dragons are batting .281 in the second half (25 games) after batting .250 in the first half (70 games).

- The Dragons lead the league in July home runs with 15. They are second in the league in team batting in July at .274.

Team Pitching Notes

- From Opening Night (April 9) through May 15, Dragons starting pitchers were a combined 4-14 with a 5.87 ERA (team went 9-25). From May 16-June 12, Dragons starting pitchers went 10-6, 2.75 (team went 15-12). Since June 12, Dragons starting pitchers are 11-13, 5.23 (team is 16-19).

- The Dragons second half team ERA is 4.88. The first half ERA was 4.50.

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics



Midwest League Stories from July 24, 2009


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