MWL1 Dayton Dragons

Dragons GameDay

Published on May 18, 2009 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Dayton Dragons News Release


Dayton Dragons (11-25) at Lansing Lugnuts (11-23)

LH Matt Fairel (1-2, 3.13) vs. RH Ryan Koch (0-3, 8.19)

Today's Game:

The Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) meet the Lugnuts (affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays) in the third game of a four-game series and game three of a 10-game road trip for Dayton. Season Series: Dayton 2, Lansing 0.

Dayton on the Road Trip: 2-0.

Last Game:

Dayton 3, Lansing 0 (12 innings). Miguel Rojas delivered a two-run double with one out in the top of the 12th inning to break a scoreless tie. Later in the inning, Kyle Day drove in Rojas with a base hit. Mace Thurman earned the win for Dayton by tossing the final four innings. The Dragons finished with 10 hits. Rojas, Tyler Stovall, and Carlos Mendez each had two hits. It was the Dragons first shutout win of the season.

Today's Starting Pitcher:

Matt Fairel makes his eighth professional start tonight. Fairel received no decision in his last start Wednesday vs. West Michigan (6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 13 SO). Fairel has struck out at least 10 batters in three of his seven starts and has the top two strikeout performances in the league this season with a 12-strikeout and a 13-strikeout performance. Fairel was the Midwest League Pitcher of the week for April 20-26. He went 1-0 with a 1.38 earned run average (13 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 20 SO). Fairel was selected by the Reds in the 35th round in June, 2008 but did not sign in time to play professionally last summer. Fairel was drafted after his sophomore year at Florida State University and did not have a redshirt year but was eligible to be drafted because he turned 21 years old within 30 days of the draft. Fairel enjoyed a great college season last spring at Florida State, posting a record of 12-2 to finish second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in victories. He was honored as a 2nd Team All-Conference choice and was also named Academic All-Conference. Fairel is a native of Winter Haven, Florida.

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

- Shortstop Miguel Rojas is batting .346 over his last 14 games, raising his batting average from .133 to .232.

- Infielder Carlos Mendez is batting .366 with a home run over his last 10 games and is batting .329 on the year.

- Second baseman Cody Puckett is batting .407 with six doubles and a home run in his last six games.

- Relief pitcher Mace Thurman has tossed seven scoreless innings over his last two outings, earning wins in both.

Team Notes

- The Dragons need a win tonight to enjoy their first three-game winning streak of the season.

- The Dragons have posted a 1.71 ERA as a team in the first two games of this road trip.

- Only five of the Dragons 36 games have come against teams with losing records. The Dragons are 4-1 in those games.

- The Dragons are batting .260 over the last 12 games, raising their full-season average from .230 to .241.

- The Dragons are 10-13 over their last 23 games after starting the season 1-12.

- In 19 of the Dragons 36 games this season, the eventual winning team trailed at some point during the game. The Dragons have trailed in six of their 11 wins while their opponent has come from behind to win 13 games.

- Eight of the Dragons' 25 losses have come by one run. The Dragons are 4-8 in one-run games.

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics

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Midwest League Stories from May 18, 2009


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