MWL1 Dayton Dragons

Dragons Look To Defeat Lugnuts

Published on May 18, 2010 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Dayton Dragons News Release


Today's Game: The Dragons (affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds) host the Lugnuts (affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays) in the first game of the three-game set.This is the start to an eight-game home stand for Dayton.

Season Series:Dayton 3, Lansing 3 (Dayton is 3-0 vs. Lansing at Fifth Third Field).

Last Game:Dayton defeated Great Lakes 6-2 to earn a split of the four-game series in Midland, Michigan. Josh Garton's two-run double in the sixth inning brought the Dragons back from a deficit and gave them a lead they did not surrender. Frank Pfister added a two-run single in the eighth. Dayton continued to get outstanding pitching. Pedro Villarreal won his second straight start with six strong innings,allowing two runs on seven hits with one walk and six strikeouts.

Today's Starting Pitcher: J.C. Sulbaran will make his sixth start of the season tonight. He was the winning pitcher on Wednesday vs. Fort Wayne at Fifth Third Field (5 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO).

Sulbaran is a 20-year-old native of Willemstad, Curacao. He spent the entire 2009 season with the Dragons, going 5-5 with a 5.24 ERA. Sulbaran is rated as 25th best prospect in Reds organization by Baseball America.He pitched for Team Netherlands in 2009 World Baseball Classic, striking out former all-star catcher Ivan Rodriguez on three pitches. He also pitched for the Netherlands in the Olympics in Beijing in 2008. He is one of three players from his high school team to be drafted in 2008.Sulbaran moved with family to Plantation, Florida during his high school career and was the Miami-area pitcher of the year in 2008 as he helped American Heritage High School to state championship, going 11-0 with a 1.40 earned run average. Sulbaran had signed a National Letter of Intent to play at the University of Florida before signing with Reds.

Skipper: Todd Benzinger is in his second season with the Dragons and in the Reds organization as a manager in 2010. 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.

Individual Notes

*Shane Carlson is batting .387 with 9 RBI over his last eight games to raise his average from .194 to .284.

*Henry Rodriguez has hit in six straight games, batting .357 with a home run.

*Alex Oliveras went 7 for 16, 438 with a home run in the last series vs. Great Lakes.

*Andrew Means is 6 for 17, .353 over his last four games.

*Donnie Joseph leads all Midwest League relievers in strikeouts per nine innings. He also leads the MWL in appearances.

*Doug Salinas has allowed no runs on four hits in 10.1 IP over his last six appearances.

*Chase Ware has a 1.23 ERA over his last seven games covering 22 innings.

*The Dragons roster includes three players who are ranked among the Reds top 30 prospects by Baseball America. They include shortstop Didi Gregorius (#15), pitcher Donnie Joseph (#21), and pitcher J.C. Sulbaran (#25).

Team Notes

*The Dragons have won five of their last seven games. The team ERA over the 7 G is 2.43. The team batting average is .261.

*The Dayton bullpen over the last 7 G: 28 IP, 3 R, 1 ER, 0.32 ERA. The bullpen ERA for the year is 2.61.

*The Dragons are 13-5 at home; 5-14 on the road. They are batting .270 at home; .224 on the road. The team ERA is 2.98 at home; 4.21 on the road. Dragons opponents are batting .241 in Dayton; .283 on the road.

*The Dragons are 7-1 in one-run games at home; 1-6 in one-run games on the road. Dayton won seven one-run home games in all of 2009.

*The Dragons have played seven extra inning games.They are 3-0 at home; 0-4 on the road.

*The Dragons have five "walk-off" wins this season, one more than they had in all of 2009.

Upcoming Probable Pitchers (All game times are Dayton time)

Wednesday (7:00 p.m.): Dayton RH Josh Ravin (2-2, 2.52) vs. Lansing RH Chad Jenkins (2-2, 3.59)

Thursday (7:00 p.m.): Dayton LH Justin Walker (1-4, 6.57) vs. Lansing RH Ryan Tepera (3-1, 3.86)

Check out the Dayton Dragons Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Midwest League Stories from May 18, 2010


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central