Sports stats

Express End Sky Sox Winning Streak with Small Ball

July 2, 2018 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Colorado Springs Sky Sox News Release


ROUND ROCK, Tex. - After winning the first three games of this series, the Sky Sox dropped a close one Monday night 4-3 to fall to 3-1 in this five-game set in Texas. While last night's contest was highlighted by numerous home runs from both squads, but the Sky Sox in particular, tonight's game's scoring was marked by small ball throughout.

After two scoreless frames to start the game, the Sky Sox scored first via small ball in the top of the third. Andres Blanco led off the inning with a single, followed quickly by a Dylan Moore single. Shane Opitz then flew out to advance both runners up 90 feet, and with Blanco now standing on third, Brett Phillips also flew out to score Blanco and give Colorado Springs a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth inning Round Rock tied up the game, despite two quick outs. Hunter Cole became the Express' first baserunner of the inning after drawing out a seven-pitch, two out walk, and in the next at-bat Juan Centeno hit his fourth double of the year to tie the game at one run apiece.

After the Sky Sox went three up and three down in the top of the fifth, Nick Ramirez came into the game on the mound for the Sky Sox in the bottom half of the inning. Colorado Springs' starter- Brandon Woodruff- finished the day with one run on six hits with one walk and one strikeout through the first four innings of tonight's game. Ramirez gave up a single to the first batter he faced when Drew Robinson singled to right, with Robinson stealing second with two outs to find himself in scoring position for Willie Calhoun. Calhoun then doubled to score Robinson and give Round Rock a one-run lead.

In the very next inning, that lead was extended further. Nick Noonan and Cole kicked off the sixth with a pair of singles, advancing to second and third on a Centeno sacrifice bunt. Hanser Alberto then hit a sacrifice fly to plate Noonan and make it 3-1. Robinson then hit an RBI single to make it 4-1 Round Rock.

After two more scoreless innings, the game went to the ninth with Round rock still leading 4-1. Domingo Santana led off the ninth for the Sky Sox with a double, giving a potential Colorado Springs rally life. Jacob Nottingham then hit an RBI single to make it a 4-2 ballgame. Christian Bethancourt struck out for the first out of the inning to bring Blanco to the plate. Blanco hit a double to put the tying runs in scoring position, with the go-ahead run at the plate in the form of Moore. Moore hit a deep sacrifice fly to right field to score Nottingham from third and make it a one run game. Opitz, who was 0-for-3 on the day at that point, came to the plate with Blanco still on second. A wild pitch in the at-bat let Blanco move up to third, and Opitz drew a walk to put runners on the corners for Phillips. Phillips popped out however to end the game, giving the Express their first win of the series, 4-3.

The Sky Sox are on the road in the midst of a five-game set against the Express in Round Rock, before returning home on Independence Day to host the New Orleans Baby Cakes for five games. For all information on Sky Sox, follow along on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and visit the team's website at www.skysox.com.

NOTES

Tomorrow's Preview: In the fifth and final game of this series and this road trip, the Sky Sox are sending righty Adrian Houser to the mound to square off against Round Rock's southpaw David Hurlbut. Houser is looking for his second win whereas Hurlbut is looking for his third.

Orf Hour: On Monday the Brewers announced that they selected the contract of the 28-year-old. He was recalled in place for infielder Nick Franklin who was transferred to the 60-day disabled list. Orf, a native of Wentzville, MO, was originally signed by Milwaukee as a non-drafted free agent on June 14, 2013 out of Baylor University. He is currently in his fifth full season with Milwaukee and was recently selected as a Triple-A All-Star reserve infielder, marking his first career selection as a mid-season All-Star. The two-time MiLB.com organization All-Star is currently leading the Sky Sox in hits (83), runs (51), doubles (18), walks (36), games played (74), total bases (125), and hit-by-pitch (15) while tied for first in RBI (39). Overall, he is batting .307 with a .412 on-base percentage and is second in the league in stolen bases (20). Defensively, Orf has appeared in 39 games at second base, seven at third base, 22 at shortstop, and eight in the outfield while only recording four errors total. The two home run game by Nate Orf Sunday night marks the second time that Orf has homered twice in a game in a Sky Sox uniform. The other instance came almost one year ago, on July 2nd, 2017 at Werner Park in Omaha. Orf becomes the third Sky Sox player to have a two-homer game at the Dell Diamond. The other two instances came during Rockies affiliation, both in 2014 (by Jason Pridie on April 10th, 2014 and by Dustin Garneau on July 10th, 2014). The three runs through the fifth gave him 204 regular season runs scored, jumping over Matt Miller and Jason Bates into sole possession of 8th place in career runs scored (regular season) in a Sky Sox uniform. The double in the Sunday contest was his 69th regular season double with the Sky Sox, tying him with Edgard Velasquez Clemente for 13th all time in doubles. The ten total bases through the fifth gave him 469 total bases, jumping over Derrick Gibson and Eric Young, Jr. for 19th place in career total bases (regular season). The three extra base hits by Orf through the fifth inning gave him 103 extra base hits in his Sky Sox career, tying him with Jayson Nix for 21st on the career extra base hits list. The single by Nate Orf in the 9th inning, his 4th hit of the night, gave him 316 regular season hits in his career with the Sky Sox, tying him with Tim Wheeler for 16th place on the Sky Sox career hits list. (Next up in 15th: Jim Tatum, with 318 regular season hits.)

Quintin Two-rentino: Sunday marked the first time that the Sky Sox had two Quintin's on the same roster at the same time (Quintin Berry and Quintin Torres-Costa). The only other "Quintin" to play for the Sky Sox was Quinton McCracken, who played for the Sky Sox in 1995.

Doubling Up: The back-to-back homers by Jacob Nottingham and Christian Bethancourt in the fourth inning Sundau night marked only the second time that the Sky Sox have hit back-to-back homers against Round Rock pitching. The only other instance came nearly three years ago, on July 7th, 2014 at the Dell Diamond, when Carlos Gonzalez and Ben Paulsen hit back-to-back homers in the 5th inning against Round Rock pitcher Justin Germano. Sky Sox won that game, 6-4.

Bombs on Bombs on Bombs on...: The five home runs Sunday night in Round Rock by the Sky Sox marks the ninth time in franchise history (and the first time at the Dell Diamond in Round Rock) for the Sky Sox to belt five home runs in a road game. The last instance, nearly one year ago in Omaha, July 2nd, 2017 when the Sky Sox belted six homers at Werner Park in Omaha, en route to an 11-0 win over the Storm Chasers. (The six homers: Two by Nate Orf, and one each by Andrew Susac, Jett Bandy, Lewis Brinson, and Brett Phillips.) The five home runs tonight also marks the second time the Sky Sox have had a five homer game against the Express. The other instance happened in Colorado Springs, on August 5th, 2006 (Sky Sox won 12-11). Carlos Rivera and Sean Barker both had two homers, and J.D. Closser also homered for the Sky Sox in that game.

Asher's Ninth: Righty Alec Asher tossed his second-longest start of the season since June 9 at Sacramento when he tallied a season-high seven frames while allowing two runs on seven hits. On Saturday night against the Round Rock Express, Asher battled through six and two-thirds innings and, despite giving up 10 hits, he only allowed three runs.

Clutch Hitting: Saturday night's extra-inning win was greatly benefited by clutch bats in the hands of Jacob Nottingham and Tyrone Taylor. In the fourth inning, Nottingham gave the Sky Sox the 2-1 lead on his eighth home run of the season (two run). Down again in the seventh, Taylor helped the Sky Sox regain the advantage on his two-out, line drive single. In the top of the 10th, Nottingham, again, clutched up with a two-out, two RBI single to centerfield to give the Sky Sox the late lead.

June Recap: The Sky Sox capped off the month of June in victorious fashion in Round Rock, finishing 17-11 overall. Over 28 games, the team batted .261 collectively with 50 doubles, 14 triples, 37 home runs, and 46 stolen bases.

Out-Hit W: The Sky Sox improve to 11-20 when being out-hit by an opponent. On Saturday night, the Sky Sox plated six runs on eight hits while the Express only plated four on their 12 total hits.

Extras, Again: Colorado Springs entered into the sixth extra-inning game and second overall with Round Rock, marking their second victory in extras. Coming into Saturday's contest, the Sky Sox lone win in extra-inning matchups came against Round Rock at Dell Diamond on April 22. The Sky Sox plated four runs in the top of the 10th and just squeaked by the Express after they plated three and stranded the bases loaded to end the game.

That's A New One: To start the top of the 10th inning Saturday, automatic runner Quintin Berry was picked off by Tayler Scott to end the no-out, runner in scoring position threat early on.

More Steals: Recently named PCL All-Star Nate Orf and fellow infielder Jake Hager stole the team's league-leading 112th and 113th bags against Round Rock in game two at Dell Diamond. Orf has 19 total on the season while Hager marked his first stolen bag of the season with the Sky Sox.

All-Star Caliber: Colorado Springs' players participating in the 31st Triple-A mid-summer classic are catcher Christian Bethancourt and infielder Nate Orf. Bethancourt, in his first season with the Brewers organization since signing as a free agent on January 8, 2018, was elected and will be representing Colorado Springs as the Pacific Coast League starting catcher. Orf, in his fifth full season with Milwaukee after signing as a non-drafted free agent on June 14, 2013 out of Baylor University, was selected and will be representing the Sky Sox as an All-Star reserve infielder. It marks the Missouri native's first career selection as a mid-season All-Star.

This Week's Preview: The Sky Sox are on the road in Round Rock to face the Express for five games, before returning home on Independence Day to host the New Orleans Baby Cakes for five games prior to the All-Star Break July 9-11.

NEXT GAME: Tuesday, 7/3 at 6:05 p.m. MT vs. Round Rock Express @ Dell Diamond in Round Rock, TX

RHP Adrian Houser (1-0, 2.70) vs. LHP David Hurlbut (2-5, 4.70) - Broadcast on XTRA Sports 1300

Next Home Game: Wednesday, July 4 at 7:00 p.m. MT @ Security Service Field

COS TOP PERFORMERS

- Andres Blanco (3-for-4, 2B, 1 R)

- Domingo Santana (2-for-4, 1 R)

- Jacob Nottingham (1-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI)

RR TOP PERFORMERS

- Adrian Sampson (W, 7.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB)

- Drew Robinson (3-for-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, SB)

- Willie Calhoun (3-for-4, 2B, 1 RBI)



Pacific Coast League Stories from July 2, 2018


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.

Other Recent Colorado Springs Sky Sox Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central