EL1 Richmond Flying Squirrels

Flying Squirrels Game Notes: at Bowie

Published on April 21, 2015 under Eastern League (EL1)
Richmond Flying Squirrels News Release


Richmond Flying Squirrels (SF) (3-7) vs. Bowie Baysox (BAL) (6-6)

Tuesday, April 21st -- 11:05 AM

Prince George's Stadium -- Bowie, MD

Game #11 - Road Game #5

Radio: Fox Sports 910 (10:35 AM) Internet: FoxSportsRichmond.com

RHP Chris Stratton (0-1, 3.27) vs. RHP Parker Bridwell (0-0, 3.60)

UPCOMING PRESS BOX FEEDS: Following an off day on Wednesday, Richmond media will triumphantly return to The Diamond to dine on Bojangles chicken and biscuits! It is a happy thought for those broadcasters eating fistfuls of Fritos while typing game notes just shy of 1 a.m. in the morning at the Best Western Annapolis.

SERIES AT A GLANCE: The Squirrels dropped the opener to the Baysox, 5-3, in a ballgame that included two hours and 41 minutes of delays due to rain. With the loss, the Squirrels have dropped five straight and remain winless on the road. They will be attempting to avoid a winless first road trip in the finale of a scheduled two-game series this morning. Richmond will send RHP Chris Stratton, making his third start of the season, against Bowie's Parker Bridwell, who also starts for the third time.

AN EARLY SLIDE: Since getting off to the first 2-0 start in franchise history, the Squirrels have scuffled. They have dropped seven of their last eight games, including their current five-game losing skid. During the five-game slide, the Squirrels have been outscored 27-9, enduring their first two blowout (5+ run differential) losses and have also been shut out twice. Richmond is currently spending their second day of the 2015 season in the Western Division cellar.

WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM?: The Squirrels and Baysox have had a problem finishing games in a timely manner this season. The two clubs have played five games thus far. Two of those game have lasted 14 innings, with the first taking 4:47 to complete and the second lasting 4:54. On Monday, the clubs only spent 2:23 of actual game time. However, the game featured 2:41 minutes of rain delays and stretched for 5:04. The Squirrels arrived back at their hotel in Annapolis, MD, at 12:33 a.m. and were back on the bus at 8 a.m. to bus back for Wednesday's morning finale.

EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT: The Squirrels have played three extra-inning games in their first 10 contests, including a 10-inning loss on Saturday night in Reading. The team played two 14-inning games in their season-opening four-game series against the Bowie Baysox. The Squirrels claimed the first game of the season in 14 innings, but have since dropped their last two extra-inning affairs. The 2014 Squirrels did not play their third extra-inning game until June 30th, when they fell in 12 innings to Harrisburg at Metro Bank Park.

WEARY IS THE ROAD WARRIOR: The Squirrels have dropped their first four road contests of the 2015 season. While it is certainly too early to read much into it, it does continue a trend of road struggles for Richmond since their inception in 2010. Over the first five seasons of their existence, the Squirrels have posted a road record of 161-194 (.453), 33 games under .500. That stands in startling contrast to their home field advantage that they have enjoyed at The Diamond where the team has gone 202-151 all-time (.572). The team has enjoyed a winning road record just once in five seasons, and that came last year when the Squirrels went 37-34 away from home. The largest discrepancy between home and road came in 2011 when the Squirrels claimed the wild-card spot in the Western Division by going 45-26 at home and 31-40 on the road.

KELBY THE KONQUERER: Kelby Tomlinson is having no trouble getting started away from The Diamond, as he opened his road campaign with back-to-back three-hit performances. He went 3-for-4 in the series opener against Reading and backed that up with a 3-for-5 showing on Saturday night. Tomlinson leads the Squirrels with four multi-hit games, and has already racked up three three-hit games in the team's first nine contests. He also blasted his first home run of the season on Saturday. He only hit one home run all of last season, and that didn't occur until August 2nd at Peoples Natural Gas Stadium in Altoona, PA.

BITE THOSE NAILS: Through 10 games, the Squirrels have had their share of close games. Five of their 10 contests thus far have been decided by one run. That included all four games in their season-opening four-game set against Bowie, and Saturday night's 10-inning game against Reading. The Squirrels and Baysox split those four games, and with Saturday's loss, Richmond stands 2-3 in one-run affairs.

SOCKING SOME DINGERS: The Squirrels did not hit a home run in their season-opening series against the Baysox, nor did they allow a home run. Both things occurred in the first game against Altoona. Mitch Delfino blasted his - and the Squirrels - first home run of the season, leading off the seventh inning against Tyler Sample. It opened the floodgates for the Squirrels, who went on to score seven times in the inning. The first home run of the year came in the fifth game of the season, matching the longest amount of time at the outset of a season that it took the team to leave the yard. It also happened in 2011 and 2012. Jose Flores belted the first of the year for the Squirrels in 2011, while Chris Dominguez put Richmond on the board in 2012. RHP Tyler Rogers conceded the first home run of the season for Richmond, as Gift Ngoepe lifted a solo-home run in the ninth inning. The Squirrels' staff did last longer than any previous Richmond staff in terms of giving up their first long ball.

BOWIE STARTING PITCHER: RHP Parker Bridwell (0-0, 3.60)

Bridwell, 23, will make his third Double-A appearance and second of the season against Richmond this morning.. He enters the season rated as the 22nd best prospect in the Baltimore system by Baseball America. A native of Hereford, TX, Bridwell was selected out of high school by the Orioles in the 9th round of the 2010 draft. He is a prospect based on his overall stuff, which includes a mid-90s fastball. However, he has progressed slowly through the Baltimore chain due to an inability to locate. Through his first five professional seasons, the righty is averaging 4.33 BBs per 9 innings and due in large part to that has never posted an ERA lower than 4.45 at any level in the system. He spent 2014 entirely with Frederick in the Carolina League. He posted a 7-10 record in 26 starts, and finished third in the organization in strikeouts with 142. However, he also set a new career-high for walks in a season with 70, averaging nearly five per 9 innings. He worked in a relief role in the Arizona Fall League and pitched well, potentially providing a glimpse at his future at higher levels. However, the Orioles will continue to let him attempt to gain consistency while getting bulk innings in the Double-A rotation.

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