SAL1 Kannapolis Cannon Ballers

Game Notes: Kannapolis Intimidators (White Sox) vs. Lexington Legends (Royals) -- August 12, 2014

Published on August 12, 2014 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Kannapolis Cannon Ballers News Release


KANNAPOLIS INTIMIDATORS vs LEXINGTON LEGENDS

54-64, 25-26 (Chicago White Sox) 48-73, 19-32 (Kansas City Royals)

Tuesday, August 11, 2014 - 7:05 p.m.

CMC-Northeast Stadium - Kannapolis, NC.

2nd Half Game #52 (119 of 137)

RH Robinson Leyer (5-8, 3.43) vs. RH Alec Mills (1-1, 1.23)

Today's Preview: The Intimidators (A, White Sox) look to continue their strong offensive ways in Game 2 of this 3-game series against the Legends (A, Royals). Consistent right-hander Robinson Leyer is slated to toe the rubber for the Intimidators after an extra day of rest, making his team-leading 23rd start of the season. The Legends are countering with Alec Mills, who faces the Intimidators for the second time in his career. Kannapolis, which opened this series with a 10-0 shutout win on Monday, can clinch a series victory with a win today. The Intimidators last won a series July 26-29 in Lakewood (3-2). The Legends won last season's series against Kannapolis, taking five of nine games.

Intimidating Starter: Robinson Leyer, 21, makes his 23rd start and first against the Legends. Leyer is coming off his team-leading 10th quality start, going 6.0 innings and allowing two runs with five strikeouts in a loss on Aug. 6 against Hickory. He has been consistent both at home and on the road, going 3-5 with a 3.45 ERA in 13 starts at home compared to 2-3 with a 3.40 ERA in nine away starts away. Leyer continues to be much better against lefties than righties, holding left-handed hitters to a .235 average (52-221) compared to .308 (72-234) against righties. The Intimidators team-leader in ERA (3.43) and innings pitched (120.2) excelled in May and June (going 3-2 with a 1.53 ERA (10 ER/58.2 IP) in 10 starts), but July and August have been less kind as he is 1-4 with a 4.63 ERA (18 ER/35 IP) in six starts. The younger brother of former Intimidator Euclides Leyer, Robinson spent 2013 with Advanced Rookie Bristol, going 2-7 with a 6.35 ERA in 13 starts.

Legendary Starter: Alec Mills, 22, makes his fifth start for Lexington and his 11th overall in 2014 after opening the year with Advanced Rookie Idaho Falls. He is coming off 6.0 scorelss innings of 2-hit ball while striking out six in a no decision against Greenville on Aug. 7. Mills has been strong since joining the Legends from Idaho Falls, going 1-1 with a 1.23 ERA (3 ER/22 IP) in four starts after going 2-2 with a 4.66 ERA (13 ER/41.1 IP) in seven games (six starts) for the Pioneer League's Chukars. Overall this year, he is 3-3 with a 2.83 ERA in 11 games (10 starts). Mills spent all of 2013 pitching for Lexington going 2-3 with a 1.59 ERA (8 ER/45.1 IP) in 18 appearances (three starts), including a relief appearance against Kannapolis. He threw one shutout inning on May 15 against the Intimidators. The Royals drafted Mills in the 22nd round of the June 2012 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Tennessee-Martin.

About Last Night: The Intimidators built a big lead early in a shutout win over Lexington, 10-0, Monday. Andre Wheeler (2-3) earned his second win with 5.0 shutout innings of 1-hit ball, striking out three and walking two. Matt Abramson followed with 3.0 scoreless frames, scattering four hits and two walks while fanning two. Andrew Mitchell preserved the shutout with a scoreless ninth, whiffing two. Toby Thomas blasted Kannapolis on the board with his second home run (2) in as many days, a 3-run blast to left field with no outs in the second. Kannapolis pushed a touchdown across the plate in a 7-run third inning. Danny Hayes and Jacob Morris kick started the rally with a pair of RBI-doubles for a 5-0 lead. Carl Thomore's sac-fly drove in Morris. T.J. Williams chipped in with a 2-run double off reliever Pedro Fernandez, and Kannapolis added two more runs on a Chevy Clarke sac-fly and an ensuing throwing error. Lexington starter Matt Tenuta (5-9) left due to an apparent injury. He took the loss, allowing seven runs on six hits over 2 and 1/3 innings. Pedro Fernandez tossed the final 5 and 2/3 innings for Lexington, including blanking the Intimidators over the final five frames.

Snapping A Skid: With Monday's win, Kannapolis ended a 6-game losing streak (Aug. 5-10), one game shy of matching the team's longest slides of the season. The Intimidators have twice dropped seven in a row in 2014, first from May 19-26 and then again from July 9-16.

Wheeler Dealing Zeros: In his last three appearances (two starts), Wheeler has thrown 12.0 scoreless innings. He has given up three hits and walked five while striking out 11 since July 31. In that span, Wheeler is tied for the fourth best WHIP in the SAL (0.67) while holding opposing hitters to a league-best .075 average (3-45).

Double Trouble: Jacob Morris hit his 34th double of the season on Monday, which now ranks third in the SAL behind a pair of Asheville sluggers (Correlle Prime [42] and Ryan McMahon [40]). Danny Hayes also had two doubles on Monday, giving him 29 on the season, which is tied for fifth in the league. In the last ten games both Morris and Hayes are tied for the league lead with six doubles apiece.

Thomas Hitting Homers: Toby Thomas hit his second home run in as many games on Monday, the eighth time this season an Intimidator has gone yard in consecutive games and the first since July 27-28 (Danny Hayes). The last time Kannapolis had a player homer in three straight games was May 26-28, 2013 (Micah Johnson).

Lopsided against Lexington: Kannapolis enjoyed a 10-run victory on Monday with a 10-0 win, equaling the largest margin of victory for the Intimidators this season. On July 8, the Intimidators beat Greensboro 12-2, the same score that Kannapolis used to defeat Rome on April 25.

Another Shutout: Kannapolis secured their sixth shutout win on Monday and first since July 17 in Augusta, a win that also ended a long losing streak (seven games). Kannapolis is 6-7 in shutouts this season.

Stringer's Hot Bat: Christian Stringer continues to swing a hot bat, hitting .375 (15-40) with four RBI and seven runs scored in his last 10 games. Stringer currently ranks 6th in the SAL in that stretch with a .444 OBP.

Game Broadcasts: This season all 70 home games and select road games will be broadcast on the Kannapolis Intimidators Baseball Network available at IntimidatorsBaseball.com & on the TuneIn Radio App with Josh Feldman, now in his fourth season as the Voice of the Intimidators.

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