PCL1 Memphis Redbirds

Game Notes: Memphis Redbirds (34-22) at New Orleans Baby Cakes (26-29)

Published on June 2, 2018 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Memphis Redbirds News Release


Memphis Redbirds (34-22) at New Orleans Baby Cakes (26-29)

Saturday, June 2 - 6:00 p.m. (CT) - Shrine on Airline (10,000) - New Orleans, Louisiana

Game #57 - Road Game #28 (16-11)

RHP Ryan Helsley (2-0, 1.29 ERA) vs. RHP Zac Gallen (4-1, 3.29 ERA)

THE GAME

TODAY'S GAME: The Memphis Redbirds and New Orleans Baby Cakes will play game four of a five-game series tonight at 6:00 p.m. in New Orleans. This is the first of four series the two teams will play against each other this season. Memphis grabbed the close 3-2 win in the opener, while New Orleans took games two and three. The Redbirds are coming off a 4-1 series win over the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, while New Orleans is coming off a 4-1 series loss to the Iowa Cubs. Today's game will be broadcast on memphisredbirds.com with Steve Selby on the call.

ON THE HILL: Right-hander Ryan Helsley will get the ball for the 'Birds tonight. Helsley has made three starts for Memphis this season, and is 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA. In his last start against Colorado Springs, Helsley dominated. He allowed a single unearned run to score in the first due to a dropped third strike and a passed ball before shutting down the Sky Sox. Helsley allowed just three hits and one walk in the game, and retired the final 11 batters he faced. Helsley also tied his season-high strikeout mark at 10. He also struck out 10 while with Double-A Springfield earlier this season. In his three starts this season, Helsley has pitched 7.0 innings in each, has allowed just one walk in each, and has struck out 28 total batters. His 28 strikeouts in 21.0 innings with Memphis comes out to a 12.0 strikeouts per nine innings pitched ratio. Between Memphis and Springfield this season, Helsley is 5-2 with a 3.34 ERA in 10 starts. He has struck out 72 total batters in 62.0 innings of work.

The Baby Cakes will counter with righty and former Redbird Zac Gallen. In 10 starts this season, Gallen is 4-1 with a 3.29 ERA. In his last two starts combined, Gallen has thrown just 6.2 innings, allowing eight earned runs. In four starts with Memphis last year, he was 1-1 with a 3.48 ERA.

HISTORY WITH NEW ORLEANS: Memphis and New Orleans have played every year dating back to 1998 when Memphis joined the PCL. New Orleans has been affiliated with four different teams in that span, while Memphis has remained affiliated with St. Louis over that span. The Baby Cakes have been affiliated with Houston, Washington, the Mets, and now Miami. The have also changed their mascot to the Baby Cakes after previously being known as the Zephyrs. Memphis went 11-6 against New Orleans last year, including going 6-3 in New Orleans.

BIRD BITES

AROZARENA: Is just 2-for-19 in his last six games after snapping a 15-game on-base streak on May 25

BARON: Rejoins team after spending last two weeks with St. Louis; appeared in two games, and recorded one hit

GARCIA: Monday, recorded first multi-hit game since May 6; leads PCL with eight outfield assists

KNIZNER: Is hitting .343 (12-for-35) since joining Memphis last month; hitting .336 (47-for-140) on season

MEJIA: Is eight for his last 15; recorded a hit Sunday for the first time since snapping 8-game hitting streak (5/13-22)

MERCADO: Is hitting .138 (4-for-29) since ending eight-game hitting streak on May 25; 3rd in PCL with 13 stolen bases

O'NEILL: Has appeared in 16 games with St. Louis; hitting .237 with six runs, nine hits, one double, three homers, and 7RBI

RAVELO: Has hit three home runs in last 6 games after hitting a two-run home run in the eighth inning last night

SCHROCK: Hit .269 (25-for-93) in the month of May after hitting .323 (30-for-93) in April; only five multi-hit games in May

TOVAR: Drove in all three runs in Wednesday's 3-2 win; was 2-for-4 with 2B and HR; first multi-hit game since May 9

URIAS: Is hitting .280 (7-for-25) in eight games since being transferred from Springfield; hitting .311 on season

WISDOM: Last night, snapped career-long 16-game hitting streak; hit .424 (25-for-59) over that span

BY THE NUMBERS

34-22 is the best record in the PCL this season. It is also the second-best mark through 56 games in Redbirds' history. The 2000 team was 36-20 through the first 56 games

THE SEASON

ABOUT THE LAST ONE: The Memphis Redbirds dropped last night's game 6-3 to the New Orleans Baby Cakes. It was the second-consecutive loss for Memphis after they had won five-straight.

Last night's starter Sean Gilmartin took the loss in his sixth spot-start of the season. He pitched 4.2 innings before being pulled for Mike O'Reilly. O'Reilly allowed all three of his runners to score, giving Gilmartin a final line of 4.2 innings pitched, allowing three hits, four earned runs, four walks, and striking out three batters.

The 'Birds did not do much offensively. Oscar Mercado led off the game with a double, moved to third on Rangel Ravelo's single, and came in to score on a double play ball from Patrick Wisdom. The Redbirds did not score again until the eighth inning.

Mercado and Ravelo fueled the offense in the eighth, as well. Mercado singled and Ravelo brought them both in with his fourth homer of the year. Patrick Wisdom saw his 16-game hitting streak come to an end last night, as well.

THE STREAK ENDS: After going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts last night, Patrick Wisdom saw his career-high 16-game hitting streak come to an end. Over his career-high streak, Wisdom was hitting .418 (25-for-59) over that stretch. Wisdom's dominant stretch came after he fell into a deep slump from April 16 to May 6, in which he hit just .220 (13-for-59) with four extra-base hits and eight RBI in 18 games. Over the next 22 games, he is hit .378 (31-for-82) with nine extra-base hits, 14 RBI, and 16 runs scored. He collected hits in 20 of those 22 games, including nine games with multiple hits. The 16-game hitting streak bested his previous career-high of 14-straight with the Batavia Muckdogs in 2012 from July 19 to August 2. The 16-game streak was the longest for any member of the Redbirds this season, and the longest since teammate Rangel Ravelo hit safely in 15-straight from May 9 to June 3 last season. The 16-game streak tied Wisdom with five former Redbirds for the fifth-longest streak in Redbird history. Adam Kennedy hit in 20-straight from June 28 to August 12, 1999, giving him the longest streak in franchise history. Wisdom is now tied with Skip Schumaker, Brendan Ryan, Jon Jay, Tyler Greene, and the late Oscar Taveras in the Redbirds history books. Taveras was the last Redbird to notch 16-straight before Wisdom, accomplishing the feat in 2014.

With Wisdom's dominance over the last few weeks, he has also started to move into or close to the top-10 for many Redbird career leader marks. Wisdom has 43 home runs in a Redbirds' jersey, putting him tied for fourth all-time with Allen Craig. He has 153 RBI, now ninth in Redbird history, he has 100 extra-base hits, putting him at 10th in Redbird history, he has been hit by 14 pitches, putting him tied with Stubby Clapp for eighth all-time, and he is narrowly outside the top-10 in doubles (10) and total bases (415).

RAVELO'S POWER SURGE: After hitting a two-run home run in the eighth inning last night, Rangel Ravelo has now hit three home runs in his last six games. Ravelo hit go-ahead home runs on May 26 and 27 against Colorado Springs, giving Memphis the wins. While his home run did not give Memphis the win last night, it cut the New Orleans lead to one, giving the 'Birds a chance to win. Ravelo's numbers have improved steadily over the last week after he struggled through most of May. In his first 15 games of May, Ravelo was just 8-for-48 (.167) with four extra-base hits and five RBI. He was hitless in seven of those games, and did not record a single-multi-hit game. In the last week, Ravelo has played in six games, and is hitting .421 (8-for-19) with four extra-base hits and five RBI. He has hits in five of the last six, and recorded three multi-hit games, including two-straight.

PITCHING STRUGGLES FOR SECOND-STRAIGHT: After dominating over the previous 12 games, the Memphis pitching staff has struggled in the last two games. The Redbirds have dropped two-straight for the first time since May 15 through 17. The 'Birds were 10-2 in their previous 12. Over its five-game winning streak from May 26 to May 31, Memphis allowed just five runs, four earned, while scoring 17 runs. They posted a 0.80 ERA over that stretch, shutting out the opponent twice, and winning three-consecutive one-run games. Over the 11-game stretch when they were 9-2, Memphis outscored opponents 65-to-33. However, in the last two games, the Memphis pitching staff has surrendered 16 runs, while scoring only six. All 16 runs have been earned, giving the 'Birds a 9.00 ERA over the last two days. Memphis has also scored three runs in four-straight.

STRUGGLES WITH THE DIVISION: Despite the strong overall record of 34-22, best in the PCL, Memphis has struggled significantly against its own division. The Redbirds are just 9-12 against the American Southern Division, while they are 25-10 against the American Northern Division, the only other division they have faced to this point. Memphis is 2-6 against Nashville, 1-2 against New Orleans, and 6-4 against Round Rock. The 'Birds are hitting just .263 (183-for-697) against their own division, while hitting .272 (317-for-1167) against everyone else. The Memphis pitching staff has also struggled against the division this season. In 179.0 innings pitched against the American Southern this season, the Memphis staff has allowed 85 earned runs, giving them a collective 4.27 ERA. They are also allowing divisional opponents to hit .255 (175-for-685) against them. Against other opponents, Memphis has pitched 307.2 innings, allowing just 106 earned runs, good for a dazzling 3.11 ERA. Other opponents are also hitting just .246 (284-for-1155) against Memphis pitching.

CHASING HISTORY: With the calendar turning over to June yesterday, the 2018 season is officially two months in. The 'Birds have played 56 games, and are 34-22. In last season's record-setting campaign, the Redbirds entered June with a 32-21 record. The 'Birds own the best record in the PCL this season, the second-best ERA (3.53), the second-most strikeouts by pitchers (512), the seventh-best batting average (.268), and are tied for the third-most stolen bases (44). The 34-22 record through 36 games is the second-best mark in Redbirds' history. The 2000 Redbirds were 36-20 through the first 56 games.

STRONG ARMS IN THE OUTFIELD: While outfielder Tyler O'Neill didn't record a hit in his return to the Memphis lineup last night, he did cut down a runner trying to take home. Memphis now has 15 outfield assists on the season, tied for the second-most in the PCL. Salt Lake leads the league with 18 assists, while Memphis is knotted with Colorado Springs, Fresno, and Sacramento with 15 apiece. Memphis outfielder Adolis Garcia also leads the league with eight individual outfield assists.

STRONG STARTERS: Despite struggling the last two nights, the Memphis starting pitching staff has been a force to be reckoned with this season. Memphis starters are 29-12 with a 2.84 ERA through the first 56 games this season. Through the first 56 games, the starters have pitched 317.1 innings, allowing just 112 total runs, only 100 of which have been earned. In addition, they have walked only 104 batters (1.8/game), and have struck out 335 hitters (5.6/game). Five different Memphis starters have also tied or set their career-high strikeout marks. Daniel Poncedeleon struck out 12 (career-high) on April 14, Austin Gomber struck out 16 (career-high and tied franchise record) on April 23, Jack Flaherty struck out 13 (career-high) on May 9, Alex Reyes struck out 13 (tied career-high) on May 24, and Dakota Hudson set his career-high with nine strikeouts Saturday night.

BETTER SIDE OF THE STRIKEOUTS: Memphis is among the PCL leaders for strikeouts by the pitching staff, and is towards the bottom of the league in strikeouts by batters. The pitching staff has struck out 512 batters through the first 56 games (9.1/game), which is only behind Fresno (530) for the best mark in the PCL this season. Memphis and Fresno are the only two teams with at least 500 strikeouts from their staff in the PCL. 'Birds batters are also towards the bottom of the league in total strikeouts. Memphis batters have struck out just 373 times through the first 56 games (6.7/game), narrowly ahead of Omaha (375) for the lowest mark in the league. Memphis and Omaha are the only teams in the PCL that have struck out under 400 times this season. The Memphis pitching staff has also issued the fourth-fewest walks in the PCL this season (162).

MORE HONORS FOR GOMBER: Memphis starting pitcher Austin Gomber was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week on Monday for the second time this season. Last week, Gomber went 2-0 in 14.0 innings pitched, allowing just one run on 11 hits and four walks, while striking out 15 batters. Gomber also earned the award for the week of April 23-29 after his 16-strikeout performance April 23, and he was also named the Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Month for April. Gomber is 4-3 with a 3.60 ERA and 63 strikeouts on the season.

2017 PCL CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON

START THE SLOW CLAPP: In 2017, first-year skipper Stubby Clapp led the Redbirds to their best season in franchise history. The 'Birds soared to a 91-50 record in the 2017 regular season and added six more wins in the PCL playoffs to win 97 total games on the year. Clapp was named the 2017 PCL Manager of the Year for his efforts, and was also named the 2017 Baseball America Minor League Manager of the Year. Clapp became the first minor league manager in the history of the St. Louis organization to win the Baseball America award. Clapp also earned the organization's prestigious George Kissell award.

FOR THE RECORD:

- Memphis' 91 wins in 2017 were the 10th-most in 119 seasons of professional baseball in Memphis dating back to 1877, and the season's .645 winning percentage was fourth-best

- Memphis was one of four teams in MiLB in 2017 with 90+ wins (Trenton Thunder [AA], 92-48; West Michigan Whitecaps [A], 91-45; Chattanooga Lookouts [AA], 91-49; Memphis Redbirds [AAA], 91-50)

- Memphis went 41 games over .500 during the regular season, the most by a PCL club since Albuquerque was 56 games over at 94-38 in 1981

- The Redbirds won the PCL American Southern Division by 22.0 games, and since divisions were established in the PCL in 1963, only two other teams won their division by 20 or more games (1970 Spokane Indians, 26.0 games; 1981 Albuquerque Dukes, 25.0 games)

- Memphis ended the season with its best ERA in franchise history (3.77) (3.89, 1998 and 2003), matched its best fielding percentage (.984) (.984, 2014), and had its third-best batting average (.278) (.284, 1999; .279, 2004)

Check out the Memphis Redbirds Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from June 2, 2018


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