PCL1 Memphis Redbirds

Game Notes: Memphis Redbirds (36-24) vs Tacoma Rainiers (29-31)

Published on June 7, 2018 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Memphis Redbirds News Release


Memphis Redbirds (36-24) vs Tacoma Rainiers (29-31)

Thursday, June 7 - 7:05 p.m. (CT) - AutoZone Park (10,000) - Memphis, Tennessee

Game #61 - Home Game #32 (19-12)

RHP Dakota Hudson (6-2, 2.69 ERA) vs. RHP Lindsey Caughel (1-2, 7.88 ERA)

THE GAME

TODAY'S GAME: The Memphis Redbirds and Tacoma Rainiers will play the finale of a three-game set tonight at 7:05 p.m. This will be the only time the two teams will play this season. The two teams have split the first two games of the series. Memphis is coming off a 2-3 series loss at New Orleans, while Tacoma is coming off a 1-4 series loss to Salt Lake. The two teams met for four games last year in Tacoma, and Memphis took the series 3-1. Today's game will be broadcast on memphisredbirds.com and in St. Louis on KTRS 550 AM with Steve Selby on the call.

ON THE HILL: Right-hander Dakota Hudson will get the ball for the 'Birds tonight. Hudson is coming off just his second loss of the season last week at New Orleans. In that game, he allowed a season-high four earned runs in 5.2 innings of work. Despite the loss, Hudson finished the month of May with a 3-2 record, and a 1.65 ERA, the best in the PCL in May. The righty allowed just six earned runs in 32.2 innings of work, while striking out 28 batters. Hudson and teammate Daniel Poncedeleon have been the most consistent starters for Memphis. Hudson owns an ERA of 2.69 coming into tonight's contest, third-best in the league and trailing Poncedeleon, who leads the league at 2.41. Hudson is also tied for the league-lead with six wins this season. This will be his first-career appearance against Tacoma.

The Rainiers will send right-hander Lindsey Caughel to the mound tonight to make a spot-start. Caughel has appeared in 11 games for Tacoma this season, making two starts. In his two starts this season, Caughel has pitched a total of 4.1 innings, allowing eight hits and five earned runs, good for a 10.38 ERA. This will be Caughel's first-career appearance against Memphis.

HISTORY WITH TACOMA: Memphis and Tacoma have played every year dating back to 1998 when Memphis joined the PCL. Tacoma holds the narrowly lead in the all-time series at 49-47. Before Memphis took the season-series 3-1 last year, the two teams had split the season-series in six-consecutive seasons, dating back to 2011. The Redbirds hold the edge in Memphis, posting a 27-21 record, while posting a 20-28 record in Tacoma. Last season, the 'Birds out-hit Tacoma .299 to .241, and posted a 3.31 ERA compared to their 5.50 ERA.

BIRD BITES

AROZARENA: Is just 3-for-29 in his last nine games after snapping a 15-game on-base streak on May 25

BARON: Recently spent two weeks with St. Louis; appeared in two games, and recorded one hit, his first in the MLB

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

KELLY: Recently optioned from St. Louis; hitting .247 with five 2B, two HR and 11 RBI in 24 games with Memphis

KNIZNER: Is hitting .341 (14-for-41) since joining Memphis last month; hitting .336 (49-for-146) on season

MEJIA: Drove in both Memphis runs in last night's 2-1 win; it was his first multi-RBI game since April 10

MERCADO: Is hitting .174 (8-for-46) 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: Before going hitless Tues. night, was hitting .435 (10-for-23) with five extra-base hits and seven RBI in last seven

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: Has two multi-hit games in the last week after going 15 games without a multi-hit performance

URIAS: After going 0-4 last night, is hitting just .222 (8-for-36) in eight games since being transferred from Springfield

WISDOM: Recently snapped career-long 16-game hitting streak; hitting .325 (40-for-123) since May 1

BY THE NUMBERS

17.2 straight innings from the bullpen without an earned run allowed. Eight different relievers have combined to allow just one unearned run in that span, the longest of the season for the 'Birds

ON THIS DATE

In 2011, Aaron Luna hit a solo home run in the top of the 12th inning to give Memphis a 2-1 win over Oklahoma City

THE SEASON

ABOUT THE LAST ONE: The Memphis Redbirds grabbed another one-run win last night, topping Tacoma 2-1.

Last night's starter Daniel Poncedeleon was solid for Memphis. He pitched 5.1 innings, allowing one run on three hits and six walks, while striking out three en route to the win.

The Memphis bullpen continued its recent dominant stretch, pitching the final 3.2 innings, allowing just four hits to seal the win. Sean Gilmartin escaped a jam in the sixth for Poncedeleon, stranding two runners. Edward Mujica escaped another jam for Gilmartin in the seventh to strand two, and Mike Mayers came on in the ninth to earn his third save of the season.

Offensively, the 'Birds grabbed runs in the first and fifth innings to get the win. Alex Mejia drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly, and later drove in the winning run with an RBI single in the fifth.

Wilfredo Tovar led all Redbird batters with two hits on the night.

PONCE CONTINUES TO DOMINATE: Last night's starter Daniel Poncedeleon has had himself a strong start to the 2018 season. Despite getting the lowest run support among Memphis starters, Poncedeleon is now 5-2 with a 2.41 ERA in 11 starts in 12 appearances for Memphis this season. Last night, Poncedeleon threw 5.1 innings of one-run ball. He allowed two runners to reach in the sixth before being pulled in favor of Sean Gilmartin. Gilmartin got out of the jam to give Poncedeleon a final line of 5.1 innings pitched, three hits, one earned run, six walks, and three strikeouts. In his 11 starts this season, he has pitched at least 5.0 innings in 10 of them, and has notched four quality starts. The righty has not allowed more than three earned runs this season, and has allowed two earned runs or fewer in nine of his 10 starts, including seven starts where he has allowed one or less earned runs. After last night's performance, Poncedeleon now owns the best ERA (2.41) in the PCL, narrowly ahead of teammate Dakota Hudson (2.69). He is also tied for the most strikeouts in the PCL at 71. Poncedeleon also sits in second in the league in opponent's batting average (.220), and third in strikeouts per nine innings pitched ratio (10.90).

ONE IS JUST ENOUGH: Last night, the Redbirds won another one-run game, 2-1 over the Tacoma Rainiers. They are now 13-4 in one-run games this season, including 10-2 at AutoZone Park. Their 13-4 (.765) record in one-run contests gives them the most wins and best overall record in such contests this season. Since manager Stubby Clapp took the helm last season, Memphis owns the best record and winning percentage in one-run games in the entire league. Last season, the 'Birds were 29-15 (.659) in one-run games. Between the two seasons, they are 42-19 in such games, a .689 winning percentage. The 'Birds have now won seven of their last eight one-run contests. Memphis is 5-4 in its last nine games, and all five wins have been by one run.

HAVE A NIGHT, ALEX: Last night, Alex Mejia drove in both Memphis runs, giving starter Daniel Poncedeleon all the support he needed to win 2-1. In the 'Birds' second at-bat of the game, Patrick Wisdom singled, then moved to third on Tyler O'Neill's double, and came around to score on Mejia's sacrifice fly. The Rainiers tied the game at one apiece in the fourth inning before the 'Birds grabbed the lead for good in the fifth. Adolis Garcia led off the fifth inning with a double down the leftfield line, and four batters later, Mejia singled up the middle to give Memphis its final run of the night. Mejia also walked in the game, giving him a final line of 1-for-2, two RBI, and one walk. His RBI single also snapped an 0-for-13 stretch dating back to June 1. Last night, Mejia also notched his second multi-RBI game this season, and his first since April 10 against the Omaha Storm Chasers.

DOMINANCE FROM THE 'PEN: In the last four games, the Memphis bullpen has been dominant accumulating a large work load. In Saturday's win over New Orleans, five relievers combined to toss 7.1 shutout innings as the 'Birds stormed back in the late innings to win 6-5 in 10 innings. That performance came after starter Ryan Helsley allowed five runs, three of them earned, to score in 2.2 innings. In Sunday's loss to New Orleans, Memphis starter Kevin Herget allowed four earned runs on three home runs to score in his 5.1 innings of work. The bullpen then came on to shutdown the Baby Cakes with 2.2 innings of shutout ball. Tuesday night, the bullpen pitched the final three innings, and allowed one unearned run to score in the eighth. Last night, the bullpen pitched the final 3.2 innings to close out the game for the 'Birds. With their performance last night, the bullpen has allowed just one unearned run to score in the last four games, and they have pitched 17.2 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run. Over that span, eight different Memphis relievers have made an appearance. Hector Mendoza (2.1IP), Andrew Morales (2.2IP), Preston Guilmet (2.0IP), Edward Mujica (3.1IP), Conner Greene (1.0IP), Arturo Reyes (4.0IP, 1UR), Sean Gilmartin (1.1IP), and Mike Mayers (1.0IP) have all been lights-out over that stretch. Through the first five games in June, the Memphis bullpen is 1-0 with a save, and has thrown 20.0 innings, allowing just three runs, two earned runs, seven walks, and a home run, while striking out 10 batters, good for a 0.90 ERA. In comparison, through the first five games of June, the Memphis starters are 1-3 in 24.0 innings, allowing 18 runs, 12 earned runs, 20 walks, and four home runs, while striking out just 18 batters, giving them a 4.50 ERA.

HEY, BUDDY: Since being optioned by St. Louis a few days ago, Tyler O'Neill has continued his dominance at the plate. After going hitless in his first game back on Friday, O'Neill went 1-for-4 at the plate, scoring a run, and recording two RBI and two walks on Saturday, and in Sunday's loss, he went 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored. In Tuesday night's game, O'Neill broke up Tacoma's no-hit bid in the fourth inning, notching a double for his lone hit of the night. Last night, O'Neill went 1-for-2 with a double and two walks. O'Neill has now walked four time in his last four games after having walked just four times all season in 47 games between Memphis and St. Louis. Despite spending a good chunk of the season with the Cardinals, O'Neill is second on the team behind Patrick Wisdom with 33 RBI, is tied with Max Schrock with 13 two-out RBI on the season, behind Wisdom (15), and he leads the Redbirds with 11 multi-RBI games. After his three-hit performance Sunday, O'Neill also leads the 'Birds with six three-hit games this season. O'Neill is also tied for third in the PCL with 13 home runs on the season. In 48 games between Memphis and St. Louis, the Cardinals' No. 4 prospect, and top hitting prospect, is hitting .302 (51-for-169), with six doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, and 40 RBI. O'Neill is second amongst Cardinals minor leaguers with 13 home runs in minors and is fifth with 33 RBI.

WIZ STILL HITTING WELL: Last night, Patrick Wisdom notched a single in the first inning, snapping an 0-for-5 streak, and came around to score the game's first run. On June 1 at New Orleans, Wisdom snapped a career-long 16-game hitting streak that dated back to May 14, which also put him tied for the fifth-best streak in franchise history. Over that 16-game stretch, Wisdom hit .424 (25-for-59), scoring 15 times, notching eight extra-base hits, and driving in 14 runners. In 33 games since May 1, Wisdom is hitting .325 (40-for-123), which is the 18th-best average in the PCL in that span. His .364 (28-for-77) average since May 14 puts him tied for sixth in the league in that time frame. Wisdom is now hitting .298 through his first 55 games this season. The .298 mark through 55 games is the highest average in his career through this point by 22 points (.277, 2012). In his record-setting season last year, Wisdom hit just .246 through the first 55 games. He had a career-high 111 hits last season, and had 61 hits in an injury shortened, 78 game season with Memphis in 2016. He is two hits shy of his 2016 mark, and is over halfway to his 2017 mark .

FLASHY DEFENSE: Last night, the Memphis defense was making spectacular plays all over the place. In the sixth inning, Adolis Garcia cut down Daniel Vogelbach attempting to stretch a single into a double. It was Garcia's ninth outfield assist of the season, the most in the PCL. The Memphis defense also turned a total of four double plays, the second-best mark in franchise history. The Memphis defense has turned five double plays in a game five times in franchise history. The last time they did so was August 22, 2011 at Albuquerque. Memphis is tied with Omaha and New Orleans with a .982 fielding percentage, the fifth-best mark in the PCL.

MEMPHIS LOVES WEDNESDAY, APPARENTLY: After beating Tacoma 2-1 last night, the 'Birds moved to a perfect 6-0 in Wednesday games this season. The 'Birds are 4-0 at home on Wednesday and 2-0 on the road. While Memphis plays well on Wednesday's, they have struggled mightily on Friday's this season, going just 2-6.

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

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



Pacific Coast League Stories from June 7, 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.

OurSports Central