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PCL1 Memphis Redbirds

Game Notes: Memphis Redbirds (54-65) at Fresno Grizzlies (54-65)

August 12, 2019 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Memphis Redbirds News Release


Memphis Redbirds (54-65) at Fresno Grizzlies (54-65)

Monday, August 12 - 9:05 p.m. (CT) - Chukchansi Park (12,500) - Fresno, California

Game #120 - Road Game #61 (31-29)

LHP Austin Warner (1-2, 6.87) vs RHP J.J. Hoover (4-5, 8.41)

BY THE NUMBERS

106 Number of strikeouts by Redbirds pitchers through 10 games in August. That number leads the Pacific Coast League. The staff has punched out 10 batters or more in six of their last 10 games.

.143 Fresno's batting average with runners in scoring positing during this series. Redbird pitchers have held the Grizzlies to going 2-for-14 in such situations and have also stranded 18 runners in the first two games of this series.

THE GAME

TONIGHT'S GAME: The Memphis Redbirds continue their seven-game west coast road trip in the third of four games against the Fresno Grizzlies. The two teams met for the first time Saturday night since going head-to-head in the Pacific Coast League Championship last season. The Redbirds won their third-straight game with a 5-3 victory over the Grizzlies last night. Chris Ellis allowed one run over a season-high 5.0 innings in his start and also fanned a season-high nine batters. Edmundo Sosa and Ramon Urias each homered in the contest. Urias has homered in back-to-back games and four times in his last six. Randy Arozarena has reached base safely in 37-straight starts after drawing a walk in the seventh. Tonight's game will be broadcast live on www.memphisredbirds.com with Steve Selby on the call.

ON THE HILL: Left-hander Austin Warner is scheduled to take the mound in tonight's game and make his eighth start for Memphis and his 22nd overall start this season across all levels. In seven starts with the Redbirds, Warner has gone 1-2, 6.87 (29 ER/38.0 IP) to go along with 35 strikeouts and 20 walks. In his last time out on Wednesday at Sacramento, he suffered the loss (5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R/ER, 2 BB, 7 SO) in the Redbirds' 4-2 defeat to the River Cats. Warner has allowed at least six hits in each of his starts and has yielded an opponent's average of .318 (49x154). He snapped a stretch of at least four earned runs allowed in three-straight and allowed three earned runs or fewer for the second time in his seven starts with Memphis. This was also his first start at the Triple-A level that he did not allow a home run. In 38.0 innings of work at Memphis, Warner has allowed 12 home runs compared to allowing just 10 long balls in 82.1 innings at the Double-A level. Warner last faced the Grizzlies in Game 2 of the Pacific Coast League Championship Series, tossing a scoreless inning in relief during the Redbirds' 10-1 defeat. Warner went 4-6, 3.83 (35 ER/82.1 IP) in 15 games, 14 starts with Double-A Springfield this season. In his 14 starts, eight of them were quality starts and he has made four-straight such outings at that level. Warner was named Texas League Pitcher of the Week for the week of June 10-16, where he went 2-0, 2.21 in two starts, struck-out 16 batters during that span. His performances this season led him to be named a TL Mid-Season All-Star, where he pitched a scoreless inning, fanning one in his appearance on June 25. Warner left the TL ranking 2nd with 88 strikeouts in 82.1 innings. He also ranked 8th with a 3.83 ERA. He made his 2019 Memphis debut on June 30 vs. New Orleans, where he took no-decision (6.0 IP, 6 H, 5 R/ER, 3 BB, 3 SO, 3 HR) in the Redbirds' 10-6 victory over the Baby Cakes. The Louisville, Ky., native is in his third professional season and has spent them all within the St. Louis organization. He entered the season ranked as the No. 30 prospect in the St. Louis organization by Baseball America and is currently ranked as the No. 26 prospect in the system by MLB.com.

The Grizzlies are scheduled to start right-hander J.J. Hoover in tonight's contest. The 31-year-old has gone 4-5, 8.41 (67 ER/71.2 IP) in 25 games, 11 starts for Fresno this season and has yielded an opponent's average of .320 (96x300). In his last time out on Wednesday vs. Nashville, Hoover suffered the loss (4.0 IP, 10 H, 7 R/ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 3 HR) in the Grizzlies' 12-3 defeat to the Sounds. It was the second time this season that he has allowed 10 hits in a start (last, May 29) and it was his third-straight start that Hoover has allowed at least six earned runs. He has not worked past the 4.0 inning mark in his last three starts. He has allowed a home run in three-straight and in six of his last seven starts overall. Hoover made just three appearances across all levels last season after he elected free agency after being designated for assignment by the Milwaukee Brewers on April 11. He was signed by the Washington Nationals on Feb. 12, 2019 and was later assigned to Fresno on April 2. In his last full season of baseball in 2017, he made 52 relief appearances for the Arizona Diamondbacks, where he went 3-1, 3.92 (18 ER/41.1 IP) and had 54 strikeouts. Tonight will be his first start against Memphis in his career. The Pittsburgh native is in his 12th professional season and his first with the Washington organization. Hoover had also spent time in the Atlanta, Cincinnati, Arizona and Milwaukee organizations.

HISTORY WITH FRESNO: The Redbirds have faced off against the Fresno Grizzlies every year since 1998. Memphis leads in the overall series 51-47 and trails at this facility 20-22. Memphis last came to Fresno in 2017, where the two teams split a four-game set. The teams met last season at AutoZone Park, where the Redbirds dropped three-of-four games, suffering the series loss.

The two teams have squared off in the postseason once, with the Redbirds coming away victorious in in the 2018 Pacific Coast League Championship. The Redbirds captured their second-consecutive PCL title by winning the series 3-1, taking the crown 5-0 at AutoZone Park.

This is the third year that the Redbirds have faced off against the Washington Nationals' Triple-A affiliate and for the first time since 2006. Fresno is entering their first season as the National's top affiliate after four seasons of affiliation with the Houston Astros. From 2005-06, the New Orleans Baby Cakes were the organization's top affiliate, where the Redbirds went 12-20. Overall, Memphis is 14-20 against the Nationals' Triple-A club.

THE SEASON

ABOUT THE LAST ONE: Edmundo Sosa and Ramon Urias both went yard for the Memphis Redbirds in a 5-3 win against the Fresno Grizzlies (Nationals) Sunday night in Fresno, Calif. The Redbirds have won three-straight and seven of their last 10 overall.

Memphis (54-65) took the lead in the first inning for the third-straight game with Sosa's two-run shot with two outs. He finished the game with two hits and drove in his third run of the game with a sacrifice fly in the fifth to score Harrison Bader.

Urias homered for the second-straight night by leading off the fourth with a solo blast. He has four home runs in his last six games.

Chris Ellis earned the win in the start and allowed one run on four hits in his longest outing of the season. He fanned a season-high nine batters and issued two walks. It was his first win as a starter since Aug. 29, 2018.

Dominic Leone tossed 1.1 scoreless frames in relief and struck out two, while also stranding three inherited runners, and Mike Mayers earned his first save of the season by shutting the door in the ninth with a one-two-three inning.

The Memphis pitching staff held Fresno (54-65) to going 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranded eight baserunners.

Randy Arozarena went 0-for-3 with a strikeout on the night but drew a walk in the seventh. He has reached base safely in 37-straight starts.

PONCE DE LEON NAMED PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Memphis Redbirds starting pitcher Daniel Ponce de Leon has been named the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week for August 5-11, the league announced Monday.

Ponce de Leon earned the honor after throwing seven scoreless frames and allowing just two hits on Friday's 15-0 Memphis win over the Sacramento River Cats (Giants) in Sacramento. He struck out a season-high 11 batters, which was also the most strikeouts by a Redbirds pitcher this season, and issued no walks.

In his last three starts with Memphis, Ponce de Leon has allowed just three hits and no runs over 14.0 innings of work, whiffing 21 batters compared to issuing six walks.

In 13 starts for the Redbirds this season, Ponce de Leon is 5-4 with a 3.26 ERA with 66 strikeouts in 66.1 innings. He has held opponents to just a .211 average against. If he qualified, Ponce de Leon would have the lowest ERA and lowest average against among PCL league leaders.

This is Ponce de Leon's second PCL weekly award. He won this award last season during the week of July 9-15, 2018. He joins fellow pitchers Austin Gomber (April 15-21) and Jake Woodford (June 17-23) as Redbirds players to capture a PCL weekly award this season.

REDBIRDS RAKE ON THE ROAD: Not only did the Memphis Redbirds match a season-high by launching five home runs in Saturday night's game, but they also broke the franchise record for most home runs hit on the road in a single season. Adolis Garcia's solo blast in the sixth inning was the team's 91st home run hit on the road this season, breaking the record of 90 set by the 2004 Redbirds.

CLIMBING THE LEADERBOARDS: As Adolis Garcia continues his power surge at the plate, he has entered and climbed into the Top-10 in several batting categories on the Redbirds all-time lists. His home run last night was his 50th in his Redbirds career and he is now just one shy of matching Patrick Wisdom or T-4th in franchise history. He ranks 8th with 159 RBI, five shy of matching Pete Kozma for T-8th. He also ranks T-5th in triples (11), 7th in strikeouts (267), T-7th in hit by pitches (17) and he also moved in to 7th in extra-base hits (117) after doubling last night as well.

PONCE DE LEON DOMINANT AGAIN: After setting the pace with 4.0 no-hit innings on August 4 in Memphis' 2-0 win over El Paso, Daniel Ponce de Leon dazzled again on the mound Friday, holding the Sacramento River Cats to just two hits in 7.0 innings of work, fanning 11 batters and issuing no walks. In his last three starts with the Redbirds dating back to June 6 at Tacoma, Ponce de Leon has allowed just three hits in his last 14.0 innings with the Redbirds and has whiffed 21 batters during that span. Through 13 starts with Memphis this season, he has held opponents to a .211 average (51x242), a figure that would lead the Pacific Coast League if he qualified.

'BIRDS SILENCE BATS: Memphis Redbird pitchers held the El Paso Chihuahuas, one of the most potent offenses in the Pacific Coast League, to just one hit on August 4 in a 2-0 shut-out win. Daniel Ponce de Leon began the game with four hitless frames and fanned eight. Seth Elledge followed and allowed a single to the second batter he faced to end the no-hit bid, but he, Chasen Shreve and Junior Fernandez retired 13 of the next 14 batters to end the game. It was the 12th one-hitter in franchise history and first since Ponce de Leon's solo effort on July 15, 2018 at Omaha.

RANDY REPEATS: After slashing .374/.456/.607/1.063 in 28 games between Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis in June en route to being named Cardinals Minor League Player of the Month, Randy Arozarena won the award for the second-straight month after posting a slash of .378/.455/.592/1.047 in 26 games in July. Arozarena became the third Redbird in franchise history to hit for the cycle on July 26 at Oklahoma City and accomplished that feat in his first four at-bats and had 12 total multi-hit games in July. He has also reached base safely in his last 37 starts and has 15 multi-hit games during that span.

PULLING AN ALL-NIGHTER: On August 1, the Redbirds' game against the Albuquerque Isotopes lasted four hours and seven minutes, making it the longest game of the season for the Redbirds. It also became the second-longest nine-inning game in franchise history, falling just two minutes short of matching the record of 4:09, set on June 15, 2013 against the Isotopes at Isotopes Park. It was also the first four-hour game the Redbirds have played in since June 11, 2017 vs. Nashville in a 12-inning affair.

AROZARENA HITS FOR THE CYCLE: On June 26 at Oklahoma City, Randy Arozarena became the third Redbird in franchise history to hit for the cycle. He opened up the game with a bunt single, doubled in the third, homered in the fourth and completed the cycle with a triple in the fifth. After an 18-year gap between the first two cycles in franchise history (Mark Little, June 23, 2000; Luke Voit, June 30, 2018), the Redbirds have now had a player hit for the cycle in consecutive years. Arozarena's four-hit game that night was his third such game for the Redbirds this season, which leads the team.

ADOLIS' BIG DAY: On June 21, Adolis Garcia put on an impressive display of power at Werner Park by homering twice and driving in eight runs. His eight RBI matched a franchise record that he also matched last season on July 26 at Salt Lake. In the third inning with two outs, he launched his second grand slam of the season. After homering again in the eighth inning, it was his third game in his last five that he had homered twice. Garcia ranks 3rd in the Pacific Coast League with 12 dingers with two outs and T-10th with 29 RBI in similar situations.

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