PCL1 Memphis Redbirds

Game Notes: Memphis Redbirds (67-39) at Las Vegas 51s (51-55)

Published on July 29, 2018 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Memphis Redbirds News Release


Memphis Redbirds (67-39) At Las Vegas 51s (51-55)

Sunday, July 29 - 9:05 p.m. (CT) - Cashman Field (9,334) - Las Vegas, Nevada

Game #107 - Road Game #55 (35-19)

RHP Kevin Herget (7-7, 3.88 ERA) vs. RHP Nabil Crismatt (2-2, 7.64 ERA)

THE GAME

TODAY'S GAME: The Memphis Redbirds and Las Vegas 51s will play the third game of a four-game set tonight at 9:05 p.m. in Las Vegas. This is the first and only time the two teams will meet in the regular season this year. The Redbirds are coming off a 2-1 series win over the Salt Lake Bees, while Las Vegas is coming off a 2-1 series win over the Nashville Sounds. After this seven game road trip against Salt Lake and Las Vegas, the 'Birds will return home to play Sacramento and Fresno to finish off games against the West Coast. With their 8-3 win over Las Vegas Friday night, Memphis won the 1,500th game in franchise history. Last night, infielder Luke Voit was traded to the Yankees. Earlier today, outfielder Lane Thomas was transferred from Springfield. Tonight's game will be broadcast on www.memphisredbirds.com with Steve Selby on the call.

ON THE HILL: Right-hander Kevin Herget will take the mound for the Redbirds tonight. It is Herget's 17th start with Memphis this season, and his 23rd overall appearance. So far this season, Herget is 7-7 with a 3.88 ERA in 104.1 innings of work. In his last start against Salt Lake, the righty earned the win, pitching five strong innings, allowing three runs on nine hits and three walks, while striking out two batters. Herget has been particularly good over his last six starts. In that span, he is 4-1 in 38.0 innings of work, having allowed just 12 earned runs on 34 hits and five walks, while striking out 36 batters, giving him a 2.84 ERA. In that stretch, he also posted five-consecutive quality starts.

The 51s will send right-hander Nabil Crismatt to the mound to battle Herget and the Redbirds. So far this season, Crismatt has made four starts for Las Vegas, spanning 17.2 innings. In those starts, he is 2-2 with a 7.64 ERA. He has allowed at least four earned runs in all but one of his starts with the 51s.

HISTORY WITH LAS VEGAS: Memphis and Las Vegas have played every year dating back to 1998 when Memphis joined the PCL. Since 2003, the two teams have played once per year, alternating ballparks every other year. Since 1998, Las Vegas has been affiliated with four different teams. They have been with the Padres, Dodgers, Blue Jays, and now the Mets, while Memphis has stayed with the Cardinals. Last season, Memphis swept the season series at home, 4-0. The 'Birds lead the all-time series at 52-46, own the series record in Memphis at 31-21, and narrowly trail all-time on the road at 21-25.

BIRD BITES

BARON: Wed. night, snapped an 8-game hitting streak; was his longest since 8-game streak July12-23, 2016

GARCIA: Thurs. night, went 3-for-4 with three homers and eight RBI; hit a 3R home run, a grand slam, and a solo home run

KELLY: Is hitting .341 (28-for-82) over last 22 games; has hits in 16 of those games and multiple in 10 of them

MEJIA: Thurs. night hit third home run of the season and his second this month; had just one until July 15

MERCADO: Last Saturday, became first player in Memphis history to record five hits and three steals in a game

O'NEILL: Sunday, became sixth player in Memphis history to hit three home runs in a game; 25 HR this season

RAVELO: Tues. night, hit two home runs in game for the first time in his career; now has tied career-high with 11 home runs

SCHROCK: Last Sunday, hit fourth home run of the season and his first since June 9 against Reno; it was a two-run shot

SOSA: Friday night, hit first career Triple-A home run; is hitting .276 (96-for-348) in 92 games between MEM and SPG

THOMAS: Will be making his Triple-A debut; hitting .260 (100-for-384) with Springfield; has 21 home runs

TOVAR: Is hitting .315 (29-for-92) over last 26 games; recently snapped a season-long nine-game hitting streak

WISDOM: Last Tuesday, hit 13th home run of the season, snapping nearly a month-long home run drought

BY THE NUMBERS

458 calendar days have passed since the Redbirds were not in first place (April 27, 2017); they have played 226 regular season games since that time.

BY THE NUMBERS

154 transactions through the first 106 games this season, 1.5 per game. Memphis had 159 total transactions all of last season.

THE SEASON

ABOUT THE LAST ONE: The Memphis Redbirds dropped last night's contest against the Las Vegas 51s 9-5, despite mounting a late comeback.

In his first Triple-A start, lefty Austin Warner took the no-decision for the 'Birds. He was solid through four innings of work, allowing five runs, only two earned, on seven hits and three walks, while striking out four batters.

New Redbird Elniery Garcia took the loss, allowing four earned runs in two innings of work. Hector Mendoza and Conner Greene both worked scoreless innings out of the 'pen.

Offensively, Adolis Garcia (1-for-4), Rangel Ravelo (1-for-4), Carson Kelly (3-for-4), and Wilfredo Tovar (2-for-4) all continued their recent hot streaks. Kelly drove in two runs, while Tovar drove in three, providing all the run support for Memphis.

Outfielder Oscar Mercado also stole two bases in the loss, giving him 31 this season.

1,500 WINS: After winning Friday night, Memphis won the 1,500th game in franchise history. The 'Birds now have 67 wins this season, the second-most through 106 games in franchise history. The Redbirds have now reached a milestone win in each of the last three seasons. On June 12, 2016, they won game number 1,300, on July 14, 2017, they won game number 1,400. Manager Stubby Clapp played for Memphis from 1999 to 2002, and has been the manager since last season. He has coached the 'Birds to wins 1,400 and 1,500, and was part of the teams that won games 100, 200, and 300.

SOLID DEBUT FOR WARNER: Last night's starter for the Redbirds, lefty Austin Warner, was solid in his Triple-A debut. Warner, signed as a non-drafted free agent out of the Independent League last June, has soared through the Cardinals' system since being signed. He debuted with Palm Beach, the Gulf Coast Cardinals, and Peoria last season, going 4-4 with a 2.44 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 62.2 innings of work between the three. He started this season with Palm Beach before being promoted to Springfield and now Memphis. Last night, he took the no-decision, pitching four innings, striking out four batters. He allowed five runs, only two of which were earned. In 19 starts across all three levels, the lefty is a combined 5-6 with a 4.01 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 110.0 innings of work.

CARSON CLICKING: In last night's loss, catcher Carson Kelly had one of his best performances of the season at the dish. He went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI, while also scoring twice in the game. This came one night after he went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two walks in the opener against Las Vegas. Since a rough-six game stretch in mid-June, Kelly has been consistent at the plate. He went hitless from June 17-25, and since that time, has hit safely in 16 of his 22 games since then. Since June 26, Kelly is hitting .341 (28-for-82), scoring 17 runs, notching four doubles and two home runs, while driving in 13 runners, and walking 11 times, and striking out just 13 times. Kelly is now hitting .288 in 58 games with Memphis this season.

HOT BAT IN JULY: Last night, infielder Wilfredo Tovar was a force at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI. He tied the game for Memphis in the sixth inning with an RBI single. While Memphis couldn't pull off the win, Tovar continued his recent hot-streak. Since the calendar turned to July, Tovar has been on fire at the plate. He has appeared in 18 games this month, and has hits in all but four of them. So far this month, Tovar is hitting .303 (20-for-66) with nine RBI. Since July started, he has a .343 on-base percentage.

CAN'T TOUCH THIS: Exactly one week after going 5-for-5 with three steals, the first such game in Memphis history, Oscar Mercado went 1-for-4 with two steals in last night's loss. Mercado now has 31 steals this season, the top mark in not only the PCL, but also all of Triple-A baseball. With his two steals last night, Mercado became the first Redbird to steal 30 bases in a season since 2012 when Eugenio Velez swiped 37 bases. Mercado is now tied with Tyler Greene (2009) for the third-most steals in a season in Redbird history. In just his first season with Memphis, he is also just two steals shy of jumping into the top-10 all time for steals in Redbird history. In his sixth season in the Minor Leagues, the 23-year-old has now stolen at least 30 bases in five of his six seasons. In addition to leading the league in stolen bases, Mercado is also third in at-bats (378), tied for fourth in hits (107), and second in runs scored at (72).

GARCIA STILL ON FIRE: In last night's loss, Adolis Garcia went 1-for-4 at the plate, hitting a double and scoring once. The performance continued Garica's recent dominance at the plate. Thursday night, the outfielder became the seventh player in Memphis history, and the second in four games, to hit three home runs in a game. Tyler O'Neill hit three home runs against Colorado Springs on July 22, and with Thursday night's performance, the two have joined Chris Haas (8/3/99), Billy Selby (6/16/03), Rick Ankiel (6/16/07), Josh Phelps (7/29/08), and Jamie Romak (4/8/13) as the only Redbirds to accomplish the feat. Garcia was the first player to hit a grand slam in a three-home run performance in Memphis history. Thursday night, Garcia also tied the franchise record with eight RBI in a game. He joins Tagg Bozied (8/1/07) as the only Redbirds to drive in eight runs in a game. Since the last day of May, Garcia has appeared in 44 games for the Redbirds, and is hitting a solid .327 (52-for-159) in that stretch. He has now raised his batting average to .263 on the season.

Last night, Garcia hit in the cleanup spot for the 13th time this season. He has been dominant out of that spot, and that continued last night. He is now hitting .481 (26-for-54) in the four spot, scoring 17 times, hitting eight doubles, and six home runs, while driving in 19 runs. He is posting an on-base percentage of .509, a slugging percentage of .963, and an OPS of 1.472 in the cleanup spot this season. Garcia has collected hits in 32 of his 44 games since June began, and has notched multiple hits in 15 of those games. In those 44 games, he has scored 29 runs, hit 10 doubles, a triple, and 14 home runs, all while driving in 40 runners. Between Springfield and Memphis last season, his first in America, he hit 15 home runs and drove in 65 runners in 124 games. Through 91 games this season, he already has 18 home runs and 57 RBI.

THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES, LUKE: Last night, infielder Luke Voit was traded to the Yankees for two pitchers and International Cap space. Voit has split the last two seasons between Memphis and St. Louis. With the Redbirds last season, the slugging first baseman hit .327 (88-for-269) in 74 games. He also made his Major League debut last season, hitting .246 (28-for-114) with four home runs. In 67 games with the 'Birds this season, Voit was hitting .299 (70-for-234) with 16 doubles, two triples, nine home runs, and 36 RBI. Earlier this season, Voit became just the second player in Memphis history to hit for the cycle, going 5-for-6 with five RBI on June 30 against the Iowa Cubs. Voit also had recorded two five-hit games this season. Voit is the only player in Redbird history with two five-hit games.

POWER SURGE: After hitting three home runs Friday night, the Redbirds continued to post some insane home run numbers over the last few games. Thursday night, they hit five home runs, and Tuesday night, they hit six home runs in the win over Salt Lake. This came one game after they went deep five times on Sunday. Tuesday night, they went back-to-back in the first inning, and Sunday, they went back-to-back in both the first and third innings. Thursday night, the 'Birds hit home runs in the first, second, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings. Adolis Garcia was responsible for three of those home runs, while Oscar Mercado and Alex Mejia hit the other two. It was the fourth time this season the 'Birds have hit at least five home runs in a game, the other time coming on June 13 at Albuquerque. Sunday, they also went back-to-back multiple times in the same game for the second time this season. Through June 8 this season, the 'Birds had hit just 49 home runs as a team. June 8 was the 62nd game this season. In the 44 games since then, Memphis has hit 64 home runs, giving them 113 total on the season. They are tied with El Paso for the sixth-most home runs in the PCL this season, and have hit the most homers out of PCL teams not located on the West Coast. With the performance Thursday night, Memphis also registered the 27th game in Redbird history where the team had hit at least five homers. This year's team already has the seventh-most home runs on the road (73) in franchise history. Tuesday night marked just the second time in franchise history the 'Birds had hit at least five home runs in consecutive games. They hit five on July 27, 2009 and hit seven the next day. Those two games also came against different teams.

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 July 29, 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