Gnats Game Notes: Friday, August 26 Vs. Charleston

Published on August 26, 2011 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Savannah Sand Gnats News Release


Savannah Sand Gnats (35-25/74-55, t-1st, Southern) vs. Charleston RiverDogs (24-36/50-80, 6th, Southern)

Game #130 - Home Game #66 - Friday - 7:05

LHP Angel Cuan (10-3, 3.50) vs. RHP Mike Gipson (0-2, 5.84)

Historic Grayson Stadium, Savannah, GA

Radio: News/Talk 630 WBMQ and sandgnats.com

Tonight: The first-half champion Gnats try to snap a five-game losing streak in the opening game of a five-game series, their final home series of the 2011 regular season, against the Charleston RiverDogs, SAL affiliate of the New York Yankees. The Gnats finished their eight-game road trip at 2-6.

Last Night: Rome took advantage of four Savannah errors, which tied a season-high, on the way to three unearned runs off starter Taylor Whitenton and a 4-3 win over the Gnats. Whitenton allowed just two hits and a walk in his six innings with seven strikeouts and now leads the SAL in ERA (2.55).

Now Pitching: LHP Angel Cuan, who is 11th in the SAL in ERA (3.50), is scheduled to make his 13th start since moving into the rotation after the All-Star Break. Cuan's WHIP of 1.15 is sixth in the SAL. Cuan is coming off his roughest start of the year, when he allowed a season-high seven run on 14 hits in five innings. It was the first time in his last 11 starts in which he failed to finish six innings. Cuan has walked just 15 batters in 113 innings, a rate of 1.19 BB/9. As a reliever he had an ERA of 3.65 in 44.1 IP, while as a starter, he owns a 3.41 ERA in 68.2 innings. His walk rate as a reliever of 1.22 BB-IBB/9 IP was the fourth-best among SAL relievers. Last year, Cuan was second only to teammate Yohan Almonte in the New-York Penn League with a 2.03 ERA. He was fifth in the NYP in strikeouts (64) and fourth in innings pitched (79.2) and fewest baserunners/9 IP (9.94). Cuan went five innings or more in 13 of his 14 starts in Brooklyn in 2010. Cuan pitched for his native Panama in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Gnats are 9-3 when Cuan starts and have supported him with 4.42 runs per game (53 runs/12 games).

Terrific Tovar: Wilfredo Tovar collected his fourth-straight two-hit game Thursday to push his batting line to .329/.398/.412 in 22 games in August. He is the third-toughest player in the SAL to strikeout with one whiff every 10.32 plate appearances. Tovar has gone eight straight games without a strikeout since a three whiff game against Asheville on August 16.

Five Down: The Gnats have dropped five straight games, which is now their longest skid of the second half and tied for their second-longest all year.

Company in First: With last night's loss, and an Augusta GreenJackets' win, their second straight, the Gnats and 'Jackets are tied for first place. The Gnats had held sold possession of first place since beating West Virginia on July 22.

Win Counting: The Gnats' next win will be their 75th, equaling their total from 2010, when the team finished 75-64 in the team's first winning season since 2000. The Gnats are chasing the 1994 team that won 82 games as part of an 82-55 campaign.

Playoff Chase: The Gnats will play either the Augusta GreenJackets or Greenville Drive. The Gnats will play the GreenJackets if Augusta wins the second half, or the Gnats win the half and Augusta makes up a five-game deficit on the Drive. The Gnats will play the Drive if Greenville, which is two games back, wins the half, or if the Gnats win the half, and Greenville finishes with a better overall record than Augusta.

Strong Arms: The Gnats still lead the SAL in ERA (3.18), WHIP (1.21) and fewest hits allowed (988), and are the only team with fewer than 1,000 hits allowed. The Gnats are fifth in strikeouts (988) and sixth in walks allowed (394). Charleston has struck out the second-most batters (1095) and walked the third-most (476).

Vs. Charleston: The Gnats are 6-4 against the RiverDogs this year, 3-0 at home and 3-4 on the road.

Playoff Schedule: Savannah will play the number two seed in the best-of-three Southern Division Championship series beginning on the road on Wednesday, September 7, returning to Savannah on Friday, September 9, for game two. Game three, if necessary, will be held Saturday, September 10.

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



South Atlantic League Stories from August 26, 2011


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