Gnats Game Notes: Friday, August 5 at Charleston
August 5, 2011 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Savannah Sand Gnats News Release
Savannah Sand Gnats (26-14/65-44, 1st, Southern) @ Charleston RiverDogs (16-24/42-68, 6th, Southern)
Game #110 - Road Game #53 - Friday - 7:05
RHP Gonzalez Germen (7-5, 3.70) vs. RHP Jose Ramirez (5-5, 4.24)
Joseph P. Riley Park, Charleston, SC
Radio: News/Talk 630 and sandgnats.com
Tonight: The first-half champion Gnats, winners of three straight, begin a four-game series in Charleston against the RiverDogs, SAL affiliate of the New York Yankees. After an off day on Tuesday, Savannah, which currently has the best record in the South Atlantic League, opens an eight-game home stand on Wednesday, August 10 against the Greenville Drive.
Last Night: Savannah 1B Juan Torres was 3-4 and drove home the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth in the Gnats' 5-3 win over the Augusta GreenJackets. The top two hitters in the Gnats' lineup, CF Darrell Ceciliani and SS Wilfredo Tovar were a combined 4-for-9 with a double and three runs scored.
Now Pitching: RHP Gonzalez Germen is scheduled to make his team-leading 20th start this evening. With 104.2 innings pitched, he is 13 innings behind Ryan Fraser for the Gnats' team lead. Germen enjoyed a strong July. His 2.40 ERA (8 ER/30 IP) was his second best in any month in 2011, trailing only May, when he had a 2.39 ERA, by one one-hundredth of a run. His strikeout to walk ratio of 4.4 (31 K/7 BB) in July is second only to June when he had a K/BB of 5 (20 K/4 BB). Germen spent most of the 2010 season with Kingsport in the Appalachian League where he was 2-5 with a 3.69 ERA in 61 innings over 10 starts with 54 strikeouts and 11 walks. He made two starts with Savannah to finish out the year. On August 27th, in his Savannah debut, in game two of a double-header against Charleston, he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and a shutout into the seventh. The Gnats are 10-9 when Germen starts and have supported him with 4.95 runs per game (94 runs/19 starts), the best run support of any Savannah starter.
21 To Party: The Gnats are a season-high 21 games over .500. Twice in 2011, the Gnats were 20 games over .500.
Crazy Eights: After scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth last night to break a 3-3 tie, the Gnats have now outscored their opponents 63-37 in the 8th inning this year. The 63 runs Savannah has scored and +26 scoring margin are their best in any inning in 2011.
Division Dominance: The Gnats are 50-24 against their Southern Division rivals, 32-10 at home and 18-14 on the road. Savannah is 21-8 against the Southern Division in the second half.
Chasing History: The Gnats, with 65 wins in 109 games, are on pace for 83 victories. The last time the Savannah franchise won as many as 80 games in a season was 1994, when the Savannah Cardinals finished 82-55 on their way to their second-straight SAL Championship. Last year at this point, through 109 games, the Gnats were 15-24 in the second half and 57-52 overall, on their way to a record of 33-36 in the second half and 75-64 for the year.
Playoff Scenario: The Gnats will play the second-half winner in the best-of-three Southern Division series beginning on the road on Wednesday, September 7 and returning to Savannah on Friday, September 9. The Gnats currently lead the second half standings by 3.5 games over the Greenville Drive, 4.0 over the Asheville Tourists and 5.5 games over the GreenJackets. If the Gnats win the second half, their first-round opponent will be the team with the next-best overall record where the Greenville Drive are currently seven games better than the Asheville Tourists and nine in front of the GreenJackets.
Strong Arms: The Gnats still lead the SAL in ERA (3.12), WHIP (1.21) and hits allowed (830). The Gnats are fifth in the SAL in strikeouts (858).
Vs. Charleston: The Gnats are 4-2 against Charleston this season, 3-0 at home and 1-2 on the road. The Gnats were 9-4 against the RiverDogs in 2010 and 6-3 on the road.
South Atlantic League Stories from August 5, 2011
- Drive Win See-Saw Battle with Legends, 11-10, in 11 Innings - Greenville Drive
- Torres, Sand Gnats Trounce RiverDogs, 10-5 - Charleston RiverDogs
- Kannapolis Plates Late Runs To Top Shorebirds, 5-2 - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Asheville takes 2-1 victory - Asheville Tourists
- Lakewood Downed 7-3 On Friday - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Kickham, Offense Both Strong in 6-2 Win - Augusta GreenJackets
- Suns Crunch Grasshoppers, 2-1, in Game One - Hagerstown Suns
- Intimidators rally in eighth to beat Shorebirds - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Gnats Game Notes: Friday, August 5 at Charleston - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Power Game Notes - Charleston Dirty Birds
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