Gnats Game Notes

Published on April 30, 2010 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Savannah Sand Gnats News Release


Savannah Sand Gnats (14-8, 1st, Southern) vs. Lexington Legends (11-11, 4th, Southern)

Game #23 - Home Game #15 -Friday - 7:05

LHP Mark Cohoon (3-0, 1.90) vs. RHP Robby Donovan (1-2, 2.70)

Historic Grayson Stadium - Savannah, GA

Radio: WBMQ News/Talk 630, sandgnats.com

Tonight: The first-place Gnats play game three of a four game set with the Lexington Legends. It is the seventh game of an eight-game home stand on which the Gnats are currently 4-2. The Gnats, who have the best record in the SAL, lead the Greenville Drive by one half game and the Augusta GreenJackets by two full games for first place in the SAL Southern Division.

Last Night: The Gnats stole a season-high six bases and took advantage of five Lexington Legneds errors, four wild pitches and two hit batters to run their way to a 6-3 win. The Gnats did not record a hit between the second and eighth innings but scored three runs in that span to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 lead. Reliever John Church tossed 2.2 scoreless innings, working around four hits for his first win of the year.

Now Pitching: Mark Cohoon will make his fifth Sand Gnats start of the year. The Gnats are 4-0 in Cohoon's starts and have supported him with 6.3 runs per game. His 1.90 ERA is ninth-best in the SAL and he is tied with five other pitchers for the league lead in wins with three. He spent all of 2009 with Brooklyn in the New York-Penn League where he was 9-2 with a 2.15 ERA in 14 starts. He fanned 70 and walked 20 in 92 innings. His 2.15 ERA was 6th in the League and the Mets recognized him with the team's Sterling Award as the Cyclones MVP. In 2008 with Savannah, Cohoon was 2-2 with a 3.82 ERA in seven starts after moving directly from the Kingsport Mets, skipping over Brooklyn. The Mets drafted Cohoon in the 12th round of the 2008 draft out of North Central Texas College.

First Things First: The Gnats have had at least a share of first place for nine days. The Gnats have been tied for first on five of those seven days, and had first all to themselves four times including the last two.

Grand Larceny: Thursday, the Gnats stole six bases, a new season high. Alonzo Harris swiped three, a new individual high for Savannah while RF Cesar Puello stole home. The Legends participated in the thefts too; their four stolen bases was a high for a Gnats opponent and Jose Altuve became the Gnats' first opponent with two stolen bases in a game.

Flo - tastic: Gnats shortstop Wilmer Flores has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games. The 18-year old is fifth in the SAL in batting average (.352), tied for fourth in slugging (.580), third in hits (31), sixth in doubles (9) and second in total bases (51). Flores hit three home runs in 125 games in 2009, but has equaled that mark 22 games into the 2010 season.

Pitching and Defense: Gnats have the second-best ERA in the SAL (2.94), but have allowed the fewest runs (74) in the league. Rome has allowed the second-fewest runs (84). Only Asheville (9) has allowed fewer unearned runs than the Gnats 10.

Road Attack: Savannah has hit .237/.307/.330 (AVG/OBP/SLG) at home at Grayson Stadium and has scored 3.6 runs per game. The Gnats have hit .294/.373/.450 on the road and scored 7.5 runs per game.

Four for Sure: Savannah is 14-1 when scoring four or more runs and 0-7 when scoring three runs or fewer. When Gnats pitching allows fewer than four runs, the team is 11-3. When the Gnats allow four or more runs at home, the team is 1-3.

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



South Atlantic League Stories from April 30, 2010


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