Gnats Game Notes

Published on June 27, 2010 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Savannah Sand Gnats News Release


Savannah Sand Gnats (43-30/1-2, t-5th, Southern) vs. Asheville Tourists (31-41/2-1, t-2nd, Southern)

Game #74 - Home Game #39 - Sunday - 6:05

LHP Darin Gorski (2-2, 2.94) vs. RHP Nick Schnaitmann (5-5, 5.94)

Historic Grayson Stadium, Savannah, GA Radio: WBMQ News/Talk 630, sandgnats.com

Tonight: The first half champion Savannah Sand Gnats play game four of the second half. The Asheville Tourists have taken two of the first three of the five-game series.

Last Night: The Tourists scored five times in the top of the sixth to beat the Gnats 5-0. The big hit was a three-run home run by DH Jared Clark. Four of the five runs scored against Collin McHugh in the frame were unearned. Savannah had base runners in seven of the game's nine innings.

Now Pitching: Darin Gorski is scheduled to make his sixth start for the Gnats today and his first since May 30th. He only made two appearances out of the Savannah bullpen in June totaling seven innings with one unearned run on five hits. He fanned four and walked one in the month. Gorski has fared better out of the bullpen than as a starter this year, as the table below details.

IP ERA Opp Avg BB SO SO/BB SO/9

Reliever 26.1 0.68 .172 6 27 4.5 9.2

Starter 22.2 5.56 .315 12 18 1.5 7.1

Last year for the Brooklyn Cyclones, Gorski was 3-4 with a 4.91 ERA in 62.1 innings over 13 appearances, 11 of which were starts. He struck out 50 batters and walked 26. The Mets selected Gorski in the 7th round of the 2009 out of Kutztown (PA) University where he earned the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Pitcher of the Year Award in 2009, his junior year. In 2009, Gorski led the Kutztown Golden Bears in strikeouts (100), innings pitched (78.2) and batting average against (.208). He was 10th in Division II in strikeouts. The Gnats are 1-2 when Gorski starts and have supported him with 7.7 runs per game.

Simply the Best: The Gnats' pitching staff leads the SAL in ERA (2.45), strikeouts (638), WHIP (1.11) and innings pitched (684).

Fine Penmanship: Since the All-Star break, the Gnats' bullpen has a 0.84 ERA (1 ER/10.2 IP) and has an opponents' batting average of just .086 (3 H/35 AB). The relievers have issued five walks and struck out seven.

Shutout Story: The Gnats have been shutout twice in the last three games. It's the third time this year that's happened; each of the first two times, the Augusta GreenJackets were responsible. The Gnats were shut out twice in three games April 12-14, by scores of 0-2, 3-8, and 0-1 at Historic Grayson Stadium in April and three games in a row in Augusta in May by scores of 0-1, 0-3, 0-1.

ZAP: Pedro Zapata had his nine-game hitting streak snapped last night. He's still hit safely in 19 of his last 21 contests. In his last nine games, Zapata is still hitting .415 (17-for-41). He's up to fifth in the SAL in hits (81) and is hitting .354/.409/.418 in 19 games in June. He's hitting .373/.429/.440 (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 18 games in June. His OPS by month: April- .645, May- .728, June- .827.

Vs. Asheville: The Gnats are 3-4 against the Tourists this year. The two teams are scheduled for 18 games this year, 14 of which will be played in the second half. The Gnats were 5-7 against the Tourists last year. The Gnats are 16-22 against the Tourists as a Mets affiliate.

Playoffs: By virtue of winning the first half, the Gnats will host game two of the SAL Southern Division Championship series on Friday, September 10 and game three, if necessary, on Saturday, September 11.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 27, 2010


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