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IL1 International League

Governors' Cup First Round Preview

September 5, 2018 - International League (IL1) News Release


The International League postseason is scheduled to begin this evening as four teams take aim at the coveted Governors' Cup trophy. Six wins are what it will take to navigate the two best-of-five rounds and capture the Cup. The champion will then advance to represent the IL at the 2018 Gildan Triple-A National Championship Game in Columbus, Ohio, live on NBCSN on Tuesday, September 18.

The team with the best regular season record is first-time division champion Lehigh Valley, back in the postseason for a third straight year. For the third straight year, their opponent in the first round will be Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, who claimed the Wild Card by a slim margin over Columbus and Indianapolis. With a roster featuring the IL Most Valuable Player and Most Valuable Pitcher and led by the IL Manager of the Year, the IronPigs have high hopes this is the season they can get past their intrastate rivals.

As that series gets underway in northeastern Pennsylvania, the IL's other first round matchup is set to begin 470 miles to the west at Fifth Third Field in Toledo. The Mud Hens won twelve of their last sixteen to surge past the Clippers and Indians by a half-game for the West Division title. It's Toledo's first playoff appearance since 2007, but their opponent is no stranger to the IL postseason scene. The Durham Bulls won their 14th South Division title (since 1998) this season and are back to try and defend both their Governors' Cup and Triple-A national championships over the next two weeks.

Meet the 2018 Governors' Cup Contenders

DURHAM BULLS

IL South Division Champions

The only manager making a return trip to the IL playoffs in 2018 is Durham's Jared Sandberg, who hopes to become the tenth skipper in League history to claim back-to-back Governors' Cups. The Bulls ran away with the South Division again this season, besting 2nd-place Gwinnett by 9.0 games. Durham produced nearly identical records at home (40-30) and away (39-30) during the regular season campaign. The Bulls were the League's highest scoring team with a pitching staff that led the circuit in strikeouts. They took the division lead for good on May 28. Durham was a steady force all season, posting a winning record each month along the way. When scoring first, the Bulls were the toughest team to beat in the IL, going 56-15 (.789). Durham has won each of its three most recent first round playoff series and has been in the Governors' Cup finals eleven times since joining the IL in 1998.

LEHIGH VALLEY IRONPIGS

IL North Division Champions

Gary Jones was named IL Manager of the Year in his first season with the IronPigs. Lehigh Valley finished 4.5 games ahead of Durham for the top regular season mark in the League in 2018. The IronPigs earned their first division title by dominating the North, going 57-32 within the division. Lehigh Valley hit the most home runs in the IL this season, and the pitching staff boasts the IL leaders in wins (Cole Irvin) and saves (Pedro Beato). The IronPigs also played great defense all season as proven by a League-high .985 team fielding percentage. For just the second time in franchise history, Lehigh Valley will have the "home field" advantage in a postseason series, set to host Games 3-5 of the first round as necessary. In their only ever trip to the Governors' Cup finals in 2011, the series concluded at Coca-Cola Park but was won by Columbus, three games to one. The last Phillies affiliate to win the Governors' Cup was Buffalo in 1961.

SCRANTON/WB RAILRIDERS

Wild Card Team

No other MLB partner has come close to winning as many Governors' Cups as the sixteen cap- tured by affiliates of the New York Yankees, most recently coming when SWB won it all in 2016. Under first-year skipper Bobby Mitchell the RailRiders are making their fourth straight playoff appearance this September and hope to be in the finals for a third straight time. SWB faced Lehigh Valley in a critical series Aug. 24-27, splitting the four games as the IronPigs clinched the division. Then, after dropping a contest to Syracuse on the 28th, SWB reeled off five wins in its last six games to narrowly claim the Wild Card by a 1.0-game margin. The RailRiders allowed the second-fewest runs of any IL team this season. They are the only postseason club with a losing record playing away from home (34-36), though it was a victory at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket this past Sunday that clinched the Wild Card for the RailRiders.

TOLEDO MUD HENS

IL West Division Champions

The Mud Hens were a dominant force in the IL in the middle of the previous decade, capturing consecutive Governors' Cups in 2005-06, but their division title in 2007 was the franchise's last postseason appearance until now. In his first year at the helm, manager Doug Mientkiewicz had Toledo on top of the division for much of the early portion of the season, though the club needed a late surge to get past a fierce challenge from Columbus and Indianapolis, ultimately winning by a mere half-game over the other two. Toledo posted losing records during June and July but bounced back in August and early September. The Mud Hens committed just 76 errors this sea- son, fewest in the League. The offense was shutout just five times all season, tied with Louisville for the lowest number of any club. The last playoff game won by the Mud Hens came when they defeated Rochester 10-1 in Game 5 of the Governors' Cup finals on September 16, 2006.

2018 Governors' Cup First Round Matchup

Toledo Mud Hens vs. Durham Bulls

Durham won season series 6-4

Game 1: Wednesday, September 5 @ Fifth Third Field -- 6:35 p.m.

Game 2: Thursday, September 6 @ Fifth Third Field -- 6:35 p.m.

Game 3: Friday, September 7 @ Durham Bulls Athletic Park -- 7:05 p.m.

Game 4: Saturday, September 8 @ Durham Bulls Athletic Park -- 6:35 p.m. *

Game 5: Sunday, September 9 @ Durham Bulls Athletic Park -- 5:05 p.m. * * -

denotes "if necessary" - - - all games available on .

PLAYOFF HISTORY:

Durham d. Toledo (3-0) in 2002 Governors' Cup First Round.

Durham d. Toledo (3-0) in 2007 Governors' Cup First Round.

TOLEDO MUD HENS (73-66)

Affiliate: Detroit Tigers

Qualified: West Division Champions (+0.5)

Last Playoff Appearance: 2007

Last Governors' Cup: 2006

Manager: Doug Mientkiewicz (1st season)

Probable Starting Pitchers:

G1: LH Ryan Carpenter (2-8, 5.07 ERA)

G2: RH Jacob Turner (3-4, 3.50 ERA)

G3: RH Spencer Turnbull (1-1, 2.03 ERA)

G4: LH Matt Hall (4-0, 2.67 ERA)

G5: RH Warwick Saupold (3-2, 4.89 ERA)

Mud Hens 2018 Team Statistics & Rankings:

Runs Scored: 577 (8th)

Batting Average: .253 (7th)

Home Runs: 113 (T-5th)

Stolen Bases: 66 (9th)

Fewest Runs Allowed: 595 (10th)

ERA: 4.05 (10th)

Strikeouts: 1,132 (8th)

Shutouts: 12 (4th)

Players to Watch:

OF Christin Stewart

IL All-Star ended the season with an eleven-game hitting streak.

DH Chad Huffman

Slugger is the 2018 Triple-A All-Star Home Run Derby champion.

LHP Matt Hall

Game 4 starter undefeated in ten outings since July promotion.

RHP Zac Houston

In 33 appearances the reliever has a 1.18 ERA and ten saves.

OF Jacob Robson

Hit .305 since joining Hens in late June.

DURHAM BULLS (79-60)

Affiliate: Tampa Bay Rays

Qualified: South Division Champions (+9.0)

Last Playoff Appearance: 2017

Last Governors' Cup: 2017

Manager: Jared Sandberg (4th season)

Probable Starting Pitchers:

G1: RH Ryan Weber (9-6, 2.73 ERA)

G2: RH Austin Pruitt (3-0, 2.95 ERA)

G3: RH Chih-Wei Hu (5-7, 4.66 ERA)

G4: To Be Determined

G5: To Be Determined

Bulls 2018 Team Statistics & Rankings:

Runs Scored: 653 (1st)

Batting Average: .259 (3rd)

Home Runs: 141 (2nd)

Stolen Bases: 83 (5th)

Fewest Runs Allowed: 545 (4th)

ERA: 3.54 (3rd)

Strikeouts: 1,267 (1st)

Shutouts: 7 (T-11th)

Players to Watch:

OF Jason Coats

Veteran finished the season with five straight two-hit games.

RHP Ryan Weber

Game 1 starter was 4th in the IL with a 2.73 ERA this season.

2B Kean Wong

MVP of 2017 National Championship was the team's 2018 MVP.

RHP Ian Gibaut

All-Star reliever was 4th in the League with 14 saves.

INF Brandon Snyder

Led the Bulls squad with 18 home runs this season.

2018 Governors' Cup First Round Matchup

Scranton/WB RailRiders

vs.

Lehigh Valley IronPigs

SWB won season series 11-9

Game 1: Wednesday, September 5 @ PNC Field -- 6:35 p.m.

Game 2: Thursday, September 6 @ PNC Field -- 6:35 p.m.

Game 3: Friday, September 7 @ Coca-Cola Park -- 7:05 p.m.

Game 4: Saturday, September 8 @ Coca-Cola Park -- 6:35 p.m. *

Game 5: Sunday, September 9 @ Coca-Cola Park -- 5:35 p.m. *

* -

denotes "if necessary" - - - all games available on .

PLAYOFF HISTORY:

Scranton/WB d. Lehigh Valley (3-0) in 2016 Governors' Cup First Round.

Scranton/WB d. Lehigh Valley (3-1) in 2017 Governors' Cup First Round.

SCRANTON/WB RAILRIDERS (73-66)

Affiliate: New York Yankees

Qualified: Wild Card Winners (+1.0)

Last Playoff Appearance: 2017

Last Governors' Cup: 2016

Manager: Bobby Mitchell (1st season)

Probable Starting Pitchers:

G1: RH Erik Swanson (3-2, 3.86 ERA)

G2: LH Nestor Cortes (6-6, 3.71 ERA)

G3: LH Ryan Bollinger (0-1, 3.00 ERA)

G4: RH Mike King (4-0, 1.15 ERA)

G5: RH Adonis Rosa (2-1, 3.92 ERA)

RailRiders 2018 Team Statistics & Rankings:

Runs Scored: 578 (7th)

Batting Average: .256 (5th)

Home Runs: 132 (3rd)

Stolen Bases: 49 (14th)

Fewest Runs Allowed: 540 (2nd)

ERA: 3.71 (5th)

Strikeouts: 1,179 (3rd)

Shutouts: 7 (T-11th)

Players to Watch:

RHP Mike King

The August IL Player of the Month hasn't lost yet for SWB.

OF Ryan McBroom

Triple-A rookie was among the League's top five hitters in 2018.

RHP Erik Swanson

Game 1 starter was very impressive against LHV on Aug. 25.

OF Mark Payton

OF/DH came up with five hits in last four games as SWB surged.

3B Gio Urshela

Hitting .307 since arriving in a trade from Toronto August 4.

LEHIGH VALLEY IRONPIGS (84-56)

Affiliate: Philadelphia Phillies

Qualified: North Division Champions (+10.0)

Last Playoff Appearance: 2017

Last Governors' Cup: N/A

Manager: Gary Jones (1st season)

Probable Starting Pitchers:

G1: RH Enyel De Los Santos (10-5, 2.63 ERA)

G2: LH Cole Irvin (14-4, 2.57 ERA)

G3: RH Drew Anderson (9-4, 3.87 ERA)

G4: LH Ranger Suarez (2-0, 2.74 ERA)

G5: RH Tom Eshelman (2-13, 5.84 ERA)

IronPigs 2018 Team Statistics & Rankings:

Runs Scored: 620 (3rd)

Batting Average: .245 (13th)

Home Runs: 145 (1st)

Stolen Bases: 60 (T-12th)

Fewest Runs Allowed: 555 (5th)

ERA: 3.63 (4th)

Strikeouts: 1,072 (13th)

Shutouts: 13 (3rd)

Players to Watch:

1B Joey Meneses

The 2018 IL Most Valuable Player nearly won the Triple Crown.

LHP Cole Irvin

The 2018 IL Most Valuable Pitcher led League in wins and ERA.

3B Mitch Walding

The July IL Player of the Month led the League in walks in 2018.

RHP Pedro Beato

All-Star reliever has led the IL in saves in back-to-back seasons.

RHP Enyel De Los Santos

Game 1 starter is considered a top prospect for the Phillies.

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