SAL1 Greensboro Grasshoppers

Greensboro Grasshoppers Game Notes 4/27/08

Published on April 27, 2008 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Greensboro Grasshoppers News Release


Today's Game

Greensboro Grasshoppers (12-11)

vs. Hagerstown Suns (11-12)

Starting Pitchers

RHP Stuart Alexander (3-1, 4.19)

vs. RHP Cole Kimball (1-1, 4.24)

Quick Stats

GBO Team Batting Average: .238 (14th)

GBO Team ERA: 3.70 (6th)

HAG Team Batting Average: .241 (13th)

HAG Team ERA: 4.58 (15th)

Game Information

Start Time: 5:00 p.m.

Ballpark: NewBridge Bank Park (7,499)

Location: Greensboro, N.C.

Umpires

F: Jordan Ferrell, HP: Roberto Medina

At the Corner of Eugene & Bellemeade: Currently on a five-game home losing streak, the Hoppers have dropped to 5-8 at home this season and are looking to get back on track in the series finale against Hagerstown tonight... At home, the Grasshoppers have a .239 team batting average and a 4.06 team ERA... The Hoppers have an all-time 124-99 (.559) record at home and are coming off of their best home season ever when they finished 47-23 at home in 2007.

Series Insight: All-time the Hoppers are 18-9 against Hagerstown... After dropping its first two meetings against the Suns, Greensboro won 18 out of the next 22 games prior to its current series against Hagerstown... Greensboro's current three-game losing streak against Hagerstown is the longest losing streak against the Suns in franchise history... Last season the Grasshoppers posted a 5-2 record against Hagerstown including a 2-1 mark at home... This season, the Hoppers are hitting .267 against the Suns and a pitching staff that entered the series as one of the top three in the league, has collected a 6.19 ERA in its three games against Hickory, raising its ERA on the season from 3.25 to 3.70... The last time Greensboro and Hagerstown played, Aug. 16-19, 2007, the Hoppers took 3-of-4 games on the road including a 10-inning series-opening affair that saw Greensboro win 6-5... At NewBridge Bank Park, the Hoppers have posted a 10-5 record all-time against Hagerstown... Prior to this series, Greensboro had never lost a series to the Suns at home or on the road... With three straight wins, Hagerstown has clinched the series and now the all-time series record is 5-1-1 in favor of the Hoppers.

Longest Drought: Greensboro's current five-game home losing streak matches the longest home losing streak in franchise history... The Hoppers last had a five-game home losing streak on May 11-23, 2005... This is the first time the Hoppers have lost five straight home games as part of the same homestand.

Losing Daze: A recent five-game losing streak has sent the Hoppers from the top of the South Atlantic League Northern Division to three-and-a-half games back of first place Lake County... During the current five-game skid, the Hoppers are batting .224 (43-of-192) as a team and the pitching staff has a 5.22 ERA; the opposition has a .280 batting average with a 3.24 ERA during that same span.

Streaky Business: CF Bryan Petersen has currently reached base in all 12 home Hopper games this season; his home 12-game on-base streak is the longest active home on-base streak in the South Atlantic League this season.

Player Notes: INF Ben Lasater currently has the South Atlantic League's second-most runs batted in (19)... His 19 RBI are tied for the most by a right-handed batter this season... Lasater's name also appears on SAL leader board with the third-most home runs (6) and the fifth-best slugging percentage (.607)... OF Bryan Petersen enters tonight's game tied for second in the SAL with 18 runs scored... Petersen's 18 runs have come in 18 games this season... Greensboro closer Garrett Parcell is tied for the third-most saves in the SAL with a team-high five saves this season.

Team Insider: Greensboro's pitching staff currently has the league's sixth-lowest ERA (3.70)... The pitching staff has recorded a nine saves and has walked just 47 batters, the fewest walks by a South Atlantic League pitching staff this season... At the plate, Greensboro has the league's third-lowest batting average (.238)... In the field, the Hoppers have committed the second-most errors in the league with 43 through the first 22 games.

This Day in Hoppers History: An already disappointing five-game losing streak looks bleak enough for the Hoppers who are 0-2 at home in April 27 games... In 2005, Greensboro dropped its first April 27 game in 10 innings to Lakewood, 9-7... The following season the Hoppers picked up an April 27 road win over West Virginia, but returned home in 2007 only to drop a one-run game to Hickory, 6-5.

E -- Insert Position Here: After opening the season by committing 25 errors in their first 10 games, the Hoppers had appeared to settle in and somewhat control the massive error attacks... That is until this current homestand which has already been blemished with a five-game losing streak... In the last five games, Greensboro has committed 12 errors including four in the homestand opener against Kannapolis and six in Friday's 9-5 loss to Hagerstown... Of Greensboro's 12 errors, five of them have come from shortstop Ozzie Martinez, who has now committed a team-high eight errors... On the season, the Hoppers have committed the league's second-most errors, 43, and are averaging just under two errors a game... Greensboro has had just five errorless games this season.

Hopper Facts... Frozen in Time: Grasshopper Glacier is an interesting phenomenon and natural wonder... The glacier takes its name from the millions of grasshoppers embedded in the glacial ice... Until recent years, visitors often dug perfectly preserved specimens from the ice... However, years of light snow during the winter and thawing during the summer months have exposed many of the grasshoppers to decomposition.

Top Prospects: The Marlins' top pick in the 2007 draft (12th overall), Matt Dominguez, is the highest touted third-baseman on the Marlins' prospect list printed in Baseball America and enters his first full season of professional baseball after playing five games with the Gulf Coast Marlins and 10 games with Jamestown... In the same article, Dominguez was named the Marlins' best Minor League defensive infielder... Mike Stanton, the Marlins' second draftee in the 2007 draft, also split time between the Gulf Coast Marlins (8 games) and Jamestown (9 games) last season... Entering the season, Stanton ranks ninth on Baseball America's top 10 prospects for the Marlins and was tabbed the organization's best power hitter and best athlete in the minors.

Up Next: Following a four-game set with Hagerstown to complete a six-game home stand, the Hoppers get back on the road for a four-game set at Lake County as part of an eight-game road trip that also includes a four-game visit to Hagerstown... In 23 match-ups, the Grasshoppers hold a 12-11 record against the Captains and have out-scored them 118-107... Last season the Hoppers posted a 5-3 record against Lake County including a four-game split on the road in which Greensboro shut out Lake County in the final two games of a four-game set on July 19-20.

Tonight's Starter: RHP Stuart Alexander (3-0, 4.20) is making his fifth start of the season tonight... After winning his first three starts, Alexander lost in his last outing to open Greensboro's current six-game homestand... Alexander has allowed just two runs in each of his last three appearances, but his last start was the only time this season he did not get a fair amount of run support... Alexander has not allowed an earned run in the first or second inning this season and has given up six of his 12 runs in the fifth inning.

2007 Recap: Alexander did not play in 2007.

Career Notes: Alexander has struggled up until this point in his young career... In 2006, the last season he played, Alexander was coming back from missing the 2005 season due to injury (Tommy Johns)... He posted a combined 0-7 record in 13 starts while splitting time between the Gulf Coast League Marlins and Jamestown of the New York Penn League... Signed as a non-drafted free agent on June 16, 2004, Alexander played with the GCL Marlins and Jamestown during the 2004 season before sitting out 2005.

Downtown GBO: Alexander is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in two games at NewBridge Bank Park this season... He first appeared at home on April 11 and went 4.0 innings in which he allowed two runs on three hits and struck out a season-high seven batters.

- Alexander's 2008 Starts: 3-1, 4.19 ERA, 19.1 IP, 16 H, 12 R, 9 ER, 3 HR, 8 BB, 17 K

- Alexander's Last Win: April 16, 2008 @ Greenville (7-2 over Eammon Portice)

- Alexander's Last Loss: April 22, 2007 vs. Kannapolis (1-8 to Johnnie Lowe)

- Alexander's Last Complete Game: None

- Alexander's Career High Strikeouts: 8 (July 10, 2004 vs. GCL Dodgers)

Check out the Greensboro Grasshoppers Statistics

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



South Atlantic League Stories from April 27, 2008


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