SAL1 Greensboro Grasshoppers

Greensboro Grasshoppers Game Notes

Published on April 11, 2008 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Greensboro Grasshoppers News Release


Today's Game

Greensboro Grasshoppers (5-3)

vs. Asheville Tourists 6-2

Starting Pitchers

RHP Stuart Alexander (1-0, 5.40)

RHP Connor Graham (0-1, 7.36)

Quick Stats

GBO Team Batting Average: .253 (4th)

GBO Team ERA: 2.75 (6th)

ASH Team Batting Average: .249 (6th)

ASH Team ERA: 2.48 (3rd)

Game Information

Start Time: 7:00 p.m.

Ballpark: NewBridge Bank Park (7,599)

Location: Greensboro, N.C.

Series Insight: Greensboro welcomes Asheville back to NewBridge Bank Park for the first time since May 21-24, 2007, when the two teams split a four-game set... All-time, the Grasshoppers are 20-14 against Asheville, including a 10-6 record at NewBridge Bank Park... The Grasshoppers posted a 2-6 record against the Crawdads last season and are currently on a six-game losing streak to the Tourists... The teams last met in Asheville with the Tourists sweeping a four-game set in June 25-28, 2007... All-time, the Grasshoppers have out-scored the Tourists 184-159.

Bad Bounces: The Grasshoppers committed 18 errors over the course of their first seven games, including five in Wednesday's contest and three in each of their previous three games prior to that... The Hoppers committed at least one error in their first seven games of the season... Thursday snapped a seven-game with an error stretch which was the longest stretch since the Grasshoppers committed at least one error in seven consecutive games from July 6-13, 2007... Greensboro committed 11 errors over the seven-game span... Greensboro's 18 errors are the most in the South Atlantic League this season.

Player Notes: Outfielder Tom Hickman had his six-game hit streak snapped Thursday in the series finale against Hickory... Hickman appears on the South Atlantic League leader board with the second-most RBI this season with seven and has the league's third-best slugging percentage (.682) for a left-handed batter... Mike Stanton's home run Tuesday was the first of the season for the Greensboro and the first for a Grasshopper player since Adam Howard's fourth-inning home run in the 2007 season-finale against West Virginia... Stanton is currently on a five-game hit streak and ranks third among SAL batters in average (.435) and slugging percentage (.696).

Flirting With 500: Thursday's 1-4 loss against Hickory dropped the Grasshoppers to one-game below .500. The Hoppers entered the season with a 206-208 record and now stand 211-212... The Grasshoppers have recorded season records of 67-71 (2005), 68-69 (2006), 71-69 (2007) and are 5-2 through the first seven games of this season.

Twice Nice: Entering Wednesday's game against Hickory, outfielder Tom Hickman had just three career home runs in 106 games since beginning his professional career in 2006; he nearly doubled his home run total with just two swings Wednesday, hitting two home runs in a single game for the first time in his career... Hickman's two-homer game is the first multi-homer game of the season for Greensboro and the first since Chris Hatcher hit two home runs in a game on Aug. 23, 2007; also against Hickory... Last season, Greensboro had eight players hit two-or-more home runs in a single game, including twice by Hatcher, John Raynor and Scott Cousins.

This Day in Hoppers History: Greensboro is 1-1 on this date after being rained out last season... The Hoppers played their first April 11 game in Kannapolis, losing the 11-inning contest 2-3... In 2006, Greensboro bounced back by defeating West Virginia at home in a similar fashion using 12 innings to capture a 4-2 victory... Last season the Hoppers home game against Lake County was postponed and made up as part of a April 12 double-header.

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.

Welcome Home: The Grasshoppers are 121-93 (.564) all-time at NewBridge Bank Park, including a single-season best 47 wins during the 2007 season.

Up Next: Greensboro hits the road again for a four-game series in Greenville and a two-game set in Kannapolis... The Hoppers are 9-14 all-time against Kannapolis including a 2-9 mark on the road... Against Kannapolis, the Hoppers are 23-21 all-time and riding a six-game losing streak... Last season Greensboro posted a 9-11 mark against Kannapolis.

Check out the Greensboro Grasshoppers Statistics

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South Atlantic League Stories from April 11, 2008


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