Hillcats game notes
Published on May 16, 2008 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Hill City Howlers News Release
LYNCHBURG HILLCATS (16-23) @ FREDERICK KEYS (22-17)
May 16th, 2008 -- 7:00 PM
@ Harry Grove Stadium
LHP Tony Watson (3-4, 3.69) vs. RHP Zach Clark (0-0, 1.50)
THE HILLCATS: Last night Lynchburg concluded a four-game series with Winston-Salem with a 4-3 loss in ten innings at Ernie Shore Field...The Hillcats are now 0-3 in extra innings games this season...Tonight's game mark the fifth game of this eight-game road trip and the first game of a four-game series with Frederick...One of the two games on Saturday will be a make-up game of a contest rained out last Sunday in the Hill City...
VS. FREDERICK: Last year the Hillcats dominated the series with the Keys, winning 15 out of 20 games in 2007, including eight out of ten at Harry Grove Stadium...Frederick took two out-of-three from Lynchburg in the opening series of the season in Frederick and won two out-of-three in a rain shortened series at City Stadium...The Cats have the all-time advantage 139-122, and are 66-61 at Frederick...
WEARY OF WIETERS: Last Saturday Keys catcher Matt Wieters hit his third home run in his last two games in the Keys victory...He has a pair of two-homer games this season off the Hillcats and now has five homers against Lynchburg in six games...The fifth overall pick in last year's draft hit two home runs in his first two professional at-bats against Lynchburg in the season opener in Frederick...In 2008 Wieters is batting .444 (8-for-18) with five home runs and eight RBI versus the Cats...
WEIRD, WILD, WACKY STUFF: On Wednesday afternoon Lynchburg scored five runs in the first inning, then allowed six unanswered runs to relinquish their lead, followed that with seven runs of their own in a row to take a 12-6 advantage, and then the Warthogs scored five consecutive runs before their rally fell just short in the 12-11 win for the Hillcats...Warthogs starter Matt Long allowed five runs in the first and three in the sixth...In between those two innings he pitched four scoreless innings...Hillcats starter Daniel Moskos struck out six batters and only allowed one hit through three innings (finished with a career-high eight strikeouts)...He then allowed five runs in his final inning and 2/3...The game also featured the most combined runs and doubles in a Cats contest this year...
FRIDAY FEELING FINE: SS Brian Friday has now gone 23-for-65 (.354) in his last 16 games with 14 runs and nine doubles...The Cats lead-off hitter is now tied with teammate Jim Negrych for second in the league with 27 runs scored...
LOSING TO LEFTIES: Monday night the Cats dropped to 1-7 in games in games against lefthanded starters with their 4-2 loss to lefthander Aaron Poreda...They are 15-16 when a righthander starts against them...Poreda has gone 2-0 in three starts (18 ip) and has allowed just two earned runs...Winston-Salem won all three of Poreda's starts...
INCREDIBLE START: 3B Jim Negrych entered the day first in the league in hits (53), batting average (.381), and tied for first in RBI (26), second in on-base percentage (.447) and tied for second in runs scored (27)...The former sixth round pick from 2006 recorded 17 multi-hit games in his first 28 starts this season, reached safely in 27 of his first 28 games played and he is hitting an astonishing .535 (23-for-43) with men in scoring position...
CHANGING THINGS UP: Baseball America said LHP Tony Watson has the "Best Changeup" in the Pirates minor league system...The ninth round selection in the 2007 struckout 58 batters in 67.2 ip and walked just eight...
TOP PROSPECTS: Three of the Pirates' top 30 prospects from Baseball America are beginning the year with the Hillcats...LHP Daniel Moskos (#5) posted a combined ERA of 3.45 in 13 appearances with no decisions and one save with the GCL Pirates and the State College Spikes...LHP Tony Watson (#11) went 6-1 with a 2.52 ERA in 10 starts in State College prior to a late season call-up to Hickory...Watson was named to the New York-Penn League mid-season All-Star team...INF Brian Friday (#12) batted .295 with two home runs and 13 RBI for State College in 40 games...
Carolina League Stories from May 16, 2008
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