Hot Rods Game Notes 7322
July 3, 2022 - South Atlantic League (SAL)
Bowling Green Hot Rods News Release
Following tonight's game, the Hot Rods return to Bowling Green Ballpark to celebrate independence day on Monday with a 6:35 PM CT first pitch!
Raining at the finish line... The Hot Rods and Tourists finished Friday's suspended game before the rain hit, and the Tourists took the win 6-5 on four home runs. BG came almost all the way back, scoring five runs over the last four innings. Ronny Simon led the way, going 2-4 with two runs and an RBI, including his 11th home run of the season. The Hot Rods bullpen didn't allow a run after the third inning, on 2.0 scoreless innings from Joe La Sorsa and Cameron Leonard as well as a scoreless debut from Evan Reifert.
Yesterday's Notes... Simon recorded his 17th multi-hit game of the season... Martinez had his fourth... Alika Williams had two hits for the ninth time this year... It was his 12th multi-hit game of 2022... Infante logged his 17th multi-hit game of the year... Saturday's rainout makes the series against Asheville a five-game set... It's the second time a series has been shortened due to weather this season... The other time was in May when the Hot Rods played the Wilmington Blue Rocks in Delaware...
Going on Tour... After opening the series with a three-game sweep against the Tourists, the Bowling Green Hot Rods travel to Asheville, North Carolina for the first six-game series against the Houston Astros-affiliated Asheville Tourists. Bowling Green has won five straight against the Tourists dating back to May of 2021, though the Tourists won the first four games of that May series in Asheville the last time BG visited McCormick Field.
Walk it Out... Kyle Manzardo currently owns the best walk-per-strikeout rate on the Hot rods. at 0.93, Manzo is walking 15.6% of the time to a 16.7% strikeout rate. Alika Williams has a K% of 17.9%, which is the 12th lowest mark in the league for anyone with 150+ at-bats.
Clinched... BG finished the first half leading their division for the third time in club history, clinching a playoff spot with 2018's Midwest League Champions and again in 2011. (there were no halves in 2021). The 2011 team finished the first leg of the season with a 41-29 record while the 2018 Hot Rods set a franchise record with 47 wins in the first half and a record of 47-22. The 2022 club became the third Hot Rods team to the 40-win mark in a half.
Prepared for the Postseason... The 2022 Playoff structure looks a little different than last season's "High-A East" setup. The season is split into two halves, with the first-half ending after games on June 23. Each division's team with the best record will earn a berth, with the divisional first and second-half champions facing one another in a three-game series in the postseason. The winners of those series will be crowned division champions, with the two remaining teams set to face one another in a three-game championship series. The Hot Rods clinched a playoff spot after winning the South Division in the first half. They will be joined by the first half North Division Winners in the Aberdeen IronBirds.
Keeping it 100... With 12 strikeouts in the division-clinching shutout, Mason Montgomery became the first minor league starter to record100 strikeouts, and the fourth pitcher across the minor and major leagues to reach the mark. He reached the mark faster than both major league starters who have broken the 100-strikeout barrier and are second-fastest overall. Montgomery has struck out 19 more batters than any other pitcher in the South Atlantic League and also leads the league in ERA with 1.81.
South Atlantic League Stories from July 3, 2022
- Crawdads Come from Behind to Win 10-7 - Hickory Crawdads
- Greensboro Loses Finale, Splits Series in Hickory - Greensboro Grasshoppers
- Stubbs Homers for the Fourth Straight Game - Asheville Tourists
- Renegades Hold Off Cyclones 6-2 - Hudson Valley Renegades
- Cyclones Fall to Hudson Valley, 6-2 - Brooklyn Cyclones
- Montgomery, Williams Lead BG to Win in Series Finale - Bowling Green Hot Rods
- Greenville Loses Series to Rome - Greenville Drive
- Dash and IronBirds Split Sunday Twin Bill - Winston-Salem Dash
- BlueClaws Fall on Sunday, 4-3 in 10 at Wilmington - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Barley Walks It off for Blue Rocks - Wilmington Blue Rocks
- HVR Game Notes - July 3, 2022 - Hudson Valley Renegades
- Hot Rods Game Notes 7322 - Bowling Green Hot Rods
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