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Bowling Green Hot Rods

Hot Rods Game Notes

June 28, 2022 - South Atlantic League (SAL)
Bowling Green Hot Rods News Release


These two teams haven't met since the opening three-game series of the 2022 season back in Bowling Green.

That Escalated Quickly... The Greenville Drive carried a 1-0 lead into the fifth inning, but the Hot Rods bounced back with six runs in the fifth to take the lead for good. The six-run frame tied BG's mark for the best in an inning last achieved in the second game of the season against Asheville. Alika Williams hit the first of his two home runs in the fifth, a three-run blast that doubled BG's lead. He finished 3-5 with two runs, two homers and four RBI, one of three Hot Rods with three hits in the game. Diego Infante (3-5, 2B, R) and Michael Berglund (3-5, HR, R, 3 RBI) also reached the three-hit mark. The Hot Rods pitching staff tied their game-best with 16 strikeouts, including five from Mason Montgomery and six from Cameron Leonard, who earned the win for BG.

Sunday's Notes... Williams had the second multi-homer game of his career... It's also his second of the month, with the other happening on June 18 against Winston-Salem... Williams had his 11th multi-hit game of the season... It's BG's sixth multi-HR game for a player this season...Infante had his 15th multi-hit game of the season... It was also his eighth multi-RBI game of the year... It was his sixth three-hit game of the year... Leonard tied a career-high in strikeouts with six... Montgomery struck out 17 Drive players in the series... Bowling Green had 10+ hits in a game for the ninth time in the month of June... Berglund had his second multi-hit game of the year... The series against Greenville marks the second time this season the Hot Rods won a series 5-1...

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 0.65, Manzo is walking 11.6% of the time to a 17.8% strikeouts rate. Basabe has the lowed K% in BG, striking out 14.3% of the time in 2022, the third-best rate in the league. Tanner Murray, who owns a strikeout rate of 19.1%, has the second-lowest on the team and 20th-best in the SAL.

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 game the first minor league starter to 100 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.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 28, 2022


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