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SAL Hudson Valley Renegades

HVR Game Notes - April 26, 2023

April 26, 2023 - South Atlantic League (SAL)
Hudson Valley Renegades News Release


Hudson Valley Renegades (11-5) at Greenville Drive (5-10)

LHP Joel Valdez (0-0, 6.48 ERA) vs. RHP Wikelman Gonzalez (0-1, 12.79 ERA)

| Game 17 | Road Game 8 | Fluor Field at the West End | Greenville, SC | April 26, 2023 | First Pitch 7:05 p.m. |

OLD RIVALARY, RENEWED: The Hudson Valley Renegades continue their third-ever series against the Greenville Drive on Wednesday night at Fluor Field. In 2022, the Renegades won five of the eight meetings against the Drive. One game was also memorably canceled at Heritage Financial Park owing to a problem with second base.

LAST TIME OUT: Hudson Valley scored five runs in the top of the ninth to pull away and defeat Greenville 11-6 on Tuesday night. Alexander Vargas highlighted the ninth with a two-run home run, as he drove in four runs on the night. For the second straight game, a Renegades starter amassed 10 strikeouts. After Drew Thorpe accomplished the feat on Sunday at Rome, Chase Hampton struck out 10 Drive batters in 4.2 innings of work. Spencer Jones led the 'Gades offense, finishing 4-for-5 with a double, two triples and two stolen bases. For the second straight contest, Ben Rice scrapped together four walks and now has eight of his last two games.

DOUBLE TRIPLE: With two triples on Tuesday at Greenville, Spencer Jones tied the Renegades franchise record for most triples in a game. The last time it was accomplished was Aug. 6, 2018 by Ford Proctor against Brooklyn.

RECORD SETTERS: In their last two games, the Renegades have tied three single-game franchise records. The marks for most team strikeouts (pitching) in a 9-inning game (19), and individual marks for walks (Ben Rice, 4) and triples (Spencer Jones, 2) have all been matched.

WINNER WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER: In Sunday's win, Harold Cortijo struck out four in 2.1 scoreless frames. The right-handed pitcher has yet to allow a run in five appearances across 8.2 innings. He's also walked just three batters and struck out 13. His four wins are also tied for the most in all of MiLB with Cody Bradford (Round Rock, AAA - TEX).

GÓMEZ GOING STREAKING: With a 1-for-5 performance on Tuesday, Antonio Gómez is riding a 10-game hitting streak for Hudson Valley. it is the first hitting streak of 10-or-more games by a Renegade since Josh Breaux hit in 11 straight games from July 3-16, 2021.

WALK THAT WAY: Ben Rice went 0-for-1 with four walks on Tuesday at Greenville. For the second straight contest, Rice worked four walks, tying a Renegades team record for most walks in a game, with eight others. Eight walks in a two-game span set a new club record. Rice owns an outstanding 33.3% walk rate this season, which leads all minor leaguers (min. 50 PA). His 17 walks are tied for the most in High-A with Ben Metzinger (Wisconsin, MIL) and Dalton Rushing (Great Lakes, LAD).

WE'RE GOING TO NEED SOME MORE 2XLs: If you think that the Renegades are one of the tallest teams in Minor League Baseball, congratulations, you are correct! At an average height of 6'2", the Renegades are the sixth-tallest full-season team in the minors. The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (PHI, AAA) are the tallest at 6'2 1/3". Hudson Valley boasts an incredible eight players who are 6'4"-or-taller, the most of any team in the minor leagues. The average height of the 'Gades is taller than that of the FDU Knights men's basketball team, the #16 seed who upset Purdue in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

ALL ABOUT THE RUN DIFFERENTIAL: With a +47 run differential in 16 games, the Renegades own the best run differential among all minor league teams in Double-A or below (Triple-A began a week early in 2023). The Everett AquaSox (SEA, A+) sport a +46 differential and are the second team right behind Hudson Valley.

BENNY AND THE JETS: Ben Rice is off to stellar start at the plate this season. The Dartmouth grad currently ranks first in HBP (5), BB (17), OBP (.627), & OPS (1.248), third in OPS (1.165), sixth in AVG (.345), and sixth in SLG (.621) in the South Atlantic League. His (.627) on-base percentage is first among all qualified players in MiLB this season.

PITCHING LEADING THE WAY AGAIN: The Renegades rank first in ERA (2.98) among South Atlantic League teams and all High-A teams. The 'Gades rank sixth among all MiLB teams in ERA this season. This comes after Hudson Valley paced the SAL in ERA in 2022 (3.62), and finished with the second-best ERA among all High-A teams. The Hudson Valley bullpen has been even better, sporting a collective 2.66 ERA through 67.2 innings, the 5th-best mark in MiLB.

GAS STATION: Through 16 games this season the Renegades pitching staff has registered 200 strikeouts, the most in the SAL, all High-A teams, and second-most among all non-Triple-A teams in the minor leagues. On Sunday vs Rome, the 'Gades struck out 19 batters, tying a franchise record. Hudson Valley previously struck out 19 batters against Jersey Shore last September.

RISP AVERSION: Over the past 10 games, the Renegades pitching staff has left 78 runners on base with opponents hitting a mere .131 (14-for-107) with runners in scoring position over this stretch. This season, opponents are hitting just .141 with RISP against Renegades pitching, the lowest mark in all of MiLB. The Tulsa Drillers (LAD, AA) are the second-best with opponents hitting .156 with RISP.

MR. STEAL YOUR BASE: After going 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts in Sunday's series finale with Rome, the Renegades are now 44-for-47 in stolen base attempts this season. They rank first in the South Atlantic League and in all of High-A in steals. The Lynchburg Hillcats (CLE, A) went 11-for-11 in steal attempts last Tuesday to rocket to the top of the MiLB steals leaderboard with 53 through 16 games. Caleb Durbin leads the team with 12 steals so far, the most in the South Atlantic League.

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