HVR Game Notes - April 28, 2023
Published on April 28, 2023 under South Atlantic League (SAL)
Hudson Valley Renegades News Release
Hudson Valley Renegades (12-5) at Greenville Drive (5-11)
G1: RHP Zach Messinger (0-1, 2.20 ERA) vs. RHP Angel Bastardo (0-2, 5.93 ERA)
G2: RHP Tyrone Yulie (1-0, 2.61 ERA) vs. RHP J.D. Encarnacion (1-0, 6.08 ERA)
| Games 18 & 19 | Road Games 9 & 10 | Fluor Field at the West End | Greenville, SC | April 28, 2023 | First Pitch 4:35 p.m. |
OLD RIVALARY, RENEWED: The Hudson Valley Renegades continue their third-ever series against the Greenville Drive on Friday night with a doubleheader 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 being poorly made.
LAST TIME OUT: Hudson Valley plated a season-high 16 runs in their 16-2 victory over Greenville. Aaron Palensky crushed two home runs including a grand slam in the eighth and drove in a career-high seven runs, tying a franchise record for most RBIs tallied in a single game. Palensky finished with four hits and swiped two of the 'Gades six stolen bases in the contest. Anthony Garcia and Spencer Henson also clubbed two home runs in the win. Ben Rice continued to stay hot, finishing the night 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs, a walk, and two runs. The Renegades bullpen combined to throw 4.1 scoreless innings to end the game.
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 three games, the Renegades have tied four 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),triples (Spencer Jones, 2), and RBIs (Aaron Palensky, 7) 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 second-most in all of MiLB behind Cody Bradford (Round Rock, AAA - TEX), who has five.
ALL ABOUT THE RUN DIFFERENTIAL: With a +61 run differential in 17 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). Lake Elsinore (SD, A) sport a +48 differential and are a distant second.
PITCHING LEADING THE WAY AGAIN: The Renegades rank first in ERA (2.92) among South Atlantic League teams and all High-A teams. The 'Gades rank fifth 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 2.50 ERA through 72.0 innings, the third-best mark in MiLB.
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 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a walk on Wednesday at Greenville. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Rice worked four walks in each contest, 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 31.6% walk rate this season, which is second among all minor leaguers with enough PA to qualify. His 18 walks are tied for the most in High-A with four others.
BENNY AND THE JETS: Ben Rice is off to stellar start at the plate this season. The Dartmouth grad currently ranks first in OBP (.614), tied for first in HBP (5), BB (18), second in OPS (1.120), tied for third in R (15), fifth in AVG (.364), and seventh in SLG (.606) in the South Atlantic League. His (.614) on-base percentage is first among all qualified players in MiLB this season.
GAS STATION: Through 17 games this season the Renegades pitching staff has registered 211 strikeouts, the most in the SAL, all High-A teams, and fourth-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: This season, opponents are hitting just .146 with RISP against Renegades pitching, the lowest mark in all of MiLB. The Dunedin Blue Jays (TOR, A) are the second-best with opponents hitting .157 with RISP.
MR. STEAL YOUR BASE: After going 12-for-12 on stolen base attempts in the first two games of the Greenville series, the Renegades are now 50-for-53 in stolen base attempts this season. They rank first in the South Atlantic League and in all of High-A in steals. The Renegades only trail the Lynchburg Hillcats (CLE, A) for the most stolen bases in all of MiLB, who have 53 through 17 games. Caleb Durbin leads the team with 13 steals so far, the most in the South Atlantic League.
DOUBLE TROUBLE: The Renegades play their first doubleheader of the season tonight in Greenville and are hoping to set off on a better course in twin bills than last year. Hudson Valley went just 3-9 in doubleheader games last year, and were swept in four straight doubleheaders to end the season (8/6 at Jersey Shore, 6/18 at Greensboro, 6/8 vs Jersey Shore, 5/22 at Brooklyn) after sweeping their first one of the year and splitting the second. The Renegades haven't won a game in a twin bill since May 8 (G1), 2022 at JS, meaning the 'Gades have lost nine straight games in doubleheaders.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 28, 2023
- Parra and Caminero Homer, Hot Rods Top Tourists 4-1 - Bowling Green Hot Rods
- Santos And Ullola Pitch Well But Tourists Come Up Short - Asheville Tourists
- Renegades Win And Lose In Doubleheader - Hudson Valley Renegades
- Greensboro Grasshoppers Dropped to Rome Braves, 6-0 - Greensboro Grasshoppers
- BlueClaws, Cyclones Rained out on Friday - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- HVR Game Notes - April 28, 2023 - Hudson Valley Renegades
- Celebrate Mom at Fluor Field with a Special Picnic May 14th - Greenville Drive
- Salute Our Healthcare Heroes on May 16th - Greenville Drive
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
