SAL Hudson Valley Renegades

HVR Game Notes - September 5, 2023

Published on September 5, 2023 under South Atlantic League (SAL)
Hudson Valley Renegades News Release


Hudson Valley Renegades (68-58, 29-31) vs. Jersey Shore BlueClaws (69-56, 34-26)

LHP Brock Selvidge (3-1, 3.96 ERA) vs. LHP Gabriel Cotto (2-4, 5.96 ERA)

| Game 127 | Home Game 61 | Heritage Financial Park | Wappingers Falls, N.Y. | Sept. 5, 2023 | First Pitch 7:05 p.m. |

HOME ONCE MORE: The Hudson Valley Renegades return to Heritage Financial Park for their final regular season home series of the year. The Renegades are aiming to win their first home series since mid-June when they took four out of six games from the Rome Braves. The 'Gades have won two of the first three head-to-head battles with the Jersey Shore BlueClaws this year.

LAST TIME OUT: The Hudson Valley Renegades dropped their series finale to the Wilmington Blue Rocks 5-3 on Sunday afternoon. Matt Suggs hit a three-run home run in the third and the Blue Rocks added another run in the fourth to lead 4-0. Ben Cowles then plated two with a triple in the sixth inning. T.J. Rumfield hit a sacrifice fly to score Cowles and trim the deficit to 4-3. Out of the bullpen, Shane Gray worked a scoreless inning.

ROAD TRIPPIN: The Hudson Valley Renegades own 41 road wins this season, just edging out the Great Lakes Loons (LAD) for the most in High-A. The Loons just recently wrapped up a road trip and are home this week before finishing the season on the road. The 41 wins away from Heritage Financial Park are tied for most in MiLB with the Oklahoma City Dodgers (AAA, LAD).

BULLPEN ARMS RACE: In the six game series against the Wilmington Blue Rocks, the Hudson Valley Renegades bullpen combined to strike out 43, while allowing just 16 hits and six runs in 29.0 innings. Over the past 11 games, the 'Gades bullpen has struck out 77 batters in 52.0 innings and posted a 2.25 ERA. The 2.25 ERA is the third-lowest in High-A during this span.

DOUBLE OR NOTHING: The Hudson Valley Renegades offense tallied five doubles in last Thursday's contest against the Wilmington Blue Rocks. That mark was tied for the most in a single game this season by the 'Gades, with the last occurrence on June 10 in Jersey Shore.

PITCHING IS THE WAY: Entering Thursday, the Hudson Valley Renegades sit third in Minor League Baseball with a 3.65 ERA and second in K/9 innings of 11.15 this year. The Down East Wood Ducks (TEX--A) lead the way with a 3.38 ERA. The Somerset Patriots (NYY--AA) are currently second, sporting a 3.59 ERA. This comes after the 'Gades finished the 2022 season with a team ERA of 3.62, good for fourth-best in MiLB.

OUT ON AN ISLAND: Over the last 16 games, Hudson Valley's pitching staff has held opponents to hit 35-for-179 (.196) with runners in scoring position. On the season, the 'Gades rank first in the South Atlantic League and High-A, and fourth in MiLB in holding opponents to a .209 batting average with RISP.

HE GETS ON BASE!: Ben Cowles' 41-game on-base streak came to end on Saturday night against Wilmington. The former Maryland Terrapin had reached base in every game since July 4 in Jersey Shore. At the time, it was the longest active streak in the South Atlantic League, High-A, and all of MiLB. Cowles surpassed Emeel Salem (2007) for the all-time record last Thursday night against Aberdeen.

NOBODY CROSSES HOME: After tossing 2.2 scoreless innings on Friday night, Clay Aguilar hasn't allowed a run over his last five appearances, which spans 10.1 innings. The southpaw finished the month of August with a 0.61 ERA after allowing just one earned run in 14.2 innings.

A NEW NO. 1: On August 10, MLB Pipeline reshuffled the New York Yankees Top 30 prospects list, with Spencer Jones becoming the new No. 1 prospect in the organization. Current Renegades on the roster listed are Brock Selvidge (#13), Zach Messinger (#18), Jared Serna (#20), Brendan Beck (#21), and Anthony Hall (#22). Other 2023 Renegades included on the list are Spencer Jones (#1), Chase Hampton (#4), Drew Thorpe (#5), Ben Rice (#23), Agustin Ramírez (#24), and Danny Watson (#29).

THE FEATS OF STRENGTH: On August 17, Grant Richardson hit his 13th home run of the season, and his 23rd of his career as a Hudson Valley Renegade. He currently sits tied for first with Everson Pereira and current teammate Spencer Henson for the most in franchise history.

ALL GROWN UP: On Friday, the New York Yankees signed OF Jasson Domínguez and C Austin Wells signed Major League contracts and selected them to the active roster from Triple-A Scranton. Both started and made their Major League debuts that night against the Houston Astros. In his first at-bat, Domínguez swatted an opposite field home run off Justin Verlander in the top of the first inning. Wells later singled off Verlander in the second inning for his first Major League hit. Both players spent parts of the 2022 season with the Renegades.

A DOZEN IT IS: Jared Serna tallied a base hit on Sunday night to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. On Saturday, he passed Rafael Flores for the longest hitting streak by Renegades batter this season. Flores held an 11-game hitting streak back in April. Serna's streak is also the longest active streak in High-A right now.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: Renegades OF Cole Gabrielson has reached base safely in four of his five games with Hudson Valley since his promotion last Tuesday. The former USC Trojan hit a home run in his first High-A at-bat on Wednesday in Wilmington.




South Atlantic League Stories from September 5, 2023


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