Inland Empire 66ers at San Jose Giants, May 19-21
Published on May 19, 2009 under California League (CalL1)
San Jose Giants News Release
Inland Empire 66ers (16-22) at San Jose Giants (22-16)
At Municipal Stadium
- Tuesday, May 19th at 7:00 PM
- Wednesday, May 20th at 7:00 PM
- Thursday, May 21st at 11:35 AM
Pitching Match Ups
- Tuesday - Josh Wall (0-1, 15.75) at Craig Clark (2-2, 3.90)
- Wednesday - Steve Johnson (2-2, 4.33) at Oliver Odle (2-3, 6.59)
- Thursday - Chris Withrow (2-3, 7.18) at Garrett Broshuis (2-0, 1.37)
THE SAN JOSE GIANTS... begin a seven-game homestand Tuesday evening with the first of three straight contests against the Inland Empire 66ers at Municipal Stadium. San Jose concluded a season-long 13-game road trip last night with an 8-6 loss to the Modesto Nuts. Buster Posey homered and collected four RBI's to lead the Giants offensive attack, but it wasn't enough to overcome an early 5-0 deficit after just three innings. Despite losses in the last two games of their series against the Nuts, San Jose still posed a winning record on the road trip (7-6). The Giants enter Tuesday's game in third place in the North Division with a 22-16 record - three games behind the Visalia Rawhide (25-13) for the top spot.
Home Sweet Home... This evening marks the beginning of a stretch where the Giants will play 15 out of their next 19 games and 21 out of 28 at Municipal Stadium. San Jose has played the fewest home games of any team in the California League (14) and has enjoyed plenty of success in their own yard with a 9-5 record, .298 team batting average and a 2.57 ERA. The Giants have played only four home games in the last 25 days, but posted a respectable 12-12 record during that stretch.
Kieschnick Continues Hot Streak... Right fielder Roger Kieschnick has been San Jose's hottest hitter of late with four multiple-hit performances in the last five games while he's hit safely in six straight contests. In his last six games, Kieschnick has 13 hits in 26 at-bats (.500) with two doubles, two home runs and five RBI's. The first-year player is now seventh in the California League with a .343 batting average.
San Jose In The Cal League Rankings... The Giants enter tonight's contest fourth in the California League in batting average (.281) and third in ERA (3.75). Offensively, San Jose is fifth in the league in runs scored (5.3 per game), tied for third in home runs (33) and last in stolen bases (20). On the mound, the Giants have issued the fewest walks in the California League (92) and have thrown the most shutouts (5).
Roster Moves... The Giants have made several roster moves over the past two days. Yesterday, San Francisco Giants Andres Torres and Sergio Romo were transferred to Fresno (AAA) to continue their rehabilitation assignments. Outfielder Ben Copeland, who has played the last four games with San Jose, is expected to continue his rehab work for the Giants for two more days before moving to Fresno. Copeland, who is recovering from a left shoulder injury, is 4-for-17 (.235 AVG) with one double and one RBI. Relief pitcher Adam Cowart (2-2, 7.56 ERA) was given his release from the organization yesterday while infielder Vladimir Frias (.196 AVG, 0 HR, 5 RBI) was sent to Augusta (Low-A). The Giants have added two players to their roster today in first baseman C.J. Ziegler and utility infielder Ryan Lormand. Ziegler was batting .231 with eight doubles, no home runs and 10 RBI's in 31 games with Augusta. Lormand hit .288 with no home runs, five RBI's and seven stolen bases in 17 games with the GreenJackets.
Not Too Hot, Not Too Cold... The Giants have essentially spent the entire regular season without a long winning streak or losing streak. San Jose began the campaign with four straight victories to mark their longest winning streak of the season, but have not claimed three straight victories since April 18-20. Conversely, the Giants have yet to lose three straight games at any point this year. San Jose has lost consecutive contests on only four occasions, including their last two games.
Clark To Start Series Opener... Left-hander Craig Clark is expected to get the ball for the Giants in Tuesday's series opener. Clark is coming off of a dominant start in his most recent outing. The southpaw fired six scoreless innings at Visalia on May 13 with only three hits allowed, one walk and nine strikeouts - the most for any Giants pitcher in a game this season. Clark has not allowed a run in either of his two home starts this season (11 IP), but does own a 6.16 ERA in four starts on the road. He's 2-2 overall with a 3.90 ERA and is averaging over a strikeout per inning pitched (35 SO in 30 IP).
Prospect Bonanza... According to Baseball America, nine of the top 25 prospects in the San Francisco Giants organization are on San Jose's roster. Catcher Buster Posey (#2), first baseman Angel Villalona (#3), second baseman Nick Noonan (#5), third baseman Conor Gillaspie (#7) and starting pitcher Scott Barnes (#9) all reside in the top 10 while right fielder Roger Kieschnick (#14), starting pitcher Clayton Tanner (#20), left fielder Thomas Neal (#23) and reliever Edwin Quirarte (#25) have also received recognition.
Media Coverage... The entire series against the 66ers can be heard live on www.sjgiants.com with Joe Ritzo calling all of the action.
Inland Empire 66ers... The Inland Empire 66ers, an affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, enter Tuesday's game tied for third place in the South Division with a 16-22 record - eight games behind High Desert for the top spot. Inland Empire is second in the California League in batting average (.286) and home runs (40) while they're fourth in runs scored (5.3). The 66ers are eighth in ERA (5.00) and have allowed the second-most home runs (39). Inland Empire is led offensively by the duo of first baseman Eduardo Perez (.363 AVG, 3 HR, 22 RBI) and outfielder Scott Van Slyke (.348 AVG, 5 HR, 26 RBI). Both players rank among the top six in the league in hitting (Perez 2nd, Van Slyke 6th).
California League Stories from May 19, 2009
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