SL1 Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp: Game Notes, April 15 vs. Birmingham

April 15, 2019 - Southern League (SL1)
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp News Release


The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp begin a five-game series against the Birmingham Barons with Monday's 7:05 p.m. contest from the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. VyStar Credit Union members can get buy-one, get-one-free tickets by showing their VyStar credit or debit card at the box office, and MaliVai Washington Youth Foundation will raise awareness and funds throughout the game. The Jumbo Shrimp will also celebrate Jackie Robinson Day and Tax ReFUN Day by inviting to save their ticket to Monday's game and turn it in for a free ticket of equal or lesser value to any Monday home game for the remainder of the season.

WAHOOS TAKE SERIES FINALE FROM SHRIMP, 4-3

A three-run sixth inning Sunday propelled the Pensacola Blue Wahoos to a 4-3 victory over the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. Jacksonville jumped out to an early lead when John Silviano popped a two-run home run in the first inning. In the bottom of the frame, Tanner English socked a homer of his own to halve the Jumbo Shrimp advantage. Justin Twine collected an RBI single in the fifth inning to widen

Jacksonville's lead to 3-1. However, in the bottom of the sixth, Brian Schales notched an RBI single and Jimmy

Kerrigan pounded a two-run double to give Pensacola their first lead at 4-3. The Jumbo Shrimp managed just one hit the rest of the way.

SIERRA NEVADA

Jacksonville outfielder Magneuris Sierra went 2-for-5 with two runs scored on Sunday, continuing a hot start to the season. The San Cristobal, Dominican Republic native is currently riding an eight-game hitting streak in which he is batting 11-for-31 (.355/.444/.484) with four doubles, an RBI, four walks and one hit-by-pitch. Sierra is tied for the Southern League lead in doubles (four) while ranking in a tie for third in hits (11) and eighth in batting average (.324).

FRIENDS CLOSE, ENEMIES CLOSER

Of the 10 games Jacksonville has played so far this season, a remarkable eight have been decided by two runs or less, including six by just one tally. The Jumbo Shrimp are 3-5 in these contests (3-3 in one-run affairs). The six one-run affairs Jacksonville has engaged in so far trails only the seven Northwest Arkansas (Kansas City Royals) has played among Double-A clubs.

MASTERS OF RELIEF

Of the 87.0 innings the Jumbo Shrimp have pitched this season, a staggering 52.1 percent (45.1 frames) have been tossed by Jacksonville relievers. The heavy workload in the early portion of the season has not yet affected the club's results out of the bullpen. Jumbo Shrimp relief pitchers have ceded just six runs, five earned, on 21 hits (4.2 H/9) on the campaign for a 1.00 ERA. They have combined for 50 strikeouts (9.9 K/9) while walking only 13 opposing batters (2.6 BB/9). Jacksonville's bullpen has fired 10 consecutive scoreless innings.

DEFEND THE WALL

Jacksonville played error-free baseball on Sunday, but the club's eight miscues on the season rank in the middle of the park of the Southern League. The Jumbo Shrimp have also played just three miscue-free games on the season, but there is an argument for the Jumbo Shrimp being a strong defensive team. Jacksonville has converted 73.3 percent of batted balls put in play into outs this season. For perspective, the Oakland Athletics' 73.0 mark led Major League Baseball in 2018. The Shrimp's strong early defensive numbers, coupled with the small sample size of one week of play, can partly explain why the club's 3.33 FIP, an ERA estimator based on strikeouts, walks and home runs, is significantly higher than their actual 2.48 ERA.

A SONG OF FIRE AND ICE

Jacksonville's offense has mustered only 20 runs (2.0 per game) through 10 games, the fewest in the Southern League. The club also ranks at or near the bottom of the circuit in batting average (.206, 8th), on-base percentage (.272, 10th), slugging percentage (.267, 9th) and OPS (.539, 10th). The Jumbo Shrimp have been salvaged early on by a red-hot pitching staff that has ceded only 25 runs (2.5 per game). Jacksonville ranks second in the Southern League in ERA (2.48) and WHIP (1.08) while also placing fourth in both strikeouts (91) and walks (32).

NOT PAR FOR THE COURSE

Jacksonville went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position on Saturday, stranding a total of seven men. Through 10 games on the season, the Jumbo Shrimp are just 12-for-91 (.132/.223/.165) with ducks on the pond. The good news is that, throughout every single level in the history of baseball, situational hitting numbers normalize with bigger sample sizes as the season goes on. For example, the 2018 Shrimp hit .224/.317/.350 (.667 OPS) with runners in scoring position, almost exactly akin to their overall batting line of .235/.312/.361 (.673 OPS).

SHRIMP SCOPE

John Silviano clubbed the first home run of the season for Jacksonville on Sunday. The Jumbo Shrimp are tied with Birmingham and Mississippi for the fewest home runs in Double-A.

Check out the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Statistics



Southern League Stories from April 15, 2019


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