CarL1 Lynchburg Hillcats

Lynchburg Hillcats Game Notes

Published on May 20, 2011 under Carolina League (CarL1)
Lynchburg Hillcats News Release


POTOMAC NATIONALS (16-23) @ LYNCHBURG HILLCATS (14-24)

May 20th, 2011 -- 6:05 PM

Calvin Falwell Field at Lynchburg City Stadium

LHP Mitchell Clegg (1-2, 5.46) vs. LHP Dimasther Delgado (4-3, 4.17)

THE HILLCATS: Thursday the Hillcats lost to the Kinston Indians 4-3...The 'Cats scored two in the first inning but surrendered four unanswered over the next five frames...The loss ended a seven-game road trip during which the Hillcats went 3-4, although they outscored their opponents 35-24 ...The Hillcats sit in fourth place in the Carolina League Northern Division, now 8.5 games back of the first place Wilmington Blue Rocks...

VS. POTOMAC: The Hillcats are 1-1 against the Nationals in 2011...The two teams first met opening weekend when rain postponed the first game of the series...The final two games were played and both were decided by one run a piece...Last season Potomac took the season series 11-8 from Lynchburg...The former Braves Advanced-A affiliate, Myrtle Beach Pelicans, fared even worse dropping 14 of 20 to the Nationals a season ago...

ROAD TRIPPIN': Despite hitting .265 as a team over the last seven-game road trip and outscoring their opponents 35-24, the Hillcats return home with a bitter 3-4 record for their efforts after three days in Myrtle Beach, followed by four in Kinston...The Hillcats took two of three from the Pelicans and then dominated game one 11-0 over the Indians behind a complete game shutout from RHP Zeke Spruill...The hits kept coming in Kinston as the 'Cats tallied nine or more in each of the final three games but came up one run short in each contest...Away from the "Hill City" this season the Hillcats have hit .267 as opposed to .231 at home, and pitchers have posted a 3.51 ERA, over a run less than at City Stadium (4.57)...Lynchburg is 10-14 on the road this season, much better than their 4-10 mark at City Stadium...

GREAT TO START: The Hillcats have a winning record in series openers at 7-5, including Monday night's 11-0 affair...In fact, four of the 'Cats' five biggest wins have come in series openers; 9-1, 4/21 @ FRE; 9-1, 5/2 @ WIL; 8-1, 5/13 @ MYR; and last night...The Hillcats had gone on to win each series after dominating game one, until dropping three of four to Kinston after the 11-0 route in the opener...On the other end, Lynchburg is just 1-10 in series finales this season...

BEST OF THE BRAVOS: Eight members of the Hillcats are ranked amongst the top 30 prospects in the Braves organization according to Baseball America...That list includes RHP Arodys Vizcaino (7), SS Andrelton Simmons (15), RHP David Hale (17), RHP Dimasther Delgado (18), OF Todd Cunningham (20), OF Adam Milligan (22), INF Joe Leonard (23) and 2B Phil Gosselin (25)...Vizcaino was tabbed the 93rd best prospect in all of baseball by BA as well...

TABLE SETTER: OF Todd Cunningham went 3-for-5, with a run scored last night, batting leadoff for the 15th time this season...He is now batting .407 (24-for-59) when batting first, and has scored 15 runs and stolen five bases...Batting elsewhere his other 22 games, he has hit just .220 (18-for-82), scored six runs, and stolen two bases...He now leads the team in runs scored (21), and is tied the team lead in steals (7) with Andrelton Simmons, and walks (12) with Joe Leonard...He's also been hit by the pitch six times, leads team, and boasts a .377 on base percentage...

LYNCHBURG NEEDS YOU: The season is just past a quarter over for the Hillcats, and they have already had 37 different players active on the roster in 2011...Three original Hillcats have been promoted to AA-Mississippi, with one returning in RHP Eliecer Cardenas...Injuries have been the bigger factor, as nine players have hit the disabled list after donning a Hillcats uniform this season...The latest was OF Geraldo Rodriguez, who hit the DL today with an oblique strain...C Shawn Mcgill will take Rodriguez's roster spot, returning to the Hillcats after spending just over two weeks (4/20-5/6) with the team earlier this year...Those two transactions bring the grand total for the season to 36 since the beginning of April...

SCHLE'S SLAMS: C Braeden Schlehuber launched the first Grand Slam for the Hillcats this season in the fifth inning Monday night...He also doubled in two runs in the fourth giving him a career high six RBI on the night...Tuesday night, Schlehuber was knocked out of the game after a collision at the plate with Kinston INF Justin Toole...Toole slid in head first at home, his shoulder meeting Schlehuber's left leg...Schlehuber had to be helped off the field, and wouldn't return to action...

KLEIN'CONNECTS' WITH 'CATS: INF Barrett Kleinknecht was promoted to Lynchburg from Low-A Rome on Tuesday, May 10th, arriving that afternoon to start at shortstop for the Hillcats...He went 0-for-4 in his Hillcats debut...Since however, he is 14-for-35 with a two home runs and five RBI in nine starts with five multi-hit games...Kleinknecht would have had three long balls for the 'Cats had Ryan Strausborger not brought one back in the eighth inning Sunday afternoon in Myrtle Beach...Kleinknecht has now hit safely in eight of his last nine games, and has a current six game hit streak...

TONIGHT'S OPPOSING PITCHER : LHP Mitchell Clegg was selected in the 21st round of the 2009 Draft out of the University of Massachusetts...Led Hagerstown pitchers in 2010 with nine wins...Was selected to the New York-Penn League All-Star Team in 2009...Named to ABCA All-Northeast Region Second Team at UMass in 2009...Currently 1-2 with a 5.46 ERA...

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Carolina League Stories from May 20, 2011


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