OKC Comets Game Notes - August 28, 2025
Published on August 28, 2025 under Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release
Memphis Redbirds (27-26/68-58) at
Oklahoma City Comets (28-25/74-54)
Game #129 of 150/Second Half #54 of 75/Home #66 of 75
Pitching Probables: MEM-RHP Aaron Wilkerson (5-3, 3.94) vs. OKC-RHP Kyle Funkhouser (2-2, 6.29)
Thursday, August 28, 2025 | Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark | Oklahoma City, Okla. | 7:05 p.m. CT
Radio: KGHM-AM 1340 The Game, 1340thegame.com, iHeartRadio; Video: MiLB.tv, Bally Sports Live, SportsNet LA
Today's Game: The Oklahoma City Comets seek the first win of their interleague series against the Memphis Redbirds at 7:05 p.m. at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark...The Comets have lost back-to-back games and have fallen to 1-4 in the last five games and 2-5 in the last seven games.
Last Game: The Memphis Redbirds broke a tie with two runs in the ninth inning to send the Oklahoma City Comets to an 8-6 defeat in a back-and-forth interleague game Wednesday night at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. The Redbirds scored runs in the first and second innings, including a solo home run by César Prieto, to take a 2-0 lead. The Comets cut into the deficit with a RBI double by Esteury Ruiz in the third inning before taking the lead on a three-run home run by Kody Hoese for a 4-2 edge in the fourth inning. The Redbirds responded with three runs in their next at-bat to go back in front, 5-4. In the fifth inning, a RBI single by Noah Miller tied the score, 5-5, before Chuckie Robinson's RBI single pushed the Comets in front, 6-5. Memphis knotted the score at 6-6 with a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning before a two-run single by Blaze Jordan in the with two outs in the ninth inning gave the Redbirds the lead.
Today's Probable Pitcher: Kyle Funkhouser (2-2) makes his second start after a recent stint on the Injured List...He returned to action Aug. 21 in Tacoma with 3.0 innings, allowing one run and three hits with three strikeouts and one walk...He had started Aug. 9 in El Paso, pitching 1.2 scoreless innings before exiting the game due to injury and was placed on the IL Aug. 12...Between June 26-July 29, Funkhouser posted a 1.96 ERA over his six outings (23.0 IP), allowing six runs (five earned) and 19 hits, holding opponents 19-for-84 (.226) with 25 strikeouts...He signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in late May after spending time with the Guerreros de Oaxaca of the Mexican League where he made seven appearances...Funkhouser missed the 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and played five games with Double-A Frisco in the Texas Rangers organization in June 2023 between stints on the Injured List...Funkhouser was drafted by Detroit in the fourth round of the 2016 MLB Draft out of the University of Louisville and made 70 appearances with Detroit from 2020-21.
Against the Redbirds: 2025: 0-2 2024: N/A All-time: 183-170 At OKC: 100-76
The Comets and Redbirds, Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, meet for an interleague series as the teams play for the first time since 2019. This also marks OKC's first games against an International League opponent since the 2023 Triple-A National Championship Game against Norfolk (7-6 loss in Las Vegas)...Long-time PCL foe Memphis now competes in the International League, having moved to Triple-A East in 2021 when MLB took over Minor League Baseball before the 20-team league returned to its original name in 2022...The teams entered this week having played 351 games against one another since 1998 - tied with Nashville for the most games an Oklahoma City has played against an opponent during the Bricktown era...Oklahoma City won the most recent season series against the Redbirds, 9-7, in 2019. In that 2019 series, Connor Joe led OKC with 18 hits and 18 runs, while Zach Reks racked up 17 RBI and Edwin Ríos hit seven homers...Memphis' Bryan Torres paces the IL with a .427 OBP and ranks among league leaders in AVG (.308, 5th) and walks (63, T-7th), while César Prieto's 119 hits rank fifth in the IL, including 29 doubles (T-4th).
Summer Seesaw: OKC is 28-25 during the second half, but the road to that record has been uneven. After starting the half 10-4, the Comets lost four straight games heading into the All-Star Break. But coming out the break, the Comets won six in a row before losing nine of the next 12 games. They then won four straight before losing three of the next four, winning three of the next four, and now losing four of the last five, as the team is 5-8 over the last 13 games...OKC still owns the best overall record in the PCL at 74-53, but Las Vegas is now just one game behind the Comets, who are 12-17 over the last 29 games and 10-13 in the month of August...OKC has not won each of the last four series, going 0-1-3 during that time, and they have begun a series in an 0-2 hole for the third time in the last five series.
Home Repairs Needed: With last night's loss, the Comets fell to 5-13 in their last 18 home games. They are 33-32 overall at home this season, but are 9-14 during the second half for the second-fewest home wins by a PCL team (Reno, 6-23). During the current 5-13, stretch, the pitching staff has allowed 125 runs (6.9 rpg), with at least six runs in 12 of the 18 games and at least eight runs in eight of the 18 games, including last night...All three of OKC's series losses this season have come at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark where the team is 4-3-4 in series overall this season and the Comets own a -16 run differential. After starting the season 8-4 at home, the Comets are 25-28 since...The team's .260 AVG, 362 runs and 552 hits at home are each fourth-lowest in the league and their 60 home runs in Bricktown are second-fewest by a PCL team at home...However, on the road this season, the Comets are a league-best 41-22 and have reached the 40-win mark on the road for the third straight season and fifth time during the team's affiliation with the Dodgers (since 2015). Additionally, the Comets have yet to lose any of their 12 road series this year (9-0-3). The Comets bat at a league-leading .301 clip in road games, while their 99 home runs, 469 runs (7.4 RPG) and 696 hits are tops in the league on the road, and the Comets have a +123 run differential in road games.
Running with Ruiz: Esteury Ruiz hit a RBI double last night and has now reached base safely in 26 consecutive games for the longest on-base streak of the season by a Comets player and the team's longest since Andre Lipcius reached base in 28 straight games Aug. 4-Sept. 7, 2024. The streak is also tied for the fourth-longest active on-base streak in the PCL, but the second-longest by a player currently in the league...Over his 17 games since returning to OKC from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ruiz is 25-for-68 (.368) with 11 extra-base hits, 14 RBI, 21 runs, 18 walks and 13 stolen bases. During that time, Ruiz leads the PCL in walks, steals and runs. He ranks third with a .508 OBP and tied for third in hits...He leads the PCL with 52 stolen bases this season, including 51 with OKC and is the third OKC player during the Bricktown era (since 1998) to steal at least 50 bases in a season. He surpassed Esteban Germán (50, 2010) for the second-most steals in a single season and the team record is held by Freddy Guzman, who stole 56 bases in 2007.
Austin City Limits: Austin Gauthier singled, walked and scored a run Wednesday and has hit safely in each of his last six games, going 11-for-21 (.524) with six walks and seven RBI. Going back to Aug. 22, Gauthier has reached base in 11 of his last 15 plate appearances, collecting seven hits and four walks...Since Aug. 5 (18 G), Gauthier is slashing .370/.553/.481 with 20 hits and 22 walks against eight strikeouts. During that time, he leads the PCL in both walks and OBP.
Source Kode: Kody Hoese connected on a three-run home run in the fourth inning last night for his sixth home run of the season. He is currently on an eight-game hitting streak, going 10-for-31 (.323) with five extra-base hits and 14 RBI. He has 12 RBI over his last five games with an at-bat, collecting at least two RBI in each game...He has also hit safely in 17 of his last 18 games with a plate appearance (21x67).
Rehab Clinic: Hyeseong Kim was held without a hit last night for the first time during his Major League Rehab Assignment with OKC, going 0-for-3 with a walk. He played seven innings in left field before exiting the game. Through six games of his rehab assignment, Kim is 6-for-22...Michael Kopech also continued his Major League Rehab Assignment, allowing one run on one hit over 1.0 inning, facing four batters and throwing 14 pitches (10 strikes) and was charged with a blown save.
Around the Horn: The Comets allowed eight runs Wednesday, marking the third time in the last five games the Comets allowed eight or more runs and the 10th time in the last 21 games. Through 23 games in August, the Comets own a 6.47 ERA - third-highest in the league this month and the team's highest monthly ERA since May 2021 (6.49)...CJ Alexander went 2-for-4 with a double and scored a run last night and leads the PCL with 34 hits this month, including a league-best 17 extra-base hits, slashing .366/.423/.677 with 16 RBI...Ryan Ward leads the Minors with 113 RBI, 148 hits, 66 extra-base hits, 281 total bases, while he is third with 31 homers and tied for third with 101 runs scored...Luken Baker has hit safely in 13 of his first 14 games with OKC, going 19-for-55 (.345) with five extra-base hits and seven RBI and has hit safely in six straight games (6x23)...With yesterday's defeat, the Comets are now 4-10 in games when tied after eight innings this season. Of their 54 losses, 16 have been when tied or leading after eight innings (29.6 percent).
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