PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

OKC Dodgers Game Notes - August 22, 2018

Published on August 22, 2018 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Omaha Storm Chasers (59-67) vs. Oklahoma City Dodgers (66-59)

Kansas City Royals vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

Games #126 of 140/Home #65 of 70 (37-27)

Pitching Probables: OMA-LHP Jake Kalish (6-5, 3.50) vs. OKC-RHP Brock Stewart (3-2, 2.66)

Wednesday, August 22, 2018 | Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark | Oklahoma City, Okla. | 7:05 p.m. CT

Radio: KGHM AM-1340 The Game, 1340thegame.com, iHeartRadio - Alex Freedman

Today's Game: The Oklahoma City Dodgers try to even their series with the Omaha Storm Chasers at 7:05 p.m. at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. With 15 games remaining in the regular season, the Dodgers lead the American Northern Division - 1.0 game ahead of second-place Colorado Springs and 7.5 games ahead of third-place Omaha...Omaha has won four straight games against the Dodgers.

Last Game: Omaha scored eight runs in the fifth inning --- all with two outs --- on the way to a 13-2 win against the Dodgers Tuesday night. The Storm Chasers took a quick lead on a RBI single by Frank Schwindel in the first inning, but the Dodgers answered the bottom of the inning with a RBI single by Edwin Ríos. The Storm Chasers added a run in the third inning when Paulo Orlando connected on a solo homer. Omaha then scored eight runs in the fifth inning, in large part due to an error and a missed chance for a double play earlier in the frame. With the bases loaded, Nicky Lopez was hit by pitch, and Frank Schwindel followed with a grand slam out to left field to put Omaha in front, 7-1. Ramon Torres later lined a RBI double into left field and Donnie Dewees tacked on a two-run double to open up a 10-1 advantage, as seven straight Storm Chasers reached base with two outs. Ríos led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a solo homer out to right-center field for the Dodgers' second run of the night. Omaha added three more runs in the ninth inning, despite the ball barely leaving the infield. After allowing a run in the first inning, Omaha starting pitcher Arnaldo Hernandez (5-1) then held OKC without another run or hit through the next five innings. He allowed one walk and had four strikeouts in the win. Dodgers starting pitcher Kyle Lobstein (0-5) was charged with the loss, allowing six runs (two earned) and four hits over 4.2 innings with one walk and three strikeouts.

Today's Probable Pitcher: Brock Stewart (3-2) looks to continue his recent string of successful starts...Stewart last started Aug. 17 against Iowa, allowing two runs and four hits over 6.0 innings with two walks and seven strikeouts. He exited the game with the Dodgers leading, 3-2, but did not factor into the decision of OKC's eventual 6-4 victory in 11 innings...Stewart has allowed one or no runs in four of his last six starts, and he has allowed two or fewer runs five times. During that span the team is 5-1 and his personal record is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA. Since July 21, he's been one of the top pitchers in the PCL, ranking second in ERA (2.00) and opponent average (.177)...He's been even better at home of late, allowing just three runs and eight hits over his last three turns at The Brick, spanning 20.1 IP...Overall this season, Stewart is holding PCL left-handed batters to a .183 average and all hitters to a .132 clip with RISP...Stewart has shuttled between the Minors and Majors the last three seasons, going 2-3 with a 4.84 ERA over 33 career appearances (11 starts) with the Los Angeles Dodgers...Stewart was selected by the Dodgers in the sixth round of the 2014 MLB Draft from Illinois State University and was named the Dodgers' 2016 Branch Rickey Minor League Pitcher of the Year...Tonight is the first time he's faced Omaha this season, but it is his fourth career against the Storm Chasers. Between 2016-17, Stewart went 1-1 with a 3.68 ERA and the Storm Chasers batted .263.

Against the Storm Chasers: 2018: 6-8 2017: 7-10 All-time: 155-145 At OKC: 78-70

The Dodgers and Omaha are meeting for their final series of the regular season and for the second series of the season at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark...Omaha won the last series between the teams Aug. 13-16 at Werner Park, posting wins in the final three games of the four-game series...Entering tonight, Omaha has won four straight against the Dodgers, as well as five of the last six and six of the last eight meetings...The Dodgers started 4-2 against the Storm Chasers this season but are 2-6 since...Edwin Ríos leads the Dodgers with 21 hits through 14 games, including seven doubles, two home runs, nine RBI and eight runs scored...The Storm Chasers won the 2017 season series, 10-7, marking the fifth time in seven years they won the season series, as well as the seventh time in 10 years. The Storm Chasers have clinched at least a split in this year's season series, meaning OKC will split or lose the season series with Omaha for the sixth time in the last eight seasons (1-5-1 through 2017).

Bitten by the Big Inning: Omaha scored eight runs in the fifth inning last night at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, marking the most runs allowed by the Dodgers in one inning this season and the most runs allowed by OKC in an inning since Round Rock scored 10 runs in the sixth inning of an 11-8 win Aug. 11, 2017 against OKC at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark...The Dodgers have not been able to consistently avoid the big inning this month, with opponents scoring four or more runs in one inning 10 times in 20 games. Last night was also the third time this month the team has allowed 13 or more runs in a game. Prior to August, the Dodgers only allowed 13 or more runs in a game once all season and opponents scored in double digits a total of five times April-July...Yesterday's defeat marked the third time the team lost a game by at least 11 runs this month. OKC's -24 run differential this month is second-worst in the PCL (Sacramento, -29).

Along the Ríos Grande: Edwin Ríos connected on two of the Dodgers' seven hits last night, including his ninth homer of the season, and also drove in both of OKC's two runs. Ríos leads the Dodgers with 21 hits in 14 games against the Storm Chasers this season, batting .389 with a team-high seven doubles, two homers, and nine RBI...Ríos has overtaken the team lead with 48 RBI this season and is now tied for the most multi-RBI games by a Dodger this season with 11.

Quiet Riot: The Dodgers have been held to eight hits or less in each of the last eight games. During that time, the Dodgers are batting .198 (51x257), including 13-for-64 (.203) with runners in scoring position. They have scored 25 runs during the stretch, and although the hits have not been plentiful, they have managed to tally at least five runs in three of the last five games...The offense has struggled especially over the last four meetings with Omaha, batting .183 (24x131), with a total of six runs going 3-for-23 with RISP.

For Whom the Bell Toles: Over the last five games, Andrew Toles is 7-for-18 with two homers, a triple, five runs scored and eight RBI. Entering the first game of the homestand Friday, Toles had been held 0-for-11 over his last three games and 2-for-22 over his last seven games...He's picked up at least one RBI in five of his last six games, totaling nine RBI.

Dinger Details: After hitting just one home run over their last 10 games entering Friday, and just six homers through the first 15 games of August, the Dodgers have homered in five straight games. Even with the recent bump, OKC's 11 dingers this month are tied for third-fewest in the PCL...Last night was the first time since Aug. 7 at Reno the Dodgers allowed more than one homer in a game. The grand slam hit by Frank Schwindel last night marked the seventh allowed by the Dodgers this season, equaling the amount of grand slams allowed over the past three seasons combined. It's the team's most grand slams allowed in one season since 2012, and although opponents are batting just .231 with bases loaded against the Dodgers this season, 29 percent of the hits have been grand slams (7/24).

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Pacific Coast League Stories from August 22, 2018


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