PCL Oklahoma City Comets

OKC Dodgers Game Notes - July 12, 2021

Published on July 12, 2021 under Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Oklahoma City Dodgers (30-27) at El Paso Chihuahuas (24-31)

Game #58 & 59 of 130/Road #34 & 35 of 65

Pitching Probables: OKC-RHP Mitch White (0-0, 2.25)/LHP Mike Kickham (0-3, 4.96) vs. ELP-LHP Kyle McGrath (2-1, 7.71)

Monday, July 12, 2021 | Southwest University Park | El Paso, Texas | 6:05 p.m. CT

Radio: KGHM AM-1340 The Game, 1340thegame.com, iHeartRadio; Video: MiLB.tv

Today's Game: The Oklahoma City Dodgers meet the El paso Chihuahuas at 6:05 p.m. CT to conclude a suspended game from last night before playing their regularly scheduled game on Triple-A West Night in America. The regularly scheduled game between the teams is set for seven innings...The Dodgers currently lead the road series, 2-1, and are 16-4 in the last 20 road games and 8-2 in the last 10 road games.

Last Game: Sunday's game was suspended due to rain with the game tied, 7-7, in the seventh inning. The Dodgers led, 7-0, entering the bottom of the fifth inning. El Paso then scored six runs in the inning - including an inside-the-park grand slam - and evened the score in the sixth inning before the game was halted. OKC scored two runs in the third inning with RBI singles by Keibert Ruiz and Luke Raley. Yoshi Tsutsugo and Sheldon Neuse each homered for OKC in the fourth inning, accounting for four runs. Tsutsugo picked up another RBI in the fifth inning on a fielder's choice...El Paso's comeback Sunday marked the second time in three games a team erased a 7-0 deficit, with the Dodgers pulling off the feat Friday en route to a 15-11 victory.

Today's Probable Pitcher: Mitch White (0-0) returns to the OKC Dodgers to start tonight's regularly scheduled game after recently pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers...White pitched a season-high 4.0 innings of relief July 7 in Miami after being recalled earlier that day when Clayton Kershaw was placed on the on the 10-day Injured List. White allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits, including one homer, with five strikeouts and one walk and did not factor into the decision of LAD's 9-6 walk-off loss. White was optioned to OKC the following day when LAD selected the contract of Darien Núñez...White last pitched for OKC July 1 when he opened a home game against Salt Lake, pitching 3.0 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk with three K's...White has allowed two runs over five Triple-A appearances (8.0 IP) this season and has pitched in 13 games for LAD this season across four stints, going 0-0 with a 3.93 ERA...White has not faced El Paso this season. On June 17, 2019 in El Paso, he allowed two runs on five hits over 5.0 IP with six K's and no walks in a no decision.

Mike Kickham (0-3) is scheduled to piggyback White tonight...Kickham started the current series opener Thursday in El Paso and allowed a season-high seven runs on four hits, with a season-high five walks, no strikeouts and hit a batter over 1.2 innings. He was charged with the loss in OKC's 15-8 defeat...Entering Thursday, Kickham has allowed a combined three runs over his previous six outings (four starts) spanning 20.1 innings. He also had 16 strikeouts against six walks during the stretch...Kickham missed about two weeks between late May and early June with a blister on his left index finger...This season against El Paso, Kickham has made four appearances (two starts). Prior to Thursday, he had not allowed a run over 9.0 IP, with seven hits, two walks and eight strikeouts.

Against the Chihuahuas: 2021: 9-6 2019: 2-2 All-time: 23-16 At ELP: 13-8 The Dodgers and Chihuahuas meet for their third series of the season and second time at Southwest University Park in 2021...The teams split their most recent series in OKC June 10-15, with the Dodgers winning the first two games and the series finale, but El Paso winning three straight meetings in between...OKC won the first series between the teams May 27-June 1, with the Chihuahuas winning the series opener and finale and OKC winning four straight games in the middle at Southwest University Park...Entering the current series, the Dodgers outscored the Chihuahuas, 85-55, and hit 20 homers through the first 12 games...Outside of the 2018 series, OKC has won or split each season series against the Chihuahuas since Tucson's franchise relocated to El Paso for the 2014 season, including all four previous series at Southwest University Park (2015, 2017, 2019, 2021)...Current OKC Dodgers Carlos Asuaje (2016-18), Tim Federowicz (2015) and Kevin Quackenbush (2014-17) have all played for El Paso during their careers...The Dodgers are 6-3 at Southwest University Park this season and have scored 83 runs with 21 homers over the nine contests.

Suspended Animation: This is the first time OKC has had a game suspended since May 10, 2019 at home against Nashville. The Dodgers led that contest, 4-0, in the fourth inning at the time of the suspension and eventually won, 10-4. However, since that was the final game of a series, the game remained in limbo all the way until Aug. 20 when the team's met again in Bricktown. Only five of the Dodgers' nine players from the game's original batting order remained with the team by that point.

Seriously...Again?!: Taylor Kohlwey's inside-the-park grand slam in the fifth inning was incredibly the third inside-the-park home run hit against OKC within the last 42 games. Kohlwey joins Albuquerque's Danny Edgeworth (May 24) and Round Rock's Carl Chester (June 21) as opponents who have traipsed around the bases. Prior to Edgeworth, the last inside-the-park home run hit against OKC was Aug. 3, 2018 by Andrew Aplin in Tacoma.

West Texas Shootout: Entering Sunday's game, the OKC Dodgers had scored 31 runs - and at least eight runs per game - during the series in El Paso. It is their second-highest scoring three-game stretch of the season, trailing only another three-game set in El Paso May 28-30 in which they scored 39 runs, including a 20-9 victory...The Dodgers have tallied at least 12 hits in each of their first three games of the current series and have 41 hits total, including 14 for extra bases. Their lone stretch with more hits this season was May 28-30 when they had 46 hits...In each of the first three games of the current series, the Dodgers have had one player collect four hits in one game: Keibert Ruiz (Thursday), DJ Peters (Friday) and Omar Estévez (Saturday)...On the other hand, the Dodgers entered Sunday allowing 31 runs over the last three games - the most they've allowed in a three-game stretch this season. They've also allowed 35 hits so far during the El Paso series - their third three-game stretch of the season with at least 35 hits and first since June 12-14 against El Paso in OKC when the Chihuahuas also compiled 35 hits.

Dinger Details: OKC hit four homers Saturday, accounting for five of the team's eight runs. It was the third time this season the team has gone deep at least four times in one game, and the first time since May 30, also at Southwest University Park, when they belted a season-high seven dingers. Matt Davidson and DJ Peters each homered for a second consecutive game...The Dodgers entered Sunday with nine homers over the last three games after being held to two homers in their five previous games combined entering the series, and to seven homers in their previous 11 games combined...Entering Sunday, OKC had managed to not allow a home run in the past two games at hitter-friendly Southwest University Park, and since June 3, the Dodgers have allowed 27 home runs in the last 34 games - fewest in Triple-A West.

Omar Comin': Omar Estévez had his biggest game of the season Saturday, going 4-for-5 with a homer, double and three RBI. It was his third career four-hit game and first since Sept. 3, 2018 with High-A Rancho Cucamonga against Inland Empire. His three RBI set a season high and his two extra-base hits were also a season high. The one time he was retired Saturday was on a fly ball caught on the right field warning track in the sixth inning...Estévez has notched three straight multi-hit games, going 8-for-14 with three extra-base hits and five RBI. He has hit safely in a season-best five straight games overall, going 10-for-22 (.455)...Prior to the recent hot streak, Estévez went 6-for-46 over 16 games between June 1-July 1...His current .219 batting average is the highest it's been all season.

Matt the Bat: Matt Davidson extended his season-best hitting streak to seven games Saturday night, going 1-for-4 with a two-run homer and a walk. During the streak, Davidson has homered five times and is 10-for-29 (.345) with eight extra-base hits and 16 RBI. Including Saturday, he has five multi-RBI games during his hitting streak and is 5-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Since June 29, Davidson is tied for the Triple-A lead with 16 RBI and ranks tied for second with five homers...Prior to this recent stretch, Davidson had a total of 11 RBI over his first 23 games...Over his last 10 starts, Davidson is 14-for-42 (.333) with five multi-hit games, six homers and 17 RBI.

Keibert Goes Kaboom: Keibert Ruiz had Saturday off, but reached base three times in his six plate appearances Friday, with a RBI single and two walks. On Thursday, he tied his career high with four hits, going 4-for-5 with two RBI...Ruiz has reached base in 12 straight games, going 17-for-43 (.395) with two doubles, four homers, nine runs scored, 11 RBI and 13 walks while reaching base in 30 of 57 plate appearances (.526 OBP)...Entering Sunday, Ruiz's .626 SLG ranked seventh in Triple-A West while his 1.014 OPS was eighth. He entered this season with a career .420 SLG and .772 OPS...Between OKC and his time with the Los Angeles Dodgers this season, Ruiz has hit 13 homers and 12 doubles in 177 total plate appearances (44 games). During his last full season in 2019, Ruiz hit six homers and nine doubles over 350 plate appearances (85 games). He has surpassed his previous career high of 12 homers, set in 2018 over 415 plate appearances...During his 12-game on-base streak, Ruiz has walked 13 times and struck out three times in 57 plate appearances...In eight games against El Paso this season, Ruiz is 11-for-29 (.379) with six homers and 11 RBI.

Around the Horn: Entering Sunday, Luke Raley had hit safely in nine of his last 10 games, going 12-for-35 (.343) with a home run, three doubles, 10 runs scored and four RBI. He leads the Dodgers with 38 RBI in 33 games this season...Including Saturday's win, the Dodgers are now 13-2 over the last 15 games they've scored first, with wins in eight of the last nine...Cristian Santana is currently riding a season-best six-game hitting streak, going 8-for-26 with two doubles, a home run, two RBI and five runs scored. He has also hit safely in nine of his last 10 games and in 12 of his last 14 games... DJ Peters homered in a second straight game Saturday for his first back-to-back games with homers since July 28 and July 30, 2019. He extended his current hit streak to four games (7-for-18) with a double, two homers and four RBI...The Dodgers turned two more double plays Saturday night and have turned at least one double play in a season-best six straight games (11 total). For comparison, the Dodgers had just 10 double plays in the 17 games prior to the recent stretch and turned a total of 32 double players in their first 51 games of the season...Not counting extra innings when an automatic runner scores, the Dodgers have allowed six unearned runs through nine games in July after surrendering just one unearned run throughout all of June.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from July 12, 2021


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