PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

RedHawks Game Notes: April 14, 2012

April 14, 2012 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Memphis Redbirds (1-8) vs. Oklahoma City RedHawks (7-2)

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Houston Astros

Game #10 of 144/Road #2 of 72 (1-0)

Pitching Probables: MEM-LH Nick Additon (0-0, 5.40) vs. OKC-RH Henry Sosa (0-0, 2.50)

Saturday, April 14, 2012 | AutoZone Park | Memphis, Tenn.| 6:05 p.m. CT

Radio: KGHM AM-1340 The Game, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRadio - J.P. Shadrick, play-by-play; Alex Freedman, studio host

UPCOMING SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)

Sunday, April 15 @ Memphis (STL): OKC-RH Paul Clemens (1-1, 1.64) vs. MEM-RH Brandon Dickson (1-1, 2.38) - 1:35 p.m., KGHM-AM 1340, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRadio

Monday, April 16 @ Memphis (STL): OKC-RH Aneury Rodriguez (1-0, 4.66) vs. MEM-RH Brian Broderick (0-2, 8.00) - 7:05 p.m., KGHM-AM 1340, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRado

Tuesday, April 17 @ Nashville (MIL): OKC-LH Dallas Keuchel (2-0, 0.00) vs. NAS-RH Josh Butler (0-2, 3.86) - 7:05 p.m., KGHM-AM 1340, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRadio

Wednesday, April 18 @ Nashville (MIL): OKC-RH Jordan Lyles (2-0, 2.08) vs. NAS-Brian Baker (1-1, 4.82) - 11:05 a.m., KGHM-AM 1340, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRadio

Thursday, April 19 @ Nashville (MIL): OKC-RH Henry Sosa (0-0, 2.25) vs. NAS-TBA - 7:05 p.m., KGHM-AM 1340, 1340thegame.com, IHeartRadio

Tonight's Game-- The RedHawks will shoot for their fifth straight win against Memphis as they continue their series with the Redbirds at 6:05 p.m. Henry Sosa will face the Redbirds for the first time this year, as he looks to following the recent trend of great starting pitching.

Last Night-- Fernando Martinez extended his season-opening hitting streak to nine games with two home runs, including an eighth inning grand slam, while Jordan Lyles delivered seven solid innings and led the RedHawks to an 11-3 win over Memphis. Lyles (2-0) allowed a first inning home run, but faced the minimum over his final six innings of work in the winning decision. In all, Lyles allowed two earned runs and three hits with seven strikeouts, ten groundouts and one fly out. The Redbirds scored first via a two-run homer by Ryan Jackson in the first inning, but the RedHawks scored the next 11 runs of the game. Martinez put OKC in front with his two-run shot in the fifth to make it 4-2. Angel Sanchez also homered, and Brian Bixler went 4-for-5 in his RedHawks debut.

Tonight's Probable Pitchers-- After missing the Redbirds in the opening series, Henry Sosa will face Memphis for the first time...On Monday against Nashville, Sosa threw 74 pitches and exited after the fourth inning...Although he allowed just one run, he allowed at least one baserunner each inning (4 H, 2 BB)...Sosa was traded from San Francisco to Houston on July 19, 2011 as part of a deal for Jeff Keppinger...He made one start with the RedHawks last season, tossing seven scoreless innnings in a no decision at Las Vegas on August 5...Five days later he was called up to the Astros, and in 10 starts with Houston, went 3-5 with a 5.23 ERA...Lefty Nick Additon will square off against the RedHawks for the first time this season...Additon took the loss in his season debut, allowing three runs and six hits with four walks and two strikeouts over five innings in New Orleans on Monday...Last season Additon went a combined 8-9 with a 3.93 ERA between Double-A Springfield and Memphis...In two starts against the RedHawks, Additon was 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA...He struck out 16 batters in just 11 innings.

Bixler's Big Debut-- After getting optioned to the RedHawks from Houston, Brian Bixler made quite the first impression last night. Bixler went 4-for-5 with an RBI, scored twice and also stole two bases. None of those stats should be surprising, as Bixler is a .284 career hitter in the Minors and has stolen 20 or more bases in a season three times.

Power Surge-- Last night the RedHawks doubled their season home run total with three dingers. They had been held homer-less the previous four games. After being tied for last in the league, they are now tied for 11th. Last season the RedHawks hit three or more homers in a game five times, the last of which was on August 4 in Las Vegas when they belted four.

Look, It's a Lefty-- Tonight marks the first time this season the RedHawks will face a left-handed starting pitcher. Last season, the RedHawks went 12-22 against lefty starters. This season, the RedHawks are hitting .173 against southpaws, although it is a small sample size (52 AB).

Fantastic Fernando-- RedHawks outfielder Fernando Martinez is just one of five players in the PCL to hit safely in the first nine games of the season. He ranks second in the PCL in RBIs (13) and leads the team in hits (13), home runs (3), and extra-base hits (6). Martinez is also the only player to start every game for the RedHawks.

Cashing In-- The RedHawks have been phenomenal this season when faced with scoring chances. They are hitting .360 as a team with runners in scoring position (2nd in PCL) and a blistering .395 with runners in scoring position and 2 outs (1st in PCL). For sake of comparison, Memphis is hitting .100 with runners in scoring position, and .086 with runners in scoring position and 2 outs.

Hail Hessman-- RedHawks first baseman Mike Hessman is the active leader in career minor league home runs. His 330 blasts is almost 100 more than Val Pascucci of Buffalo, who is second on the list with 235. Toledo's Brad Eldred ranks third with 230. Combined with his homers from the Majors and Japan, Hessman has a total of 350 career home runs since beginning his professional career in 1996.

Against the Redbirds-- After a one-run setback on opening night, the RedHawks have taken four straight from the Redbirds...During the win streak they've outscored Memphis 36-11, winning by seven runs or more three times...For the season, they are hitting .318 against the Memphis pitching staff...Last season the RedHawks were just 5-11 against the Redbirds and went 1-7 at AutoZone Park, losing their last seven straight.

RedHawks Radio-- For the second consecutive season, the Oklahoma City RedHawks and Clear Channel Radio of Oklahoma City will broadcast all 144 RedHawks games on AM 1340 The Game...Each game will be carried live and all broadcasts will start 30 minutes before the first pitch with "RedHawks On-Deck"... Game audio will also be available through the station website stream at 1340thegame.com and on mobile devices through the free Clear Channel iheartradio app.... "The Voice of the RedHawks" J.P. Shadrick returns for his second season and will be joined in the booth this year by Alex Freedman.

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