PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

RedHawks Game Notes: August 28, 2013

Published on August 28, 2013 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Oklahoma City RedHawks (79-59) vs. Nashville Sounds (53-85)

Houston Astros vs. Milwaukee Brewers

Game #139 of 144/Home #68 of 73 (44-23)

Pitching Probables: OKC-RHP Asher Wojciechowski (9-6, 3.48) vs. NAS-RHP Alfredo Figaro (0-0, 3.38)

Wednesday, August 28, 2013 | 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 PCL American Southern Division champion RedHawks continue their series against Nashville at 7:05 p.m. at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. The four-game series is tied, 1-1.

Last Game: The RedHawks clinched the PCL American Southern Division title with a 5-4 win against Nashville Tuesday at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. Eric Berger had a tremendous spot start for the RedHawks and earned the win. He held Nashville to one run and two hits in five innings pitched. Nashville got on the scoreboard first with a solo home run by Hunter Morris in the second inning. Oklahoma City took the lead in the fourth with a three-run rally. A RBI single by Japhet Amadar gave OKC a three-run lead in the fifth. Nashville scored twice in the sixth inning, but the RedHawks got a run back in the seventh on a RBI groundout by George Springer. The Sounds cut the RedHawks' lead to one in the eighth with a RBI single by Eugenio Velez. Pitchers Wade LeBlanc and Jorge De Leon combined to retire the Sounds in order in the ninth to preserve the win, with De Leon recording his sixth save with OKC.

Today's Probable Pitcher: Asher Wojciechowski seeks his third straight and team-leading 10th win of the season...In Wojciechowski's last start Friday in Round Rock, he allowed two runs and seven hits over 6.2 innings to earn the win. He struck out six and walked one....His .226 opponent batting average is tied for best in the league, while his 1.18 WHIP is tied for second and his 3.48 ERA ranks fifth...He leads the RedHawks with nine wins, 20 starts, and 129.1 innings pitched...Wojciechowski has been stellar at home, going 7-0 with a 2.33 ERA over nine starts. He has held opponents to two runs or less in seven of those outings...Tonight is his third start of the season against Nashville. He is 0-1 against the Sounds and has given up five runs and eight hits over 9.2 IP. In his last meeting with Sounds on June 27, he gave up a pair of home run in a loss, but he has not allowed a homer since (65.1 IP).

Elite Company: With a victory tonight, Asher Wojciechowski will become just the ninth pitcher in team history to record at least 10 wins in a season. The last do so was Michael Kirkman in 2010, when he went 13-3 and was named PCL Pitcher of the Year.

Against the Sounds: 2013: 10-4 2012: 13-3 All-time: 137-117 In OKC: 73-53

With Tuesday's win, the RedHawks have won 10 of their last 11 games against the Sounds in Oklahoma City...The RedHawks swept their first home series of the season against the Sounds, April 29-May 2, winning all four games...The teams last played in Nashville June 27-30, with Oklahoma City winning the series, 3-2...Nashville is batting just .233 and the RedHawks have held the Sounds to two runs or less in six of 14 meetings with a 3.12 team ERA...Oklahoma City has scored five or more runs in eight of 14 games against the Sounds this season and has outscored Nashville, 66-46...Including this season, the RedHawks have won the season series in five of the past six years.

Crown 'Em: Last night the playoff-bound RedHawks clinched their first PCL division title since 2010 and their seventh division championship since joining the league in 1998. Oklahoma City will play the winner of the American Northern Division in a best-of-five series, starting Sept. 4-5 at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

High-Water Mark: The RedHawks currently own the best record in the PCL and tallied their 79th win of the season Tuesday. Their 79 wins are the most by an Oklahoma City team since 2005, and the RedHawks have a chance tonight to become just the fourth squad in team history to reach at least 80 wins (1999 - 83; 2004 - 81; 2005 - 80). They have won 10 of their last 13 games overall and 18 of their last 19 home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

The Quest for 40/40: George Springer is 7-for-18 (.389) over his last five games with two stolen bases. He leads the Minors with 37 homers this season (Triple-A and Double-A combined) and owns a two home run lead over Javier Baez of the Tennessee Smokies (Double-A) for the MiLB Joe Baumann Home Run Award. He has 43 stolen bases this season and has joined Ruben Rivera and Darryl Strawberry as the only minor leaguers over the past 40 years with at least 30 home runs and 40 stolen bases in the same season. Springer is trying to become the first Minor League player with a 40/40 season since Len Tucker of the unaffiliated Class B Pampa Oilers in 1956 (51 HR/47 SB). He has collected 106 RBI (tied for second in the Minors) and scored 104 runs (fourth in the Minors) overall this season, making him the only player currently in affiliated baseball (Majors or Minors) to have 100 of each.

Amador's Arrival: Japhet Amador went 3-for-4 Tuesday with a RBI and run scored. He is off to a nice start with Oklahoma City, going 8-for-17 with two RBI and a run scored over his first four games. The Astros recently signed Amador from the Mexican League, where he hit .368 with 22 doubles, 36 home runs, 121 RBI and a .419 OBP in 104 games for the Diablos Rojos this season. Amador led the Mexican League in RBI, ranked second in homers and third in total bases (277).

Saving the Day: Jorge De Leon has racked up five saves over the team's past 12 games and has not allowed a runner to reach base in four of those outings. Over 11 games with the RedHawks, De Leon has allowed one run and eight hits over 13.0 IP.

Easy as 1-2-3: The RedHawks pitching staff recorded four 1-2-3 innings last night. They had notched just one 1-2-3 inning over the previous three games combined.

Men of Steal: Jimmy Paredes stole his 15th base of the season with the RedHawks Tuesday. Oklahoma City leads the PCL with 165 stolen bases, but Albuquerque is closing the gap and ranks second in the league with 161 swipes. The team has shattered its previous single-season club record of 143 set in 2011.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)

DATE TIME OPPONENT OKC PITCHER OPP. PITCHER

Thursday, August 29 7:05 p.m. Nashville RHP Bobby Doran (3-0, 3.96) LHP Aaron Laffey (6-8, 6.82)

Friday, August 30 7:05 p.m. Memphis RHP Jake Buchanan (5-4, 3.88) RHP Keith Butler (3-2, 3.09)

Saturday, August 31 7:05 p.m. Memphis RHP Ross Seaton (3-7, 8.16) RHP Scott McGregor (5-10, 4.85)

Sunday, September 1 6:05 p.m. Memphis TBA RHP Boone Whiting (5-5, 4.33)

Check out the Oklahoma City Comets Statistics

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