PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

RedHawks Game Notes: June 2, 2014

Published on June 2, 2014 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Oklahoma City RedHawks (31-27) vs. Memphis Redbirds (28-29)

Houston Astros vs. St. Louis Cardinals

Game #59 of 144/Home #27 of 72 (12-14)

Pitching Probables: OKC-RHP Nick Tropeano (2-4, 2.63) vs. MEM-RHP Angel Castro (5-3, 3.16)

Monday, June 2, 2014 | 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 RedHawks continue their four-game series against the Memphis Redbirds at 7:05 p.m. at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. Nick Tropeano--who ranks in the PCL's top six in ERA, WHIP, and opponent average--makes the start for OKC.

Last Game: Four Memphis pitchers combined to one-hit the RedHawks in a 2-1 loss at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark. Memphis starting pitcher Nick Greenwood (3-2) allowed one unearned run and one hit over five innings in the win. Relievers Dean Kiekhefer and Eric Fornataro combined for three perfect innings before David Aardsma threw a scoreless ninth for his ninth save. The Redbirds took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning on a sac fly by Jermaine Curtis, before Tommy Pham scored on a passed ball by Carlos Perez. Domingo Santana became the RedHawks first baserunner of the night in the fifth when he drew a leadoff walk. Two batters later, Gregorio Petit hit an infield single, and second baseman Pete Kozma committed a throwing error on the play to put runners at second and third. Matt Duffy followed with a RBI groundout to cut the Memphis lead to 2-1. The RedHawks didn't have another runner on base until Adron Chambers drew a two-out walk in the ninth.

Today's Probable Pitcher: Nick Tropeano (2-4) looks to rebound from a loss in his last outing and continue a strong season tonight...He suffered his fourth loss of the season Tuesday against Omaha in Bricktown. He allowed a season-high seven hits and tied a season high by allowing four runs, although only two were earned. He did not issue a walk and recorded six strikeouts...Tropeano has held opponents to a .198 batting average, which ranks third in the PCL. He also ranks fifth with a 1.01 WHIP and sixth with a 2.63 ERA...Tropeano has allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of his last six outings as well as in nine of his last 10 outings...Over his last four starts, Tropeano has posted a 2.22 ERA and has racked up 29 strikeouts with just four walks in 24.1 innings. He had struck out just 18 batters (with 11 walks) over his first 27 innings...Opponents are hitting just .194 (6x31) against him with runners in scoring position...Despite consistently pitching well, the RedHawks are just 2-6 in his starts and 3-8 in games he's appeared in. The OKC offense has scored eight runs over his last five starts combined, with just six runs while he's been in the game...Tonight marks his third start of the season against Memphis. He is 0-1 and has allowed five runs and 10 hits over 10.2 innings. He's walked two and struck out 11.

Against the Redbirds: 2014: 9-5 2013: 9-7 All-time: 141-130 In OKC: 82-51

The RedHawks won three of four games at AutoZone Park last weekend to finish with a winning record (5-3) in Memphis for a second consecutive season. They had never recorded a winning record in Memphis prior to 2013...Oklahoma City has won 15 of the last 23 meetings, including eight of the last 11...During their last series in OKC May 6-9, the RedHawks took three of four...Adron Chambers played in 362 games with Memphis over the last four seasons and is off to a 7-for-21 start with a homer and six RBI against his former team...Ronny Torreyes is hitting .413 (19-for-46) against the Redbirds this season...Jon Singleton hit five of OKC's 16 homers against Memphis and collected 15 RBI in 13 games.

One is a Lonely Number: The RedHawks were held to one hit Sunday for the first time since a 1-0 loss Aug. 31, 2011 at New Orleans. (The starting pitcher for the Zephyrs that day was Darin Downs, who began the season with the RedHawks and is a current member of the Astros bullpen. He tossed eight innings.) It's also the first time they've been one-hit at home since a 7-1 loss July 9, 2011 against Omaha...The Memphis pitching staff faced three over the minimum and retired the side in order in seven of nine innings. The RedHawks entered the game hitting .353 (65x184) and having scored 36 runs in their previous five games against Memphis.

Paused at the Plate: During the current homestand, the RedHawks have been held to two runs or less in four of the first six games. They are batting .178 (32x180) and have scored 15 total runs, eight of which came in Saturday's game against Memphis. They are also hitting .139 (5x36) with runners in scoring position...After scoring at least three runs in each of their first nine home games, the RedHawks have scored less than three runs in 12 of their last 17 contests in Bricktown, including seven of the last 10.

No Fly Zone: The RedHawks pitching staff has not allowed a home run in a season-high nine straight games. It's the longest homer-less stretch since the RedHawks went the final nine games of 2012 without allowing a dinger. The 35 homers allowed by the RedHawks this season are the fewest in the PCL, and they've allowed just one homer over the last 13 games. They've been even better at home, keeping opponents inside the park in 12 consecutive games.

Kick Starters: Over the last 13 games, Oklahoma City starting pitchers have a 2.26 ERA (20 ER/79.2 IP) without yielding a home run. The RedHawks are second in the league with a 3.67 ERA this season.

No-K Corral: Ronny Torreyes has struck out just seven times all year and leads all hitters in professional baseball with one strikeout per 28.71 plate appearances. For comparison's sake, Detroit's Victor Martinez leads the Majors with one strikeout per 17.15 PA's. Fellow RedHawk Kiké Hernandez has struck out 10 times this season, and ranks second in the PCL with one strikeout per 16.10 plate appearances.

Chapping the Competition: After another scoreless outing yesterday, RedHawks reliever Kevin Chapman lowered his ERA to 1.00. Chapman has not been scored upon in 11 of his last 13 outings, and he has given up just two unearned runs during that time. The lefty has struck out 24 batters over 18.0 IP and is holding left-handed batters to a .161 average.

Born to Run: Austin Wates is tied for fourth in the PCL with 14 stolen bases despite being limited to just 24 games. Wates is 14-for-14 in his attempts, and over the past two seasons he is 29-for-30, including 18-for-18 with the RedHawks.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)

DATE TIME OPPONENT OKC PITCHER(S) OPP. PITCHER

Tuesday, June 3 7:05 p.m. Memphis LHP Rudy Owens (2-3, 5.21) LHP Tim Cooney (5-4, 3.82)

Wednesday, June 4 OFF

Thursday, June 5 7:05 p.m. @ Omaha RHP David Martinez (5-3, 4.22) LHP John Lamb (2-5, 4.06)

Friday, June 6 7:05 p.m. @ Omaha RHP Mike Foltynewicz (4-3, 3.40) RHP Sugar Ray Marimon (4-2, 2.84)

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