PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

RedHawks Game Notes: May 4, 2013

Published on May 4, 2013 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Oklahoma City RedHawks (17-10) vs. Iowa Cubs (9-16)

Houston Astros vs. Chicago Cubs

Game #28 of 144/Road #12 of 72 (7-4)

Pitching Probables: OKC-LHP Brett Oberholtzer (1-2, 7.79) vs. IOW-LHP Brooks Raley (3-2, 3.81)

Saturday, May 4, 2013 | Principal Park | Des Moines, Iowa | 7:05 p.m. CT

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

Today's Game: The RedHawks return to the road looking to extend their winning streak. The current seven-game win streak is their longest since winning nine in a row May 30-June 7, 2012. Only Tacoma is in the midst of a longer winning streak (10 games).

Last Game: Yesterday's scheduled game in Des Moines was postponed due to snow and will be made up as part of a doubleheader tomorrow at 1:05 p.m. On Thursday, Jonathan Villar celebrated his 22nd birthday by going 4-for-4, notching five RBI and scoring three runs in a 9-1 RedHawks win against the Nashville Sounds at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark to complete a series sweep. Nashville went ahead 1-0 before the RedHawks scored nine unanswered runs. After the Sounds broke a scoreless tie in the fourth, the RedHawks responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning, including a go-ahead, two-run double by Villar. Villar also homered in the sixth and added a two-run single in the seventh. Reliever Josh Zeid (2-0) held Nashville without a hit and run in two innings pitched for the win. OKC starter Asher Wojciechowski threw four innings, allowing one run on three hits and striking out five in his Triple-A debut.

Today's Probable Pitcher: Brett Oberholtzer heads back to the mound after picking up his first win last time out...On Sunday against New Orleans, he allowed two runs and six hits and struck out a season-high five batters in five-plus innings...Before Sunday's outing, Oberholtzer made his Major League debut April 21 against Cleveland...He allowed two runs and three hits over two innings, including allowing solo home run to the first batter he faced (Carlos Santana)...The lefty is 1-2 this season in four starts with the RedHawks...After a strong finish in 2012, Oberholtzer struggled a bit out of the gate this season, allowing at least five runs in his first three of his starts with the RedHawks (18 runs, 12.1 IP)...Oberholtzer went 1-1 with a 5.19 ERA in three starts against Iowa in 2012.

Against the Cubs: 2013: 0-0 2012: 12-4 All-time: 98-107 In Iowa: 45-58

OKC started the season series against Iowa in 2012 by winning the first six games and went 12-4 overall...The RedHawks had never won more than 10 games in one year against the I-Cubs prior to that...The I-Cubs actually posted a better average (.283) than OKC (.274), but the RedHawks hit 19 home runs, including five over a two-game span by Mike Hessman, June 3-4...Jimmy Paredes led OKC with 20 hits against Iowa in 2012 and hit .323 in the series...The RedHawks pitching staff posted a 4.44 ERA...Oklahoma City also won the 2011 season series, 10-6.

Wacky Weather: Including yesterday, the RedHawks have already had four games postponed this season. In 2012, they had three games postponed or cancelled for the entire season.

On the Road Again: The RedHawks enter their four-game road trip tied for the fewest road losses (four) in the league this season...Oklahoma City started the season 7-2 on the road before losing its last two road contests April 22-23 in Albuquerque...The RedHawks seven road wins lead the PCL American Southern Division, and they are 2-0-1 in road series...Jake Elmore paces the team with a .405 average (15x37) away from Oklahoma City.

Happy Birthday to Vee: Jonathan Villar had a 22nd birthday to remember on Thursday, going 4-for-4 with a home run, double, and career-high five RBI. He had gone just 2-for-10 while playing on his birthday in the past. After getting off to a 2-for-34 start, Villar is hitting .437 (31x71) over his last 17 games. He's hit safely in 15 of the games, including his last eight straight. Despite not having a multi-hit game until the 11th game of the season, he is now tied for the team lead with Jimmy Paredes with 12. During this stretch he has collected all 17 of his RBI and all 12 of his extra-base hits for the season. Since April 15, nobody in the PCL has collected more hits, and only Omaha's David Lough has a higher batting average (.446).

Paredes Patiently Popping Off: Jimmy Paredes is 16-for-34 (.471) during his current nine-game hit streak and has collected at least two hits five times. Paredes is tied for third in the PCL with 38 hits and ranks sixth with a .376 average. His current walk total stands at 13, over half of what he had for all of 2012 (22). He didn't draw his 13th walk last season until July 5. This season Paredes has four multi-walk games, something he never did in 124 contests last year.

Streak Secret: During the team's current seven-game win streak, the RedHawks have held the opposition to two runs or less five times. The team's ERA during the streak is 2.55, and taking away Monday's game in which they beat Nashville, 9-8, the team ERA dips to 1.94 over the remaining six games.

Swipe Out: The Redhawks lead the league with 39 stolen bases, including 19 over the last six games. Trevor Crowe has swiped 10 to lead the team and tie for second in the PCL. In April, the RedHawks had 35 stolen bases, which is the most they have had in one month since July 2011 (41).

Triple the Fun: The RedHawks have notched eight triples over their last five games and are tied for third in the league with 12 triples this season. On Monday they tied a club record with four triples in one game.

Top of the Line: Since moving into the leadoff spot of the lineup, Trevor Crowe is hitting .346 (9-for-26) with four RBI and a .469 on-base percentage. The RedHawks are 7-0 when Crowe leads off.

Cosart, Krauss Honored: On Thursday, Jarred Cosart and Marc Krauss were named team pitcher and player of the month, respectively, for April by the Astros player development staff. Cosart was 3-0 with a 2.63 ERA and Krauss hit .333/6/25.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS (ALL TIMES CENTRAL)

DATE TIME OPPONENT OKC PITCHER(S) OPP. PITCHER

Sunday, May 5 1:05 p.m. @ Iowa RHP Ross Seaton (0-1, 11.57) RHP Drew Carpenter (1-3, 7.77)

Sunday, May 5 Game 2 @ Iowa TBA RHP Guillermo Moscoso (1-0, 1.80)

Monday, May 6 12:05 p.m. @ Iowa RHP Jarred Cosart (3-0, 2.63) RHP Matt Garza (ML Rehab)/LHP Chris Rusin (1-3, 4.33)

Tuesday, May 7 7:05 p.m. Tacoma LHP Wes Musick (2-0, 2.49) TBA




Pacific Coast League Stories from May 4, 2013


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