SAL Hudson Valley Renegades

Renegades Game Notes - April 6, 2024

Published on April 6, 2024 under South Atlantic League (SAL)
Hudson Valley Renegades News Release


Hudson Valley Renegades (0-1) at Bowling Green Hot Rods (1-0)

LHP Kyle Carr (First Start) vs RHP Alex Cook (First Start)

| Game 2 | Road Game 2 | Saturday, April 6, 2024 | Bowling Green Ballpark | Bowling Green, Ky. | First Pitch 7:35 p.m. EDT |

THIRTY, FLIRTY & THRIVING: The Hudson Valley Renegades are celebrating their 30th anniversary season throughout 2024. Now in their fourth season as a full-season club and affiliate of the New York Yankees, the Renegades will pay tribute to the greatest players and moments in franchise history throughout the season. Since the team's inaugural 1994 season, 130 Renegades have gone on to play in Major League Baseball, with catcher Kevin Brown being the club's first alumni to reach MLB on Sept. 12, 1996. Hudson Valley has been affiliated with three MLB clubs, the Texas Rangers (1994-96), Tampa Bay Rays (96-19) and Yankees (20-Present). They won the New York-Penn League Nader Cup Championship three times: 1999, 2012, and 2017. Other notable former Renegades include 2008 AL Rookie of the Year Evan Longoria, 2009 AL Rookie of the Year Jeremy Hellickson, 2010 AL MVP Josh Hamilton, and Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt.

OVER A DECADE OF SUCCESS: With a 70-62 (.530) record in 2023, the Hudson Valley Renegades recorded their 11th consecutive season with an above .500 record (since 2012). During that span, the team has won two league championships (2012 and 2017), seven playoff appearances (12, 14, 16-19, 23), and five league championship series appearances (12, 16-18, 23). Among teams in affiliated baseball with at least 500 games played, the Renegades have the second-best winning percentage (.575) in MiLB. Sadly, three of the five-winningest teams since 2012 are no longer affiliated (Savannah, State College, and Trenton).

WE'VE GOT A FAST CARR (AND A FEELING HE CAN BE SOMEONE): New York Yankees 2023 3rd round pick Kyle Carr makes his pro debut for the Renegades on Saturday night at Bowling Green. Carr is ranked as the Yankees' #10 prospect by Baseball America and #12 by MLB Pipeline. His much-anticipated debut comes on the heels of a dominant season at Palomar College in California where he was named ABCA Pitcher of the Year after going 12-1 with a 2.31 ERA

STARTING STRONG: After Jesús Rodríguez homered to lead off the top of the second inning on Friday night against Trevor Martin, the Renegades have now had a solo home run be their first hit of the season in three straight years. In 2022, Trey Sweeney hit the first pitch of the season from Greenville's Brian Van Belle for a home run, while Spencer Jones took Greensboro's Anthony Solometo deep in the bottom of the third in 2023.

OPENING NIGHT SWOON: Following Friday night's 6-1 loss at Bowling Green, Hudson Valley has lost four of its last five Opening Night games, with each loss coming on the road. The 'Gades have been defeated by Aberdeen (2019), Jersey Shore (2021), and Greenville (2022), with their lone triumph coming against Greensboro in 2023 at Heritage Financial Park.

WELCOME BACK: The 2024 Renegades Opening Day roster features 18 returning players from the 2023 regular season or playoffs. Among the 18 returners, 11 pitchers and seven position players return from 2023. Highlighting the returners is Yankees #20 prospect Jared Serna.

KINGS OF THE HILL: Four Renegades pitchers combined to strike out 10 batters on Friday at Bowling Green. In 2023, Hudson Valley set a franchise record by striking out 1,420 batters, the most of any High-A team and fifth-most in MiLB. The staff recorded 10-or-more strikeouts in 61.4% (81-of-132) games in 2023, whiffing a season-high 19 on two occasions.

TOP OF THE HEAP: There are four Top-30 Yankees prospects on the Renegades Opening Day Roster, with two of those players are returning from last year's squad. Jared Serna and Anthony Hall bring their talents back to Hudson Valley in 2024. The 21-year-old Serna made his mark in his second professional season in 2023, slashing .283/.350/.463 (144-for-508) with 19 HR, 79 RBIs, 28 doubles, and 29 stolen bases in 122 games with Tampa and Hudson Valley. In his first full pro season last year, Hall knocked in 47 runs and had 28 extra-base hits in 84 combined games with Single-A Tampa and High-A Hudson Valley. His .353 on-base percentage was 107 points better than his batting average, recording 52 walks in 325 at-bats.

OUR NEW KENTUCKY HOME: The season-opening series with the Bowling Green Hot Rods is the first-ever series for the Renegades in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. With this trip, the Renegades will have played regular season games in 14 different states and one Canadian province in their 30-year history. Hudson Valley has competed in games in Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, West Virginia, and Ontario, Canada.

NEW IN TOWN: The Renegades welcome three 2023 Yankees draft picks to the Opening Day squad: Kyle Carr, Roc Riggio, and Kiko Romero. All three selections were taken in the seventh round or earlier. Carr was the Yankees 3rd round pick in 2023, and is currently ranked as the 10th-best prospect in New York's system according to MLB Pipeline. Riggio, another 21-year-old, was taken in the fourth round out of Oklahoma State. Romero thrived in his hometown of Tucson at the University of Arizona in 2023, and was selected by the Yankees in the seventh round. Romero set the Arizona single-season RBI record, ranking sixth in the nation in RBI.

IN OUR RAYS ERA: Hudson Valley starts the season taking on Bowling Green, the High-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, the former parent club of the Renegades. From 1996-2020, the Renegades were the New York-Penn League affiliate of the Rays, winning three NYPL Championships (99, 12, 17) and compiling a 927-876 (.514) overall record. Notable Renegades players from the Rays affiliation include 2010 AL MVP Josh Hamilton, 2008 AL Rookie of the Year Evan Longoria and 2011 AL Rookie of the Year Jeremy Hellickson.

HUDSON VALLEY TO THE SHOW: Already in 2024, the Renegades have seen three former players make their MLB debuts. Mitch Spence (2021) made his MLB debut with the Oakland Athletics, Matt Sauer (2021-23) debuted with the Kansas City Royals, and Oliver Dunn (2021) broke in with the Milwaukee Brewers all over MLB Opening Weekend. The Renegades have now had 130 former players reach the major leagues, including 17 from the Yankees era and 15 from the star-studded 2021 team.

STRONG ARM TACTICS: The 2023 Renegades pitching staff led the SAL in ERA at 3.62, which was also the third-best mark in Minor League Baseball. The club also finished and second in K/9 (11.06) this year. The Down East Wood Ducks (TEX, A) led the way with a 3.39 ERA. The Somerset Patriots (NYY, AA) finished second, sporting a 3.61 ERA. This comes after the 'Gades finished the 2022 season with a team ERA of 3.62, good for fourth-best in MiLB.

FINISHING STRONG: Over his last 14 games of the 2023 regular season, Jesús Rodríguez went 19-for-53 (.358) with two doubles, a triple, two home runs, 9 RBIs, and seven runs scored. Rodríguez has also recorded a hit in 12 of the last 15 games and reached base safely in the last 12 contests of the regular season. He kicked off the 2024 season by going 2-for-4 with a run scored, a double, a home run and an RBI, extending his on-base streak to 13 straight games. The Renegades team record on-base streak was set last season by Ben Cowles, who reached safely in 41 consecutive games from 7/4-9/2.

INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH: The Hudson Valley Renegades and the Bhutan Baseball & Softball Association have partnered to present Bhutan Night on August 20 at Heritage Financial Park. The team is currently fundraising to bring over several Bhutanese baseball players for baseball and cultural enrichment tour of the Hudson Valley and New York. More details on the night can be found at www.hvrenegades.com/bhutan.

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South Atlantic League Stories from April 6, 2024


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