IL1 Rochester Red Wings

Rochester Red Wings Game Notes - Saturday, July 14 vs. Toledo (Tigers)

July 14, 2012 - International League (IL1)
Rochester Red Wings News Release


SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012 w FRONTIER FIELD

GAME #94 - HOME GAME #49 - 7:05 P.M.

TOLEDO MUD HENS (37-55) at ROCHESTER RED WINGS (45-48)

LHP CASEY CROSBY (6-2, 3.18) vs. RHP NICK BLACKBURN (1-0, 3.21)

TOLEDO THE LINE: The Rochester Red Wings tonight play the 3rd game of their 4-game series vs. Toledo (Tigers), continuing the weekend homestand after winning both of the first 2 games in come-from-behind fashion. Following tomorrow's series finale, the Red Wings will hit the road for 8 games, making stops at Norfolk (Orioles) and Durham (Rays). Then it's back home for 4 against International League North Division rival Syracuse (Nationals) July 24-27.

a After tomorrow's series finale against Toledo, the Red Wings will play just 4 of 20 games at Frontier Field through August 5. Rochester will, however, play 18 of its final 29 games along Morrie Silver Way beginning August 6.

ROSTER NEWS: Right-handed reliever Lester Oliveros today was reinstated from the 7-Day Disabled List. To make room for him on the roster, right-handed starter Steven Hirschfeld was transferred to Double-A New Britain.

a Oliveros missed 22 games with a sprained right ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) after being placed on the DL June 20. He last appeared in a game June 18 vs. Durham. The 24-year-old is 1-1 with 4 saves and a 3.86 ERA in 13 games with the Red Wings.

a Hirschfeld went 1-3 with a 8.61 ERA (22 ER/23.0 IP) in 5 starts after being transferred from New Britain June 5.

a Also of note, righthander Esmerling Vasquez will start tomorrow's series finale. It will be his 2nd start, his first since June 8 vs. Norfolk.

CELLAR DWELLERS NO MORE: The Red Wings enter tonight's game in 5th place in the IL North Division, a half game better than the Syracuse Chiefs (Nationals), whose game last night vs. Empire State (Yankees) was postponed due to a power outage. The Red Wings enter tonight's action not in last place for the first time since May 12, when they began play at 14-20 and a half game up on 14-21 Syracuse.

a The Red Wings have posted 2 straight last-place finishes in the IL North, going 49-95 in 2010 and 53-91 in 2011. They most recently finished out of the cellar in 2009, when their 70-74 record placed them 4th in the North.

THE CLIMB TO .500: The Red Wings enter play tonight 3 games under .500, the closest they've been to the break-even point since May 9, when they entered their game that evening at Pawtucket (Red Sox) with a 14-17 record. Rochester yesterday got to 3 under on their 3rd attempt after failing June 10 at Indianapolis (Pirates) and in the 2nd game of Sunday's doubleheader vs. Lehigh Valley (Phillies).

a Since sitting a season-worst 10 games below .500 at 20-30 on May 28, the Red Wings are 25-18.

a The Wings haven't logged a .500 record since they entered play April 26, posting a 9-9 record before getting swept in a doubleheader that day vs. Syracuse.

LET'S DO THIS: With 51 games remaining, the Red Wings are already just 8 wins shy of matching last year's win total of 53 and 9 short of eclipsing it. The Red Wings are off to their best 93-game start since the 2009 club went an identical 45-48. That club went on to win their next 2 in a row. Rochester was 21 games below .500 at 36-57 at this point last year and 25 games below at 34-59 at this juncture in 2010.

MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROM: The Red Wings have won 6 of their last 7 games and are an IL-best 8-3 in July. This marks Rochester's best 11-game start to a calendar month since the 2009 club went 8-3 in May 2009. In fact, the 2009 club went 10-3 in their first 13 games of May.

a A win tonight would give the Red Wings 7 wins in their last 8 games. Rochester last posted 7 wins in an 8-game stretch May 4-12, 2009, when they actually won 8 of 9 in that time.

a Rochester is 31-25 beginning May 15 after opening the season 14-23. The Wings are 36-32 beginning May 3, playing slightly better than .500 baseball for nearly half the season.

a The Wings went 15-14 in June for their first winning calendar month since going 17-15 in August 2009. Rochester is looking to post back-to-back winning months for the first time since June and July of 2007, when they went 16-15 and 18-13, respectively.

HOME IMPROVEMENT: The Red Wings last night posted their 33rd win at Frontier Field to eclipse their win total at the downtown ballpark from last year. The Wings in 2012 are 33-23 at Frontier, a record that includes a 4-4 mark as the "road" team against the Empire State Yankees. The 2011 Red Wings went 32-41 in 73 games, including one as the "road" team against Charlotte (White Sox). All but 4 of Rochester's 19 come-from-behind wins in 2012 have come at Frontier Field, including both of the first 2 games of this series vs. Toledo.

PITCHING IN: The Red Wings lead the IL with a 2.75 ERA (29 ER/95.0 IP) in 11 games in July. Rochester pitchers have tossed scoreless baseball in 37 of 42 innings during their last 5 games.

a The Red Wings rank 7th in the IL with a 3.89 ERA overall. They finished last in the league in ERA in both 2010 and 2011.

a Liam Hendriks last night posted his 7th win to match Andrew Baldwin's and Eric Hacker's team high from 2011. Should he earn another victory, it would be the most in one season by a Red Wing since Francisco Liriano and Philip Humber both notched 10 in 2008.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

0 Opponent Time Probable A0 TV/Radio

Sunday, July 15 vs. Toledo 6:35 p.m. RHP Brooks Brown (1-3, 5.03) vs. RHP Esmerling Vasquez (3-4, A0 WHTK 1280 AM

Monday, July 16 at Norfolk 7:15 p.m. LHP Luke French (1-4, 5.98) vs. RHP Jake Arrieta 0 WHTK 1280 AM

Tuesday, July 17 at Norfolk 7:15 p.m. RHP Jeff Manship (4-1, 2.29) vs. LHP Zach Britton (4-1, A0 WHTK 1280 AM

Wednesday, July 18 at Norfolk 7:15 p.m. RHP Liam Hendriks (7-0, 1.79) vs. RHP Tommy Hunter (2-1, A0 WHTK 1280 AM

Thursday, July 19 at Norfolk 12:15 p.m. RHP Nick Blackburn vs. RHP Jason WYSL 1040 AM

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International League Stories from July 14, 2012


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