PCL1 Round Rock Express

Round Rock Express - Game Notes at Nashville Sounds

Published on May 25, 2012 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Round Rock Express News Release


*** PDF GAME NOTES ATTACHED ***

GAME 49 | 25 MAY 2012 | 7:05 P.M. CDT | HERSCHEL GREER STADIUM | NASHVILLE, TENN.

ROUND ROCK EXPRESS (21-27) at NASHVILLE SOUNDS (18-28)

RADIO: 104.9 FM The Horn ESPN"ˆAustin | ONLINE"ˆAUDIO: www.espnaustin.com

EXPRESS: LHP Martin Perez (3-4, 5.72 ERA) | SOUNDS: RHP Seth McClung (1-4, 5.12 ERA)

TONIGHT'S"ˆGAME

Round Rock embarks on an eight-game road trip tonight, opening a four-game series against the Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CDT at Herschel Greer Stadium. The Express most recently won three of four at home against the Sacramento River Cats, winning Thursday night's series opener 5-3. Round Rock is 4-6 in its last 10 games and 8-16 on the road. The Sounds split a four-game series at Las Vegas, winning each of the last two games 5-3 and 7-6 in 10 innings, respectively. Nashville is 5-5 in its last 10 games and 10-10 at home. The Express are fourth in the PCL's American Southern Division, six-and-a-half games back of Oklahoma City. Nashville is third in the American Northern Division, 10 games behind Omaha.

BROADCAST"ˆINFORMATION

Tonight's game airs on 104.9 FM The Horn ESPN"ˆAustin. Online audio also is available at www.espnaustin.com. Express Director of Broadcasting Mike Capps handles play-by-play duties.

EXPRESS-SOUNDS SERIES

This is the first of four series between the two teams. The Sounds visit The Dell Diamond for a three-game June 27-29 and again for five games Aug. 22-26 "" Round Rock's final home series. The Express return to Herschel Greer Stadium for a four-game series July 16-19. ... SERIES NOTES: The all-time series is knotted 56-56 with both teams going 32-24 at home. Round Rock claimed the season series in 2005 (9-7), 2006 (11-5) and 2011 (11-5). Nashville won the season series in 2007 (12-4), 2008 (9-7) and 2009 (10-6). The 2010 series was a microcosm of the overall series as the teams split the 16 games with the Express winning six of eight in Round Rock and the Sounds winning six of eight in Nashville. There have been three sweeps in the series, all by the home team "" Nashville in 2007 and Round Rock twice last season. ... 2011 SERIES: Round Rock won the season series 11-5, taking all eight games at The Dell Diamond and dropping five of eight at Herschel Greer Stadium. The Express had a flair for the dramatic, winning six games in their final at bat with four walk-off wins. Esteban German delivered a ninth-inning, two-out RBI single to give Round Rock an 8-7 victory in the teams' first meeting of the season May 6. The next night, Omar Quintanilla delivered a ninth-inning, two-out single to give the Express a 9-8 win. The next day, Round Rock got three Taylor Teagarden homers in an 18-9 drubbing that saw the Express score in each of the first seven innings "" a franchise record. The Express finished the sweep with a 10-2 victory that included a seven-run fourth. The tables turned in the teams' first series at Nashville with the Sounds winning three one-run games, including a 5-4, 10-inning victory Eric Farris' one-out RBI single. Nashville had one hit in the series finale, Brett Carroll's seventh-inning leadoff homer for a 1-0 win. The Express were back to their dramatic ways when the teams met at The Dell Diamond June 30-July 3. After winning the opener 6-5, Round Rock scored five eighth-inning runs for a 5-3 victory. The next night, Mike Napoli drilled a two-out, three-run homer with a full count to send the game to extra innings; Doug Deeds ended the game with a 12th-inning, two-run homer. The Express finished the sweep with a 9-6 victory on Napoli's ninth-inning, three-run homer. The season's final series did not have the same drama as the teams split four games at Herschel Greer Stadium; each game was decided prior to the ninth inning. Julio Borbon was 13-for-33 (.394) with a double, two triples, five RBI, seven runs and seven stolen bases in eight games. Joey Butler was 15-for-41 (.366) with one homer, four RBI, eight doubles and 11 runs scored in 11 games. Matt Kata was 13-for-45 (.289) with two homers, 12 RBI, two doubles and 10 runs scored in 13 games. Mark Hamburger made four relief appearances and did not allow a run over 6.1 innings; he was 2-0 with five strikeouts. Zach Jackson was 1-0 with a 4.67 ERA (9 ER/17.1 IP) in three starts. Michael Kirkman did not allow a run over 5.0 innings in two relief appearances; he recorded one save. Martin Perez won his lone start, allowing four runs over five innings. ... CAREER vs. NASHVILLE: Kata is a .313 hitter (40-for-128) in 36 games with three homers, 25 RBI, 10 doubles, a triple and 22 runs scored. These numbers do not include his 2003 season with Tucson for which statistics are not available. Ryan Spilborghs is a .359 hitter (14-for-39) in 11 games with one homer, three RBI, three doubles, a triple and seven runs scored "" all with Colorado Springs. He has not faced Nashville since 2007. John Gaub is 0-1 with a 3.09 ERA (4 ER/11.2 IP), two saves and 14 strikeouts in 12 relief appearances. He was 0-1 with a 2.84 ERA (2 ER/6.1 IP), one save and seven strikeouts in seven outings with Iowa last season. Kirkman is 1-0 with a 3.94 ERA (5 ER/16.0 IP), one save and 14 strikeouts in two starts and two relief outings. Despite their lengthy PCL careers, neither Sean Green nor Greg Reynolds has ever pitched against Nashville.

SERIES"ˆINFORMATION

GAME"ˆ49 | FRIDAY, MAY 25 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (3-4, 5.72 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Seth McClung (1-4, 5.12 ERA)

GAME"ˆ50 | SATURDAY, MAY 26 | 6:35 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Greg Reynolds (3-3, 4.15 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Mark Rogers (0-2, 5.29 ERA)

GAME"ˆ51 | SUNDAY, MAY 27 | 2:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Michael Kirkman (3-1, 6.25 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Wily Peralta (1-5, 5.63 ERA)

GAME"ˆ52 | MONDAY, MAY 28 | 2:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (1-5, 4.97 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Claudio Vargas (0-0, 5.40 ERA)

EXPRESS STARTER

LHP MARTIN PEREZ (3-4, 5.72 ERA)

2012: Non-roster invite to Rangers spring training ... started two games, working 4.0 innings with an 0-1 record and a 9.00 ERA"ˆ(4 ER/4.0 ERA) ... opponents hit .444 (8-for-18) ... walked five with three strikeouts ... Earned victory in April 6 start at Iowa, a 4-3 Express win ... no-decision in April 11 start at Omaha, a 6-5 Express loss ... suffered tough-luck loss in April 16 start vs. Iowa, a 3-2 Cubs win; allowed three runs "" one earned "" on three hits over 5.2 innings ... saddled with loss in April 21 start at New Orleans, an 8-5 Zephyrs win ... claimed season's first victory in April 27 start at Oklahoma City, an 8-3 Express win ... no-decision in May 2 start vs. New Orleans, a 10-5 Express win ... earned victory in May 7 start vs. Memphis, a 7-1 Express win; allowed one run on four hits over seven innings, longest career Triple-A start ... longest start at any level since May 26, 2010, with Frisco (AA) ... suffered least-effective start of Triple-A career in May 14 loss at Tacoma, a 13-6 Rainiers win; allowed seven runs over two innings, matching shortest outing of Triple-A career (Aug. 21, 2011 vs. New Orleans) ... 19.80 ERA (11 ER/5.0 IP), 14.40 hits per nine innings over last two starts ... 2-2, 6.93 ERA (19 ER/24.2 IP) in five road starts ... 1-2, 8.31 ERA (16 ER/17.1 IP) in four May starts ... allowed nine first-inning runs (9.00 ERA) ... opponents hitting .412 (14-for-34) with runners on base and two outs, .385 (10-for-26) with RISP and two outs ... opponents are 3-for-6 with bases loaded.

LAST"ˆSTART: Lost May 20 start vs. Fresno at The Dell Diamond, an 11-5 Grizzlies win ... allowed seven runs (four earned) on eight hits, including one home run, over three innings with four walks and four strikeouts ... surrendered three first-inning runs, two of which came on Nick Noonan's one-out home run ... surrendered four-spot in the third ... used 85 pitches, 47 strikes.

2011 vs. NASHVILLE: Won lone start July 31 at Herschel Greer Stadium, an 8-4 Express win ... allowed four runs over five innings on eight hits and two walks with three strikeouts ... uncorked one wild pitch and was called for a balk ... yielded two-spots in each of the first two innings.

CAREER: The left-hander reached Triple-A at the age of 20 last season and once again enters the campaign as one of the Texas' top prospects ... has been rated as one of the Rangers' top five prospects by Baseball America in four straight seasons (2009-2012), including the top billing last season and the number two spot entering 2012 ... the same publication tabbed the southpaw's curveball as best in the farm system and ranked him 24th on its annual Top 100 Prospects list entering 2011 (No. 37 this season) ... has been involved in a pair of no-hitters in his four-year minor league career, including a six-inning perfect game April 19, 2011, with Double-A Frisco ... won Triple-A debut July 16, 2011, at Memphis, allowing one run on six hits and no walks with four strikeouts over five innings ... finished season 4-4 with a 6.43 ERA (35 ER/49.0 IP) in 10 starts for the Express ... was added to the 40-man roster Nov. 18, 2011.

NOTABLE: Martin Jimenez Perez ... born July 4, 1991 ... youngest active player in Triple-A.

FAMILIAR FACES

Seven players in this series have ties to the other team. Brad Nelson was a member of the sounds from 2005 to 2008, hitting .264 (230-for-895) in 262 games. Zach Jackson was 16-21 with a 4.93 ERA (183 ER/334.0 IP) in 69 appearances (52 starts) over three seasons (2006-2008) with Nashville. He was the Sounds opening-day starter in 2007 and 2008. Sean Green spent the majority of 2011 with the Sounds, going 1-5 with a 3.91 ERA and six saves in 33 relief outings. Matt Kata never played for the Sounds, but he was an All-SEC performer at Nashville's Vanderbilt University (1997-1999). Nashville infielder Brooks Conrad spent parts of four seasons with the Express (2004-2007), hitting .258 (507-for-1963) in 519 games; 129 of those games were in 2004 when Round Rock was a Double-A team (.290, 139-for-480). Conrad remains Round Rock's Triple-A career leader in runs (269), doubles (98), triples (21), extra-base hits (186) and walks (169). He also ranks second in games (390), at bats (1483), hits (368), multiple-hit games (98), total bases (709), RBI (221) and multiple-RBI games (52), trailing Mark Saccomanno in each category; he also is tied for the franchise record with six multiple-homer games. Sounds right-hander Seth McClung pitched for the Express last season, going 2-3 with a 5.19 ERA in 11 starts and eight relief appearances. Nashville infielder Edwin Maysonet played parts of three seasons (2008-2010) with the Express, hitting .257 (230-for-895) in 262 games.

GOOD TIMES ON BORBON STREAK

Julio Borbon is riding a 12-game hitting streak (.434, 23-for-53), his longest this season and Round Rock's sixth of at least 10 games. It is the PCL's sixth-longest active streak. Borbon has seven multiple-hit outings during the streak, including a quartet of three-hit games, nine RBI and 13 runs scored. He scored at least one run in eight consecutive games (11 runs) prior to Wednesday night's game; he scored twice last night. Borbon had at least one extra-base hit in six consecutive games; that streak also snapped Wednesday. He has hit safely in 22 of his last 24 games (.381, 40-for-105) with 13 multiple-hit outings, five three-hit games, four home runs, 16 RBI, five doubles, three triples, 19 runs scored and seven stolen bases. His average skyrocketed from .186 to .292 in that time. Borbon is hitting .446 (25-for-56) during innings four through six with three of his five home runs and 15 of his 24 RBI. However, he is hitting .228 (31-for-136) outside the middle frames, including a .161 mark (9-for-56) after the sixth inning. He is 3-for-8 with the bases loaded. Borbon has hit safely in 15 consecutive home games, the PCL's longest active streak and tied for the league's longest this season.

MENDONCA BE MISLEAD

Tommy Mendonca's .226 season average is a bit misleading. While he has struggled through hitless slumps of at least 12 at bats three times, he has been one of Round Rock's most productive clutch hitters this season. Mendonca is hitting .306 (11-for-36) with runners in scoring position, including a .400 mark (6-for-15) with runners in scoring position and two outs. He is tied with Julio Borbon for the team lead with three bases-loaded hits (eight at bats). Furthermore, Mendonca is hitting .303 (10-for-33) after the seventh inning. He is 7-for-18 (.389) over his last five games, hitting safely, scoring at least one run and producing at least one RBI in four of the five games.

BUTLER BACK AT IT

Joey Butler snapped an 0-for-12 skid with his sixth-inning single Monday night. It was the longest hitless stretch of his 160-game Triple-A career by three at bats. Butler had gone three straight games without a hit, also the longest slump of his Triple-A career. He has hit safely in four straight games (.385, 5-for-13) since snapping that skid. Additionally, he is hitting .370 (20-for-54) over his last 16 games; however, he has one multiple-hit game (two hits, May 23 vs. Sacramento) in 12 games since May 11. Butler is hitting .419 (52-for-124) when putting the ball in play; he has hit safely in 19 of 39 such at bats (.487) since May 8. He is hitting .338 (41-for-121) after the third inning with all eight of his home runs and 22 of his 28 RBI. Butler is tied for sixth in the PCL in runs (38) and tied for third in walks (31).

KEY NUMBERS TELL THE STORY

Round Rock has lost 11 of its last 15 games, a stretch that began with a six-game losing streak. The Express have been outscored 112-77 in that span, surrendering double-digit runs five times. Express pitchers have a 7.08 ERA (102 ER/129.2 IP) over the last 15 games and have allowed at least one home run in 12 straight games (20 homers). A closer look into the numbers shows the Express are hitting .188 (18-for-96) with runners in scoring position in the 10 losses and .422 (19-for-45) in the four wins. Conversely, opponents are hitting .331 (43-for-130) with runners in scoring position in the 10 Express losses and .133 (4-for-30) in Round Rock's four wins. Round Rock is 6-for-21 (.286) with the bases loaded over the last 15 games with four of the six hits coming in the four wins; opponents are 6-for-12 (.500) with two grand slams over the last 15 games.

"HOME" RUNS SCARCE

In stark contrast to last season, The Dell Diamond has not been a launching pad for the Express. Round Rock averages 0.71 homers per game through 24 home dates this season. The Express have not homered in six of their last seven home games. Conversely, Round Rock averages 1.38 homers in 24 road games, including a season-high five May 8 at Salt Lake. The Express snapped a streak of nine consecutive road games with at least one homer May 13 at Tacoma (15 homers). Round Rock has homered in all but six road games this season, clubbing at least two homers eight times. Meanwhile, the Express have four multiple-homer games at The Dell Diamond. Julio Borbon became the first Express player to homer twice in a home game this season May 17 vs. Fresno (17th game); Chris Davis accomplished that feat in last year's third home game, tying a franchise record with three homers. Last season, Round Rock averaged 1.46 home runs per game at The Dell Diamond and 0.97 homers per game on the road. Teams have combined to score 9.88 runs per game at The Dell Diamond this season as opposed to the 11.90 average in 2011.

IT'S A LOADED QUESTION

The Express produced multiple bases-loaded hits in a game for the first time this season May 21 vs. Sacramento. Tommy Mendonca (single) and Julio Borbon (double) produced the hits in successive at bats during Round Rock's five-run second inning. Round Rock is 13-for-46 (.283) with the bases loaded, producing no grand slams and drawing nine walks against eight strikeouts. Four of the 13 hits went for extra bases, all doubles. Mendonca's single May 21 snapped a 1-for-13 bases-load skid for the Express, who earlier this season suffered an 0-for-11 slump. Round Rock is 3-for-5 with the sacks full since Mendonca's single, including Matt Kata's game-winning, three-run double last night. Borbon (3-for-8), Mendonca (3-for-8), Ryan Spilborghs (2-for-3) and Kata (2-for-4) are the only Round Rock players with multiple bases-loaded hits. Dusty Brown has drawn three walks and produced one sacrifice fly in four bases-loaded plate appearances. The rest of the team is 3-for-23 (.131). Meanwhile, opposing batters are 18-for-38 (.474) with the bases loaded, including four grand slams. Opponents are 14-for-25 (.560) with the bases loaded since April 21, including a 5-for-5 series by Oklahoma City (April 26-29).

DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE

Round Rock has at least one double in every game since the season opener "" a 47-game run, including a season-high six two-baggers May 11 at Salt Lake. Twice in the last seven games, the Express have maintained the streak in the ninth inning. Luis Martinez had a one-out double May 17 vs. Fresno, and Brad Nelson had a two-out double Wednesday night. Round Rock clubbed at least two doubles in 32 of those games, collecting three or more 17 times, four or more 10 times and five or more four times. The Express tallied three doubles in the first inning alone May 4 vs. Memphis en route to a five-double night. Round Rock is second in the PCL with 109 doubles, trailing only Albuquerque (116).

SLOPPY PENMANSHIP

After going 22 consecutive games without a loss, Round Rock's bullpen has taken five on the chin over the last 18 games. In the 22 games between losses, Express relievers posted a 2.81 ERA (26 ER/83.1 IP) and allowed no more than one earned run in 17 of the 22 games. Express relievers are 0-5 with a 6.24 ERA (46 ER/66.1 IP) in 19 games since, also surrendering six unearned runs. Last night's game marked the only the third time in the last 16 games that Express relievers did not allow a run. The pen allowed Salt Lake to overcome a four-run, ninth-inning deficit May 9 in a 10-9 loss. It was the largest ninth-inning lead blown by the Express bullpen since July 20, 2011, when Round Rock plated eight seventh-inning runs to take an 11-7 lead only to see New Orleans score seven ninth-inning runs for a 14-11 win. Round Rock relievers are 5-9 with a 4.62 ERA (89 ER/173.1 IP) this season. The pen yielded four-plus runs five times in the last 16 games and six-plus runs three times, including a season-high, seven-run yield May 17 vs. Fresno.

POSITION PLAYER"ˆNOTES

Mike Bianucci tallied a season-high three hits Wednesday night, his first multiple-hit game since May 12 and 13th of the season. Nonetheless, he is 7-for-36 (.194) over 10 games since May 12. Bianucci has one RBI (May 15 at Tacoma) and one extra-base hit (double May 12 at Tacoma) over his last 12 games. He has gone hitless in consecutive games twice this season (April 17-18, April 24-26), but he has not put together more than two consecutive games with a hit since a four-game run May 6-9. Bianucci leads the team with nine homers, but he is homerless in his last 44 at bats (May 11 at Salt Lake). He is 0-for-4 with the bases loaded, walking once. ... Dusty Brown has reached safely in four of his last 22 plate appearances immediately following a stretch in which he reached safely in 10 consecutive plate appearances. He is 16-for-47 (.340) over his last 16 games with five multiple-hit outings, three home runs, nine RBI, six doubles, seven runs scored and 11 walks against six strikeouts. However, he ended an 0-for16 slide with his seventh-inning double Wednesday night. Brown is 2-for-12 (.167) with runners in scoring position but has five walks and eight RBI; both hits came with two outs, including one home run. He has three walks and a sacrifice fly in four bases-loaded plate appearances. ... Luis Hernandez snapped an 0-for-14 skid with his second-inning, two-run single Monday night. Interestingly, he produced four RBI without a hit over the previous three games. He is 7-for-18 (.389) since stopping the slump, producing three two-hit games before last night's 1-for-4. He has seven extra-base hits (five doubles, two homers) over a 32-game stretch since April 15. Hernandez also has 22 strikeouts in that time, fanning at least once in 12 of his last 16 games. He is 7-for-34 (.206) when leading off an inning and 7-for-37 (.189) with runners in scoring position, going 2-for-15 (.133) with RISP and two outs. ... Matt Kata has not gone hitless in consecutive games this season; however, he has not hit safely in more than six straight. He has reached safely in 24 of 27 games started. Kata is hitting .308 (8-for-26) when leading off an inning with two homers and four walks (.419 on-base percentage). He is 12-for-32 (.375) with runners in scoring position, going 5-for-11 with three doubles and 10 RBI with runners in scoring position and two outs. He is 2-for-4 with six RBI with the bases loaded. Kata is 15-for-40 (.375) during the middle innings but 16-for-74 (.216) the rest of the game. ... Luis Martinez is hitting .286 (10-for-35) over his last 10 games with three multiple-hit outings, six doubles, two RBI and eight runs scored. He snapped a four-game hitting streak and a five-game scoring streak last night, going 0-for-3. Martinez is 10-for-21 (.476) in the third and fourth innings but 11-for-63 (.175) the rest of the game, going 1-for-13 (.077) in the second inning. He is 2-for-14 (.143) with runners in scoring position and two outs, and he is 0-for-5 with the bases loaded, drawing one walk. ... Brad Nelson has not gone hitless in consecutive games since a three-game spell April 19-21. He has hit safely in 24 of 27 games since, enjoying hitting streaks of 11 games and nine games in that time. However, he is 4-for-20 (.200) since snapping the nine-game streak May 19. Nelson has hit safely in 13 consecutive road games, the PCL's sixth-longest streak this season and second-longest active streak. However, he has only two multiple-hit games since May 3 and only six RBI since April 27, a 24-game span with no multiple-RBI performances. Nelson is hitting .333 (19-for-57) during the first three innings but .241 (27-for-112) after the third inning. He has a .462 on-base percentage when leading off an inning, hitting .349 (15-for-43) with one home run and nine walks. Nelson is 5-for-22 (.227) with runners in scoring position and two outs. ... Elio Sarmiento is 1-for-23 (.043) over his last six games, after going 5-for-11 (.455) in his first three games. ... Yangervis Solarte is 2-for-14 (.143) over his last three games with four strikeouts. He is hitting .222 (14-for-63) in the first three innings but .342 (41-for-120) thereafter with five of his six home runs and 21 of his 24 RBI. Solarte is hitting .393 (11-for-28) when leading off an inning with one home run; however, he is hitting .224 (11-for-49) with runners in scoring position. ... Ryan Spilborghs is hitless in his last two games after hitting safely in each of his first 16 games with the Express (May 5-22). He also is hitless in his last seven at bats. Spilborghs is 16-for-37 (.432) with runners on base, going 9-for-24 (.375) with runners in scoring position. He owns a .500 on-base percentage when leading off an inning, going 7-for-17 (.412) with two walks and a home run. His most productive inning is the sixth when he is 8-for-14 (.571) with three doubles and three RBI. Spilborghs has played 201 career games in the Pacific Coast League, hitting .342 (262-for-765) with 21 homers, 110 RBI and 61 doubles.

PITCHER"ˆNOTES

Sean Green allowed 14 earned runs in 10.2 innings over his last nine appearances (11.81 ERA) after surrendering two earned runs in his first eight outings. Opposing batters are 3-for-19 (.158) with runners in scoring position and two outs but 8-for-21 (.381) when leading off an inning and 17-for-41 (.415) with the bases empty. Opponents also are 4-for-8 (.500) with the bases loaded, producing one grand slam and eight RBI. Green walked 11 batters over his last seven appearances (9.0 innings) after issuing five free passes over his first 10 outings (14.0 innings). ... Mark Hamburger tallied seven strikeouts Wednesday night, a career high. His previous career high was six in two innings Aug. 6, 2010, with Double-A Frisco. Hamburger also had six strikeouts in three innings June 26, 2008, with rookie-league Elizabeth in the Twins organization. His previous Triple-A career high was five strikeouts Aug. 12, 2011, at Sacramento in his first career start. He also struck out five as a reliever May 9, 2011, in his last appearance with Double-A Frisco. Hamburger surrendered 10 runs in 10.1 innings (8.71 ERA) over his last four outings after yielding only one run over his first 9.2 innings (0.93 ERA) as a reliever this season. He allowed four runs in one inning May 9 at Salt Lake, the most runs he allowed as a reliever since surrendering four July 10, 2011, vs. Memphis. Opponents are hitting .458 (11-for-24) with runners in scoring position, producing two home runs and 20 RBI. He surrendered three home runs in his last two outings after going eight consecutive appearances without yielding a tater. ... Derek Hankins has two strikeouts in 8.2 innings over his last four outings. After surrendering runs in each of his first two appearances, he has allowed at least one run in every other outing since. Opposing batters are 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position and two outs and 0-for-4 with the bases loaded. Hankins has stranded seven of eight inherited runners. ... Aaron Heilman snapped a streak of eight consecutive multiple-strikeout appearances Wednesday night, recording one over two innings. He has 18 strikeouts in his last 14.0 innings. Heilman has allowed at least one run in nine of 14 outings and allowed four of nine inherited runners to score. Opponents are 4-for-19 (.211) when leading off an inning but 10-for-28 (.357) with runners in scoring position. ... Michael Kirkman is 3-0 with a 3.96 ERA (11 ER/25.0 IP) and a .198 opponents' average (17-for-86) over his last five starts. He has 27 strikeouts in that time (9.72 per nine innings) but also has 16 walks (5.76 per nine innings). Opponents are 3-for-19 (.158) with runners in scoring position and two outs but 4-for-6 with the bases loaded, producing 10 RBI. ... Tanner Scheppers recorded his first save since May 8 last night. He has allowed a run in four of 20 outings (nine runs total), surrendering multiple runs three times. He has walked one of his last 66 batters faced over 16 appearances (16.1 innings) with 17 strikeouts in that time. Scheppers logged three strikeouts Wednesday night, a season high and his first multiple-strikeout game since May 2 vs. New Orleans. He has allowed four of nine inherited runners to score. Scheppers leads the PCL with 19 games finished. Opposing batters are 6-for-14 (.429) with runners in scoring position and two outs. ... Ben Snyder has not allowed a run over his last eight outings (10.1 innings) since surrendering four runs in 1.1 innings April 28 at Oklahoma City. Opponents are 6-for-35 (.171) in that time with three singles and three doubles. Snyder has held the opposition scoreless in 11 of his last 12 appearances. However, five of his last eight inherited runners scored. Opponents are 9-for-24 (.375) with runners on base and two outs but 4-for-24 (.167) when leading off an inning. ... Tyler Tufts surrendered a season-high six runs in just two-thirds of an inning May 11 at Salt Lake, matching his total over his first eight appearances. Tufts is 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA (2 ER/9.1 IP) in six outings at The Dell Diamond but 1-1 with a 10.13 ERA (12 ER/10.2 IP) in six road appearances. Opponents are 7-for-16 (.438) with runners in scoring position.

TEAM"ˆNOTES

Round Rock is 4-8 in series openers. ... Express pitchers tallied a season-high 12 strikeouts Wednesday night and have 46 strikeouts over the last five games (9.20 per nine innings). ... Round Rock is third in the PCL with 50 home runs behind only Oklahoma City (55) and Sacramento (54). Of Round Rock's 50 home runs, 27 have been solo shots, including 12 to leadoff an inning; 21 came with no outs. ... The Express lead the league with 361 runners left on base. ... The Express are 15-2 when holding the opposition to fewer than five runs but 6-25 when allowing at least five runs, snapping a 10-game skid in that situation with a 6-5 win May 21 vs. Sacramento. ... Round Rock is 6-7 in one-run games, seven of which were against Iowa. ... Express relievers have allowed 19 runs (15 earned) after the seventh inning over the last 15 games. ... Round Rock is 1-20 when trailing after seven innings, posting their lone win May 2 with a six-run eighth to rally past New Orleans 10-5. Conversely, the Express have four losses in 23 games when leading after seven innings.

NEXT SERIES

Round Rock continues an eight-game road trip with a four-game series against the Memphis Redbirds (St. Louis Cardinals). The series runs Tuesday through Friday with a 7:05 p.m. CDT first pitch each night. The Express won three of four against the Redbirds at The Dell Diamond in early May.

GAME"ˆ53 | TUESDAY, MAY 29 | 7:05 p.m. CDT | MEMPHIS, TENN.

Express: RHP Neil Ramirez (5-4, 6.48 ERA)

Redbirds: LHP John Gast (0-0, 3.00 ERA)

GAME"ˆ54 | WEDNESDAY, MAY 30 | 7:05 p.m. CDT | MEMPHIS, TENN.

Express: LHP Martin Perez (3-4, 5.72 ERA; starts tonight)

Redbirds: RHP Joe Kelly (1-5, 3.58 ERA; starts tonight)

GAME"ˆ55 | THURSDAY, MAY 31 | 7:05 p.m. CDT | MEMPHIS, TENN.

Express: RHP Greg Reynolds (3-3, 4.15 ERA; starts tomorrow)

Redbirds: RHP Shelby Miller (4-3, 4.30 ERA; starts tomorrow)

GAME"ˆ56 | FRIDAY, JUNE 1 | 7:05 p.m. CDT | MEMPHIS, TENN.

Express: LHP Michael Kirkman (3-1, 6.25 ERA; starts Sunday)

Redbirds: LHP Nick Additon (1-4, 5.68 ERA; starts Sunday)

Check out the Round Rock Express Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from May 25, 2012


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