PCL1 Round Rock Express

Round Rock Express - Game Notes vs. Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs)

Published on June 21, 2012 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Round Rock Express News Release


GAME 74 | 21 JUNE 2012 | 7:05 P.M. CDT | THE DELL DIAMOND | ROUND ROCK, TEXAS

ROUND ROCK EXPRESS (32-41) vs. IOWA CUBS (31-42)

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

EXPRESS: LHP Martin Perez (4-5, 4.90 ERA) | CUBS: RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-1, 2.58 ERA)

TONIGHT, TONIGHT

Round Rock continues a nine-day, eight-game home stand with the third of four games against the Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CDT at The Dell Diamond. The series is tied one game apiece after last night's 4-1 Iowa victory. Round Rock is 5-5 over its last 10 games and 18-16 at The Dell Diamond. The Cubs have lost seven of their last nine and are 6-14 since June 1. Iowa is 15-19 on the road, snapping a seven-game road losing streak with last night's win. Round Rock is fourth in the PCL's American Southern Division, 10-and-a-half games back of Oklahoma City. Iowa is second in the American Northern Division but trails Omaha by 14 games - the league's largest first-place margin by five games.

RADIO GA GA

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.

US AND THEM

This is the third of four series between Round Rock and Iowa. The teams split a four-game series to start the season April 5-8 at Des Moines and split a four-game series the following week (April 13-16) at The Dell Diamond. The Express will follow the Cubs back to Des Moines for a four-game series June 23-26. ... SERIES HISTORY: The all-time series is tied 61-61; the Express hold a 34-28 edge at The Dell Diamond. Round Rock won the season series in 2006 (12-4), 2008 (11-5) and 2011 (9-7), while Iowa claimed the season series in 2005 (10-5), 2007 (10-6), 2009 (9-7) and 2010 (11-5). The teams split a pair of series - one at each location - earlier this season. There have been five sweeps in the series: Iowa at home in 2005, Round Rock at Iowa in 2006, Round Rock at home in 2006, Round Rock at home in 2008 and Round Rock at home in 2009. The Express have not won a home series against the Cubs since the 2009 sweep, splitting three series and dropping three of four in the other two series. ... 2012 SERIES: Six of the 10 meetings this season were one-run affairs with each team winning three times. Only Round Rock's 7-2 victory April 7 at Des Moines was decided by more than three runs. The teams have played one extra-inning game - an 11-10 Express victory 13-innings April 15 at The Dell Diamond. Round Rock is hitting .246 (85-for-345) with 10 homers, 19 doubles, a triple, seven stolen bases and 5.0 runs per game. Mike Bianucci is 13-for-33 (.394) in nine games with five homers, 11 RBI and eight runs scored. He is the only active Express player hitting above .300 against Iowa pitching. Express pitchers have a 4.39 ERA (45 ER/92.1 IP) with 67 strikeouts against 34 walks. Iowa is hitting .300 (108-for-360) with 11 homers, 17 doubles, two triples, 11 stolen bases and 4.7 runs per game. Brett Jackson is 13-for-42 (.310) with two homers, six RBI, four doubles, eight runs scored and eight walks in 10 games; he also has 18 strikeouts. Anthony Rizzo is 13-for-39 (.333) with three homers, nine RBI, four runs scored and nine strikeouts in nine games.

SERIES"ˆINFORMATION

GAME"ˆ72 | TUESDAY, JUNE 19

at Express 6, Cubs 3

WP: Reynolds (6-5). LP: Lopez (1-2). SV: Cotts (1).

GAME"ˆ73 | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20

Cubs 4, at Express 1

WP: Raley (3-2). LP: Ramirez (6-8). SV: Dolis (2).

GAME"ˆ74 | THURSDAY, JUNE 21 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (4-5, 4.90 ERA)

Cubs: RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-1, 2.58 ERA)

GAME"ˆ75 | FRIDAY, JUNE 22 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Derek Hankins (2-3, 3.21 ERA)

Cubs: LHP Chris Rusin (5-5, 4.56 ERA)

START ME UP

LHP MARTIN PEREZ (4-5, 4.90 ERA, 45 K)

2012: Started two games at spring training, 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 ... won season's first start April 6 at Iowa ... also claimed wins April 27 at Oklahoma City, May 7 vs. Memphis and June 15 vs. Oklahoma City ... lost starts April 16 vs. Iowa, April 21 at New Orleans, May 14 at Tacoma, May 20 vs. Fresno and June 4 vs. Albuquerque ... worked 7.0 innings May 7 vs. Memphis; longest start at any level since May 26, 2010, with Frisco (AA) ... 0-3, 7.48 ERA"ˆ(23 ER/27.2 IP), 15 walks, 15 strikeouts, .370 opponents' average (44-for-119) over next six starts ... suffered least-effective Triple-A start May 14 at Tacoma; allowed seven runs over two innings, matching shortest career Triple-A outing (Aug. 21, 2011 vs. New Orleans) ... surrendered 20 runs (14 earned) in 9.0 innings over three starts May 14-25 ... Express lost each of his six starts from May 14 to June 10 ... 6.43 ERA in first inning (10 ER/14.0 IP); also allowed six unearned first-inning runs ... opponents hitting .269 (18-for-67) when leading off inning with two homers, eight strikeouts and 10 walks (.364 on-base percentage) ... opponents hitting .324 (12-for-37) with runners in scoring position and two outs ... opponents are 4-for-10 with bases loaded (no homers, 10 RBI) ... averages 5.00 runs of support per start ... staff-low 8.96 hits allowed per nine innings ... staff-high 4.30 walks per nine innings ... staff-best .264 opponents' average ... induced seven double plays, all of which came in his last five starts ... 3-2 in seven starts following Express loss (team lost all three no-decisions) ... Express are 5-9 in his 13 starts ... 2-3, 3.44 ERA"ˆ(13 ER/34.0 IP) with 20 walks, 23 strikeouts and a .209 opponents' average (27-for-129) in six starts at The Dell Diamond.

LAST START: Earned victory in June 15 start vs. Oklahoma City at The Dell Diamond, a 2-0 Express win ... arguably season's most effective start to date ... yielded one hit and five walks with five strikeouts over 7.0 scoreless innings ... combined with Mark Hamburger on four-hit shutout ... lone hit was Brandon Barnes' third-inning leadoff double that sneaked just inside the third-base bag ... walked next batter before using double play and foul out to escape the jam ... retired each of the last 11 batters faced after one-out walk in the fourth ... 101 pitches, 61 strikes.

2012 vs. IOWA: Earned victory in April 6 start at Iowa, a 4-3 Express win ... limited Cubs to one run on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts over six innings ... lone run scored on fourth-inning Welington Castillo RBI"ˆdouble.

CAREER vs. IOWA: No appearances vs. Iowa prior to 2012.

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

STRANGE WEATHER

Temperature each of the last two games has been below 85 degrees, including a 77-degree first pitch last night. That was the coolest temperature at first pitch for a game at The Dell Diamond since April 20 when it was 74 degrees (vs. Omaha). It also tied for the third-coolest first pitch of the season - on the first day of summer. By comparison, it was 84 degrees at first pitch in the April 13 home opener - also vs. Iowa.

WHERE I END AND YOU BEGIN

Julio Borbon failed to reach base safely last night (0-for-4), ending a 26-game on-base streak that was the PCL's fifth-longest this season. He hit safely in 24 of those 26 games. Borbon is 49-for-116 (.422) since May 12, a stretch that included a career-best, 21-game hitting streak. He was held hitless in each of his last two games - his first hitless skid since a three-game stretch April 16-18; he is hitless in each of his last nine at bats. Borbon has hit safely in 33 of his last 38 games with 22 multiple-hit outings, nine three-hit games, six homers, 24 RBI, 10 doubles, three triples, 28 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. His averaged skyrocketed from .186 to .322 in that time. He has been most productive in the middle (4-6) innings with a .440 average (33-for-75), three homers, 17 RBI and six doubles. Borbon maintains a 13-game road hitting streak.

RAMBLIN' MAN

Brad Nelson hit safely in 26 of his last 27 road games, going 41-for-109 (.376) on the road since an 0-for-4 night April 21 at New Orleans. That stretch included a 21-game road hitting streak that is the PCL's longest this season. His lone hitless outing over the last 27 road games was June 8 at Omaha when he was hitless in a pinch-hit role. Nelson is hitting more than 100 points better on the road (.336, 48-for-143) than at home (.233, 28-for-120). Seven of his eight homers and 28 of his 38 RBI were in road games. Nelson was hitless in each of his last two games (0-for-7), his first consecutive hitless games regardless of location since a three-game spell April 19-21. He hit safely in 43 of his next 49 games, enjoying hitting streaks of 11, nine and eight games.

UNDER PRESSURE

Matt Kata is hitting .467 (21-for-45) with runners in scoring position, delivering 32 RBI. He is even more deadly with runners in scoring position and two outs, going 9-for-17 (.529) with 18 RBI. However, he is 35-for-138 (.253) without runners in scoring position. Kata owns Round Rock's lone grand slam (May 31 at Memphis) and is 4-for-6 with the bases loaded (11 RBI); he is 3-for-3 with the bases loaded since delivering a game-winning, three-run double May 24 vs. Sacramento. Furthermore, Kata is hitting .381 (16-for-42) after the seventh inning with 10 RBI. He hit safely in 15 of his last 19 games (.364, 28-for-77) with two homers, 16 RBI, three doubles, a triple, nine multiple-hit outings and four multiple-RBI games. However, he is hitless in each of his last two games (0-for-6) - his first consecutive hitless games this season.

COMING BACK TO LIFE

Mark Hamburger owns a 1.74 ERA (2 ER/10.1 IP) in five outings since the end of May, blanking the opponent in four of the five appearances. He has not allowed a home run since surrendering two May 22 in a four-inning save vs. Sacramento (18.0 innings, 77 batters faced). Hamburger worked 3.0 scoreless innings June 12 at Albuquerque, his longest scoreless outing this season. He recorded at least one strikeout in all but two of his 21 outings, and he has stranded all five inherited runners.

HELP!

Zach Jackson tied the Express franchise record with 13 wins last season despite a 5.51 ERA. Round Rock supported Jackson to the tune of 6.17 runs per game in his 23 starts in 2011. This season, Jackson's ERA is lower (5.33) but his record is just 2-8. That largely is because the Express have averaged just 3.62 runs per game in Jackson's 13 starts, scoring three or fewer runs eight times and fewer than three runs five times. Round Rock scored a total of 22 runs in his eight losses. Jackson yielded three or fewer earned runs in six of nine starts since tossing six shutout innings in a win April 24 at New Orleans. However, he is 1-6 in those nine starts. Jackson surrendered one unearned run over six innings in his June 5 start vs. Albuquerque; the Express were shutout 2-0.

WALK THIS WAY

Three Express players have gone at least 90 plate appearances without a walk: Luis Hernandez (May 19 - 28 games, 127 plate appearances), Matt Kata (May 13 - 22 games, 90 plate appearances) and Tommy Mendonca (May 2 - 29 games, 112 plate appearances). Meanwhile, Joey Butler leads the PCL with 48 walks, four more than any other player.

FORK IN THE ROAD

Round Rock is 15-25 since blowing a 9-5 lead in the ninth inning May 9 at Salt Lake. The Express were 17-16 prior to that loss, the only point at which they were over .500 this season. Round Rock has been outscored by 43 runs over the last 40 games, surrendering double-digit runs nine times. A closer look into the numbers shows the Express are hitting .187 (37-for-198) with runners in scoring position in the 25 losses and .364 (63-for-173) in the 15 wins. Conversely, opponents are hitting .353 (98-for-278) with runners in scoring position in the 25 Express losses and .134 (17-for-127) in Round Rock's 15 victories.

FIVE TO ONE

The Express are 25-5 when holding the opposition to fewer than five runs but 7-36 when allowing at least five runs. Round Rock surrendered at least five runs eight times in the last 15 games and lost all eight games. Meanwhile, the Express are 7-21 when scoring fewer than five runs; three of the seven wins were shutouts.

BRING IT ON HOME

In stark contrast to last season, The Dell Diamond has not been a launching pad for the Express. Round Rock averages 0.68 homers per game through 34 home dates this season (23 homers). The Express have not homered in 11 of their last 17 home games. Conversely, Round Rock averages 1.36 homers in 39 road games (53 homers), including a season-high five May 8 at Salt Lake. The Express clubbed at least two homers 13 times on the road. Meanwhile, the Express have six multiple-homer games at The Dell Diamond. 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 9.15 runs per game at The Dell Diamond this season as opposed to the 11.90 average in 2011.

EVERYDAY PEOPLE

Mike Bianucci is 8-for-17 (.471) over his last five games after going 5-for-33 (.152) in his previous eight games. He leads the team with 14 home runs, tied for fifth in the PCL. His two-homer game June 19 vs. Iowa was his first multiple-homer game since the 2011 season opener (April 7) with Double-A Frisco. The homers came in back-to-back bats after going 133 at bats with only three homers. Bianucci has one walk over his last 16 games (66 plate appearances). He is 4-for-11 (.364) with the bases loaded (two doubles, two walks, 10 RBI) and 18-for-37 (.486) in the fourth inning (four homers, eight RBI). ... Dusty Brown is 5-for-54 (.093) since an eighth-inning double May 11 at Salt Lake with 18 strikeouts in that time. However, he also has 15 walks in that time, including four games with two walks. Brown is 2-for-23 (.087) with runners in scoring position; both hits came with two outs. He owns a .483 on-base percentage when leading off an inning, hitting .318 (7-for-22) with one homer and seven walks against four strikeouts. Brown has three walks and two sacrifice flies in six bases-loaded plate appearances. ... Joey Butler is 5-for-32 (.156) with eight strikeouts against four walks over his last nine games. His two-hit game last night was his first multiple-hit outing since June 9 at Omaha (two hits). Butler leads the PCL with 48 walks, four more than any other player, but he has walked in only three of his last 13 games (five walks). He is second on the team with 11 homers, six of which were solo shots. However, he has not homered since June 1 at Memphis, a span of 16 games and 59 at bats. Butler has not homered at The Dell Diamond since May 17 vs. Fresno (17 games). He is 12-for-26 (.462) in the fifth inning with four homers and eight RBI; he also has 10 eighth-inning RBI. ... Luis Hernandez is 12-for-39 (.333) over his last nine games with five multiple-hit outings (one three-hit game), four doubles, four RBI and five runs scored. He has not walked since May 19, a span of 28 games and 127 plate appearances. Three of his four home runs were solo shots. Hernandez leads all PCL shortstops with a .986 fielding percentage (four errors, 294 chances). ... Luis Martinez is riding a six-game hitting streak (.350, 7-for-20), his longest of the season; he has five walks, a double, a triple and six runs scored during that time. Martinez is 13-for-31 (.419) in the third and fourth innings but 18-for-92 (.196) the rest of the game, going 3-for-21 (.143) prior to the third inning. He is 2-for-21 (.095) with runners in scoring position and two outs, and he is 0-for-5 with the bases loaded (one walk, one hit-by-pitch, one sacrifice fly). ... Yangervis Solarte is second in the PCL with 13.17 plate appearances per strikeout. He has two strikeouts in his last 16 games (66 plate appearances). Solarte is hitting .222 (20-for-90) through the first three innings but .308 (56-for-182) thereafter with five of his six home runs and 25 of his 31 RBI. Solarte is hitting .226 (14-for-62) over his last 17 games and has not homered since May 14, a span of 30 games and 119 at bats. Five of his six home runs were solo shots. He is 15-for-43 (.349) when leading off an inning with one home run and three walks (.391 on-base percentage). Solarte is 4-for-38 (.105) with runners in scoring position and fewer than two outs. ... Ryan Spilborghs has not homered since May 26, a span of 20 games and 77 at bats. He is 8-for-43 (.186) over his last 11 games; three of the eight hits came June 13 at Albuquerque. Spilborghs is 21-for-45 (.467) during the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. He is 5-for-25 (.200) with runners in scoring position and two outs. Spilborghs has played 223 career PCL games, hitting .341 (288-for-844) with 24 homers, 119 RBI and 64 doubles.

BROTHERS IN ARMS

Neal Cotts, who has battled injuries over the past three seasons, made his Texas Rangers organizational debut June 12 at Albuquerque. It was his first outing since June 24, 2009, with the Iowa Cubs. Cotts stranded four of six inherited runners and has not allowed a run in three outings at The Dell Diamond (2.2 innings). He walked one batter in each of his four appearances. ... Derek Hankins has one walk in his last nine outings (16.2 innings) with seven strikeouts and a .182 opponents' average (12-for-66). Opposing batters are 0-for-19 with runners in scoring position and two outs, and 0-for-5 with the bases loaded. Hankins stranded 11 of 12 inherited runners. ... Aaron Heilman has a 2.03 ERA (3 ER/13.1 IP) over his last 10 outings, going 1-0 with three saves. He recorded at least one strikeout in 19 of 20 appearances since failing to do so in each of the season's first two outings, including a season-high three strikeouts June 3 vs. Albuquerque. He has 27 strikeouts in his last 23.2 innings. Four of 10 inherited runners scored, and opponents are hitting .361 (13-for-36) with runners in scoring position. ... Ben Snyder is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA (2 ER/15.0 IP) in 11 outings at The Dell Diamond but 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA (13 ER/23.0 IP) in 13 road games. He has 14 strikeouts over 14.0 innings with five walks in his last nine appearances. Opponents are hitting .348 (8-for-23) with runners in scoring position and two outs. Snyder stranded 10 of 17 inherited runners. ... Yoshinori Tateyama has not allowed an earned run in 12 of 13 outings. He has not allowed an earned run with the Express since April 21 at New Orleans, a span of 13.0 innings over nine appearances. Tateyama has allowed four runs (one earned), all of which scored in the eighth inning. Opponents are 1-for-12 (.083) with runners in scoring position and 3-for-30 (.100) when behind in the count. ... Johan Yan surrendered at least one run in five of seven outings since joining the Express (May 25) and allowed an inherited runner to score in one of the other two outings. Opponents are 7-for-14 (.500) against him with runners on base.

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH

Round Rock is hitting .325 (25-for-77) with the bases loaded, going 15-for-39 (.385) since May 21. Meanwhile, opposing batters are 29-for-70 (.414) with the bases loaded, including six grand slams. Oklahoma City is 6-for-6 against Express pitching with the bases loaded. ... Round Rock is third in the PCL with 77 homers, 53 of which were on the road. ... Round Rock is 6-12 in series openers. ... Of Round Rock's 77 home runs, 41 were solo shots, including 22 to leadoff an inning. ... Round Rock leads the PCL with 84 double plays turned. ... The Express have at least one double in 68 of 73 games, including 32 of 33 home games. Round Rock enjoyed a 47-game streak with at least one double after failing to double in the season opener. ... Round Rock is 7-10 in one-run games. Six of the 17 games were against Iowa. ... Round Rock is 1-32 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 are 30-5 when leading after seven innings and 32-0 when out-scoring the opponent.

WHO'S NEXT

Round Rock follows Iowa back to Des Moines for a four-game series at Principle Park. The series begins Saturday with a 7:05 p.m. CDT first pitch and continues Sunday at 1:05 p.m., Monday at 12:05 p.m. and Tuesday at 6:35 p.m. The Express return home following the four-game series.

GAME"ˆ76 | SATURDAY, JUNE 23 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (2-8, 5.33 ERA)

Cubs: RHP Chris Volstad (2-1, 4.78 ERA)

GAME"ˆ77 | SUNDAY, JUNE 24 | 1:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Greg Reynolds (6-5, 4.57 ERA)

Cubs: RHP Rodrigo Lopez (1-2, 4.29 ERA)

GAME"ˆ78 | MONDAY, JUNE 25 | 12:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Neil Ramirez (6-8, 7.66 ERA)

Cubs: LHP Brooks Raley (3-2, 4.72 ERA)

GAME"ˆ79 | TUESDAY, JUNE 26 | 12:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (4-5, 4.90 ERA; starts tonight)

Cubs: RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-1, 2.58 ERA; starts tonight)

Check out the Round Rock Express Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from June 21, 2012


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