PCL1 Round Rock Express

Round Rock Express - Game Notes vs. Oklahoma City RedHawks

Published on June 15, 2012 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Round Rock Express News Release


GAME 69 | 15 JUNE 2012 | 7:05 P.M. CDT | THE DELL DIAMOND | ROUND ROCK, TEXAS

ROUND ROCK EXPRESS (29-39) vs. OKLAHOMA CITY REDHAWKS (40-27)

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

EXPRESS: LHP Martin Perez (3-5, 5.40 ERA) | REDHAWKS: RHP Brian Bass (1-0, 5.17 ERA)

TONIGHT, TONIGHT

Round Rock continues a nine-day, eight-game home stand with the second of four games against division-rival Oklahoma City (Houston Astros). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CDT at The Dell Diamond. The Express dropped last night's series opener 10-6 and fell to 5-12 in series openers. Round Rock is 2-8 over its last 10 games and 15-14 at home. The RedHawks are 6-4 over their last 10 games and 15-17 on the road. Round Rock is fourth in the PCL's American Southern Division, 11-and-a-half games back of Oklahoma City and five-and-a-half games behind third-place New Orleans. Oklahoma City has a two-and-a-half-games lead over Albuquerque.

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 second of four series between the two teams. The RedHawks won three of four at Oklahoma City in late April. The teams do not meet again until the season's final three weeks. The RedHawks return to The Dell Diamond for a four-game series Aug. 18-21, and the Express revisit Bricktown Ballpark for the season's final series Aug. 31-Sept. 3. ... SERIES HISTORY: Oklahoma City leads the all-time series 62-54, including a 52-43 advantage prior to the affiliation switch in 2011. The RedHawks are 31-25 at The Dell Diamond, while the Express are 29-31 at Bricktown Ballpark. Round Rock won season series in 2005 (10-6), 2006 (10-6) and 2011 (10-6), while Oklahoma City won season series in 2007 (8-7), 2008 (11-5) and 2010 (13-3). The teams split 16 games in 2009. The Express have three sweeps (2005 at Oklahoma City, 2006 at home, 2011 at Oklahoma City), while the RedHawks have two sweeps (2009 and 2010, both at Oklahoma City). ... 2012 SERIES: Oklahoma City won three of four April 26-29 at Bricktown Ballpark. The RedHawks won games one (11-5), three (11-5) and four (9-4) with the Express posting an 8-3 victory in game two. Round Rock is hitting .279 (51-for-183) with six homers and 5.6 runs per game. Luis Hernandez is 11-for-25 (.440) with two homers, six RBI and five runs scored in five games. Leonys Martin is 7-for-22 (.318) with a homer, three RBI, two doubles, four runs scored and a stolen base in five games. Brad Nelson is 8-for-19 (.421) with three RBI, a double, six runs scored and five walks in five games. Express pitchers have an 8.57 ERA (40 ER/42.0 IP) with 31 strikeouts against 15 walks. Martin Perez owns Round Rock's lone win; he allowed three runs on four hits over 6.0 innings. Oklahoma City is hitting .365 (66-for-181) with homers from six different players, 14 doubles and 8.8 runs per game. The RedHawks 6-for-6 with the bases loaded (5-for-5 at Bricktown Ballpark, 1-for-1 at The Dell Diamond). Scott Moore is 11-for-20 (.550) with 10 RBI and six doubles in five games. J.B. Shuck, who played for the Express in 2010, is 9-for-15 (.600) with three RBI, a double, a triple and five runs scored in three games. Brad Snyder, brother of Express reliever Ben Snyder, is 7-for-18 (.389) with a homer and three RBI in five games.

SERIES"ˆINFORMATION

GAME"ˆ68 | THURSDAY, JUNE 14

Redhawks 10, at Express 6

WP: Flores (4-0). LP: Ramirez (6-7). SV: Del Rosario (1).

GAME"ˆ69 | FRIDAY, JUNE 15 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (3-5, 5.40 ERA)

RedHawks: RHP Brian Bass (1-0, 5.17 ERA)

GAME"ˆ70 | SATURDAY, JUNE 16 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (2-7, 5.08 ERA)

RedHawks: RHP Armando Galarraga (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

GAME"ˆ71 | SUNDAY, JUNE 17 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Roy Oswalt (0-1, 7.50 ERA)

RedHawks: RHP Paul Clemens (8-4, 6.31 ERA)

START ME UP

LHP MARTIN PEREZ (3-5, 5.40 ERA, 40 K)

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 ... won season's first start April 6 at Iowa ... also claimed wins April 27 at Oklahoma City and May 7 vs. Memphis ... 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 career Triple-A start; 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) in six starts since ... 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 have lost each of his last six starts ... 6.92 ERA in first inning (10 ER/13.0 IP); also allowed six unearned first-inning runs ... opponents hitting .279 (17-for-61) when leading off inning with two homers, seven strikeouts and nine walks (.371 on-base percentage) ... opponents hitting .348 (16-for-46) with runners on base and two outs, .353 (12-for-34) with runners in scoring position and two outs ... opponents are 4-for-10 with bases loaded (no homers, 10 RBI) ... averages 5.23 runs of support per start ... 2-2 in seven starts following Express loss (team lost all three no-decisions) ... Express are 4-9 in his 13 starts ... 1-3, 4.33 ERA"ˆ(13 ER/27.0 IP) with 15 walks, 18 strikeouts and a .241 opponents' average (26-for-108) in five starts at The Dell Diamond.

LAST START: No-decision in June 10 start at Omaha, an 8-6 Express loss ... allowed five runs on 11 hits (one homer)"ˆover 7.0 innings with no walks and no strikeouts ... utilized season-high three double plays ... surrendered Tony Abreu sixth-inning, two-run homer ... left game leading 6-5 ... Omaha scored three eighth-inning runs ... first start with no strikeouts since July 27, 2010, with Double-A Frisco (0.1 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 0 K) ... used 79 pitches, 54 strikes.

2012 vs. OKLAHOMA CITY: Earned victory in April 27 start at Oklahoma City, an 8-3 Express win ... allowed three runs on four hits, including one homer, over six innings with four strikeouts and no walks ... surrendered two first-inning runs before retiring 13 straight, a stretch that ended with Carlos Corporan's sixth-inning leadoff homer.

CAREER vs. OKLAHOMA CITY: No appearances vs. Oklahoma City prior to 2012.

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

COME IN NUMBER (27), YOUR TIME IS UP

Leonys Martin was recalled by the Texas Rangers prior to tonight's game and will be active with the Rangers as they begin a weekend series at Houston. Martin is hitting .344 (44-for-128) with five homers, nine doubles and 22 RBI in 31 games for the Express this season. He leaves with a seven-game hitting streak intact (.371, 10-for-27) with at least one RBI in each game. He also hit safely 14 of his last 15 games (.356, 21-for-59) with six multiple-hit games. His lone hitless outing in that time was his first game back from a five-week disabled-list stint (June 7 at Omaha). Martin takes the 25-man roster spot of right-hander Koji Uehara (15-day DL, lat).

WHEN THE MUSIC'S OVER

Julio Borbon snapped a 21-game hitting streak last night, going 0-for-4 with a walk. He was 40-for-92 (.435) during the streak "" the longest of his career and one game shy of Yangervis Solarte's franchise record established earlier this season. Coincidentally, Borbon's streak started the night Solate's ended. Borbon had 13 multiple-hit games during the streak, including seven in the last 10 games. He had six three-hit games, 15 RBI and 18 runs scored. Borbon also snapped a 15-game home hitting streak last night; it was tied for the PCL's longest this season. He maintains a 13-game hitting streak road games. Borbon has hit safely in 30 of his last 33 games (.385, 57-for-148) with 19 multiple-hit outings, seven three-hit games, five homers, 22 RBI, 10 doubles, three triples, 25 runs scored and nine stolen bases. His average skyrocketed from .186 to .311 in that time.

WALK THIS WAY

Entering last night's game, five Express players had gone at least 40 plate appearances without a walk and three of them at least 100 plate appearances. Two of those streaks stopped last night in the eighth inning. Mike Bianucci walked for the first time since May 31, a span of 47 consecutive plate appearances without a walk. Julio Borbon drew a full-count walk, his first free pass since May 9, ending a streak of 112 consecutive plate appearances without a walk. Those with walk-less streaks still intact are Luis Hernandez (May 19 "" 23 games, 107 plate appearances), Matt Kata (May 13 "" 19 games, 81 plate appearances) and Tommy Mendonca (May 2 "" 27 games, 107 plate appearances). Meanwhile, Joey Butler leads the PCL with 47 walks "" six more than any other player. He drew three walks last night for the second time this season last night as the Express matched a season high with nine free passes.

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 nearly 100 points better on the road (.336, 48-for-143) than at home (.245, 25-for-102). All seven of his homers and 28 of his 36 RBI were in road games, and his OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) is .963 on the road as opposed to .620 at The Dell Diamond. Nelson has not gone hitless in consecutive games regardless of location since a three-game spell April 19-21. He has hit safely in 41 of 46 games since, enjoying hitting streaks of 11, nine and eight games. Nelson currently is riding a six-game hitting streak (.385, 10-for-26) with four multiple-hit games and six RBI. He also has hit safely in nine consecutive starts (.368, 14-for-38).

UNDER PRESSURE

Matt Kata is hitting .455 (20-for-44) with runners in scoring position, delivering 30 RBI. He is even more deadly with runners in scoring position and two outs, going 8-for-16 (.500) with 16 RBI. Kata's grand slam May 31 at Memphis was Round Rock's first this season. He is 4-for-6 with a double and 11 RBI with the bases loaded, going 3-for-3 since delivering a game-winning, three-run double May 24 vs. Sacramento. Furthermore, Kata is hitting .368 (14-for-38) after the seventh inning with eight RBI. He has hit safely in 14 of his last 16 games (.382, 26-for-68) with two homers, 14 RBI, three doubles, eight multiple-hit outings and three multiple-RBI games.

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 (5.08) but his record is just 2-7. That largely is because the Express have averaged just 3.50 runs per game in Jackson's 12 starts, scoring three or fewer runs eight times and fewer than three runs five times. Round Rock scored a total of 17 runs in his seven losses. Jackson yielded three or fewer earned runs in six of eight starts since tossing six shutout innings in a win April 24 at New Orleans. However, he is 1-5 in those eight starts. Jackson surrendered one unearned run over six innings in his June 5 start vs. Albuquerque; the Express were shutout 2-0.

FORK IN THE ROAD

Round Rock is 12-23 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 231-187 over the last 35 games, surrendering double-digit runs nine times. Express pitchers have a 6.09 ERA (203 ER/300.0 IP) in that time. A closer look into the numbers shows the Express are hitting .194 (36-for-186) with runners in scoring position in the 23 losses and .394 (56-for-142) in the 12 wins. Conversely, opponents are hitting .350 (93-for-266) with runners in scoring position in the 23 Express losses and .146 (14-for-96) in Round Rock's 12 victories.

FIVE TO ONE

The Express are 22-4 when holding the opposition to fewer than five runs but 7-34 when allowing at least five runs. Round Rock surrendered at least five runs seven times in the last 10 games and lost all seven games. Meanwhile, the Express are 5-20 when scoring fewer than five runs.

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 0.66 homers per game through 29 home dates this season (19 homers). The Express have not homered in nine of their last 12 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 four 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 9.52 runs per game at The Dell Diamond this season as opposed to the 11.90 average in 2011.

EVERYDAY PEOPLE

Mike Bianucci is 5-for-33 (.152) over his last eight games. He is hitless in his last two games for only the third time this season and the first time since April 24-26 (two games). Bianucci leads the Express with 12 home runs; however, he has three homers in his last 122 at bats after hitting nine in his first 118 at bats. He also has not gone more than two consecutive games without a strikeout and has 13 strikeouts over his last nine games. Bianucci has two walks over his last 15 games (67 plate appearances); his walk last night was his first since May 31, ending an 11-game, 47-plate-appearance streak. He is 4-for-11 (.364) with the bases loaded (two doubles, two walks, 10 RBI) and 16-for-34 (.471) in the fourth inning (three homers, seven RBI). ... Dusty Brown snapped an eight-game, 24-at-bat hitless skid with his third-inning single June 10 at Omaha. It was his first hit since a seventh-inning double in his last at bat May 22 vs. Sacramento. Brown is 3-for-48 (.063) since an eighth-inning double May 11 at Salt Lake; he has 18 strikeouts in that time and nine strikeouts over his last six games. Brown has walked at least once in each of his last four games (five walks). He is 2-for-21 (.095) with runners in scoring position; both hits came with two outs. Brown owns a .500 on-base percentage when leading off an inning, hitting .333 (7-for-21) with one homer and seven walks against four strikeouts. He has three walks and two sacrifice flies in six bases-loaded plate appearances. ... Joey Butler leads the PCL with 47 walks, six more than any other player; he matched his season high with three walks last night. Butler is hitting .392 (69-for-176) when putting the ball in play. He is 11-for-23 (.478) in the fifth inning with four homers and eight RBI; he also has 10 eighth-inning RBI. Butler is 21-for-61 (.344) with runners in scoring position, producing four homers, 30 RBI and six doubles. However, he is 9-for-35 (.257) with runners in scoring position and two outs, producing no homers and 11 RBI. He is second on the team with 11 home runs, six of which were solo shots. Butler is 5-for-27 (.185) over his last seven games and has at least one strikeout in seven of his last nine games (10 strikeouts). ... Luis Hernandez is 12-for-32 (.375) over his last eight games with five multiple-hit outings (each of the last four games), one home run, five RBI, three doubles, a triple and six runs scored. He has scored and produced an RBI in each of the last four games. He has not walked since May 19, a span of 23 games and 107 plate appearances. Three of his four home runs were solo shots. Hernandez committed two errors in Monday night's series opener at Albuquerque, matching his season total entering the game. He had not committed an error in 11 straight games. ... Luis Martinez is 5-for-12 (.417) with five walks, a double, a triple and four runs scored over his last four games. He is 13-for-29 (.448) in the third and fourth innings but 16-for-86 (.186) the rest of the game, going 2-for-19 (.105) 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). ... Tommy Mendonca has at least one strikeout in 15 of his last 16 games (23 strikeouts), including nine strikeouts over his last four games. Mendonca has not gone more than two straight games without a strikeout. Meanwhile, he has homered in three of his last five games. He has not walked since May 2 vs. New Orleans, a span of 27 games and 107 plate appearances. Mendonca is 15-for-47 (.319) after the seventh inning. ... Greg Miclat's two-hit game in Wednesday night's series finale at Albuquerque was his first multiple-hit outing since a two-hit night April 23 at New Orleans "" his only other multiple-hit game this season. Six of his last eight hits were doubles. ... Yangervis Solarte leads the league with 12.91 plate appearances per strikeout. His eighth-inning strikeout last night was his first since May 31 (69 plate appearances) and second over his last 17 games (43 plate appearances). Solarte is hitting .224 (19-for-85) through the first three innings but .314 (53-for-169) thereafter with five of his six home runs and 25 of his 30 RBI. He is 13-for-35 (.371) when leading off an inning with one home run and three walks (.421 on-base percentage). Solarte is 4-for-37 (.108) with runners in scoring position and fewer than two outs. Five of his six home runs were solo shots. ... Ryan Spilborghs snapped a 2-for-19 (.105) skid Wednesday night at Albuquerque, going 3-for-5. It was his 14th multiple-hit outing in 35 games with the Express and sixth game with at least three hits. Spilborghs produced an RBI in two of his last three games after going 10 consecutive games without an RBI. He has not homered since May 26, a span of 15 games and 58 at bats. Spilborghs has reached safely in all but three of his 35 games with the Express and managed a sacrifice fly in one of those three games. He is 5-for-22 (.227) with runners in scoring position and two outs. Spilborghs has played 218 career PCL games, hitting .345 (285-for-825) 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. ... Mark Hamburger recorded at least one strikeout in all but two of 19 outings. He surrendered 15 runs in 22.0 innings (6.14 ERA) over his last nine appearances after yielding only one run over his first 9.2 innings (0.93 ERA) as a reliever. He worked 3.0 scoreless innings Tuesday at Albuquerque, his longest scoreless outing this season. Opponents are hitting .417 (15-for-36) with runners in scoring position (two home runs, 23 RBI). He has stranded all three inherited runners. ... Derek Hankins has one walk in his last eight outings (15.1 innings) with seven strikeouts and a .167 opponents' average (10-for-60). Opposing batters are 0-for-18 with runners in scoring position and two outs, and 0-for-5 with the bases loaded. Hankins stranded 10 of 11 inherited runners. ... Aaron Heilman has a 2.38 ERA (3 ER/11.1 IP) over his last nine outings, going 1-0 with two saves. He recorded at least one strikeout in 18 of 19 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 26 strikeouts in his last 21.2 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 1.26 ERA (2 ER/14.1 IP) in 10 outings at The Dell Diamond but 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA (13 ER/23.0 IP) in 13 road games. He has 13 strikeouts over 13.1 innings with four walks in his last eight appearances. Opponents are hitting .348 (8-for-23) with runners in scoring position and two outs. Snyder stranded 10 of 17 inherited runners. ... 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 .333 (25-for-75) with the bases loaded, going 15-for-37 (.405) since May 21. Meanwhile, opposing batters are 28-for-67 (.418) with the bases loaded, including six grand slams. Oklahoma City is 6-for-6 against Express pitching with the bases loaded. ... Round Rock is tied for third in the PCL with 72 homers, 53 of which were on the road. ... Round Rock is 5-12 in series openers. ... Of Round Rock's 72 home runs, 38 were solo shots, including 19 to leadoff an inning. ... Round Rock leads the PCL with 80 double plays turned. ... The Express have at least one double in 63 of 68 games, including a 47-game streak after not getting a double in the season opener. Round Rock failed to double last night for the first time in 29 home games this season. ... Round Rock is 7-10 in one-run games. Seven of the 17 games were against Iowa. ... Round Rock is 1-30 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 five losses in 32 games when leading after seven innings.

WHO'S NEXT

Following the season's fourth of five off-days Monday, Round Rock continues eight-game home stand with a four-game series against the Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs). The series runs Tuesday through Friday with a 7:05 p.m. CDT first pitch each night. 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.

GAME"ˆ72 | TUESDAY, JUNE 19 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

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

Cubs: RHP Rodrigo Lopez (1-1, 3.41 ERA)

GAME"ˆ73 | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Neil Ramirez (6-7, 8.02 ERA)

Cubs: LHP Brooks Raley (2-2, 5.93 ERA)

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

Express: LHP Martin Perez (3-5, 5.40 ERA; starts tonight)

Cubs: RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-1, 2.66 ERA; starts tonight)

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

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (2-7, 5.08 ERA; starts tomorrow)

Cubs: LHP Chris Rusin (5-4, 3.81 ERA; starts tomorrow)

Check out the Round Rock Express Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from June 15, 2012


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