PCL1 Round Rock Express

Round Rock Express - Game Notes vs. Oklahoma City RedHawks

Published on August 19, 2012 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Round Rock Express News Release


GAME 129 | 19 AUGUST 2012 | 6:05 P.M. CDT | THE DELL DIAMOND | ROUND ROCK, TEXAS

ROUND ROCK EXPRESS (59-69) vs. OKLAHOMA CITY REDHAWKS (67-60)

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

EXPRESS: RHP Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.38 ERA) | REDHAWKS: LHP Fernando Abad (2-0, 4.03 ERA)

TONIGHT, TONIGHT

Round Rock continues the season's final home stand with the second of four games against the Oklahoma City RedHawks (Houston Astros). First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. CDT at The Dell Diamond. Round Rock lost last night's series opener 5-4, suffering consecutive losses for only the second time since July 22. The Express are 7-3 over their last 10 games and 16-8 since July 26. Round Rock is 29-34 at The Dell Diamond, winning seven of the last 13 home games. Oklahoma City won four of its last five after suffering a 10-game losing streak. The RedHawks are 29-35 on the road; they snapped a six-game road losing streak last night, their second victory in their last 13 road games. Round Rock is fourth in the PCL's American Southern Division, 14 games behind division-leader Albuquerque. Oklahoma City is third in the division, five-and-a-half games back.

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 the two teams. The RedHawks won three of four at Oklahoma City in late April, and the teams split a four-game series at The Dell Diamond in mid-June. The teams meet again Aug. 31-Sept. 3 at Oklahoma City in the season's final series. ... SERIES HISTORY: Oklahoma City leads the all-time series 64-56, including a 52-43 advantage prior to the affiliation switch in 2011. The RedHawks are 33-27 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: The RedHawks lead the season series 6-3. Oklahoma City won three of four April 26-29 at Bricktown Ballpark, and the teams split four games June 14-17 at The Dell Diamond. Round Rock is hitting .300 (96-for-320) with nine homers, 14 doubles, two triples and 4.8 runs per game. Julio Borbon is 14-for-36 (.389) with one homer, five RBI and seven runs scored in nine games. Luis Hernandez is 17-for-42 (.405) in nine games with two homers, six RBI, a double and six runs scored. Brad Nelson is 13-for-35 (.371) with a homer, six RBI, four doubles, six walks and seven runs scored in nine games. Express pitchers have a 6.00 ERA (52 ER/78.0 IP) with two saves, 25 walks and 55 strikeouts; Round Rock pitchers have allowed 10 home runs.

SERIES"ˆINFORMATION

GAME"ˆ128 | SATURDAY, AUGUST 18

RedHawks 5, Express 4

WP: Cosart (1-2). LP: Eyre (0-2). SV: Valdez (15).

GAME"ˆ129 | SUNDAY, AUGUST 19 | 6:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.38 ERA)

RedHawks: LHP Fernando Abad (2-0, 4.03 ERA)

GAME"ˆ130 | MONDAY, AUGUST 20 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (6-6, 4.46 ERA)

RedHawks: LHP Brett Oberholtzer (5-5, 5.29 ERA)

GAME"ˆ131 | TUESDAY, AUGUST 21 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (6-12, 4.69 ERA)

RedHawks: LHP Rudy Owens (0-2, 5.53 ERA)

DON'T FEAR THE REAPER

RHP JUSTIN GRIMM (2-1, 4.38 ERA, 24 K)

2012: Assigned to Frisco (AA) to begin the season ... 8-3, 1.80 ERA (16 ER/80.0 IP) in 14 starts with RoughRiders ... 68 strikeouts, 14 walks ... eight-plus strikeouts three times, including 10 whiffs over 5.1 innings in season's first start (April 5 at Springfield) ... did not allow a run in four of last five starts with Frisco ... promoted to Rangers following June 10 start ... made MLB debut June 16 at Houston ... earned win, allowing three runs on six hits over 6.0 innings with seven strikeouts and no walks ... lost June 25 start vs. Detroit; surrendered six runs on eight hits and a walk over 1.0 inning ... worked 3.0 innings in relief July 3 at Chicago-AL and allowed three runs on three hits and two walks with three strikeouts ... optioned to Frisco after that outing ... made predetermined 3.0-inning start July 9 with Frisco vs. Arkansas; did not allow a run on two hits and no walks with one strikeout ... transferred to Round Rock when Express returned from All-Star break July 12.

ROUND ROCK: No-decision in first two starts with Express ... also did not factor in decision in July 24 piggy-back outing (Neftali Feliz) against Albuquerque ... allowed three or fewer runs in each of first five outings, including one run on three occasions ... 1.50 ERA (1 ER/6.0 IP) in first inning ... opponents were 0-for-13 with runners on base and two outs, going 0-for-10 with two outs and runners in scoring position, over first five outings ... opponents were 6-for-9 with runners on base and two outs in sixth outing, going 4-for-6 with two outs and RISP ... allows a .250 average (9-for-36) to leadoff batters with five doubles, five walks, three strikeouts (.341 on-base percentage) ... one strikeout over 11.0 innings in last two starts after recording 15 strikeouts in 13.0 innings over previous two starts ... worked five-plus innings in five of seven outings, working into the sixth inning four times ... team is 3-3 in his starts, 1-1 following a loss (both no-decisions) ... 0-1, 4.71 ERA (11 ER/21.0 IP) in three starts, one relief appearance at The Dell Diamond with 10 walks, 10 strikeouts ... both home runs allowed were at home.

LAST OUTING: Won Aug. 14 start at Reno (9-4) ... allowed four runs on eight hits, two walks over 6.2 innings with one strikeout ... uncorked one wild pitch ... induced three double plays ... three of four runs scored in fourth inning ... left game leading 9-4 ... lone bequeathed runner was stranded ... 95 pitches, 59 strikes.

CAREER vs. OKLAHOMA CITY: First meeting.

CAREER: Split 2011, his first pro season, between Class-A Hickory and Class A-Advanced Myrtle Beach ... combined to go 7-3 with a 3.39 ERA (53 ER/140.2) and 127 strikeouts over 25 starts ... began 2012 with Frisco (AA) where he went 8-3 with a 1.80 ERA in 80.0 innings ... made MLB debut June 16, 2012.

NOTABLE: Drafted out of the University of Georgia, where he was the Bulldogs' number one starter as a junior ... entered the 2010 draft rated as the 59th-best right-hander and 109th-best prospect overall by Baseball America ... selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 13th round of the 2007 June draft but did not sign ... 2012 Texas League Mid-Season All-Star ... made MLB debut June 16, 2012 and earned the win allowing three runs in six innings with seven strikeouts.

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Round Rock is 16-8 since July 26, the PCL's second-best record in that time. That stretch began with a five-game winning streak, at the time the team's longest winning streak this season. The Express lost consecutive games only twice in that time with a six-game winning streak, the season's longest, sandwiched between the consecutive losses.

PCL RECORDS SINCE JULY 26

New Orleans 16-7 .696

Round Rock 16-8 .667

Sacramento 15-8 .652

Salt Lake 15-8 .652

Colorado Springs 14-10 .583

Omaha 13-10 .565

Las Vegas 12-11 .522

Nashville 12-12 .500

Albuquerque 12-12 .500

Fresno 12-12 .500

Tacoma 12-12 .500

Reno 10-13 .435

Tucson 8-16 .333

Iowa 7-16 .304

Oklahoma City 7-16 .304

Memphis 6-18 .250

WHAT'S GOING ON

Express relievers allowed 12 runs - nine earned - in 9.0 innings over the last three games (9.00 ERA). Thursday, Round Rock's bullpen squandered a 7-3 lead before finally winning 9-8 at Reno. Last night, the Express squandered a 4-1 lead en route to a 5-4 loss to Oklahoma City. Express relievers worked 13.0 consecutive scoreless innings prior giving up two runs in the seventh inning Thursday night; that ended a stretch of five straight games without allowing a run.

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH

Round Rock is hitting .342 (143-for-418) over the last 11 games with 10-plus hits in seven of the last eight games. ... The Express won four of their last six series, gaining a split in the other two. ... Round Rock is 13-0 since the All-Star break when scoring at least seven runs. ... The Express are 18-10 since scoring five ninth-inning runs to force extra-innings in an 11-inning, 8-7 victory July 22 vs. Omaha. It was the first time this season Round Rock won when trailing after eight innings. ... The Express are 20-17 since the All-Star break. ... Round Rock is 12-20 in series openers (8-9 at home, 4-11 on the road). The Express won five of their last seven series openers. ... The Express are 14-54 when allowing at least five runs and 46-23 when scoring at least five runs. ... Round Rock is 15-16 in one-run games, going 8-4 since the All-Star break. Seven of Round Rock's 16 games against Iowa were one-run affairs. ... The Express are 3-56 when trailing after seven innings and 2-58 when trailing after eight innings. Conversely, the Express are 52-7 when leading after seven innings and 47-4 when leading after eight innings. ... Round Rock is 23-26 since Clint Musslewhite's departure, going 10-17 at home in that time.

EVERYDAY PEOPLE

JULIO BORBON: Five-game hitting streak (.478, 11-for-23) ... four straight multiple-hit games ... eight triples, second-best season total in Express history ... 11-for-21 (.524) since snapping 0-for-15 skid with sixth-inning single Aug. 14 at Reno ... 37-for-106 (.349) with 13 multiple-hit efforts over last 24 games on heels of an 0-for-19 skid.

JOEY BUTLER: Seven-game hitting streak (.333, 11-for-33) ... hit safely in 13 of last 15 games (20-for-63) ... at least one strikeout in 12 straight games (21 strikeouts) ... multiple strikeouts in eight straight games, nine of last 10 games ... 13 of 16 home runs on the road ... one homer at The Dell Diamond (July 1 vs. New Orleans) since May 17 (43 games) ... nine of 16 home runs were solo shots, including two leadoff homers.

ROBINZON DIAZ: Two hits in each of three games since joining Round Rock (Aug. 12).

ALBERTO GONZALEZ: Hit safely in all three games with Express ... three-hit game in Round Rock debut (Aug. 16 at Reno).

LUIS HERNANDEZ: 14-game hitting streak (.477, 31-for-65) ... six doubles during streak ... multiple hits in 11 of last 13 games, three-plus hits five times ... at least one run scored in six of last seven games ... at least one RBI in eight of last 11 games (10 RBI) ... 18 RBI over last 14 games with five multiple-RBI efforts ... hit safely in 19 of last 21 games (.417, 40-for-96).

KOYIE HILL: Hit safely in two of first three games with Express ... homered in Express debut (Aug. 15 at Reno).

MATT KATA: Hit safely in six of last seven games (.414, 12-for-29) ... eight RBI in last seven games ... multiple hits in eight of last 16 games ... two homers since May 31 grand slam at Memphis.

BRAD NELSON: Snapped 0-for-11 skid with first-inning single last night ... 6-for-35 (.171) over last nine games but produced eight RBI in that time ... hitting .309 (98-for-317) after All-Star break over last two seasons ... at least one strikeout in seven straight games, 12 of last 13 games (15 strikeouts) ... 26-for-65 (.400) at The Dell Diamond after enduring an 0-for-24 home slump ... 48 of 75 RBI on the road ... 13 of 20 homers were solos, including eight leadoff shots.

BRANDON SNYDER: Snapped eight-game hitting streak Friday night at Reno (.353, 12-for-34) ... hit safely in 11 of 13 games with Express ... multiple hits in four of last eight games ... also snapped streak of five straight games with at least one run last night (seven runs) ... at least one strikeout 10 of 13 games (17 strikeouts) with multiple strikeouts six times.

YANGERVIS SOLARTE: Hit safely in six of last eight games (.343, 12-for-35) with four multiple-hit efforts ... two RBI in three of last six games; first multiple-RBI efforts since June 21 vs. Iowa ... hitting .299 (26-for-87) over last 22 games with eight multiple-hit outings ... eight of nine home runs were solo shots ... seven of nine homers were on the road.

RYAN SPILBORGHS: Hit safely in seven of last eight games (.281, 9-for-32) ... one hit in six of seven games during that stretch ... one multiple-hit outing over last 16 games (three hits, Aug. 13 at Colorado Springs) ... at least one strikeout in four straight games (seven strikeouts), 20 of last 24 games (28 strikeouts) ... has not gone consecutive games without a strikeout since five-game stretch July 18-22.

BROTHERS IN ARMS

FABIO CASTILLO: Held opponent scoreless in seven of 10 outings ... three walks over last six appearances (7.2 innings, 33 batters faced) ... one home run surrendered with Express (56 batters faced) ... opponents are 1-for-8 (.125) when leading off an inning with three walks, two strikeouts.

NEAL COTTS: Surrendered three runs in last outing (Aug. 17 at Reno), most runs allowed since six-spot July 8 at Albuquerque ... stranded nine of 17 inherited runners (52.9 percent) ... at least one strikeout in eight straight outings (19 strikeouts, 12.0 innings).

WILLIE EYRE: Season-high four runs surrendered in last outing (Aug. 18 vs. Oklahoma City) ... allowed 12 hits over 7.0 innings in last six appearances ... no runs allowed in five straight road outings ... 3.00 ERA (4 ER/12.0 IP) in eight road appearances ... 0-1, 6.60 ERA (11 ER/15.0 IP) in 12 games at The Dell Diamond ... holds opponents to a .080 average (2-for-25) when leading off an inning with one homer, one walk, seven strikeouts (.179 on-base percentage) ... opponents hitting .538 (7-for-13) with runners in scoring position and two outs.

DEREK HANKINS: Won three of last four decisions in one start (1-0) and three relief appearances (2-1) ... two homers surrendered over last seven outings (one start) ... 2-1, 3.00 ERA (3 ER/9.0 IP) over last six relief appearances ... six straight outings (one start) with at least one strikeout (10 strikeouts, 13.0 innings) ... opponents hitting .304 (21-for-69) when leading off an inning with two homers, two walks, nine strikeouts ... holds opponents to a .121 average (4-for-33) with two outs and runners in scoring position ... opponents are 1-for-6 (home run) with bases loaded.

JOE ORTIZ: Recorded first career Triple-A victory in last outing (Aug. 16 at Reno) ... all seven runs allowed were by way of homers ... two-run homer surrendered Aug. 6 vs. Las Vegas was first non-solo homer allowed ... opponents hitting .200 (18-for-90) otherwise ... at least one strikeout in 15 of 19 outings with Express ... opponents hitting .304 (7-for-23) when leading off an inning with two homers, one walk, five strikeouts ... opponents are 2-for-11 (.182) with two outs and runners in scoring position ... stranded 10 of 13 inherited runners (76.9 percent) ... snapped streak of 10 consecutive inherited runners stranded in last outing (Aug. 16 at Reno, both inherited runners scored).

BEN SNYDER: No runs allowed in last three outings, all relief (4.2 innings) ... 17-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio over last eight outings (three starts) ... opponents hitting .157 (11-for-70) when leading off inning with no homers, four walks, 14 strikeouts ... opponents are 4-for-7 with bases loaded (no homers, six RBI) ... stranded 12 of 24 inherited runners (50.0 percent).

YOSHINORI TATEYAMA: Suffered first blown save in six opportunities in last outing (Aug. 18 vs. Oklahoma City) ... no runs allowed in 15 games at The Dell Diamond, going 2-0 with four saves, 21 strikeouts, three walks (19.1 innings) ... no earned runs allowed in 26 of 29 outings with Express (unearned runs allowed once) ... opponents hitting .113 (8-for-71) when behind in the count ... 25 strikeouts over last 16 outings (18.0 innings) ... stranded nine of 13 inherited runners (69.2 percent).

JOHAN YAN: Recorded first career Triple-A save in last outing (Aug. 16 at Reno) ... held opponent scoreless in seven of last eight outings ... surrendered three runs without recording an out in other appearance during that time (Aug. 4 vs. Tucson) ... stranded 12 of 20 inherited runners (60.0 percent) ... entered game with bases loaded four times and stranded seven of 12 runners (58.3 percent) ... all three homers surrendered were leadoff shots ... 33.75 ERA (5 ER/1.1 IP) in the ninth inning ... opponents are 9-for-22 (.409) when leading off an inning with three homers, two walks, four strikeouts (.480 on-base percentage).

WHO'S NEXT

Round Rock concludes the home portion of the 2013 schedule with a five-game series against the Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers). The series runs Wednesday through Sunday with a 7:05 p.m. CDT start each of the first four nights and a 6:05 p.m. start for the finale. The Sounds lead the season series 6-5, splitting both series at Nashville and winning two of three at The Dell Diamond in late June.

SERIES"ˆINFORMATION

GAME"ˆ132 | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Greg Reynolds (10-8, 4.79 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Brian Baker (3-4, 4.44 ERA)

GAME"ˆ133 | THURSDAY, AUGUST 23 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Chad Bell (3-4, 4.76 ERA)

Sounds: RHP Tyler Thornburg (1-1, 2.25 ERA)

GAME"ˆ134 | FRIDAY, AUGUST 24 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: RHP Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.38 ERA; starts tonight)

Sounds: RHP Hiram Burgos (0-1, 4.24 ERA; starts tonight)

GAME"ˆ135 | SATURDAY, AUGUST 25 | 7:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Martin Perez (6-6, 4.46 ERA; starts tomorrow)

Sounds: RHP Claudio Vargas (5-1, 3.90 ERA; starts tomorrow)

GAME"ˆ136 | SUNDAY, AUGUST 26 | 6:05 p.m. CDT

Express: LHP Zach Jackson (6-12, 4.69 ERA; starts Tuesday)

Sounds: RHP Wily Peralta (6-10, 4.75 ERA; starts Tuesday)

Check out the Round Rock Express Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from August 19, 2012


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