FSL1 Charlotte Stone Crabs

Stone Crabs Game Notes - Fri, April 12 vs Palm Beach

Published on April 12, 2019 under Florida State League (FSL1)
Charlotte Stone Crabs News Release


The Stone Crabs (3-5) return home to begin a six game homestand Friday, opening a three-game set with the Palm Beach Cardinals (6-2) at 6:30 p.m. RHP Tanner Dodson will open for RHP Tobias Myers, while RHP Perry DellaValle makes the conventional start for Palm Beach.

Coverage begins at 6:15 p.m. on the Stone Crabs Baseball Network.

HALEY PICKS UP THREE HITS IN 4-3 LOSS

Stone Crabs utility man Jim Haley picked up three hits (two doubles) Thursday, but Charlotte fell one run short in a 4-3 defeat to the Bradenton Marauders. The Stone Crabs are now 0-4 on the road, but return to Charlotte Sports Park to begin a six-game homestand at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

PITCHING PROWESS

After a fairly slow start to 2019, the Stone Crabs pitching has turned it on over the last few games. Charlotte pitching has limited Bradenton to 17 hits over the last three contests (26.1 innings, 5.8 H/9).

OFFENSIVE OUTBURST?

Despite scoring three runs or less in seven of their eight games this year, the Stone Crabs have shown signs of being a strong offensive club. Charlotte ranks in the top-third in the Florida State League in batting average and is tied for the lead in the circuit in doubles. The low run totals can be attributed to a lack of clutch hitting. The Stone Crabs have a .517 OPS with runners on base, well below their .599 mark for the year.

CLOSE CALLS

The Stone Crabs have been locked into close, low-scoring, back-and-forth games early in 2019. Five of the team's first eight games have been decided by one run. Charlotte is 2-3 in those contests and has already played two extra-inning games. The team who scores first has only won four of the eight games so far this year.

RILEY ROASTING RAKERS

Stone Crabs starting pitcher Riley O'Brien has baffled opposing hitters through his first two starts, striking out eight in both outings. The 6-foot-4 inch fireballer ranks third at the Advanced-A level in punchouts (16), behind only Ljay Newsome and Brady Feigl, and just ahead of 2018 No. 1 overall pick Casey Mize. He is tied for seventh in all of Minor League Baseball.

DON'T MESS WITH THE BREW-HAN

Stone Crabs second baseman Vidal Brujan collected another hit and RBI on Thursday and is now batting .429 through his first seven games. The Dominican Republic native leads the league in steals and is third in hitting after swiping 55 bags in 2018. That total ranked second in Minor League Baseball, behind only Myles Straw of the Astros.

PROSPECT FEVER

Other than Brujan, the Stone Crabs' position player prospects have struggled with the bat early in the season. The other four hitter-only top-30 prospects have gone a combined 11-for-99 with 38 strikeouts (.111 AVG, 36% K-rate)

Ronaldo Hernandez: 2-29 (.071 AVG), 9 K

Moises Gomez: 4-29 (.138 AVG), 13 K

Tyler Frank: 3-21 (.143 AVG), 5 K

Garrett Whitley: 2-20 (.100 AVG), 12 K

BREAKFAST AND BASEBALL

The Stone Crabs will play two morning games this week, with 10:30 a.m. starts scheduled for Wednesday in Bradenton and Sunday in Port Charlotte. The Stone Crabs went 0-3 in games starting before noon in 2018. Charlotte will play another 10:30 a.m. game in Bradenton on June 12, and have a total of five morning games on the schedule in 2019.

Check out the Charlotte Stone Crabs Statistics

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