IL1 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB Game Notes

Published on July 29, 2015 under International League (IL1)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The RailRiders snapped a four-game losing skid to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs in a 5-3 win thanks to a complete performance by right fielder Aaron Judge.

HOME COOKIN': The RailRiders went 4-1 on their five-game homestand, lifting their season-long ledger to 25-30 at PNC Field. It made for SWB's second winning homestand of five or more games this season. The only other such display saw the team go 4-3 against by winning a three-game set against the IronPigs and splitting a four-gamer with Pawtucket from April 20-26. The RailRiders must win 12 of their 17 remaining home games to post the franchise's first winning record in Moosic since the 2010 team went 48-24 (.667).

GUILTY AS CHARGED: Judge posted SWB's lone multi-hit effort and extra-base knocks by going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. He also notched two outfield assists, giving him four dimes against no errors in 21 Triple-A games played in the outfield. He robbed Logan Moore with a diving grab of his fourth-inning liner before doubling-up Cord Phelps at second base. He later nabbed Chris McGuiness trying to leg out a double to end the eighth. Since the All-Star break, he has gone 7-for-19 (.368) with four extra-base hits (.684 SLG, 1.065 OPS) and four RBIs.

RIDE THE RAIL: SWB slimmed its IronRail Series deficit to 6-5. The RailRiders took the inaugural IronRail Trophy in 2013 by virtue of a tiebreaker. The IronPigs earned the hardware with a 10-6 mark against SWB in 2014. With seven head-to-head meetings left, the RailRiders must best the 'Pigs five times to take the IronRail outright, or win four times including the Aug. 28 series finale.

WHAT A RELIEF: With 4.0 scoreless innings from Wilking Rodriguez and Johnny Barbato, the SWB bullpen has logged 19 shutout frames going back to the July 23 win at Indianapolis. The 'pen owns a collective 2.88 ERA compared to a 3.88 mark for the starting staff. Rodriguez (2-0) earned the win with 2.2 innings of nearly perfect baseball. He allowed one hit and struck out six.

NEW GROUND: Rodriguez (2-0), who earned the win, had not whiffed more than four in a stateside relief appearance in his career before Tuesday night. His career-high strikeout mark of nine was reached twice as a starter with each nod lasting at least five innings. They came in the Rookie Appy League and Low-A Midwest League respectively. Barbato logged his first Triple-A save with 1.1 frames of one-hit ball. He faced the minimum and struck out one. While a farmhand of the San Diego Padres, Barbato posted 14 saves with Advanced-A Lake Elsinore in 2013 and had 16 with Double-A San Antonio last year.

WHAT GOES UP: After reaching base in all but one of his first 18 Triple-A games with slashes of .300/.380/.486/.865 in the process, Greg Bird has been on base once in his last three games. He has gone 0-for-12 in that time with a walk. With a nearly even number of at-bats, he has wide home-road splits. On the road, Bird has slashed .357/.449/.595/1.044 going 15-for-42 with all of his three home runs and 11 RBIs. At home, he has slashed .150/.209/.225/.434 by going 6-for-40.

OFF THE RAILS: The RailRiders lead the IL in batting average (.271) and OBP (.342)...SWB must win just one of its three remaining July games to post a winning month...Over the first eight seasons as a Yankees affiliate, SWB logged an above .500 July six times and the two exceptions both saw the squad finish a game under sea level...In his first game action since July 17, IL All-Star catcher Austin Romine served as the DH for the third time this season...He went 1-for-4 with an RBI single...In 2014 while sharing catching duties with John Ryan Murphy, Romine served as the DH five times and got the nod at first base 13 times...Ben Gamel picked up his team-best 10th outfield assist when he and spot starter Joel De La Cruz received dimes on Rob Refsnyder's put out of Phelps at second base in the first inning...Gamel trails only Pawtucket's Bryce Brentz (11) for the IL lead in outfield assists.

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International League Stories from July 29, 2015


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