IL1 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB Game Notes

Published on July 23, 2016 under International League (IL1)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The RailRiders earned their fifth walk-off victory of 2016 on Friday night at PNC Field. Ben Gamel laced a single into right-center that scored Jonathan Diaz for a 6-5 win over the Bulls in 10 innings.

WALK ON: The RailRiders failed to notch an extra-base hit, but overcame a 10-8 deficit in hits and a 5-0 margin in extra-base knocks by drawing a season-high 10 walks. Six were issued by Durham starter Jaime Schultz.

J.D.: Diaz finished with a team-high three walks for the RailRiders including his leadoff free pass en route to scoring the winning run in the 10th. He ended April hitting .143 with a .222 OBP thanks to just four walks in 15 games played. Since the start of May he has hit .254 with a .365 OBP that ranks 14th in the IL in that time. His on-base rate is buoyed by 32 walks in 59 games played, one of the top-10 walk totals in the IL during since the start of May.

TABLE SETTER: The RailRiders' leadoff man once again since his return from injury/rehab on Monday, Mason Williams went 3-for-5 with two RBIs, two runs scored and a 10th-inning sacrifice that sent Diaz into scoring position. Including his stint with last year's RailRiders, Williams has played 25 career Triple-A games, slashing .308/.360/.404/.763. His sacrifice last night was the 39th of his seven-year pro career and his third at Triple-A.

HERE'S A STORY: Brady Lail settled for a no-decision in his first Triple-A start since a June 14 win at Toledo. Lail allowed just one run over his 4.2 innings despite five hits and three walks. He hit the DL on June 15, made a rehab start on July 12 for the Rookie GCL Yankees and was activated/transferred to Double-A for a start with the Thunder versus Reading on July 17 (4IP, 3H, 0R, 0BB, 2K). He has allowed 1R or less in each of his last three outings at Double-A or above.

HEAVE HO, TWO IN A ROW: In Thursday's series opener, Durham manager Jared Sandberg was ejected in the opening inning by home-plate umpire Jeremie Rehak. Last night, home-plate arbiter Joey Amaral tossed SWB manager Al Pedrique in the sixth inning.

RUNNING WITH THE BULLS: At 25.8, Durham stands tied with Rochester for the second-youngest group of position players in the IL, trailing only Indianapolis (25.1). The Bulls' offense ranks among the IL's worst in: AVG (Worst, .232); OBP (Worst, .304); SLG (2nd-Worst, .358); OPS (T-Worst, .663); runs/game (2nd-Worst, 3.50); and strikeouts (Worst, 870). Durham pitchers have allowed 77 homers (T-5th Worst), but lead the loop in K/9IP (9.1).

RECOGNIZE: At 62-38 (.620), the RailRiders boast Triple-A's best record. SWB stands on pace to win 89 games, or 100 MLB victories. Marc Bombard's 2002 Red Barons won a franchise-record 91 games with the likes of Chase Utley, Marlon Byrd, Brett Myers and Joe Roa. The red-hot RailRiders have won 31 of their last 42 games.

DEFEND THE NORTH: After the series with Durham, the RailRiders step back into division play in earnest. SWB has nine head-to-head meetings left with Lehigh Valley and eight against Buffalo. SWB has seven games left against Syracuse, Rochester and Pawtucket. The lone remaining non-divisional series is a four-gamer at PNC Field against Norfolk in August.

OFF THE RAILS: At 3.00, the RailRiders boast Triple-A's best ERA...Their 820 strikeouts trail only Durham (901) in the IL...The Bulls have led the IL in whiffs each of the past four seasons...SWB and Durham are the only staffs in the IL with 800+ strikeouts...At 3:42, last night made for the longest extra-inning game by time for this year's RailRiders and tied for the second-longest game by time overall...Only the 11-10 win over Charlotte on June 7 that lasted 3:53 required more time...The paid attendance of 10,000 made for SWB's fourth outright sellout of the year and the 12th fixed-seat sellout (7,115)...The RailRiders notched a season-best four stolen bases including two by Gamel who leads the squad with 16.

Check out the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders Statistics

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International League Stories from July 23, 2016


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