SWB Game Notes
Published on July 29, 2018 under International League (IL1)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release
GWINNETT STRIPERS (48-57) vs. SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE RAILRIDERS (55-47)
LHP Kolby Allard (6-4, 2.80) vs. LHP Nestor Cortes (4-4, 3.38)
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| Game No. 103 | Sunday July 29, 2018 | PNC Field | Moosic, PA |
| First Pitch 1:05 p.m. | Pregame Show 12:35 p.m. |
LAST TIME OUT: The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders defeated the Gwinnett Stripers 11-1 Saturday night at PNC Field.
The Stripers jumped on the board in the top of the first when Luis Marte led off with a double. He moved to third on a ground ball hit to short, and then was plated on a hot grounder to the backhand side of third baseman Bruce Caldwell whose only play was to get the out at first.
The RailRiders wasted no time in responding as Bruce Caldwell led off the bottom half of the inning with a solo home run. Mark Payton followed with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Abiatal Avelino then plated Payton with a base hit of his own. Devyn Bolasky snagged a single, Zack Zehner walked, and Francisco Diaz also reached base on four balls which brought Avelino home and gave Scranton/Wilkes-Barre a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the second, the RailRiders added to their total as Payton led off with a solo home run. After Tyler Austin doubled, Mike Ford hit a 3-2 pitch from Stripers starter Lucas Sims over the right-centerfield wall to push the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre lead to 6-1. It was Ford's 12th home run of the year. He is twelve-for-twenty-eight (.429 AVG) in his last seven games and now has 36 RBIs on the season.
SHUFFLING THE DECK: The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders continue to have a flurry of roster moves as the calendar moves closer to the trade deadline. The RailRiders made nine more roster moves Friday and have announced 20 overall since Wednesday morning between a trio of trades at the MLB-level and an injury for Aaron Judge Thursday night against the Royals. Overall, it has been 67 moves made in the month of July and 198 roster moves announced over the first 102 games of the season.
DOING THE MATH: The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders enter Sunday's series-finale against the Gwinnett Stripers in 2nd place in the I.L. North, 8.0 games behind the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. The RailRiders have 36 games left in their season, and if they were to go 25-11 (.694) down the stretch to reach 80 wins, they'd need Lehigh Valley to play no better than 16-20 (.474) in order to win the division title. Lehigh Valley is 64-40 entering Sunday and has a .615 win percentage on the season.
GETTING IN POSITION: The RailRiders were 7-5 on April 17, marking the last day they would be on the inside of the playoff cut in the International League for quite a while. It wasn't until July 18 in Toledo that SWB found itself back in the playoff picture (Game No. 94), spanning 82 games and being as many as 6 games under .500 along the way (27-33). Coming into Sunday, the RailRiders are 0.5 games out of a Wild Card spot behind the Norfolk Tides.
ROLLING THROUGH THE BREAK: Over the last 43G the RailRiders have own a 28-15 (.651) record to bring them up to 2nd place in the International League North standings. The RailRiders are 9-0-5 in their last 14 series and they still have not lost a series since dropping 2-out-of-3 games June 5-7 against the Durham Bulls at PNC Field.
SLINGING IT: The RailRiders had gotten a strong performance out of its bullpen over the last month+ prior to Thursday's doubleheader. In the doubleheader the bullpen allowed 8R/8ER over 12.0 IP (6.00 ERA), where over the previous 31G since June 17 leading into the doubleheader, the bullpen arms had combined for 107.0 IP, 56 H (4.7 H/9) and 25R/19ER (1.60 ERA). Over the last 8G specifically before the DH, the bullpen had thrown 26.2 IP, 4R/3ER (0.74 ERA), 8 H (8-for-84, .095 BAA) with 34 K.
International League Stories from July 29, 2018
- Bats Clip Red Wings in Extras Sunday - Rochester Red Wings
- Bulls Toppled by Chiefs in Rubber Match - Durham Bulls
- Dominguez Powers Chiefs Past Bulls Sunday Night for Series Win - Syracuse Mets
- Trahan Hits Walk-Off Single in 3-2 Win - Louisville Bats
- Knights Power Past PawSox 8-0 Sunday - Charlotte Knights
- Artie Lewicki Tosses a Gem in Shutout Victory - Toledo Mud Hens
- Late Homer Downs Tides - Norfolk Tides
- Indians Earn Doubleheader Split to Cap 6-2 Homestand - Indianapolis Indians
- Bisons Split Doubleheader with Indians to Close out Series - Buffalo Bisons
- Charlotte Salvages Series Finale with PawSox - Pawtucket Red Sox
- Pigs Stumble in Series Finale - Lehigh Valley IronPigs
- Gohara Fans 10 as Stripers Beat RailRiders - Gwinnett Stripers
- RailRiders Bested by Stripers - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
- Louisville Bats Notes: July 29 - Louisville Bats
- Durham Bulls Game Notes - Sunday, July 29, 2018 - Durham Bulls
- Bisons Notes (DH) - Buffalo at Indianapolis (G1: 12:35 p.m.) - Buffalo Bisons
- LHV Game Notes - Lehigh Valley IronPigs
- Doubleheader Information: Indianapolis Indians (57-47) vs. Buffalo Bisons (46-54) - Indianapolis Indians
- SWB Game Notes - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
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