IL Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB RailRiders Game Notes - June 11, 2021

Published on June 11, 2021 under International League (IL)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (21-10) vs. Buffalo Bisons (16-15)

RHP Brody Koerner (1-2, 4.78 ERA) vs. RHP Thomas Hatch (MLB Rehab)

| Game 32 | Road Game 16 | Trenton Thunder Ballpark | Trenton, NJ | June 11, 2021 | First Pitch 7:00 p.m. |

A NIGHT OF FIRSTS: Thursday night's doubleheader with Buffalo will be the first true doubleheader of the season for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Previously they played a quasi-doubleheader on May 27 against Buffalo at PNC Field, resuming a suspended game from the night before then playing the regularly-scheduled contest. In 2019 the RailRiders played 11 doubleheaders, going 14-8 overall in those skirmishes. SWB played three twin-bills with Buffalo alone in 2019, splitting one at Sahlen Field on June 3 and one at PNC Field on June 27, and notching a sweep of one at Sahlen Field on June 5 as well. Because of the two doubleheaders in three days, the RailRiders and Bisons played each other six times from June 3-6. Game 2 of Thursday's twinbill also marked the first time that the RailRiders have been shut out this season, and the first time that a RailRider has been ejected from a game, with Manager Doug Davis, Mike Ford, and Socrates Brito all being run from the game in the top of the third.

BLANKED: When the RailRiders dropped Game 2 of Thursday's doubleheader to the Buffalo Bisons at Trenton Thunder Ballpark 10-0, it marked the first time this season that the RailRiders failed to score a run in a game. Not only was it the first time that the RailRiders have been shut out this season, but it was the first time that SWB had been shut out in a game since June 27, 2019, when ironically the Buffalo Bisons beat the RailRiders 1-0 in Game 2 of a doubleheader at PNC Field. In between, the RailRiders had gone 93 straight games without being shut out. This season SWB has only scored fewer than two runs in a game on one other occasion, a 3-1 loss at Rochester on May 23.

TREY IS ON THE WAY: RailRiders outfielder Trey Amburgey has been among the best hitters in all of minor league baseball this season, and entering play Friday night, has at least one hit in all 15 games he has played. That stands as the longest active hitting streak in Triple-A East, and is the second-longest in the league this season (Yariel Gonzalez, TOL, 16 G). Dating back to the end of the 2019 season, Amburgey has hit in 17 consecutive games and has at least one hit in 22 of his last 23 contests, and has reached base safely in all of those games. He is hitting .392/.473/.722 (31-for-79) in that span. The SWB franchise record for longest hitting streak belongs to Pablo Ozuna, who hit in 27 straight games in 2004 for the Red Barons, while the longest on-base streak is Brandon Drury's 32-game streak in the 2018 season.

OTHER STREAKS OF NOTE: In addition to Trey Amburgey's impressive run, the RailRiders offense features two other players with double-digit on-base streaks. Outfielder Greg Allen is riding a season-long 12-game on-base streak into play on Friday night, and infielder Hoy Park has reached base safely in 10 consecutive games. Allen has also played in two other games this season in which he did not record an official plate appearance, therefore not jeopardizing his streak and spent time on the injured list in the middle of his streak.

THIS ROAD TRIP FEELS...FAMILIAR: With the Buffalo Bisons having to play their entire home schedule this season at Trenton Thunder Ballpark, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders will play this series in a familiar setting for many players. From 2003 through 2020, the Trenton Thunder were the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. Sixteen members of the RailRiders roster suited up for the Thunder under its Yankees affiliation. Adding an extra layer of complexity to the arrangement, Buffalo wears Trenton Thunder jerseys while playing at home, including the alternate "Trenton Pork Roll" identity on Fridays. The new Trenton Thunder Draft League team is playing its home games this season not at Trenton Thunder Ballpark, but at nearby Rider University in Lawrenceville, N.J.

SATURDAY IN THE PARK: Since his promotion from Double-A Somerset, infielder Hoy Park has been a hitting machine for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Despite an 0-for-1 performance on Thursday, Park is hitting .356/.486/.695 with 5 doubles, 5 home runs and 14 RBIs in just 17 games played. In 113 games with Trenton in 2019, Park totaled three home runs, and combined with his one home run with Double-A Somerset this year, Park is already one homer shy of his career-high of 7 HR (2017 with Charleston and Tampa). Signed as an international free agent in 2014, Park already has six multi-hit games with the RailRiders, including a pair of three-hit contests. He has reached base safely in 16 games and recorded a hit in 13 of his 17 contests. Hitting Coach Casey Dykes credits Park's success to his advanced command of the strike zone and continued emphasis on generating hard contact and hitting the ball in the air.

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International League Stories from June 11, 2021


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