IL Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB RailRiders Game Notes - June 16, 2021

Published on June 16, 2021 under International League (IL)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


Syracuse Mets (11-26) vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (24-11)

LHP Thomas Szapucki (0-2, 3.51 ERA) vs. RHP Luis Gil (Triple-A Debut) | Game 36 | Home Game 18 | PNC Field | Moosic, PA | June 16, 2021 | First Pitch 7:05 p.m. |

MEET THE METS: For the first time since the opening series of the season, the RailRiders take on the Syracuse Mets in a six-game series at PNC Field this week. After losing on opening night, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre reeled off five straight wins to close the series at NBT Bank Stadium in an impressive offensive showing. The Baby Bombers hit .306 AVG/.426 OBP/.578 SLG in that series, slugging 15 home runs and scoring at least 10 runs in a game twice. The RailRiders and Mets also played the longest game in SWB franchise history in a 4-hour, 9-minute marathon on May 6, a 17-11 final. Unbelievably, that was the first of two four-hour games in that series (also May 9) and one of three four-hour games that SWB has played this season.

IN THE FLO ZONE: There may be no hotter hitter on the planet right now than SWB outfielder Estevan Florial. In his last two games, Florial is a combined 6-for-9 with 5 R, 2 2B, 1 HR and 5 RBIs. These last two games have raised Florial's season batting line from .141 AVG/.239 OBP/.282 SLG to .195/.278/.379, a 137-point jump in OPS.

CALL IT A COMEBACK...AGAIN: Tuesday night's wild comeback win for the RailRiders was reminiscent of the last time that Syracuse played a game at PNC Field at the tail end of the 2019 season. In the memorable Game 141 of the 2019 season, when the RailRiders completed the Miracle on Montage Mountain. Trailing 7-1 entering the bottom of the 7th and having just one hit to that point off starting pitcher Ervin Santana, the RailRiders scored five times to make it a 7-6 deficit. When Syracuse responded with six runs in the top of the 8th inning it seemed as if the RailRiders' fate was sealed, but instead they plated a season-best eight runs in an inning and grabbed a 14-13 lead en route to a win. Fittingly, this game was the final regular season game ever played in the International League, a circuit which began play in 1884 but has been disbanded and reconstituted as the Triple-A East League.

MAMA SAID SHUT YOU OUT: Five RailRiders pitchers combined to pitch the second shutout of the year for the club on Sunday against Buffalo in Trenton. Following the first start of the year for Nick Nelson (3.2 IP), Adam Warren (2.1 IP), Brooks Kriske, Sal Romano and Luis Garcia (1.0 IP each) kept a tough Buffalo offense off the board for the rest of the game. The 8-0 victory was the first shutout for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre since a 6-0 win over Lehigh Valley in the home opener on May 11. In 2019, the RailRiders staff racked up six shutouts on the season. Sunday's contest continued a streak of 17.1 consecutive scoreless innings thrown by the SWB pitching staff, dating back to the second inning on Saturday. That stretch, however came to an end in the first inning on Tuesday night.

ON A SILVER TREY: RailRiders outfielder Trey Amburgey had his 18-game hitting streak snapped on Tuesday night, when he went 0-for-2 with a walk and two RBIs against the Mets. The 18-game streak is the longest for any one player in Triple-A East this season, and was actually a 20-game streak dating back to the final two games of the 2019 season. Despite the hit streak ending, Amburgey extended his on-base streak to an impressive 27 consecutive games dating back to August 26, 2019. He is hitting .383/.450/.702 (36-for-94) in that span. The SWB franchise record for longest on-base streak belongs to Brandon Drury, who reached base in 32 straight games 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 14-game on-base streak into play on Sunday afternoon, and infielder Hoy Park has reached base safely in 14 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.

COMEBACK KIDS: The RailRiders erased multi-run deficits three times en route to victory in their last seven games. On Tuesday, they trailed 5-0 and eventually won 7-5, with a two-run single from Derek Dietrich in the top of the eighth putting SWB ahead for good. Then on Saturday, the RailRiders erased an early 4-0 advantage to win 6-4 in 10 innings. Andrew Velazquez put the RailRiders on top in the 10th inning when he scampered home on a wild pitch. On Tuesday at PNC Field, the RailRiders overcame an early 5-0 deficit to win 12-6. Overall, the RailRiders have 11 come-from-behind wins this season.

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International League Stories from June 16, 2021


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