
SWB RailRiders Game Notes - May 14, 2021
Published on May 14, 2021 under International League (IL)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release
Lehigh Valley IronPigs (6-3) vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (7-2)
LHP Cristopher Sánchez (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Brian Keller (0-0, 3.38 ERA)
| Game 10 | Home Game 4 | PNC Field | Moosic, PA | May 14, 2021 | First Pitch 6:35 p.m. |
LET'S GET IT STARTED (IN HERE): After posting a 6.75 ERA (15 ER/20.0 IP) in the season-opening series at Syracuse, RailRiders starting pitchers have been much better at PNC Field through two games. Deivi García, Brody Koerner and Nick Green have combined for a 1.45 ERA (2 ER/12.1 IP) in this series against Lehigh Valley. With a small sample size of eight games played, the last two games have dropped RailRiders' starters ERA down to 4.73, while the overall staff ERA has fallen from 6.24 entering Tuesday's home opener, to 4.50. In 2019, SWB posted a 4.98 ERA at home in 71 games, and 4.94 overall.
DINGER ALERT: After shattering the SWB franchise record with 212 home runs in 2019 (previously 164 in 1998), the RailRiders are at it again, hitting 15 home runs in the team's first six games. However, the RailRiders did not hit a home run in their two games at PNC Field this season, but Robinson Chirinos'4th-inning blast off David Parkinson on Thursday night changed that. Nonetheless, the 16 round-trippers hit by SWB puts the club in fourth place in the Triple-A East League, trailing Durham (20), Gwinnett (17) and Nashville (17). The RailRiders are tied for fifth in minor league baseball in home runs and are one of six teams who have hit at least 15 long balls. Incredibly, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs only hit two home runs thus far, the fewest of any Triple-A team. Only two MiLB teams (Fresno, 1 and South Bend, 0) have hit fewer than the IronPigs.
SUPER BASH BROTHERS: RailRiders first baseman Chris Gittens is off to one of the hottest starts in minor league baseball, and enters Friday fifth in the Triple-A East League in OPS (1.263). He is one of two SWB players in the top-10 in the league, joined by Trey Amburgey (3rd, 1.478). However, by the metric weighted On-Base Average (wOBA), Gittens is fifth in all of Triple-A East (.531), trailing Jesús Sánchez of Jacksonville (1st, .729). Sánchez also paces the circuit in OPS (1.779). wOBA is a metric which more accurately weighs on-base percentage and slugging to measure a player's total offensive contributions, with leaderboards found at Fangraphs. By wOBA, Amburgey (.608) ranks fourth among hitters in the league, though he does not appear on the leaderboard due to his current status on the 7-day Injured List.
THREE DOZEN SIDES OF BACON: The COVID-19 pandemic has created one of the most unusual season schedules in the history of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre franchise. With the season beginning a full month later than traditional, all teams in the Triple-A East League will play 120-game schedules. The RailRiders, along with the rest of the Northeast Division teams, will exclusively play teams within the division. This leads to a schedule where SWB plays the rival Lehigh Valley IronPigs an unprecedented 36 times. The RailRiders currently lead the 2021 IronRail Series 2-1.
MARATHON MEN: The RailRiders played their longest 9-inning game in franchise history on Thursday at Syracuse, clocking in at 4:09. That surpassed the previous record of 4:04, when the then-Red Barons locked horns with the Pawtucket Red Sox on Sept. 1, 2000. Thursday's game also featured 13 walks by SWB pitchers, three shy of the club record set against Tidewater in 1991. Early in the season, it stands as the longest game in Triple-A East League history, but wasn't even the longest 9-inning game in minor league baseball on May 6. That distinction belongs to the Lake County Captains (High-A, CLE) and Lansing Lugnuts (High-A, OAK) who completed a 7-6 Captains win in 4:18. Not to be out-done, the RailRiders and Mets game on Sunday, May 9 lasted 4:03, making it the third-longest game in franchise history.
AIN'T NO PARTY LIKE A MOOSIC PARTY: Tuesday's RailRiders home opener was Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's first game at PNC Field since Game 3 of the First Round of the IL Playoffs vs. Durham on Sept. 7, 2019. The span of 612 days between games at home in NEPA is the longest in franchise history, surpassing the 577-day streak from Sept. 5, 2011 - April 4, 2013 when SWB played the entire 2012 season away from Moosic owing to renovations at PNC Field. In 2019, the RailRiders were 45-26 (.634) at home, and are 213-142 (.600) at PNC Field since the beginning of the 2015 season, and sport an average season record of approximately 42-28.
International League Stories from May 14, 2021
- Gordon and Rooker Go Deep as Saints Hang on for 4-3 Victory - St. Paul Saints
- Knights Roll Past Tides 5-1 on Friday Night - Charlotte Knights
- St. Paul Defeats Iowa, Evens Series at Two - Iowa Cubs
- Mud Hens Falter as Indians Rally in Eighth Inning - Toledo Mud Hens
- Chasers Fall Short After Clippers' Seven-Run Rally - Omaha Storm Chasers
- After Birthday Message from Family, Colon Homers Herd to Win - Buffalo Bisons
- Four-Run Eighth Caps Indians Comeback Win - Indianapolis Indians
- Redbirds Ride Hot Hitting and Pitching to Victory - Memphis Redbirds
- Garcia Homers in Wings Loss Friday - Rochester Red Wings
- Nashville Issues 10 Walks in Loss to Memphis - Nashville Sounds
- Mets Pitching Shines, But Red Sox Walk off with 2-1 Victory in Ten Innings on Friday Night - Syracuse Mets
- RailRiders Do Damage in Third Inning, Hold off 'Pigs - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
- Pigs' scramble early lead in loss to RailRiders - Lehigh Valley IronPigs
- Jacksonville Clubs Three Home Runs, Takes Seesaw Battle from Durham - Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp
- Late Homer Erases O'Brien's Strong Start in 2-1 Loss at Stripers - Louisville Bats
- Wilson Delivers First Walk-Off in Polar Park History - Worcester Red Sox
- Strasburg Scheduled to Rehab with Rochester Sunday - Rochester Red Wings
- Jacksonville Edges Durham 6-4 - Durham Bulls
- Game Information: Indianapolis Indians (4-4) vs. Toledo Mud Hens (3-5) - Indianapolis Indians
- Iowa Cubs Update COVID Protocols for Principal Park - Iowa Cubs
- Blue Jays Sign Reliever Carl Edwards Jr., Assign to Bisons - Buffalo Bisons
- Memphis Redbirds Game Notes: May 14, 2021 - Memphis Redbirds
- SWB RailRiders Game Notes - May 14, 2021 - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
- May 14 Game Notes: Iowa at St. Paul - Iowa Cubs
- Werner Park Removes Mask Requirement Per MLB Directive - Omaha Storm Chasers
- Bisons on the Attack Early in Season - Buffalo Bisons
- Facial Covering Requirements Eliminated at First Horizon Park - Nashville Sounds
- Gwinnett Stripers to Put All Remaining Games on Sale May 18 - Gwinnett Stripers
- Iowa Gets Back on Track with 7-3 Victory - Iowa Cubs
- Bulls Split Twinbill with Jumbo Shrimp - Durham Bulls
- Jacksonville, Durham Split Doubleheader Thursday - Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp
- Ober Sharp Again, But Saints Fall to I-Cubs 7-3 - St. Paul Saints
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
Other Recent Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders Stories
- Banana Ball at PNC Field in 2026
- RailRiders Add Reilly as President and GM
- SWB RailRiders News Release- Three Tabbed with 2025 Triple-A Honors
- RailRiders Fall Short in Game Three
- Jacksonville Pushes RailRiders to Game Three

