IL Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB RailRiders Game Notes - May 26, 2021

Published on May 26, 2021 under International League (IL)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


Buffalo Bisons (12-7) vs. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (13-6)

RHP Jacob Waguespack (1-1, 5.65 ERA) vs. RHP Nick Green (0-0, 4.50 ERA)

| Game 20 | Home Game 8 | PNC Field | Moosic, PA | May 26, 2021 | First Pitch 6:35 p.m. |

FAST OUT OF THE GATE: With 13 wins in 19 games, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders have kept themselves in elite company across minor league baseball. Entering play on Wednesday there are only 20 teams across minor league baseball with at least 13 wins, with only Jacksonville, Durham and Nashville at that mark among Triple-A East teams. There are five teams in the minors with 14 wins, including Yankees affiliates Somerset and Tampa. Overall, the Yankees have the best organizational record in baseball (51-25, .671), with Seattle (49-25, .662) owning the second-best record.

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 27 home runs in their first 19 games this season. The 27 round-trippers hit by SWB puts the club in a tie for third place in Triple-A East with Gwinnett, Nashville and Worcester, trailing Durham (37) and Charlotte (28). The RailRiders are tied for eighth in minor league baseball in home runs, with Salt Lake (AAA, LAA) leading the way with 41 dingers. The long ball surge has been a true team effort, as only Chris Gittens (t-14th, 4) ranks in the top 35 in home runs in Triple-A East.

WALK-A-THON: Through 19 games this season, the RailRiders have drawn 106 walks, the most in all of Triple-A baseball. No other team in the minors' highest level has taken more than 102 bases on balls (Gwinnett). Overall, the RailRiders are 7th in all of minor league baseball in walks, with Tampa (Low-A, NYY) leading the way with 126 walks. SWB's team .368 OBP is tied with Durham for best in the Triple-A East League, and ranks t-5th across all levels of the minors. There are currently four teams in Triple-A East with team OBPs of .350 or higher. Buffalo (.352) has the third-best OBP of the 20-team league. The Bisons are also slugging .445 as a team, and sport the league's third-best OPS at .798 (Durham, .875; SWB, .803).

#SQUADUP: The RailRiders received three players last week from Double-A Somerset, and all three have made meaningful impacts in their brief time with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. INFs Hoy Park, Brandon Wagner and OF Thomas Milone have combined to hit .324 (24-for-74) with 11 R, 5 2B, 1 HR, 11 RBIs, 13 BB, 22 K and 2 HBP. In last Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Rochester Red Wings, Park and Milone drove in all three SWB runs, while all three have contributed strong play on the defensive end as well.

AIN'T NO PARTY LIKE A MOOSIC PARTY: While the RailRiders have only played seven games at home this season, the team features some incredible home/road splits, especially on the pitching side. At PNC Field, SWB pitching has a 2.29 staff ERA, and is posting rates of 11.42 K/9, 4.14 BB/9 and a 1.21 WHIP. That is compared to a 5.33 ERA, 9.77 K/9, 6.57 BB/9 and a 1.56 WHIP on the road. The home run split is even more stark, with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre allowing only three home runs at home this year (0.43/G) and 16 HRs on the road (1.33/G). In 2019, the RailRiders were 45-26 (.634) at home, and are 215-144 (.599) at PNC Field since the beginning of the 2015 season, and sport an average season record of approximately 42-28.

BUFFALO BLUES: The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders will only face the Buffalo Bisons 18 times this season, tied with Rochester for the least-played opponent of the season. 12 of those games take place in the 18-game stretch from May 25 through June 13, and then the teams do not face each other again until August 31. The RailRiders do not make a trip to Buffalo this season, with the Bisons playing their home games in Trenton while the Toronto Blue Jays are taking over Sahlen Field beginning on June 1 to play their American League games for the second straight season. The Blue Jays had been playing at TD Bank Park in Dunedin, Florida during April and May while Canada has not allowed them to play in Toronto due to international travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

MARATHON MEN: After Saturday night's 9-8 win over the Rochester Red Wings took 4 hours and 6 minutes to complete, the RailRiders have played three of the four longest 9-inning games in franchise history this season. In a cruel twist, Saturday's game also included a 10-minute delay for "wet grounds" at the start of the game. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre had not played a game lasting longer than four hours since Aug. 21, 2015 against Rochester, although that game lasted 14 innings. Before this season, there had never been a four hour 9-inning game in the RailRiders era (2013 - Pres.) of SWB baseball.

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