MWL Fort Wayne TinCaps

TinCaps Game Information: August 19 at West Michigan

Published on August 19, 2021 under Midwest League (MWL)
Fort Wayne TinCaps News Release


Fort Wayne TinCaps (43-49) at West Michigan Whitecaps (44-48)

Thursday, Aug. 19 (7:05 p.m.) | LMCU Ballpark | Comstock Park, Mich. | Game 3 of 6 in Series | Road Game 45 of 60 | Game 93 of 120

LHP Danny Denz (1.46 ERA) vs. RHP Garrett Hill (2.49 ERA)

TV: MiLB.TV | Radio: 1380 The Fan & 100.9 FM / TinCapsRadio.com (John Nolan & Jack McMullen)

LAST NIGHT: The TinCaps lost to the Whitecaps, 18-6. Yorman Rodriguez hit a seventh-inning grand slam, while Ethan Skender had a second-inning RBI single that initially gave Fort Wayne a 1-0 lead. Chris Givin also drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh.

DENZ DEALING: Danny Denz hasn't allowed a run over his last 18 innings. This is tied for the 2nd longest scoreless streak in High-A Central this season. Earlier in the year, Richard Guasch threw 20.1 no-run innings for Lansing, while Beloit's Antonio Velez also recently tossed 18 consecutive scoreless. For Denz, over his last 4 starts, he's struck out 15 and limited opponents to 5 hits and 7 walks... In 2019, another TinCaps lefty, Joey Cantillo had a 19-inning scoreless stretch. With stats readily available back to 2005, the longest shutout streak by a TinCaps pitcher was 28 innings by reliever Colby Blueberg, across 17 appearances in 2015. That same season reliever Kyle McGrath set a franchise record with 40 consecutive innings without an earned run.

HILL ON THE HILL: Garrett Hill has started against the TinCaps 2 times so far this season on May 5 and July 17. Fort Wayne is just 4-for-23 against him as he has 11 strikeouts and 3 walks.

ANOTHER ONE: On Wednesday the Padres added lefty Gabe Morales to Fort Wayne's roster from Low-A Lake Elsinore. Morales is the 48th member of the squad this season, and 27th pitcher.

PLAYOFF PICTURE: We're in the final quarter of the Minor League Baseball season. The regular season ends on Sept. 19. The clubs with the 2 best records in the 12-team High-A Central will meet in a best-of-5 championship. Entering tonight, the Quad Cities River Bandits are in first place at 60-30. The Cedar Rapids Kernels have the second-best record at 51-41. The TinCaps are 8 games back of the Kernels with 28 games remaining.

PITCHING IMPROVING: Over their last 36 games since July 9, TinCaps pitchers have the lowest ERA out of all 30 teams in High-A at 3.63, as the team has gone 19-17. (Over their first 56 games, they ranked 10th/12 in High-A Central at 5.26, and had a 24-32 record.) In this time, 'Caps pitchers also have yielded the fewest homers in High-A (18).

DOUBLES LEADER: As a team, the TinCaps lead the HAC in doubles with 173. Individually, outfielder Tirso Ornelas leads the league in 2B with 26... Ornelas also has the 6th highest contact rate in the league (91%).

PATIENT APPROACH: The TinCaps trail only Wisconsin in the HAC in free passes (walks and hit by pitches), averaging about 5 per game. Fort Wayne is walking in approximately 12% of its plate appearances. The rest of the league has walked at a 10% rate. For more context, the Yankees lead MLB in BB% (10.9%). The Padres rank 4th (9.9%).

REY RUNS: Reinaldo Ilarraza ranks 5th in the HAC in stolen bases (29).

SKENDER BENDER: Infielder Ethan Skender has been on an on-base spree of late, reaching safely in 16 consecutive starts - the longest on-base streak for a TinCap this season. Since July 23, he's hit .352 with a .478 OBP and .997 OPS. Skender has 4 doubles, a triple, a homer, and 9 RBIs.

KERNER CATCHING ON: In 10 games this month, Adam Kerner is hitting .250 with a .687 OPS as he has 3 doubles, a homer, and 7 RBIs. For the year, Kerner has thrown out a league-best 23 attempted base-stealers.

CLOSE CALLS: The TinCaps are 12-6 in games decided by 1 run, and 7-10 in 2-run games... The 'Caps are 3-1 in extra-innings.

260 TO THE SHOW: 52 former Fort Wayne players have appeared in the big leagues so far this season, including All-Stars Fernando Tatis Jr. and Trea Turner. Since the franchise was founded in 1993, a total of 197 past players have ascended to The Show.

MiLB RELIEF: After losing the entirety of the 2020 Minor League Baseball season and having attendance limited to begin 2021, the TinCaps and other teams are asking fans to visit MinorLeagueBaseballRelief.com and tell Congress to support the bipartisan Minor League Baseball Relief Act.

Check out the Fort Wayne TinCaps Statistics

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