Veterans Cooper, Gassner Lead Bisons And Red Wings In Playoff Chase
Published on August 6, 2007 under International League (IL1) News Release
The International League announced today that Buffalo outfielder Jason Cooper and Rochester pitcher Dave Gassner have been named the League's Batter and Pitcher-of-the-Week for the period from July 30-August 5. Cooper becomes the third member of the Bisons to win an IL weekly award this year, joining pitcher Sean Smith (May 14-20) and third baseman Andy Marte (June 4-10). Gassner, who was also named IL Pitcher-of-the-Week in 2004 (July 5-11), follows catcher Jose Morales (April 23-29) as the only Red Wings to be so honored in 2007.
Buffalo right fielder JASON COOPER pounded out nine extra-base hits this week, one of several categories in which he led the International League. He tied for the IL-lead with 14 total hits and a .500 batting average, while also pacing the circuit with a .576 on-base percentage, a 1.071 slugging percentage, and three triples. In a single week, Cooper raised his batting average from .238 to .266 and his slugging percentage from .420 to .490. He collected multiple hits in six of the eight games in which he played, including a two-double performance on Tuesday at Syracuse and a two-triple effort Saturday at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Cooper also blasted his seventh and eighth home runs of the season with a pair of solo shots on Tuesday and Wednesday. His offensive outburst could not have come at a better time for the Herd, a team fighting to stay in the playoff hunt. Cooper's second triple Saturday night drove home Ryan Mulhern with the winning run in a 4-3 victory over division leader Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, who leads Buffalo by 2.5 games. The Bisons (61-53) are currently 3rd in the Wild Card chase behind Durham (62-53) and Rochester (63-54).
26-year-old Jason Cooper is in his fourth consecutive year as a member of the Buffalo Bisons. Cooper was a 2nd round draft selection by Cleveland in 2002 and first reached the Triple-A level in 2004. Last season he played 116 games with the Herd, hitting .228 with 13 HR and 61 RBI. Cooper is a native of Richland, WA.
It's difficult to imagine the Rochester Red Wings returning to the postseason in 2007 without the assistance of veteran lefty DAVE GASSNER, who entered the past week with a 3-12 record and a 5.74 ERA. In his last two starts Gassner turned things around for himself in a big way, allowing just one run in 14.0 innings in helping the Red Wings to a pair of crucial victories. The first came Monday night against the division leading Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. After pitching out of a 1st inning jam, Gassner retired 14 straight batters until the Yankees finally chased home a run in the 6th inning to make it a 2-1 game. Gassner fought back and stranded the tying run at third, and his bullpen held on as the Red Wings won 3-2 to give Gassner his fourth win of the year. Saturday night in Pawtucket, Gassner threw an absolute gem. With Pawtucket's Mike Burns holding the Red Wings scoreless through eight innings, Gassner kept his club in the game by matching Burns out-for-out. The game remained scoreless after eight frames; Gassner had allowed just four hits and two walks (one of which was intentional). At one point he retired 11 straight hitters. Rochester ultimately won the contest 2-1 in 10 innings. Thanks in large part to Gassner's two tremendous outings this week, the Red Wings sit just 2.0 games behind the Yankees for the IL North lead and mere percentage points behind Durham in the Wild Card chase.
28-year-old Dave Gassner is in his fourth consecutive year with the Rochester Red Wings. In 2004 he led the International League with 16 wins and was named to the IL postseason All-Star Team. He was limited to six appearances last season due to arthrogeopic surgery, going 2-0 with a 4.73 ERA. Gassner is a native of Hortonville, WI.
International League Stories from August 6, 2007
- Eighth is Great for Wings in Win - Rochester Red Wings
- Homers equal dollars for United Way - Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees
- Syracuse Earns A Series Split - Ottawa Lynx
- Wings Back on Friday to Face Yankees - Rochester Red Wings
- Bisons Game Notes - Buffalo Bisons
- Veterans Cooper, Gassner Lead Bisons And Red Wings In Playoff Chase - IL1
- Richmond Braves Online Auction To Support Massey Cancer Center - Gwinnett Stripers
- Bisons' Cooper Named IL Batter of the Week - Buffalo Bisons
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