Monday, August 31, 2009

THE FLYING TIGERS (23-36, 52-72) ... Lakeland closed out its road portion of 2009 by dropping a three-game set at Dunedin. In their last game, the Flying Tigers fell 1-0 to the Blue Jays despite holding Dunedin to just two hits. Andrew Hess allowed both hits in his 6.0 innings of work and allowed one unearned run. Newcomer Miguel Mejia worked the last two innings and held Dunedin hitless and scoreless. The loss, Lakeland’s fourth in a row and ninth in their last 10 games, left the Flying Tigers with a 5-20 record in August.

DAYTONA (27-35, 61-68) ... The Cubs are coming off a 4-2 loss to Clearwater on Sunday. Daytona is batting .251 as a team and is second in the FSL with 145 stolen bases, 50 of them by Tony Campana, who is second in the league with 50 stolen bases. Campana has stolen just three in his last 23 games. The Cubs pitching staff ranks fourth with a 3.49 ERA.

THE SERIES ... The Cubs hold an 8-6 advantage in the series this season and took two of the three games played Aug. 25-27 in Daytona. Lakeland took the middle game of the series, 7-1, while the Cubs won game one, 6-4, and game three, 8-5.

CUBS’ FIRST ROUNDER ... Daytona third baseman Josh Vitters was the Cubs’ first round pick in the 2007 Draft out of high school. He had committed to Arizona State University prior to the draft.

TWO NO-NO’S IN 13 DAYS ... Daytona posted two no-hitters in a span of 13 days in August. The first no-no came on August 15 as four pitchers combined to shutdown Dunedin in the first game of a doubleheader. That no-hitter was the Cubs’ first in 13 years. Thirteen days later, the club tossed another no-hitter as Oswaldo Martinez, who appeared in relief in the first no-hitter, and Michael Perconte combined to hold Clearwater hitless in the second game of a twin-bill. The Cubs have been on both sides of a no-hitter as Daytona was no-hit on April 28 by Evan Anundsen of Ft. Myers in nine-inning contest.

LAKELAND NO-HITTERS ... The Flying Tigers recorded a no-hitter of their own last season as Rick Porcello, Robbie Weinhardt and Cody Satterwhite combined to no-hit St. Lucie on July 19. That was the first no-hitter for Lakeland since Rob Haas tossed a nine-inning no-no on April 14, 1989. Lakeland was last no-hit on July 22, 2007 by Tampa in a seven-inning game. The club was no-hit in a nine-inning game twice in 1998.

GOOD RIDDANCE TO AUGUST ... The Flying Tigers should be thankful the dog days of August are officially over. The club managed just five wins in the month, experiencing losing streaks of six and five games as well as their current string of four straight losses. The club batted .250 for the month while pitching staff posted a 4.74 ERA.

BIRTHDAY BOYS ... Lakeland catcher Billy Alvino will celebrate his 22nd birthday on Wednesday in game two of this series. Fellow catcher Jordan Newton celebrated his 24th birthday back on Aug. 29.

WHAT YOU TALKING ABOUT, WILLIS? ... Two Flying Tiger players did have a productive August as both Josh Workman and Audy Ciriaco hit over .300 for the month. Workman led the team with a .324 mark while Ciriaco batted .317 with 10 runs batted in. Hernan Perez did his part since joining the club turning in a .288 mark at the plate in August.

MOVIN’ ON UP ... With over 20 transactions in August, fans may wish the Flying Tigers went back to the days of having the surnames on the back of their jerseys. The latest moves happened over the weekend as LHP pitcher Ryan Ketchner earned a ride to Toledo while RHP L.J. Gagnier and RHP Nolan Cain hopped on the next plane to Erie. Ketchner was 1-4 with a 4.66 ERA for Lakeland. Gagnier was 9-10 with a 3.83 ERA and was second in the FSL with 123 strikeouts while Cain, 0-1 with a 3.38, had not allowed a run in his last five outings.

JOURNEY ACROSS THE STREET ... Meanwhile, RHP Miguel Mejia, who was on the Lakeland roster on Aug. 22-24, was recalled from the Gulf Coast League, along with teammates Nolan Moody and Rayni Guichardo who will be making their first appearances with the Flying Tigers. Mejia had appeared in just one game in the GCL working 1.2 innings while Moody was 2-1 with a 2.76 ERA in 10 games (all in relief) with 18 strikeouts and five walks in 16.1 innings. Guichardo was 4-4 with a 1.73 ERA in 11 starts.

SIR CIRIACO ... Audy Ciriaco has hit safely in his last eight games, 17 of his last 18, and 20 of his last 22 games. The Flying Tiger shortstop who has played in 121 of Lakeland’s 124 games, is batting .348 (32x92) since Aug. 4. Ciriaco is tied with Jeramy Laster for the active leader on the team with 11 homers and is the overall leader with 59 runs batted in. He is currently one of just two Lakeland players in triple digits in hits (116) while leading the team in triples. He is also second in runs scored (55), doubles (17) and stolen bases (15).

THE LASTER SHALL BE FIRST ... Jeramy Laster enters this series with a nine-game hit streak in which he is 11x35 (.314). He hit homers in consecutive games on Aug. 27 and 28 to give him 35 homers in a Flying Tigers uniform. That ties him with Garth McKinney (1997-98) for the most homers in a two-year span by a Lakeland player. The all-time Lakeland record is 41 set by Leo Daigle over three seasons in 2000-02.

STREAKS SNAPPED ... With just four hits on Sunday, a couple of hitting streaks came to end for Lakeland players. Justin Henry was 8x25 (.320) before having a seven-game hit streak snapped. Maiko Loyola had a six-game steak snapped in which he was 7x21 (.333). He now has hits in 11 of his last 13 games.

FICKLED FENNEY ... Trevor Feeney has recorded 20 strikeouts in his last 10 appearances.

THE K-MAN ... Charlie Furbush has recorded four or more strikeouts in 13 of his outings this season including his last seven consecutive appearances with a season-high 10 punch-outs on July 28 against Palm Beach.

GRAHAM CRACKER ... Andrew Graham has not allowed a run in his last three outings and 5.0 innings pitched with seven strikeouts and just two walks. He has allowed just three hits in those three games.

LES IS MORE .... Lester Oliveros has given up just one earned run his last 13.2 innings over eight outings and has 18 K’s and three walks his last nine appearances.

A MARKED MAN ... Mark Sorenson tossed three-hit ball over seven innings in his last start on Aug. 26 against Daytona. He allowed just one unearned run in his best start in a Lakeland uniform.

A GLANCE AT THE TIGERS ORGANIZATION ... Thru games of Sunday, Detroit, 69-60, leads the American League Central Division by 4.5 games over Chicago and are 21 games over .500 at Comerica Park ... Toledo, 68-67, is in second place in the International League West Division and trails Louisville by 10.5 games ... Erie, 68-64, is 12.0 behind Akron in the Eastern League Southern Division ... West Michigan, 79-54, is in second place, 9.0 games behind Fort Wayne in the Midwest League Eastern Division but have clinched a play-off berth with their first-half performance ... Oneonta, 33-33, is 5.5 games behind Lowell in the New York-Penn’s Stedler Division and have lost eight straight ... The GCL Tigers, 29-29, are 3.5 games back in the North Division.

UPCOMING LAKELAND PROMOTIONS (please check the Lakeland Flying Tigers website for any last minutes changes):

Tuesday, September 1 vs. Daytona Cubs at 7:00 p.m. (Gates open at 6:00 p.m.)

The Flying Tigers will be hosting a Job Fair from 6:00-8:30 pm in the concourse area of Joker Marchant Stadium as part of unemployment night. Entrance to the job fair and game are free with a resume. Tuesday is also Baseball Wingo night sponsored by Natalie’s Sports Bar & Grill. Fans can play baseball bingo during the game for a chance win prizes from the Flying Tigers and Natalie’s.

Wednesday, September 2 vs. Daytona Cubs at 7:00 p.m. (Gates open at 6:00 p.m.)
Wednesday is All-You-Can-Eat Night sponsored by Miller’s Ale House of Lakeland. Tickets are just $10 and includes admission to the game and all-you-can-eat sliders, hot dogs, sausages, peanuts, popcorn, pretzels and chips as well as food from the Ale House from 6:00-9:00 p.m. or while supplies last.

Thursday, September 3 vs. Daytona Cubs at 7:00 p.m. (Gates open at 5:30 p.m.)
The Flying Tigers will be hosting Freedom Walk 2009 at Marchant Stadium. The Flying Tigers will be honoring our local heroes who stand in the gap providing a safe America for all of us. Admission is free to all military, law enforcement, firefighter and EMT heroes and their families. Registration begins at 5:00 p.m. with the walk beginning at 6:00 p.m. followed by the game at 7:00 p.m. Thursday is also Flying Tigers USO Night. Fans can enjoy $1 beers and sodas while the Flying Tigers will be celebrating USO night and the team will play in their special camo jerseys.

Friday, September 4 vs. Dunedin Blue Jays at 7:00 p.m. (Gates open at 6:00 p.m.)
The first 500 paid adult fans will receive a Lakeland Flying Tigers “Ace” pin. Ace is the Flying Tigers team mascot. Kids eat free at all Friday home games as well. All kids 14 and under will receive a free hot dog, soda and bag of chips with paid admission.

Saturday, September 5 vs. Dunedin Blue Jays at 6:00 p.m. (Gates open at 5:00 p.m.)
Following the game will be the final spectacular fireworks show of the season (weather permitting) sponsored by The Ledger.

Sunday, September 6 vs. Dunedin Blue Jays at 1:00 p.m. (Gates open at 12:00 p.m.)
Sunday is Family Fun Day. All kids 14 and under will receive free admission to the game. Kids can also play catch on the field before the game and run the bases after the game (weather permitting). All fans will receive a voucher for a free sundae compliments of Dairy Queen.
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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Mission Notes for Dunedin Series (Aug. 28-30)

THE FLYING TIGERS (23-34, 52-70) ... Lakeland scored twice in the of the fourth on a Jeramy Laster 2-run homer, but Dunedin answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame off starter Ryan Ketchner. That was all the scoring either side could muster. The Flying Tigers have now won just twice in their last 13 games and are 5-18 in the month of August.

DUNEDIN (29-30, 62-64) ... The Blue Jays are struggling themselves with five wins in their last 15 outings. Bradley McElroy is not struggling with nine hits in his last six games while Jesus Gonzalez is almost as strong with eight hits in those same seven games. Tyler Pastornicky has hit safely in each of his eight games since joining the club on Aug. 18. Moises Sierra is fifth in the FSL with a .289 average while pitcher Andrew Liebel ranks fourth with 118 strikeouts.

THE SERIES ... Lakeland has won eight of the 12 contests played in the series in 2009 including two of the last three and four of the last seven.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS

  • SAT., AUG. 29 - Trevor Feeney (2-5, 4.18 ERA, 3 SV) ... Has allowed 12 earned runs in last five appearances (7.36 ERA) but is 2-1 during that stint ... active team leader with three saves, but has not entered a game in a save opportunity in the month of August.
  • SUN., AUG. 30 - L.J. Gagnier (9-10, 3.83 ERA) ... Returns from a weekend stint on the temporary inactive list ... took loss at Daytona on Aug. 25, working 5.0 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K ... has 123 strikeouts and just 36 walks in 134.0 innings ... the 123 strikeouts this season is second in the FSL (10 behind the leader, David Bromberg of Ft. Myers) ... fifth highest total for any Lakeland pitcher since 1978 ... is 11 strikeouts shy of the team record of 134 held jointly by Jordan Tata (2005) and Rich Lacko (1987).

FLYING HIGH ... Audy Ciriaco is 23x62 (.371) his last 15 games and 30x84 (.357) his last 20 games ... Jeramy Laster has homered in back-to-back gamess and is 11x32 (.344) his last nine games but has struck out 15 times ... Maiko Loyola is now 14x45 (.311) his last 12 games with three doubles and a triple ... Jordan Newton has eight multi-hit games since July 17 ... Hernan Perez is 13x45 (.289) since rejoining Lakeland on Aug. 11 ... Devin Thomas has hit safely in 14 of his last 18 games with a 17x64 (.266) effort with 15 RBI ... Joe Tucker is 11x37 (.297) his last 13 games with five RBI ... Josh Workman is 13x42 (.310) with five multi-hit games and six RBI his last 12 games ... Luis Grullon struggled early, but has allowed four hits in the last five games.

THE ARMS ... Nolan Cain has not allowed a run or a walk in his last five outings and 7.1 innings. Four of his seven earned runs allowed in 13 games this season came in one outing. Toss out that game and he has a 1.62 ERA ... Trevor Feeney has allowed 12 earned runs in last five appearances (7.36 ERA) but is 2-1 during that stint ... Charlie Furbush has 29 strikeouts and nine walks his last five games ... Drew Graham has not allowed a run in his last two appearances (4.0 IP) and has eight strikeouts in last three games (7.0 IP) ... Andrew Hess has allowed 13 earned runs last five starts for a 5.40 ERA ... Matt Hoffman has recorded just two strikeouts in last four appearances - all out the bullpen ... Ryan Ketchner has allowed 15 earned runs on 38 hits in last six starts and saw his ERA drop from 10.38 to 4.66. He has 24 strikeouts with just two walks ovr his last 24.1 IP over last four starts ... Chad Linder has given up two earned runs his last six games (7.0 innings) ... Lester Oliveros has given up just one earned run his last 13.2 innings over eight outings and has 18 K’s and three walks his last nine appearances ... Mark Sorenson tossed 7.0 innings against Daytona on Aug. 26 holding the Cubs to three hits and one unearned run ... Austin Wood has not been scored upon in two outings.

HOMESTAND TO FINISH ... Once they’re finished in Dunedin, Lakelkand will return home to face Daytona for three games before closing out the season with a three-game set with Dunedin.

ON A MOUND NOT SO LONG AGO ... Flying Tiger newcomer Austin Woods’ college career may be best remembered for his outing in the 2009 NCAA Division I regional tournament. Woods, pitching for Texas, came on in relief in that game and then tossed an amazing 13 scoreless inning as the Longhorns battled Boston College in a 25-inning contest that took 7:03 to play. Woods struck out 14 batters and gave up just two hits while walking four on an incredible 169 pitches.

IT’S ALL RELATIVE ... Another new pitcher for Lakeland is Richard Zumaya. Richard’s brother, Joel, is a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers who also pitched for Lakeland this season in April on a rehab assignment.

CROWDED MOUND ... Lakeland has had 29 different players make an appearance on the mound this season. Six of them made just one appearance and then moved on (or in the case of Adrian Casanova, moved back behind the plate). The Flying Tigers’ 52 wins this season are spread among 18 different pitchers with L.J. Gagnier leading all hurlers with nine wins, 134.0 innings pitched and 123 strikeouts.

LASTER MOVES UP ONE NOTCH ... With home runs in back-to-back games, Jeramy Laster moves into a tie with Garth McKinney (1997-98) for second place on the all-time Lakeland home run list with 35 home runs over the last two seasons. Unless Laster goes on a Roy Hobb-type pace, he fall shy of the team record of 41 clubbed by Leo Daigle over the 2000-02 seasons.

GAGNIER REMAINS IN FIFTH PLACE ... L.J. Gagnier has 123 strikeouts this season to rank fifth on Lakeland’s single-season strikeout list. He now trails Rich Monteleone (124 in 1983); Daune Below (126 in 2008); and Jose Lima (132 in 1992). The record of 134 is held jointly by Jordan Tata (2005) and Rich Lacko (1987).

QUICK GLANCE INSIDE THE NUMBERS ... Lakeland is 34-15 when scoring first; 10-23 in one-run games; and 2-4 in extra innings.

IT’S ALL RELATIVE - JAYS STYLE ... Dunedin’s Vincent Bongiovanni is a relative of Yankee great, Joe DiMaggio.

FIRST ROUNDER ... While Lakeland had its share of first round picks on recent roster, the Blue Jays boast Toronto’s first round pick of the 2007 draft (16th pick overall) in third baseman Kevin Ahrens.

OH, CANADA ... Blue Jay outfielder Adam Loewen hails from Vancouver, British Columbia and in 2002 became just the fourth Canadian ever selected in the first round in the first round of the Draft.

NO NOTE, JUST LIKE THE NAME ... One of the all-time great baseball names belongs to Dunedin pitcher, Boomer Potts.

A GLANCE AT THE TIGERS ORGANIZATION ... Detroit, 68-59, leads the American League Central Division by 5.0 games over Chicago and are 21 games over .500 at Comerica Park ... Toledo, 68-65, is in second place in the International League West Division and trails Louisville by 9.0 games despite going 8-3 their last 11 games ... Erie, 67-63, is 12.0 behind Akron in the Eastern League Southern Division ... West Michigan, 78-53, is in second place, 9.0 games behind Fort Wayne in the Midwest League Eastern Division but have clinched a play-off berth with their first-half performance ... Oneonta, 33-31, is 4.0 games behind Lowell in the New York-Penn’s Stedler Division and have lost six straight ... The GCL Tigers, 28-29, are 7.0 games back in the North Division.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Mission Notes at Daytona (Aug. 25-28)

THE FLYING TIGERS (22-31, 51-67) ... Lakeland dropped a doubleheader to Tampa in their last action on Sunday losing 3-1 and 10-3. The Flying Tigers have now dropped four straight, eight of their last nine, and nine of their last 13 games. Lakeland opponents are batting .347 the last five games while Flying Tigers starting pitchers have a 7.74 ERA over the last nine games and the bullpen has a 3.19 mark.

DAYTONA (24-31, 58-64) ... The Cubs are coming off a four-game split with Brevard County taking the last two games, including an 11-2 win on Sunday. The top four batters in the Daytona line-up were a combined 9x19 with eight runs scored and five runs batted in. Brandon Guyer is 15x33 (.455) his last nine games. Tony Campana is second in the FSL with 48 stolen bases. OF Josh Vitters was the Cub’s first round pick (3rd overall) in the 2007 draft.

THE SERIES ... These clubs have played each other 11 times this season with Daytona holding a slim 6-5 edge. This is the first time they have met since playing five games in three days in Lakeland to end the first half. Lakeland will play these four games in Daytona and then host the Cubs for a three-game set on Sept. 1-3.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
• TUE., AUG. 26 - Mark Sorenson (0-1, 11.49) ... surrendered at least four earned runs in each of his four outings ... allowed at least seven hits in each outing ... been homered against in each outing including two dingers in each of his last two starts ... worked past 4.1 innings just once - that in his only loss (5.2 IP vs. Clearwater on Aug. 13) ... gave up 10 hits in his first outing on Aug. 2 (3.1 IP) and 12 in his last outing on Aug. 19 (4.1), but did not factor in either decision ... worked 4.1 innings, allowing five earned runs, 12 hits (including two homers) with three strikeouts and 1 walk in last start on Aug. 19 vs. Clearwater (did not factor in decision).
• WED., AUG. 27 - Charlie Furbush (6-6, 3.65) ... surrendered 11 earned runs in last 27 IP over six outings (3.66 ERA) ... struck out season-high 10 batters on July 28 vs. Palm Beach ... has 15 strikeouts and seven walks last three games ... is 4-2 at home and 2-4 on the road ... winless in August ... worked 3.0 IP, allowing three runs, all earned, on four hits, while striking out five and walking three in last start on Aug. 20 at Tampa ... did not factor in the decision.
• THU., AUG. 28 - Andrew Hess (6-10, 3.62) ... allowed 13 earned runs last five starts for a 5.40 ERA ... worked 7.1 IP in longest outing on July 9 at Dunedin ... has lost two of last three starts ... has not won or last back-to-back starts since early June ... six of his seven homers allowed have been on the road ... worked 5.2 IP in loss at Tampa on Aug. 22 and allowed 13 hits with six earned runs with two strikeouts and two walks.
• FRI., AUG. 29 - Ryan Ketchner (1-3, 4.68) ... allowed 12 earned runs on 33 hits in last five starts and saw his ERA drop from 10.38 to 4.68 ... has struck out 18 batters and walked just two his last 18.1 IP over last three starts ... each of his four decisions have been in home games ... worked 6.0 IP and allowed two earned runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and no walks in loss on Aug. 23 in last start at Tampa.

NEW CREW MEMBERS ... The revolving door known as the Flying Tigers roster has been getting a workout as of late. Earning promotions have been IF Max Leon (AAA) and OF Chris White (AA) while RHP L.J. Gagnier was placed on the temporary inactive list. Miguel Mejia, Gary Perinar and Richard Zumaya, all right-handed pitchers, were sent back to GCL after one appearance for Lakeland. Joining the club are: Jordan Cruz, an outfielder up from the GCL and LHP Matt Hoffman who comes off the DL. Cruz, who played his college ball at Kansas State, was batting .265 with six homers and 29 RBI with the Gulf Coast team. An undrafted free agent signed this summer by Detroit, Cruz hit .324 with 11 homers and 52 RBI as a senior for the Wildcats. Matt Hoffman who comes off the disabled list where he has been since Aug. 5. Hoffman was 3-6 with a 6.75 ERA in 12 appearances before being placed on the DL.

FLYING HIGH ... Audy Ciriaco is 16x45 (.356) his last 11 games and 23x67 (.343) his last 16 games ... Jeramy Laster is 6x15 (.400) his last five games but has struck out eight times with no extra base hits or RBIs ... Maiko Loyola is now 10x33 (.303) his last nine games with two doubles and a triple ... Jordan Newton has eight multi-hit games since July 17. He is batting .323 at home and .203 on the road ... Hernan Perez is 9x28 (.321) since rejoining Lakeland on Aug. 11 ... Devin Thomas has hit safely in 12 of his last 15 games with a 15x54 (.278) effort with 12 RBI ... Joe Tucker is 9x29 (.310) his last 10 games with five RBI ... Josh Workman is 11x33 (.333) with four multi-hit games and five RBI his last nine games.

GROUNDED ... Adrian Casanova is 2x21 (.095) his last seven games ... Luis Grullon is 2x24 (.083) since joining Lakeland on July 24 ... Justin Henry is 7x44 (.159) with eight strikeouts his last 11 games.

THE ARMS ... Four of Nolan Cain’s seven earned runs allowed in 12 games this season came in one outing. Toss out that game and he has a 1.69 ERA ... Charlie Furbush has 25 strikeouts and seven walks his last four games ... Lester Oliveros has given up just one earned run his last 11.2 innings over seven outings and has 15 K’s and three walks his last eight appearances.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? ... Mauricio Robles, now with the High Desert Mavericks in the California League, is 2-1 with a 2.66 in four games played for the Mariners’ Class A affiliate. He has not allowed a run in his last two starts (each 7.0 IP) allowing just four hits with 17 strikeouts ... Brett Jacobson is 0-2 with a 8.10 ERA for the Orioles’ Class A Ffrederick Keys in the Carolina League.

FORMER FLYING TIGER WEBER TOSSES NO-HITTER ... Thad Weber, who began the 2009 campaign with Lakeland, faced two batters over the minimum and struck out ten in throwing a no-hitter in Erie’s 16-0 rout over Akron on Saturday. It was the first no-hitter thrown by an Erie pitcher since 1995. Weber was 4-4 with a 2.13 ERA at Lakeland before being promoted to Erie in June. Other former Flying Tigers gave Weber some offensive support as Jeff Kunkel, who was behind the plate for Weber’s gem, added a homer and four RBI as did Michael Bertram while Diek Scram fell a triple shy of the cycle while driving in two runs and scoring three times.

GM NAMED TO COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP TEAM ... Flying Tigers General Manager Zach Burek has been named to the Lakeland Area Chamber of Commerce’s 27th class of Leadership Lakeland. The annual group was created to identify and develop diverse future leadership for Lakeland and the Chamber of Commerce, and to motivate these potential leaders for community and chamber involvement and decision making.

A GLANCE AT THE ORGANIZATION ... Detroit, 66-58, leads the American League Central Division by 3.5 games over Chicago and are 20 games over .500 at Comerica Park ... Toledo, 67-63, is in second place in the International League West Division and trails Louisville by 8.5 games despite going 8-2 their last 10 games ... Erie, 66-60, is 11.5 behind Akron in the Eastern League Southern Division and is also 20 games over .500 in home games ... West Michigan, 76-51, is in second place, 8.0 games behind Fort Wayne in the Midwest League Eastern Division ... Oneonta, 33-28, is 1.5 games behind Lowell in the New York-Penn’s Stedler Division ... The GCL Tigers, 26-28, are 5.0 games back in the North Division.

FLYING TIGERS TO HOST JOB FAIR ... Lakeland is hosting a Job Fair in conjunction with its Sept. 1 game. Entrance is free with a resume to the job fair and game. The event will run from 6-8:30 p.m.
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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Mission Notes at Tampa (Aug. 20-23)

THE FLYING TIGERS (22-27, 51-63) ... After scoring just four runs in three prior games, Lakeland erupted for 10 tallies to post a 10-7 win over Clearwater on Wednesday and snap a four-game losing streak. Devin Thomas led Lakeland with a 2x3 effort at the plate including a homer and four runs batted in. Chris White also had a pair of hits and also homered.

TAMPA (36-14, 66-51) ... Tampa leads the North Division by five games over Brevard County (Wednesday’s game against Daytona in Tampa was cancelled due to lightning) ... Walter Ibarra is 9x21 (.429) his last six games and had four games in a row during that stretch with two hits each ... Brandon Laird has hits in 10 of his last 11 games (14x37, .378) with three doubles, a triple, three homers and 11 runs batted in ... Luis Nunez is 13x32 (.406) with three doubles and a pair of home runs his last nine games ... Jack Rye is 12x19 (.632) his last seven games ... The Yankees are batting .271 in their last 10 games and .314 in their last five contests.

THE SERIES ... These two clubs have played each other 16 times this season with Tampa holding a 9-7 edge. The Yankees have won three straight in the series.

BACK AND FORTH ... In a quirk of the FSL schedule, these two clubs will head back and fourth over the next four nights, playing games one and three in Tampa on Thursday and Saturday and games two and four in Lakeland on Friday and Sunday.

IT’S ALL RELATIVE ... Brandon Romine, the Yankees second round pick in the 2007 Draft is the son of former Major League outfielder Kevin Romine (Boston, 1985-1991).

BARKETT EJECTED TUESDAY ... Lakeland manager Andy Barkett was tossed in the third inning of Monday’s game by plate umpire Matthew Pridemore. It is Barkett’s fourth ejection of the season - all coming on the road. He has not been ejected in a home game since May 29, 2008.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS ...

THU @ TPA - CHARLIE FURBUSH (6-6, 3.49) ... Has surrendered just two earned runs his last three official starts for a 1.49 ERA ... has 20 strikeouts and four walks in those three games ... season-high 10 strikeouts in 6.0 innings pitched on July 28 against Palm Beach ... 4-2 at home and 2-4 on the road ... allowed one run on four hits in 4.2 innings with six strikeouts and one walk in last start at Brevard County (did not factor into the decision).

FRI @ LAK - ANDREW HESS (6-9, 3.30) ... Has given up seven earned runs in his last four starts for a 3.94 ERA ... does not have a strikeout in his last two starts ... gave up one run on three hits in four innings pitched in last start on Aug. 10 at Brevard County (did not factor into the decision).

SAT @ TPA - RYAN KETCHNER (1-2, 5.06) ... Has allowed 12 earned runs his last four starts and dropped his ERA 3.38 points to 5.06 after posting a 10.38 mark in his first three games ... gave up four earned runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts and two walks in 6.1 innings in loss vs. Clearwater at home on Aug. 17.

SUN @ LAK - L.J. GAGNIER (9-9, 3.77) ... Second in the FSL with 118 strikeouts n 129.0 innings pitched with 38 walks ... has lost three straight ... is 5-2 at home and 4-7 on the road ... allowed four runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and one walk over 7.0 innings pitched on Aug. 18 at Clearwater.

EIGHT IS ENOUGH ... Lakeland has just eight home games left in the 2009 season. The Flying Tigers close out the season with a six-game homestand in September.

GAGNIER MOVES UP ... With his six strikeouts on Tuesday, L.J. Gagnier now has the sixth most strikeouts for any Lakeland pitcher since 1978. He is only the third Lakeland pitcher this decade to reach 118 strikeouts and now sets his sights on catching Brian Powell (1997) and Greg Whiteman (1996) who each struck out 122 batters. The Lakeland record of 134 is co-held by Jordan Tata (2005) and Rick Lacko (1987).

FLYING HIGH ... Audy Ciriaco is 13x29 (.448) his last seven games and 20x51 (.392) his last 12 games ... Maiko Loyola is now 8x27 (.296) his last seven games ... Jordan Newton has eight multi-hit games since July 17 including three in his last six games ... Hernan Perez is 5x13 (.385) since rejoining Lakeland on Aug. 11 ... Devin Thomas has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games with a 14x44 (.318) effort with 11 RBI.

THE ARMS ... Four of Nolan Cain’s seven earned runs allowed in 11 games this season came in one outing. Toss out that game and he has a 1.94 ERA ... Charlie Furbush has surrendered just two earned runs his last three official starts for a 1.49 ERA. He has 20 strikeouts and four walks in those three games ... Lester Oliveros has given up just one earned run his last 10.2 innings over six outings and has 14 K’s and three walks his last seven appearances.

TAMPA PROMOTIONAL LINE-UP ... The first 250 paid fans to Thursday’s game receive a free Yankees Lunch Box ... Saturday’s game is billed as Jimmy Buffet Tribute Night - Save the Manatees.

LAKELAND PROMOTIONAL HIGHLIGHTS ... The first 500 paid fans on Friday at Lakeland will receive a free Ace (mascot) Pin while kids can enjoy special themed contests and promotions ... Sunday is Family Fun Day. Kids receive free admission and can play catch on the field before the game and run the bases after the game while all fans receive a free sundae from Dairy Queen.

ROBERTO’S KIDS ... Founded by the family of the late Roberto Clemente, this organization collects baseball equipment to help start youth baseball leagues in poverty stricken countries throughout Latin America. Fans are encouraged to donate their old baseball equipment and uniforms to Joker Marchant this worthy cause.

BACK TO SCHOOL ... The Flying Tigers are asking fans to donate school supplies for needy Polk County children. They will a collection bin at the main gate for donations.

A GLANCE AT THE ORGANIZATION ... Detroit, 63-55, leads the American League Central Division by three games over Chicago ... Toledo, 63-52, is in second place in the International League West Division and trails Louisville by 9-1/2 games ... Erie, 63-56, is 10.5 behind Akron in the Eastern League Southern Division ... West Michigan, 74-48, is 7.0 games behind Fort Wayne in the Midwest League Eastern Division standings ... Oneonta, 30-25, is tied for first place with Lowell in the New York-Penn’s Stedler Division ... The GCL Tigers, 22-28, are in last place on the North Division.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Mission Notes vs. Clearwater (8/16-18)

THE FLYING TIGERS ... Lakeland enters this home-away-home series with Clearwater with the same record it entered the most recent Brevard County series as rain washed out the entire three-game set with the Manatees. All three of those game are lost to schedule as the two clubs do not meet again in 2009. The Flying Tigers are 21-25 in the second half and 50-61 overall.

CLEARWATER ... The Threshers are coming off a 9-6 loss to Tampa on Sunday and now stand at 24-24 in the second half and 56-58 overall. Against the Yankees, Clearwater held a 2-0 lead after four innings, but watched Tampa scored nine times in the fifth thru eighth innings. It was the Threshers second straight loss and eighth in their last 14 games. Clearwater is 11 games behind division-leading Tampa which is 34-12. The Threshers have the league’s fifth-best hitting team with a .252, but the team ERA of 3.88 ranks second to last.

THE SERIES .. The two clubs have met 13 previous times with the Threshers winning eight of those contests, including the last two.

YOU LOOK FAMILIAR ... The last time Lakeland played a full game was against these same Clearwater Threshers last Thursday.

NAYLOR’S TIGER CONNECTION ... Thresher pitcher Drew Naylor’s father played for the Tigers. That is, he played rugby for the Balmain Tigers.

GAGNIER SEEKING TENTH WIN ... L.J. Gagnier is currently 9-8 on the year and needs just one more win to become just the sixth Lakeland pitcher this decade to reach double digits in victories joining Jordan Tata (13 in 2005), Jonah Nickerson (12 in 2008), Nate Bumstead (12 in 2005), Burke Badenhop (10 in 2007) and Preston Larrison (10 in 2002). The modern-era record for Lakeland is held by Mike Chris who was 18-5 for the 1977 Lakeland Tigers.

CIRIACO MINUS TWO ... Shortstop Audy Ciriaco has been a mainstay for Lakeland having played in 109 of the Flying Tigers’ 111 games. His longevity has helped put him in the team lead with 55 runs batted in.

BATTLE FOR RUNS LEAD ... Currently, Justin Henry leads Lakeland with 52 runs scored but Audy Ciriaco is close behind with 50 trips across the plate. Chris White and Jordan Newton are tied for third with 35 runs.

FLIP-FLOP FOR HITS LEAD ... Audy Ciriaco leads Lakeland with 100 hits while Justin Henry is second with 93 hits. Michael Bertram still ranks third with 82 hits, despite being promoted to AA Erie on July 24.

NEWTON FOR TWO ... Catcher Jordan Newton is the active Lakeland leader with 19 doubles in 2009. His total is tied with Michael Betram (now at AA Erie) for the overall lead.

DOUBLE DIGIT DINGERS ... Lakeland’s has three players with 10 or more homers, but only Audy Ciriaco is currently active with the club. The overall leader Chris Carlson went on the DL on August 11 with a wrist injury and is probably lost for the season while Michael Bertram (now at AA) is tied with Ciriaco at 10 homers.

MOTHER NATURE 3, LAKELAND 0 ... Mother nature washed out the three-game Brevard County series over the weekend. Friday night’s game was called after an hour and a half and scheduled for a doubleheader Saturday at 5 p.m. Saturday’s first game got underway as scheduled, but called in the top of the second and then eventually the night was wiped out due to unplayable conditions. Sunday’s doubleheader was scheduled for 4 p.m. and again got underway on time, but unrelenting rain caused the cancellation with the game in the bottom of the third. Three days less than three innings played. Ah, the FSL in August.

BABY, THE RAIN MUST FALL ... Lakeland has now had 22 dates postponed or washed out this season, including 13 home contests.

10 AND COUNTING ... Including tonight’s contest, Lakeland has just 10 home games left, including just four in August. Lakeland closes out the season with a six-game homestand in September.

PROMOTIONAL HIGHLIGHTS ... In addition to the usual week-day promotions, the Flying Tigers have a couple of special events in the days ahead. August 19 will be the regular Wednesday night All-You-Can-Eat event featuring Tigertown Catering. The first 500 paid fans on Friday, August 21 will receive a free Ace (mascot) Pin while kids can enjoy special themed contests and promotions.

ROBERTO’S KIDS ... Founded by the family of the late Roberto Clemente, this organization collects baseball equipment to help start youth baseball leagues in poverty stricken countries throughout Latin America. Fans are encouraged to donate their old baseball equipment and uniforms to this worthy cause.

BACK TO SCHOOL ... The Flying Tigers are asking fans to donate school supplies for needy Polk County children. They will a collection bin at the main gate for donations.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Mission Notes at Brevard County (Aug. 14-16)

THE FLYING TIGERS ... Lakeland enters this series having dropped nine of the last 12 games, including a 6-2 loss last night in Clearwater, to stand at 21-25 in the second half and 50-61 overall. Lakeland is 31-34 against Northern Division teams and have a 25-29 record at Joker Marchant Stadium.

BREVARD COUNTY ... The Manatees downed Dunedin, 5-4, in ten innings last night winning the game on a sacrifice fly by Lee Haydel in the bottom of the tenth. With the win, Brevard County is 5-1/2 games behind Tampa for the race to the second half championship. Overall, the Manatees hold the league’s best record at 67-41 and are 40-23 in the division and 34-17 on the road. Brevard County leads the FSL with a 2.73 team ERA and 854 strikeouts and is second with a .265 batting average.

TOP HITTER AND BASE STEALER ... The Manatees boast the league’s top hitter in outfielder Logan Schafer, who is hitting .307 entering the series, and the league’s top base stealer in Erie Farris, who has 57 stolen bases so far, nine more than the next guy.

MANATEES HAVE ARMS? ... The club also boast two of the FSL’s best pitchers in Amuary Rivas (11-6, 2.87) and Evan Anundsen (8-8, 2.92), who rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in terms of earned run average. Rivas’ 11 wins is third best in the FSL.

THE SERIES .. The two clubs have met 14 times prior to this series with the Manatees holding an 8-6 advantage. Lakeland has just a .214 batting average over the 14-game series while posting a respectable 3.34 earned run average. Meanwhile, Brevard County is batting .278 with a 2.33 ERA. Flying Tiger Chad Linder has two wins in 5.2 innings of relief work while shortstop Audy Ciriaco has three homers and 10 RBI in the series. Manatee pitcher Evan Anundsen is 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA vs. Lakeland.

FSL-RECORD TYING GRAND SLAM ... Audy Ciriaco homered in the sixth inning with the bases loaded on Wednesday night at Clearwater in the continuation of a suspended game from July 7. It was Ciriaco’s third grand slam of the season, tying a Florida State League record held by five others. The last player to hit three grand slams was Anthony Raglani for Vero Beach in 2005.

GAGNIER’S GEM ... L.J. Gagnier started a game way back on July 7 at Clearwater and had a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning before rains forced the suspension of that game. When the date came to resume the game on Aug. 12, it was Gagnier’s turn in the rotation, so he went back to the mound. In all, Gagnier tossed his second complete game of the season holding the Threshers to one unearned run on five hits while striking out eight and walking two.

A QUIRK OF THE BASEBALL RULES ... When is a game not played on the actual day it was played? When it’s a suspended game. Since the Lakeland/Clearwater game was suspended on July 7 and then finished on Aug. 12, all of the statistics from that game are logged as having taken place on the date the game had begun. So, in other words, Audy Ciriaco’s grand slam and L.J. Gagnier’s complete game on Wednesday will go into the books as having been hit back on July 7. Any questions? Ask Yogi.

ATTENDANCE UP ... Lakeland is averaging 949 fans per game this season. Last year, the club average 840 per game for the year.

AWESOME AUDY ... Shortstop Audy Ciriaco had hit safely in his last six games (10x27) and nine of his last ten (16x42) with two doubles, one home run.

DING DONG ... Clearwater set the tone for Thursday’s 6-2 win over the Flying Tigers with a pair of homers in the fourth inning off Mark Sorenson. Cody Overbeck hit a two-run homer for the Threshers on a 2-1 offering by Sorenson while Gus Milner sent the next pitch deep as well for a 3-0 lead.

LASTER MOVES UP A NOTCH ... Jeramy Laster hit his ninth homer of the season on Aug. 11 to give him 33 for his two-year Lakeland career and now ranks fourth on the Flying Tiger’s all-time career home run list. He trails Alejandro Freire who hit 34 homers in 1997-98, Garth McKinney who had 35 round-trippers in 2006-06 and Leo Daigle, who holds the franchise record with 41 dingers over the 2000-02 seasons.

GAGNIER MOVES INTO TOP TEN ... With his eight strikeouts on July 7/Aug. 12, L.J. Gagnier now has 112 punch-outs this season, which is the ninth highest total for a Lakeland pitcher (since 1978). Gagnier is currently tied for Justin Bettencourt (1997) for the ninth spot. The Lakeland record is 134 held jointly by Jordan Tata (2005) and Rich Lacko (1987).

13 AND COUNTING ... Including tonight’s contest, Lakeland has just 13 home games left, including just eight in August. Lakeland closes out the season with a six-game homestand in September.

CARLSON ON DL ... Chris Carlson, who ranks second in the FSL with 13 homers, has been placed on the disabled list with an arm injury suffered back on Aug. 5.

NEW CREW MEMBER ... To help fill the roster spot voided by Chris Carlson’s move to the disabled list, Detroit promoted Hernan Perez from West Michigan to Lakeland. Perez has responded by collecting five hits in four games so far with a pair of doubles and four runs batted in.

ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERS ... Andrew Hess (3.30 ERA), Mark Sorenson (3.47), Charlie Furbush (3.49) and L.J. Gagnier (3.69) all rank in the top ten in terms of ERA among all of Detroit’s minor leaguers. Gagnier is second with 112 strikeouts, two behind West Michigan’s Casey Crosby.

PROMOTIONAL HIGHLIGHTS ... Friday’s game will feature happy hour from 6-7:30 p.m. with free samples of Select 55, Budweiser’s new lager, available while supplies last. The first 500 paid fans at Friday’s game will receive a free second-half team photo. Friday is also “Bark in the Park” co-sponsored by the SPCA. Saturday is Elvis Night with a special appearance by “The King”. The Flying Tigers have also partnered with the ALS Society to help educate fans and bring awareness to “Lou Gehrig’s Disease” on Saturday, which is also Prostate Awareness Night at Marchant Stadium.

BACK TO SCHOOL ... The Flying Tigers are asking fans to donate school supplies for needy Polk County children. They will a collection bin at the main gate for donations.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Mission Notes vs. Clearwater (8/11-13)

THE FLYING TIGERS ... Audy Ciriaco went 3-for-4 and belted a two-run homer in the top of the fifth inning to break a 1-1 tie and lift Lakeland to a 3-1 win at Brevard County in the series finale on Monday. After Andrew Hess held the Manatees to one run on three hits in four innings, Lester Oliveros and Brett Jacobson combined to hold Clearwater to just a pair of hits over the final five innings to secure the win. Lakeland is now 19-23 in the second half and 48-59 overrall. The Flying Tigers are 10th with a .246 average and ninth with a 3.84 staff ERA.

CLEARWATER ... The Threshers downed Tampa, 7-2, last night behind a complete game four-hitter by Drew Naylor. It is Naylor’s third complete game of the season, a total which leads the league. The victory was just the third in the last nine games for Clearwater and improved their second half mark to 21-20 and pulls them to within 9.0 games of division-leading Tampa. Overall, the Threshers are 53-54 on the year. The team ranks seventh with a .251 batting average and 10th with a 3.85 team ERA.

THE SERIES .. These two clubs have faced each other nine times this season with the Threshers winning six of those games. The Flying Tigers played a little home-run derby in the game on July 5 as Chris Carlson, Devin Thomas, Michael Bertram and Audy Ciriaco all homered in a losing cause in the 10-6 Clearwater win. The next night the long-ball continued as Bertram clubbed Lakeland’s third grand slam of the season while Carlson added his second round-tripper of the series. Lakeland has batted .283 in the series with Clearwater batting .280 in the nine games. The Flying Tiger pitching staff has a 4.86 ERA against the Threshers while forcing the Clearwater staff into a 5.09 ERA.

ONE-GAME HOMESTAND ... Tonight is the first of four one-game homestands in August for the Flying Tigers as they concentrate on near-by Northern Division opponents. Games two and three against the Threshers will be played in Clearwater on Aug. 12 and 13, respectively. Lakeland is also at home for a single game on Aug. 19 against Clearwater once again and Aug. 21 and 23 against Tampa.

THRESHER REHABBER ... J.C. Romero is on a major league rehab assignment for Philadelphia trying to recuperate from a strained left forearm that has had him on the disabled list since July 20. Romero missed the first 50 games of the season serving a suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s policy against performance-enhancing substances.

BIGGEST COMEBACK OF THE SEASON ... Lakeland has not had much luck when falling behind its opponents but proved otherwise on Saturday in the opening game of the Brevard County series. With Mark Sorenson struggling in his second outing as a Flying Tiger, the Manatees raced to a 4-0 lead after just three frames. Lakeland came back with a pair of runs on a RBI-double by Justin Henry and a run-scoring single by Max Leon. After Brevard County answered with a solo run in the sixth, Lakeland erupted for a six-run seventh inning as Audy Ciriaco, Leon, Devin Thomas, and Adrian Casanova each singled to drive in runs. The Flying Tigers also took advantage of a Manatee error, two walks and a hit batsman to record their biggest comeback win of the year.

LETHAL LINDER ... Chad Linder tossed two innings of relief at Brevard County in the opening game of the series on Saturday and recorded strikeouts for each of his six outs.

MANATEE PAYBACK ... On May 16, Audy Ciriaco hit a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift Lakeland to a 10-6 win over Brevard County. On Sunday, Aug. 9, Steffan Wilson returned the favor, hitting a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 10th to lift the Manatees to a 6-2 victory over Lakeland.

A FIRST FOR COLEMAN ... Lakeland pitching coach Joe Coleman was ejected in the sixth inning of Sunday’s game at Brevard County by home plate umpire Jordan Ferrell. It was the first time Coleman had been ejected in his career at Lakeland.

FSL RANKINGS ... Chris Carlson remains in a three-way tie for second place with 13 home runs as none of the league leaders have gone deep in some time. Ft. Myers’ Chris Palmelee remains stuck in the lead with 14 dingers ... L.J. Gagnier is fifth with 104 strikeouts and trails the league leader David Bromberg of Ft. Myers by nine strikeouts.

14 AND COUNTING ... Including tonight’s contest, Lakeland has just 14 home games left, including just eight left in August. The Flying Tigers close out the 2009 season with a six-game homestand in September.

SCHEDULE CHANGE FOR AUG. 12 GAME AT CLEARWATER ... The Flying Tigers will continue a suspended game on Aug. 12 at Clearwater at 5 p.m. Lakeland was leading the game 1-0 in the fourth inning back on July 7 before rains forced the suspension. The game will pick up at that point and played out to a scheduled nine innings with a seven-inning contest to follow.

LOVE AND THEFT ... The country band Love and Theft will be featured in a post-game concert following Lakeland’s game at Clearwater on Thursday night.

JACOBSON-SATIONAL ... Brett Jacobson has five saves in his last six outings and has not allowed a run in 7.1 innings over those six games.

FLYING HIGH ... Max Leon has had hits in each of his last four games and is 5x13 (.385) during the streak ... Audy Ciriaco is 11x29 (.379) with five RBI over the last seven games ... Justin Henry is 7x19 (.368) over the last five games ... Joe Tucker is 14x45 (.311) since July 28 ... Adrian Casanova is 5x18 (.277) with five runs batted in over his last five games ... Devin Thomas is on a six-game hit streak in which he is 7x26 (.269).

GROUNDED ... Jordan Newton had lifted his average to .274 on Aug. 7 but has gone 0x9 his last three games ... Jeramy Laster is 1x24 (.042) with 12 strikeouts his last nine games ... Luis Grullon is still looking for his first hit as a Flying Tiger having gone 0x16 in his first eight games in a Lakeland uniform.

THE COMMANDER … Andy Barkett is in his second season with Lakeland with a 115-129 record (67-70 in year one). In his rookie season as manager, he led Oneonta to a 44-32 record in the New York-Penn League in 2007.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Mission Notes at Brevard County (Aug. 8-10)

THE FLYING TIGERS ... Lakeland dropped its sixth straight game on Saturday, falling 2-1 to Tampa. The Flying Tigers got seven strong innings from starter L.J. Gagnier who worked 7.0 innings holding the Yankees to three hits while striking out five. Justin Henry provided the lone offensive spark with a pair of hits, but left the game in the sixth after attempting to break up a double play. Lakeland is 17-22 in the second half and 46-58 overall. It was Lakeland’s 31st game of the season decided by one-run. Lakeland is ninth in the Florida State League with a .247 team batting average and also ninth with a 3.83 team ERA.

BREVARD COUNTY ... While the Manatees may be in second place in the North Division with a 24-14 record, they own the league’s best overall record at 64-38. Winners of the first half by 7-1/2 games over Daytona, Brevard County will be gunning for its 1000th franchise win this weekend as the club enters their series against Lakeland with 998 all-time wins. The Manatees sport the league’s second best team batting average at .263 while leading the league with a 2.74 team ERA. The also lead the league with 165 stolen bases, 33 more than the second place team. The Manatee pitching staff has combined for 17 shutouts, tops in the FSL.

THE SERIES .. These two clubs have met 11 times this season with the Manatees winning seven of those games. The most memorable game for Lakeland came on May 17 as Audy Ciriaco clubbed a walk-off grand slam to lift Lakeland to a 10-6 win. It was Ciriaco’s second homer of the game and the Lakeland shortstop finished with seven runs batted in.

ALL-TIME LAKELAND WINS? ... The Lakeland franchise was a charter member of the Florida State League in 1919 as the thenLakeland Highlanders and played in the FSL until 1926 before joining the Florida International League. Lakeland rejoined the FSL in 1953-55 as the Pilots, played one season as the Lakeland Giants in 1960 and the Lakeland Indians in 1962, before becoming a Detroit affiliate in 1963. Overall, the Lakeland franchise has won 3,664 games (entering this weekend) with 2,915 victories coming as a member of the Detroit organization.

YOUR EYES DID NOT DECEIVE YOU ... Fans paying close attention to Friday’s home game against Tampa may have thought their eyes were paying tricks on them while watching Yankee reliever Pat Venditte, who came on in relief in the seventh inning. Venditte, the only ambidexterous pitcher in professional baseball this season, faced ten batters pitching left-handed and then pitched right-handed to the other five he faced.

EVAN THE GREAT ... Brevard County pitcher Evan Anundsen wasted little time announcing his presence with authority this season tossing the league’s first no-hitter in 2009 in just his fourth start stifling Daytona with ten strikeouts on April 28. The 6’3” righty earned the FSL Pitcher of the Week honors for his effort and earned the award once again on June 22.

SPEAKING OF P.O.W.s ... In addition to the two FSL Pitcher of the Week honors mentioned for Evan Anundsen, Brevard County teammates Robert Wooten, Jeremy Jeffress, and Amaury Rivas have likewise garnered the FSL’s top weekly hurler award while third baseman Zelous Wheeler and outfielder Caleb Gindl picked up the league’s first two Player of the Week honors this season.

GAGNIER REMAINS IN FSL TOP FIVE ... L.J. Gagnier’s five strikeouts in his outing on Saturday put him over the century mark in strikeouts in 2009 and allowed him to remain in fifth place in the FSL with 104 strikeouts. He trails the league leader, Ft. Myers’s David Bromberg, by nine K’s. With his 104 punch-outs, he becomes the 29th Lakeland pitcher since 1978 to record triple digits in strikeouts in a single season. Jordan Tata (2005) and Rich Lacko (1987) share the team record with 134 strikeouts.

HEADING TO THE SERIES? ... Here’s a tip from the Manatees promotional schedule. If you wear your clothes backwards for Sunday’s 1:05 game, you’ll receive free admission. It’s Brevard County’s salute to the 1990’s band Kris Kross whose trademark was wearing baseball jersey tops backwards in concert. Also, if your name is Chris (or Christine, etc.) show your ID at the box office on Sunday for $2 off the admission price.

FLYING HIGH ... Adrian Casanova is 4x9 (.475) his last three games ... Chris White is 22x69 (.319) with 14 RBI since July 12 ... Jordan Newton is 27x85 (.318) with eight doubles, one triple, three home runs and 11 RBI since June 22 ... Josh Workman saw his five-game hit streak snapped on Friday and is now 7x24 (.292) his last six games ... Charlie Furbush, the FSL Pitcher of the Week for August 2, has allowed just one run on three hits and 14 strikeouts his last two starts.

ALUMNI REPORT ... DETROIT: Justin Verlander (2005) leads the American League with 180 strikeouts, tied for second with 12 wins and is eighth with a 3.29 ERA; Rick Porcello (2008) is second on the Detroit staff with 10 wins ... TOLEDO: Don Kelly (2003) is second in the International League with a .333 average; Jeff Frazier (2006) is seventh with a .304 mark; Wilkin Ramirez (2006-07) is third with 31 stolen bases ... ERIE: Brennan Boesch (2008) leads the Eastern League with 24 home runs and seven triples with ranking fourth with 74 RBI; Ryan Strieby (2008) is fourth with 17 home runs and eighth with a .305 average ... WEST MICHIGAN: Mark Sorenson, while now a Flying Tiger, still ranks fifth in the Midwest League with a 2.44 ERA. Gustavo Nunez (2008) is third with 39 stolen bases and fifth with 113 hits ... MISC: John Smoltz (1986) was designated for assignment by Boston.

FUTURE ALUMNI? ... WEST MICHIGAN: Brandon Douglas is second in the Midwest League with a .333 average; Billy Nowlin is sixth with a .311 mark; Brent Wyatt is third with 77 runs scored; Casey Crosby is second with 112 strikeouts and sixth with a 2.61 ERA; Tyler Stohr is tied for third with 17 saves ... ONEONTA: John Murrian leads the New York-Penn League with a .355 average; Rawley Bishop is tied for the lead with 31 RBI and 36 runs scored and is fifth with 53 hits; Michael Rocket is second with 57 hits; Kevin Faulk is second with eight saves; GCL TIGERS: Jordan Cruz is second in the GCL with five home runs, and third with 24 RBI and 13 doubles; Melvin Mercedes leads with 12 saves.

THE COMMANDER … Andy Barkett is in his second season with Lakeland with a 113-128 record (67-70 in year one). In his rookie season as manager, he led Oneonta to a 44-32 record in the New York-Penn League in 2007.

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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Mission Notes at Tampa (Aug. 4-5)


THE FLYING TIGERS (17-18 2nd half, 46-54 overall) ... Lakeland dropped a heartbreaking 11-12 decision to St. Lucie in the series finale on Sunday. The Flying Tigers trailed 11-3 in that game before scoring eight times in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 11-all. St. Lucie won the game with one out in the bottom of the ninth. The Flying Tigers are eighth in the FSL with a .248 batting average and ninth with a 3.80 ERA.

TAMPA (24-10 2nd half, 54-47 overall) ... The Yankees are coming off an 8-7 loss to Jupiter on Sunday but still hold on to a two game lead over Brevard County in the North Division. Austin Romine leads the Florida State League with 62 RBI while Brandon Laird is fifth with 54 runs batted in. The Yankees rank third with a .261 team batting average and are fifth with a 3.57 team ERA.

HOME AND HOME SERIES .... This four-game set with Tampa begins with a pair of games in Tampa on Aug. 4-5 and then resumes with two games in Lakeland on August 6-7.

THE SERIES ... Tonight is the 15th time this season these two clubs have met. The two clubs split their season-opener four-game series with each club winning two in their home stadium. The squads met once again for a four-game series at the end of April with again ending in a 2-2 split. Lakeland then swept a doubleheader on May 21 while another two-games series on July 3-4 was yet once again a split decision.

VALANT RALLY FALLS SHORT ... Lakeland found itself down 11-3 heading into the ninth inning at St. Lucie on Sunday. Thirteen batters later, the Flying Tigers had tied the game with eight runs on five hits, a hit batter and two walks. Six of the runs came with two outs on the board. Justin Henry had a pair of singles in the frame to drive in three runs while Devin Thomas and Chris White singled. However, the Mets came back to win the game, 12-11.

BIG GAME NUMBERS ... St. Lucie collected 24 hits in the 12-11 Sunday contest, three shy of the Florida State League record. The two teams combined for 38 hits, the most for any game involving Lakeland since May 11, 2007 when Lakeland and Daytona each had 19 hits in a 17-inning contest won by the Tigers, 6-5. Incidentally, that game was tied 5-5 after five complete and then featured 11 consecutive scoreless innings before Cody Collet doubled in the go-ahead with two outs in the top of the 17th.

HENRY EQUALS HITS ... Justin Henry cranked out five singles in six at bats on Sunday at St. Lucie. It was the most hits for a Lakeland batter since Russ Cleveland went 5-for-5 against Vero Beach back on July 28, 2005. Henry’s feat marked just the fifth time this decade a Lakeland player has had five hits in a single game.

FLYING TIGERS IN FSL RANKINGS ... Chris Carlson remains tied for second in the FSL with 13 home runs along with Caleb Gindl of Brevard County and Carlos Guzman of St. Lucie. The trio trails Ft. Myers’ Chris Parmelee who has 14. Andrew Hess is ninth in the with a 3.25 ERA while L.J. Gagnier is fifth with 99 strikeouts.

NEWTON GOES YARD TWICE ... Jordan Newton homered twice on Thursday at St. Lucie, hitting a two-run shot in Lakeland’s five-run first inning and then adding another two-run shot in the eighth as the Flying Tigers posted an 8-5 win in the series opener. It was the second time this season a Flying Tiger has hit two homers in one game. Audy Ciriaco did the honors on May 16 in a 10-6 win over Brevard. His second shot was a walk-off grand slam giving him seven runs batted in for the game.

JACOBSON GETS ON SAVE WAGON ... Brett Jacobson has three saves his last three outings and has not allowed a run in his last seven innings pitched over five outings. He had just one save in his previous 28 appearances.

ONLY 16 LEFT ... Lakeland has just 16 scheduled dates left at home in 2009, including 10 scheduled dates in August. The season winds down with a rare six-game homestand in September.

NEWEST CREW MEMBERS ... Lakeland added a pair of pitchers recently in the form of Mark Sorenson and Gary Perinar. Sorenson, a 6’3” righthander comes to Lakeland from West Michigan where he was 8-2 with a 2.44 ERA. Detroit’s 32nd round pick in the 2008 draft out of Michigan State, he is the son of Lary Sorenson, the former Major Leaguer pitcher and Tiger broadcaster. Sorenson, who’s 2.44 ERA was ranked second among all Detroit minor league pitchers, would like to erase his first appearance in a Flying Tiger uniform as he allowed five earned runs on 10 hits in 3.1 innings pitched in a start at St. Lucie on Sunday. Perinar, a 6’0” righthander joins the Flying Tigers after going 2-2 with a 5.82 ERA at Oneonta. He was a 11th round pick of Detroit in 2007 out of the University of Minnesota. Perinar missed the entire 2008 season following right elbow surgery.

ROBLES TRADED ... Mauricio Robles was traded last Friday to Seattle along with ex-Lakelander Luke French for Mariner pitcher Jarrod Washburn. Robles was 4-2 for Lakeland and was leading all Detroit minor leaguers with a combined 111 strikeouts at Lakeland and West Michigan.

OTHER ORGANIZATIONAL MOVES ... In addition to Mauricio Robles and Luke French, several other ex-Lakeland players were involved in a recent flurry of organizational moves. Jay Sborz was played on the DL at Toledo while Luis Marte of Erie was also placed on the injured list as was Oneonta’s Jeff Gerbe. As mentioned in the last Mission Notes, Flying Tiger Billy Alvino was sent to the Gulf Coast League Tigers while the GCL club sent Gustavo Nunez to West Michigan.

THE COMMANDER … Andy Barkett is in his second season with Lakeland with a 113-124 record (67-70 in year one). In his rookie season as manager, he led Oneonta to a 44-32 record in the New York-Penn League in 2007.
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Views expressed in “Mission Notes” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Lakeland Flying Tigers.