THE FLYING TIGERS (14-15, 6.0 GB) ... Lakeland took two of three at Dunedin last week, including a 5-4 win in the series finale on Saturday. Five Flying Tigers each had two hits in Saturday’s game while Alden Carrithers scored three times. Bryan Pounds cross the plate twice to account for the other two Lakeland scores. Adam Wilk struck out a season-high nine batters in his 5.2 innings to pick up the win while Anthony Shawler picked up his second save in as many nights for the Flying Tigers. Lakeland continues to lead the Florida State League with a 2.91 staff ERA and fewest walks issued (56 – 10 fewer than any other team). The Flying Tigers rank ninth with a .246 team batting average.
THE STONE CRABS (16-12, 1.0 GB) ... Charlotte lost two of three to Bradenton and have now lost three of their last four games. Henry Wrigley leads the club with a .333 average while Isaias Velasquez is close behind at .324 on the season. Wrigley is tied for second in the FSL with five homers while Velasquez is second with 18 stolen bases. The Stone Crabs have the third highest average in the league at .265 and are second with 18 homers. Their team ERA of 3.32 is also third best while they lead the league in strikeouts. An affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, the Stone Crabs joined the Florida State League last season and just missed capturing the league title, falling to Tampa in the FSL championship series. The club’s principle owner is the Ripken Group that represents Cal Ripken.
THE SERIES ... This is Lakeland’s first series outside of the North Division this season. Charlotte won five of the eight contests in 2009. One game that stands out in the series is the game on July 18 in Lakeland. The Flying Tigers build a 11-3 lead in the seventh, thanks in large part to Michael Bertram hitting for the cycle, but the Stone Crabs rallied with a 9-run eighth inning to take a 12-11 decision. Bertram was 11x17 at the plate in the four-game home series.
LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS:
MONDAY - CHARLIE FURBUSH (2-2, 3.86) ... won his last decision with a season-high 7.0 innings pitched against Daytona on May 4 ... has struck out seven or more batters in each of his five starts ... has a 1.38 ERA his last two starts ... his 11.57 strikeouts per nine innings is the seventh best in minor league baseball.
TUESDAY - LUKE PUTKONEN (1-2, 3.72) ... lost his last start on May 5 against Daytona ... struck out five in that game, his second start with five or more strikeouts ... longest outing was 7.0 innings on April 30 against Dunedin.
WEDNESDAY - MARK SORENSEN (2-3, 4.40) ... has lost his last three starts with an 8.03 ERA in those games ... was 2-0 with a 1.65 ERA in first three starts ... longest outing of 6.0 innings came on April 20 against Brevard County.
THURSDAY - BRAYAN VILLARREAL (3-3, 2.88) ... won his last start with 6.0 innings pitched at Dunedin on May 7 ... struck out 26 in first three starts and 15 in the last three ... tossed a complete game on April 27 in loss at Daytona – one of just four complete games tossed in the FSL this season ... his 41 strikeouts is seventh most among all of minor league baseball through Saturday’s games.
PITCHING DUEL ... Although they won’t go head-to-head in this series, Lakeland’s Brayan Villarreal and Charlotte’s Matthew Moore are battling in the FSL statistics. Villarreal leads the league with 41 strikeouts while Moore is just one behind with 40. Villarreal also leads the league with 0.84 WHIP (walks + hits per nine innings) while the Stone Crabs’ Nick Barnese is second with a 0.94 WHIP. In addition, Villarreal has the lowest opponent batting average in the league (.183) among starters. Moore has 13.67 strikeouts per nine innings with Lakeland’s Charlie Furbush in second at 11.57. Villarreal ranks fifth with a 10.75 mark.
OFFENSIVELY IN THE FSL ... Lakeland’s Rawley Bishop is third in the FSL with a .347 batting average while Charlotte’s Henry Wrigley is eighth with a .333 average. Wrigley is second with a .576 slugging percentage while Bishop’s .561 is fourth best.
FLYING HIGH ... Rawley Bishop is hitting .400 with 12 RBI since April 28 ... Bishop (2 doubles), Alden Carrithers, Bryan Pounds, Daniel Fields and Billy Nowlin each had two hits on Saturday ... Kody Kaiser is 7x19 (.368) his last five games.
HOMER JULIO ... Julio Rodriguez has played in just three games since joining Lakeland on May 4, but has hit home runs in two of those three games. The Lakeland catcher now has three hits – two of them for home runs – and has started the last two games.
FLASHING THE LEATHER ... Lakeland is the second best defensive team in the league with a .980 fielding percentage with three players topping the league at their position. Rawley Bishop is the top fielding first baseman in the league and not committed an error in 209 total chances. Alden Carrithers leads the league’s second baseman with a .980 mark having erred twice in 102 total chances. Gustavo Nunez is the best fielding shortstop in the league having committed just five errors in 146 chances for a .966 fielding percentage. The team’s outfielders (Daniel Fields, Kody Kaiser, Chao-Ting Tang, Josh Workman, Brent Wyatt) have been perfect in the field as well.
I’VE SEEN BOTH SIDES NOW ... Brent Wyatt ranks 13th among switch-hitters in minor league baseball with a .321 average.
IN THE ORGANIZATION ... Rawley Bishop leads all Detroit minor leaguers with a .347 average. Brent Wyatt is second at .321 while Alden Carrithers is fourth with a .312 mark and Kody Kaiser (.272) and Bryan Pounds (.271) rank ninth and tenth, respectively ... Brayan Villarreal ranks fourth with a 2.88 ERA while Adam Wilk (3.38) and Luke Putkonen (3.72) rank seventh and 10th, respectively. Villarreal leads the Detroit minor leaguers with 41 K’s while Charlie Furbush is third with 36 strikeouts.
CHARLOTTE CRUMBS ... Pitcher Matt Bush was a first round pick of the San Diego Padres in 2004 ... shortstop Tim Beckham was the Ray’s top pick in 2008 ... former Lakeland Tiger manager Skeeter Barnes (2000) is Tampa Bay’s’ outfield and baserunning coordinator.
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