THE SERIES ... These two clubs have gone to battle ten times this season with each side emerging with five wins and they have split the four games played earlier at Joker Marchant Stadium. The Flying Tigers have two shutouts in the series, but the Blue Jays have two big wins of 12-4 and 14-2. The latter came in the two teams’ last meeting on June 9. Chad Wright is hitting .412 versus the Blue Jays, going 14-for-34 in nine games with two doubles, a homer, and eight runs batted in. Lance Durham has 11 hits, including three doubles, and both of his triples he has hit this season, in his seven games against Dunedin. Connor Harrell is also in double figures in hits with 10 versus the Blue Jays. Lakeland is hitting .262 in the series with 14 doubles, four triples, and five homers. Dunedin is hitting a bit better at .268 with 15 doubles and six home runs.
THE FLYING TIGERS (14-29, 6th, 12.0 GB; 56-54 overall) ... Lakeland took the first three games of its four-game set against Fort Myers which entered the series with the best overall record in the Florida State League. Jeff McVaney is fourth in the FSL with 60 runs batted in.
THE BLUE JAYS (20-24, 4th, 6.5 GB; 66-47 overall) ... Dunedin, which brings the second best overall record in the FSL into this series, also took the first three games of its last series versus Palm Beach. Arik Sikula has a league-leading 25 saves, 11 more than the next closer. Blue Jays pitchers have a combined 3.24 earned run average, third lowest in the league.
LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS:
8/05 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (5-9, 4.66 ERA) ... Lopez will be looking to break out of a funk that has seen him allow 13 runs in the last four games and a total of 20 runs on 43 hits over the last six outings for a 1-5 record and a 5.40 ERA. He is 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA versus Dunedin this season. In his last start against the Blue Jays, he tossed 2-hit ball over 7.0 shutout innings for the win.
8/06 - RHP Edgar De La Rosa (6-8, 2.66 ERA) ... De La Rosa, who ranks 7th in the FSL with a 2.66 ERA, allowed just one run on two hits in 5.0 innings of work in his last start on Aug. 1 against Fort Myers, but could not get the win as Lakeland scored five late runs for the victory. He has allowed just 11 runs in his last nine starts for a 1.89 ERA but has a just 2-4 record to show for his efforts. De La Rosa is also 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA against the Blue Jays. He took the win in his start on June 8 against Dunedin, despite giving up four runs on six hits in 6.1 innings of work.
8/07 - RHP Tanner Bailey (2-3, 3.60 ERA) ... Bailey was off to a solid start in his last outing on Aug. 2 against Fort Myers, holding the Miracle to one hit on a season-high four strikeouts thru 5.0 shutout innings before rains halted the game with Lakeland taking a 4-0 victory. That game was in sharp contrast to his start on July 28 when he was tagged for six runs—four earned—on 10 hits in 4.0 innings. Dunedin beat Bailey back on May 24, scoring two runs—one earned—on five hits in 6.0 innings.
8/08 - LHP Locke St. John (2-2, 4.65 ERA) ... St. John should have his first name changed to Luck after his last start on Aug. 3. He picked up the win despite giving up eight hits in 6.0 scoreless innings. Each time he got into a jam, he pitched his way out of it. St. John has won his last two starts, allowing just one run in 12.0 innings combined. He was not with Lakeland for any action against the Blue Jays.
GREEN GARNERS FSL HONOR ... Flying Tigers catcher Austin Green has been named the Florida State League Player of the Week for the period of July 28-–August 3. Green played in six games and collected nine hits, including two doubles and a pair of homers, in 22 plate appearances for a .409 batting average. He recorded six RBI and scored four runs. Green posted a .417 on-base percentage and a .773 slugging average for week.
A EVEN DOZEN ... Harold Castro singled in his third at-bat on Monday against Fort Myers to extend his hit streak to an even dozen games. Since July 23, Castro is 18-for-47 for a .383 clip. Three times during the streak he collected three hits in a game. The 12-game streak is the second longest for a Flying Tiger hitter this season, trailing only Chad Wright’s 14-game streak from April 10-27 in which he went 23-for-57 (.404).
DONE DOWN SOUTH ... Lakeland finished its portion of the schedule against South Division teams with a 25-23 record. The Flying Tigers won four season series against the South, posting 5-3 records against Bradenton, Fort Myers, Jupiter, and Palm Beach. Only St. Lucie, which won six of eight games against Lakeland, and Charlotte, which took five games of eight contests, posted winning records against the Flying Tigers.
CAN I GET A LITTLE GLOVE ... The Flying Tigers continue to hold on to the top spot in the Florida State League defensive categories with a .978 fielding percentage and 89 errors. However, the lead has dropped to just .001 as Fort Myers, Palm Beach and Daytona are all tied for second with identical .977 marks. The 89 miscues charged to Lakeland are six fewer than the second place team–Brevard County (95). Connor Harrell leads all league outfielders with a .996 mark and has committed just one error in 255 fielding chances. The 255 chances is tied for most in the league at that position. James Robbins leads all FSL first baseman with 100 games played and 56 assists while Jeff McVaney leads the outfielders in games played with 105.
NEW SPOT ... Last night, Jeff McVaney made his first start as the team’s DH and responded with his ninth homer of the season. He now has hits in 17 of his last 21 games, going 24-for-74 for a .324 average with 13 runs scored, five doubles and a pair of homers for 10 runs batted in. His 60 RBI in 2014 ranks fourth most in the league.
TORRID TYLER ... Tyler Hanover has five hits in his last seven at bats over three games with two doubles and two runs batted in.
HARRELL-ING EXPERIENCE ... Connor Harrell has hits in each of his last four games, going 5-for-13 with a double, a triple, and a home run for four runs batted in. He has hits in 13 of his last 16 games and is batting .275 since the All-Star break.
RUN MACHINE ... Curt Powell has crossed the plate eight times in his last 11 games. He also had hits in nine of his last 11 games, going 13-for-37 for a .351 mark with a double, two triples, and six runs batted in.
JAMES JAMMER ... James Robbins is second in the Florida State League with 14 home runs, eight behind the leader, Adam Brett Walker of Fort Myers who has 22 dingers. Robbins’ 14 homers is the most for a Flying Tiger since Wade Gaynor hit 14 round-trippers in 2012 and is the 11th most homers all-time for any Lakeland season. Thirteen of his homers have come against righthanders.
RIGHTY IN THE LIGHT ... Chad Wright is hitting .299 versus righthanded pitching this season opposed to a .177 mark against lefties and his average overall jumps up to .394 in day games from a .235 mark at night.
GOING ALL THE WAY ... Tanner Bailey’s five-inning complete game on Saturday was the fourth complete game by a Flying Tigers pitcher this season---—the most since the 2011 team recorded five complete games. Wilsen Palacios tossed both of the squad’s complete games last season, while in 2012, Shawn Tuefel was the only pitcher to go all the way, a feat no Lakeland hurler accomplished in 2011.
4,000th WIN ... With a rain-shortened 4-0 win on Saturday, Lakeland recorded its 4,000th franchise victory. A member of the Florida State League since 1963, Lakeland now has a 4,000-4,234 all-time record
UP NEXT ... Lakeland heads across I-4 to face Daytona in three-game weekend series Aug. 9-11. After 16 home games in 20 days, the Flying Tigers will close out the season with just eight games in seven home dates over the final three weeks. The first date back home will be an Aug. 14 doubleheader with Tampa to make up a rained-out game from July 2.
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