Saturday, May 31, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Palm Beach (May 31-June 3)

THE SERIES ... Lakeland hosts Palm Beach for four games May 31-June 3. The series gets underway on Saturday, May 31 at 5 pm with a special Sunset Celebration game and continues on Sunday, June 1 at 1 pm. Games three and four are set for 6:30 pm on Monday and Tuesday.  

THE FLYING TIGERS (34-20, 2nd North, 4.5 GB) ... Lakeland enters this series having won five straight including a four-game series sweep at Jupiter. The Flying Tigers cranked out 18 hits Friday night, marking the third straight game in double digits and the eighth time in the last 12 games they have had 10 or more hits in a game. Since May 19, Lakeland is batting .278 as a team. The starting pitching staff has been outstanding of late, allowing just one earned run in the last five starts for a 0.26 ERA. Jake Thompson (5-1) is third in the Florida State League with a 1.64 ERA with Kevin Eichhorn (4-0) next at 1.73 and Josh Turley (4-0) ninth with a 2.08 ERA. The bullpen has also been impressive, posting a 2.20 earned run average since May 22. Angel Nesbitt is the active leader in the FSL with 10 saves as Dunedin’s Arik Sikula (15 saves) has been promoted to AA. The Flying Tigers have the third lowest staff ERA (2.88) in the league while the team batting average of .253 is seventh.

THE CARDINALS (26-28, 6th South, 5.5 GB) ... Palm Beach has won three straight entering this series, having outscored Daytona 22-5 in the last three games of their series with the Cubs. Since May 21, the Cardinals are 8-2. Breyvic Valera is fifth in the FSL with a .326 batting average and second with 71 hits while David Washington is fourth with eight homers. The Cardinals are the third-best hitting team in the league with a .259 team batting average and have scored the third most runs. The staff ERA of 3.21 is sixth.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/31 RHP Yorfrank Lopez (2-3, 5.40 ERA) ... Lopez tossed 7.0 scoreless innings in his last start on May 25 at Dunedin, holding the Blue Jays to two hits with three strikeouts and two walks. The 7.0 innings matched his longest outing of the year. For the month of May, he has made five starts and is 1-1 with a 3.07 ERA. In five starts in April, he was 1-2 with a 8.71 earned run average.
6/01 LHP Josh Turley (4-0, 2.08 ERA) ... Turley threw a season-high 8.0 shutout innings in getting the win at Jupiter on May 27. He held the Hammerheads to just a pair of singles with five strikeouts and two walks. It marked the fourth straight game he has punched out five or more batters. Turley is now 3-0 with a 2.15 ERA in seven games as a starter. He posted a 2.08 ERA in April and matched that in May with another 2.08 ERA month.
6/02 RHP Kevin Eichhorn (4-0, 1.73 ERA) ... Eichhorn equalled his season-high with 7.0 innings worked at Jupiter on May 28, holding the Hammerheads to one run on four hits with four strikeouts. In his last seven starts, he is 4-0 with a 1.40 ERA with 28 strikeouts. All four of his wins have come on the road where he has a 1.25 earned run average.
6/03 RHP Edgar De La Rosa (2-4, 3.32 ERA) ... De La Rosa went 7.0 innings in his last start at Jupiter on May 29, limiting the Hammerheads to one unearned run on five hits with four strikeouts. In his two wins, both coming on the 29th of the month, he worked 7.0 innings and allowed zero earned runs. He is 1-1 with a 4.67 ERA in May after posting a 1-3 record and a 1.91 earned run average in April.

BURGOS RECEIVES FSL HONOR ... Alex Burgos was named the Florida State League Pitcher of the Week for the week ending May 25. He pitched in two games last week and was not scored upon in 7.2 innings. He allowed just one hit and walked one while striking out 10 batters. Burgos is the second Lakeland pitcher to earn FSL honors this season, joining starter Edgar De La Rosa. He is the first Lakeland reliever to be so honored since Kevin Whelan picked up the honor in 2006.

BIG FINALE ... Lakeland put an accent on the series sweep against Jupiter taking the finale by a 12-2 score. Three players had three hits each for the Flying Tigers who set a season-high with 12 runs scored, 18 hits (in a 9-inning game), 10-run margin of victory and seven doubles. Chad Wright had three hits, scored three times, and drove in three runs while Lance Durham drove in four runs on the night. Six batters each had two or more hits. 

FLYIN’ HIGH ... Harold Castro is 8x17 (.471) in his four games played since joining Lakeland on May 24 ... Lance Durham has a seven-game hit streak (9x34, .265) ... Jeff McVaney has hits in 12 of his last 13 games ... Chad Wright is 11x23 (.478) his last five games  and 16x37 (.432) since May 23 ... Alex Burgos has not allowed a run in his last 9.2 innings over three outings ... Angel Nesbitt has not been scored upon in his last 10 appearances out of the bullpen and is 10-for-10 in save situations.

21 ZEROS ... Lakeland pitching combined to throw back-to-back shutouts on May 25 and 27 and had a streak of 21 consecutive scoreless innings. The streak began on May 24 with the final two innings in a 2-1 loss to Dunedin in the second game of a road doubleheader. The first shutout came on May 25 in the final Blue Jays game as Yorfrank Lopez tossed 7.0 scoreless innings. Crossing the state to play at Jupiter next, Josh Turley kept the goose eggs going with 8.0 scoreless innings on May 27. The string came to a close on the second inning against the Hammerheads on May 28.

WINNING THE CLOSE ONES ... Lakeland has a 12-6 record in one-run games —the best mark in the FSL—and is third with a 9-5 record in games decided by two runs.

MAJOR LEAGUE EXPERIENCE ... Palm Beach manager Dann Bilardello played all or part of eight Major League seasons with the Reds, Expos, Pirates and Padres. His daughter, Kammie, was a two-sport athlete at Webber International University in Lake Wales.

LOCAL PRODUCT ... Cardinals pitcher Josh Lucas was born in Lakeland and is a 2010 graduate of Lakeland High School.

ROSTER MOVES ... On Wednesday, Jeff Holm was sent to West Michigan. Holm was batting .215 in 34 games for the Flying Tigers with four homers and 18 runs batted in. He had started 14 games in the outfield, seven at first base, and 13 as the designated hitter. To fill the roster void, righthanded pitcher Brennan Smith was added to the roster on Friday from AA Erie. Smith was 0-0 in six games for the SeaWolves with a 7.56 ERA. He had struck out eight and walked two in 8.1 innings and gave up seven runs on 11 hits, including a pair of home runs.

FEW OPPS IN JUNE ... Lakeland fans will only have 11 chances to see the Flying Tigers in action at home in the month of June. Following this series, Lakeland plays Dunedin on June 8; Brevard County June 10-12, Clearwater June 18, Tampa June 20, and Clearwater, again, June 22-23.

PENNANT CHASE ... The first half ends June 18 and Lakeland trails Dunedin by 4.5 games. Both teams play each other twice more and both will play Brevard County. Lakeland plays four at home vs. Palm Beach; four at Fort Myers; and three against Clearwater. Dunedin plays four at Jupiter; four at home vs. St. Lucie; and three at home vs. Daytona. Based on winning percentage, Lakeland has a slight easier schedule as opponents have a combined .438 winning percentage versus a .468 percentage for Dunedin’s opponents. 

TWO TO TIE, THREE TO PASS ... Flying Tigers skipper Dave Huppert needs two more wins to tie Jim Leyland for third place in wins for a Lakeland manager. Already the minor leagues winningest active manager with 1,843 wins, Huppert is 235-220 in four seasons in Lakeland. Leyland, who went on to manage in the Major Leagues from 1986-2013, including the 2006-13 seasons with Detroit, was 237-177 from 1976-78. 

FSL ALL-STAR GAME ... The 2014 Florida State League All-Star Game will be played June 14 at McKechnie Park in Bradenton.

UP NEXT ... The Flying Tigers hit the road for four games in Fort Myers as Lakeland closes in on the end of the first half which wraps up June 18.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Jupiter (May 27-30)

THE SERIES ... After taking Memorial Day off, the Flying Tigers return to action on Tuesday with four games at Jupiter. Games 1, 2, and 4 at set for 6:35 pm start times while game 3 on Thursday is scheduled for a 10:35 am first pitch. Lakeland and Jupiter split their season series in 2013 with each club taking three of four game in the other’s home park.  

THE FLYING TIGERS (30-19 2nd North, 5.0 GB) ... Lakeland is coming off a 6-0 shutout of division leading Dunedin on Sunday behind a two-hit, 7.0 inning effort by Yorfrank Lopez. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Flying Tigers who are 4-7 their last 11 games. Kevin Eichhorn and Jake Thompson are third and fourth, respectively, in the Florida State League in terms of earned run average. Eichhorn is 3-0 with a 1.79 ERA while Thompson is 4-1 with a 1.80 mark. Eichhorn is also third with a 1.03 WHIP and a .202 opponents batting average. Lakeland has the third lowest staff ERA (3.01) of any staff team and has posted seven shutouts—tied for the most in the league. The Flying Tigers rank seventh in the league with a .249 team batting average. The Flying Tigers are 15-8 on the road this season and 7-2 in day games.

THE HAMMERHEADS (22-28, 6th South, 8.0 GB) ... Jupiter fell 6-1 at Fort Myers on Sunday and has now lost three straight and seven of its last 10. All three of the wins for the Hammerheads in that stretch were by one run. Austin Barnes brings a 13-game hit streak into third season and has gone 20x49 (.408) in posting the second longest active streak in the Florida State League this season. Scott Lyman is ninth in the league with a 2.26 ERA while Joseph O’Gara is tied for third with eight saves. Trevor Williams is one of four players tied with five wins. Viosergy Rosa has driven in 34 runs-—fourth most in the FSL—while Matt Juengel is second with 16 doubles and third with 21 extra base hits. Jupiter is third in the league with a .262 team batting average and, as a team, has struck out the fewest time of any FSL club—but has hit the fewest homers (14). The staff ERA of 3.78 ranks eighth in the league.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/27 RHP Jake Thompson (4-1, 1.80 ERA) ... Thompson rebounded from his worst outing of the year on May 15 against Bradenton where he allowed a season-high four runs in just 3.0 innings, to get the win against Charlotte on May 21 after holding the Stone Crabs to one run on three hits over 5.0 innings with four strikeouts and four walks. 5/28 LHP Josh Turley (3-0, 2.42 ERA) ... Turley allowed a season-high four runs (three earned) in his last start on May 22 against Charlotte in a no-decision. He has now allowed a total of seven runs over 20.0 innings (3.15 ERA) in his last three starts but in 0-0 in that trio of games. Turley has recorded 19 strikeouts in his last three games, but also given up 20 hits. He is 2-0 with a 2.61 ERA is six starts this season.
5/29 RHP Kevin Eichhorn (3-0, 1.79 ERA) ... Eichhorn struck out five in his last start on May 23 against Charlotte and held the Stone Crabs to a pair of runs on three hits over 6.1 innings, but did not factor into the decision. He has given up a total of six runs over 38.0 for a 1.42 ERA in his last six starts with 19 strikeouts. All three of his wins this season have come on the road where he has a 1.24 earned run average.
5/30 RHP Edgar De La Rosa (1-4, 3.32 ERA) ... De La Rosa gave up eight runs on eight hits in just 3.2 innings at Dunedin in his last start on the road May 24. However, only two of those runs were earned as the normally sure-handed Lakeland defense committed a pair of errors. It was his second straight game giving up eight hits and his third straight start in which he has failed to make it to the fifth inning. De La Rosa has given up nine earned runs over 10.1 innings in his last three starts.

BACK TO THE SOUTH ... After having returned to the North Division for a brief series in Dunedin, the Flying Tigers head back to the South Division where they have a 6-6 record. Lakeland is 3-1 against Bradenton, 2-2 versus Charlotte, and 1-3 against St. Lucie. Lakeland is 24-14 against the North Division with a perfect 6-0 record against Clearwater, 5-1 vs. Daytona, 8-4 vs. Tampa, 4-4 vs. Dunedin, and 1-5 vs. Bradenton.

RAVES FOR REAVES ... Jared Reaves has hits in each of his last six game and is 12x27 (.444) during that stretch.

CRANK OUT THE HITS ... Lakeland collected 15 hits on Sunday, marking the fifth time in the last eight games they have reached double figures in hits. The team is batting .268 (84x314) in its last eight games with 28 doubles, two triples and four home runs. When the Flying Tigers outhit their opponents, they have a 23-6 record. When they are outhit they are 5-12. The team has split the four games in which they had the same number of hits as their opponent.

LOTSA INNINGS ... Lakeland played a 19-inning game at home Friday night and followed that with a doubleheader on the road at Dunedin  Saturday evening. Heading back to Lakeland Saturday night, the team returned to Dunedin on Sunday for a 1 pm game. That works out to 42 innings and 11 hours and 48 minutes of baseball played in just over 44 hours. Let’s hope they enjoyed their off day on Monday.

NUMBER 9, NUMBER 9 ... Jeff McVaney brings a nine-game hit streak into this series having gone 12x41 (.317) since May 18 with three runs scored, two doubles, a homer, and five runs batted in.

CRAZY CURT ... Curt Powell is 20x59 (.339) his last 13 games and has had hits in 17 of his last 19 games, including an 11-game hit streak from May 10-21.

ALL OR NOTHING .. Chad Wright has had two or more base hits in six of his last nine games (15x40, .375). In the other three games, he has gone hitless. Wright leads the Flying Tigers with 17 multi-hit games including six games with three hits.

TEA FOR TANNER ... Tanner Bailey went the distance in game two of the Saturday doubleheader at Dunedin to toss Lakeland’s first complete game of the season. Bailey held the Blue Jays to two runs (one earned) on five hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Albeit just six innings, the shutout came in only Bailey’s third career start.

ZIPS FOR YORFRANK ... Yorfrank Lopez picked up the win on Sunday with 7.0 shutout innings pitched at Dunedin in the Flying Tigers’ 6-0 win. Lopez held the Blue Jays to a single in the first and another single in the seventh before turning the game over the bullpen.

NESBITT KEEPS IT REAL ... Angel Nesbitt has not allowed a run in any of his last eight appearances out the bullpen and has a streak of 9.1 scoreless innings over those eight appearances.

BACK IN THE FOLD ... Alex Burgos and Ryan Longstreth were added back to the Lakeland roster from Extended Spring Training on Monday with Joe Jimenez and Daryl Norris were sent back across the runway. The Burgos and Longstreth were sent to EST after each threw 4.0 shutout innings on Friday night and would not have been available for the Dunedin series on Saturday and Sunday. Norris saw action in the first game of the twinbill against the Blue Jays and tossed 2.0 scoreless innings.

THIRST FOR THURSDAYS .. Lakeland is 7-2 on Thursdays and the team is 6-3 on Saturdays. The only day they have a losing record is Wednesdays when the record falls to 2-4.

UP NEXT ... Lakeland next plays at Joker Marchant Stadium on Saturday, May 31 when it will open a four-game series against Palm Beach. The Flying Tigers then hit the road for four games in Fort Myers as Lakeland closes in on the end of the first half which wraps up June 18.

Saturday, May 24, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Dunedin (May 24-25)

THE SERIES ... Lakeland plays a critical series with division leading Dunedin on the road May 24-25. The series opens on May 24 with a doubleheader as the teams make up a rained out game from May 2. A third game is slated for Sunday, May 25 at 1 pm. Lakeland holds a 3-2 advantage in the series so far, taking both games played at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium, 7-1 and 2-0. Both teams are 13-8 in the month of May.

THE FLYING TIGERS (29-18 2nd, 4.0 GB) ... Lakeland is coming off a four-game split with Charlotte that concluded in a 5-3, 19-inning loss to the Stone Crabs last night. The game got underway at 7:14 and concluded at 12:24 this morning. The Flying Tigers are 4-6 in their last ten games, but remain in second place in the North Division. Lakeland is third in the league with a 3.09 staff ERA and seventh with a .246 team batting average. Lakeland has 25 homers which is tied for third most in the league.

THE BLUE JAYS (33-14, 1st, 4.0 game lead) ... Dunedin is also coming off a series split, having gone 2-2 against Fort Myers. Like the Flying Tigers, the Blue Jays also lost last night, although they fell 4-2 in a regulation nine innings. Daniel Norris leads the Florida State League with a 0.80 ERA and is a perfect 3-0 while Taylor Cole leads all FSL hurlers with 73 strikeouts—21 more than the next pitcher. Arik Sikula leads all of minor league baseball with 14 saves to go with his 0.96 ERA. Dalton Pompey is fifth in the FSL with a .333 average while leading the league with 18 stolen bases. He is also fourth with a .411 on-base percentage and third with a .506 slugging percentage. Derrick Chung is 10th with a .320 mark and K.C. Hobson is second in the league with 37 runs batted in. The Blue Jays pitching staff leads the FSL with a .241 ERA and 391 strikeouts. They also have walked the fewest batters of any staff. The team average of .260 is fourth highest in the league.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/24 (GM1) - RHP Tanner Bailey (1-1, 4.20 ERA) ... Bailey made his last start on May 16, taking the loss against St. Lucie after giving up five runs on seven hits in 5.0 innings. He is 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in two games as a starter after posting a 1-0 record and a 0.00 ERA in two trips out of the bullpen. He is 0-0 in two road appearances this season allowing a pair of runs over 7.2 innings. He has not faced Dunedin this season.
5/24 (GM2) - RHP Edgar De La Rosa (1-3, 3.18 ERA) ... Three starts ago, on April 29 at Daytona, De La Rosa tossed a one-hitter over 7.0 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts for his only win of the season. In his last two starts he has allowed seven runs on 10 hits in just 6.2 innings of work. Against St. Lucie on May 19, De La Rosa allowed three runs on eight hits in 4.0 innings. He is 0-1 with a 4.61 in three previous road starts and will be facing Dunedin for the first time this season.
5/25 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-3, 6.28 ERA) ... Lopez was roughed up for eight runs on a season-high 10 hits allowed in 5.1 innings against Charlotte on May 20. Only three of the eight runs were earned, marking the third consecutive start he has allowed three earned runs. In his last three starts, Lopez has given up 14 runs (nine earned) on 23 hits with eight strikeouts and six walks. He took the loss in his only start against the Blue Jays this season, surrendering six runs on nine hits in 3.0 innings on April 23.

LET’S PLAY 19 ... Lakeland battled Charlotte for five hours and ten minutes Friday night, only to fall 5-3 in 19 innings. Here are some tidbits the game: it was the longest game in the Florida State League this season; it was Lakeland’s longest game since beating Daytona 3-2 in 20 innings on June 8, 2008; Curt Powell went 5-for-8; Lakeland had 77 at bats; five Lakeland pitchers combined to strike out 19 batters while Flying Tigers hitters whiffed 15 times; Lakeland was 3-for-18 with runners in scoring position in the game and stranded 20 runners; Alex Burgos and Ryan Longstreth each pitched 4.0 shutout innings; Drew Longley, the team’s number two catcher, caught all 19 innings; Jake DePew, a rostered catcher who got the win for Charlotte with 3.1 scoreless innings pitched, had not pitched professionally and hadn’t taken the mound since his senior year in high school; the loss was Lakeland’s ninth by two or fewer runs.

THE CLOSER ... Angel Nesbitt is tied for third with eight saves and is a perfect 8-for-8 in save opportunities. He has not allowed a run in his last seven outings and just one run in that span.

GIVING HIS TEAM A SHOT ... Alex Burgos came on to start the ninth inning for Lakeland with his team locked in a 3-3 tie with Charlotte. Burgos was perfect over the next four innings, retiring all 12 men he faced in order. He sent down eight of them on strikeouts. Burgos has not allowed a run in his last 7.2 innings.

CLOSE BEHIND ... Heading into the 13th inning of Friday’s marathon, Lakeland manager Dave Huppert turned to Ryan Longstreth who had just joined Lakeland on May 15. Longstreth responded with four more shutout innings to run his shutout streak to 10.0 innings.

THURSDAY’S HERO ... Tyler Hanover tripled with the bases loaded to spark a four-run seventh inning and then drove in the go-ahead run in the eighth as Lakeland topped Charlotte 6-4 on Thursday. It was Hanover’s fourth 4-RBI game of his career. 

FIVE BASE KNOCKS ... Curt Powell collected five singles in Friday’s game to register the first five-hit game for a Flying Tiger since Aaron Westlake went 5x6 on Aug. 15, 2013 against Dunedin. Powell is the seventh player in the Florida State League with a five-hit game this year. He saw an 11-game hit streak snapped on Thursday and is now 19x54 (.352) his last 12 games.

FLYING HIGH ... Jared Reaves is 7x16 his last three games for a .438 pace ... Connor Harrell has five hits over the last two games with three runs scored ... Jeff McVaney brings a six-game hit streak into this series going 9x30 (.300).

UP, DOWN ... Chad Wright has had a little roller coaster action going the last five games, getting two hits, then none, then three hits, then none, and then two hits, once again. Wright has had a team-high 15 multi-hit games this season, including four games with three hits.

INFIELD SHUFFLE ... On May 21, Lakeland said goodbye to shortstop Dixon Machado who was promoted to AA Erie. Joining the club is second baseman Harold Castro who was called up from Extended Spring Training. Castro played in 21 games for Lakeland in 2013, batting .274 with 11 runs batted in. He also played 41 games for West Michigan, turning in a .231 average.

DOUBLEHEADER HELP ... With a Saturday night doubleheader on tap and relievers Alex Burgos and Ryan Longstreth both working 4.0 innings of relief on Friday, Lakeland called up fresh arms Joe Jimenez and Daryl Norris from Extended Spring Training with Burgos and Longstreth being sent to EST.

FLASHING THE LEATHER ... Lakeland continues to lead the Florida State League with a .975 fielding percentage and has committed 18 fewer errors than any other team in the league. James Robbins tops all FSL first-baseman with a .995 fielding mark. Dixon Machado, now with AA Erie, has the best fielding percentage among all FSL shortstops.

TIME CHANGE ... Please note that the July 22 game vs. the Jupiter Hammerheads, originally scheduled for 6:30 pm, has been changed to a 10:30 am start time to accommodate area summer recreation programs. 

UP NEXT ... After an off day on Monday, May 26, Lakeland hits the road to play four games at Jupiter May 27-30 before returning to Joker Marchant Stadium on May 31 to face Palm Beach.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Charlotte (May 20-23)

THE SERIES ... The Flying Tigers welcome the Charlotte Stone Crabs (Tampa Bay) to Joker Marchant Stadium for four-game beginning May 20 with a 6:30 pm game. Games are slated for 6:30 pm again on May 21 and 22 with a 7:11 pm finale on May 23. Lakeland won four of the only five games played against Charlotte in 2013 as three games were rained out and could not be made up.

THE FLYING TIGERS (27-16, 2nd North, 4.0 GB) ... Lakeland dropped three of its four games against St. Lucie over a weekend series that concluded with 5-4 loss in 11 innings to the Mets on Monday. The Flying Tigers are 2-4 their last six games after having won five in a row. Three Lakeland pitchers remain in the top ten in the Florida State League in ERA—Kevin Eichhorn is sixth with a 1.66 earned run average followed by Jake Thompson (8th, 1.80) and Josh Turley (9th, 2.13). Angel Nesbitt, who is 7-for-7 in save opportunities, is fourth in that category in the FSL rankings. Lakeland’s staff ERA of 3.11 has dropped the team to fourth best in the league while the team’s batting average of .246 has moved the team to eighth in the league.

THE STONE CRABS (22-21, 3rd South, 2.5 GB) ... Charlotte brings a three-game win streak into Joker Marchant Stadium having won a four-game series at Clearwater. Like the Flying Tigers, the Stone Crabs last game also went extra frames, but had a different outcome as Charlotte won 7-6 in 12 innings. The Stone Crabs are 7-7 their last 14 games. Patrick Leonard is tied for fourth in the Florida State League with seven homers while ranking second with a .552 slugging percentage. Andrew Toles is second in the FSL with 17 stolen bases while Tyler Goeddel is tied for third with 11 thefts as the Stone Crabs have swiped a league best 57 bases. Charlotte is the second-best hitting team in the league with a .264 mark while the staff ERA of 4.35 is second highest in the FSL.

CHARLOTTE FIRST BASEMAN EARNS FSL HONOR ... Patrick Leonard was selected as the Florida State League Player of the Week for the week ending May 18. In six games, the Charlotte first baseman was 8x23 for a .348 average with a double, three homers and eight runs batted in and six runs scored.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/20 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-2, 6.45 ERA) ... Lopez is looking for his first win since his second start on April 13. In his last outing on May 15, he allowed three runs on six hits in 5.0 innings against Bradenton. He has a 3.71 ERA is last three starts. 
5/21 - RHP Tanner Bailey (1-1, 4.20 ERA) ... Bailey was roughed up for five runs on seven hits in 5.0 innings in taking the loss to St. Lucie on May 16. He has allowed just two runs in his previous 10.0 innings over three appearances (one start). 
5/22 - LHP Josh Turley (3-0, 2.13 ERA) ... Turley has surrendered two runs in 7.0 innings with seven strikeouts in each of his last two starts, but didn’t get a decision in either game. He has a 2-0 record and a 1.67 ERA in his last four starts with 22 strikeouts and five walks.
5/23 - RHP Kevin Eichhorn (3-0, 1.66 ERA) ... Eichhorn was touched for two runs in 6.1 innings in his last start on May 18 against St. Lucie, matching the total number of runs he had allowed in his previous four starts. He is still looking for his first victory at Joker Marchant Stadium.

WELCOME BACK ... Edgar De La Rosa, who had been on the disabled list since May 9 with a blister, was activated on Monday and started last night’s game. He worked 4.0 innings and allowed three runs on eight hits.

ROSTER CATCH UP ... On May 16, right hander pitcher Chase Edwards was added to the roster with catcher Chris Taladay heading back to Extended Spring Training (EST). Edwards had an impressive outing of holding the Mets to one run on four hits in 3.0 innings in his Lakeland debut that evening, but on Monday, he too, was sent back to EST to make room for Edgar De La Rosa.

NOTHING FOR NESBITT ... Reliever Angel Nesbitt has not allowed a run in his last seven appearances out of the bullpen and has surrendered just two tallies over his last 13 outings dating back to April 13. He had recorded six straight saves before working 2.0 scoreless innings in the ninth and tenth frames in last night’s game against St. Lucie.

LOTS OF WIND ... The breeze Flying Tigers fan felt Monday night wasn’t all from Mother Nature as three Mets pitchers combined to strike out 19 Lakeland batters. It was the most strikeouts by Lakeland since whiffing 19 times against Charlotte on Aug. 7, 2010 in a 1-0 loss.

CURT CHILLIN’ ... Second baseman Curt Powell brings a nine-game hit streak into this series in which he has gone 12x36 (.333). Going back to April 24, Powell has hits in 22 of 24 games for a .297 average (27x91).

WRIGHT ON ... Chad Wright is carrying the hot bat for Lakeland over the last five games, collecting eight base hits in 21 at bats for a .381 average.  He has hit three doubles and a triple in those five games.

OH, SNAP ... Lance Durham saw his nine-game hit streak come to halt in last night’s game. The Flying Tigers designated hitter had gone 11x34 during the streak for a .324 clip. Durham is batting .370 (20x54) in 16 home games with five doubles and a homer for 10 runs batted in.

ROAD, SWEET ROAD ... Connor Harrell seems to prefer batting away from Joker Marchant Stadium as the Lakeland center fielder has a .313 batting average (25x80) in 20 road games. At home, he is hitting just .162 (11x68). Four of his six homers this season have been hit on the road.

FSL’S BEST “D” ... Lakeland is the Florida State League’s top defensive team with a .986 fielding percentage and has committed just 24 errors this season—19 fewer than the second place team. James Robbins has committed just two errors in 404 chances to top all FSL first baseman with a .995 fielding percentage. Shortstop Dixon Machado has just five errors in 175 chances at shortstop for a .971 fielding percentage—tops among FSL players at that position.

PUT THE ARM TO THE TEST ... Lakeland catcher Austin Green has gunned down 45.2 percent would-be base stealers this season and ranks third in the league in that category. He may get a work out this series as Charlotte has two of the top base stealers in the FSL and tops the league with 57 steals.

ON THE OTHER HAND (ARM) ... Charlotte catchers have combined to throw out 41.7 percent of all runners trying to steal (best percentage in the league), but they have only been tested 24 times, by far the fewest stolen base attempts against any team in the Florida State League. Lakeland has stolen just 25 bases as a team, second fewest among league teams. 

ON THE FARM ... Jeff McVaney leads all Detroit minor leaguers with 28 runs batted in. Chad Wright’s .297 batting average is third best in the organization while Lance Durham ranks sixth with a .292 mark. Four members of the Flying Tigers’ starting rotation rank in the top ten in Kevin Eichhorn (2nd, 1.66), Jake Thompson (3rd, 1.80), Josh Turley (4th, 2.13) and Edgar De La Rosa (8th, 3.18). Angel Nesbitt leads all Detroit minor league relievers with seven saves. 

UP NEXT ... Lakeland plays a critical series with division leading Dunedin on the road May 24-25. The series opens on May 24 with a doubleheader as the team two make up a rained out game from May 2. A third game is slated for Sunday, May 25 at 1 pm.

Friday, May 16, 2014

Mission Notes vs. St. Lucie (May 16-19)

THE SERIES ... This is one of those, four games, four days, four different times series. St. Lucie comes to town Friday, May 16 for a 7:11 pm game followed by a 6 pm game Saturday. On Sunday, the two teams hit the field for a 1 pm game before concluding the series Monday at 6:30 pm. 

THE FLYING TIGERS (26-13, 2nd North, 2.0 GB) ... Lakeland is coming off a split of a doubleheader last night at Bradenton, taking the nightcap 4-3 in eight innings after dropping the opener 7-6 in 10 innings. Three of the four games in the Marauders series went to extra frames. The Flying Tigers have now won six of their last seven and 13 of their last 16 games dating back to April 28 and have remained in second place in the North Division since April 18. Lakeland has three pitchers in the top ten in the Florida State League in terms of earned run average in Kevin Eichhorn (4th, 1.49), Jake Thompson (7th, 1.80) and Josh Turley (9th, 2.04). Thompson is also fifth with 41 strikeouts while closer Angel Nesbitt is fourth with six saves. Dixon Machado has moved into fourth place in the league with 29 runs scored and tops all FSL shortstops with a .968 fielding percentage. Lakeland’s staff ERA of 3.01 is third best in the FSL while the team batting average of .243 is tied for ninth. The Flying Tigers continue to lead the league with a .985 fielding percentage. The team’s 23 errors are 15 fewer than any other team. 

THE METS (22-18, 2nd South, 1.5 GB) ... St. Lucie lost the final three games of its series with Tampa and is 4-5 its last nine games, but is just 1.5 games behind Fort Myers. The Mets dropped a 10-5 decision to the Yankees in the finale which featured two hours and thirty minutes of rain delays. First baseman T.J. Rivera comes into the series with the second highest batting average (.388) in the minor leagues, trailing only Mookie Betts, who is hitting .401 for Portland Sea Dogs (Boston) of the AA Eastern League. Rivera also leads the league with 59 hits and is tied for the FSL lead with 33 RBI. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo leads the FSL with 37 runs scored, fifth with a .333 average and second with a .465 on-base percentage. Steven Matz is 10th in the league with a 2.09 ERA. The Mets lead the Florida State League with a .282 team batting average, 206 runs scored, 392 hits and 190 runs batted in while ranking second with 23 home runs. The staff ERA of 4.26 is third worst in the league, however.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/16 - RHP Tanner Bailey (1-0, 1.80 ERA) ... Bailey made his first career start on May 10 at Tampa and worked 4.1 innings, allowing two runs on three hits. In two previous relief appearances, he had tossed a combined 5.2 scoreless innings and had allowed just two hits.
5/17 - LHP Josh Turley (3-0, 2.04 ERA) ... Turley is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA since moving into the starting rotation four games ago. He had his longest stint of the season in his last start on May 12, working 7.0 innings  in a no-decision against Bradenton, holding the Marauders to a pair of runs on six hits with seven strikeouts
5/18 - RHP Kevin Eichhorn (3-0, 1.49 ERA) ... Eichhorn is 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA since joining the starting rotation five games ago. He tossed 7.0 scoreless innings in his last start on May 13 at Bradenton, holding the Marauders to three hits on three strikeouts. It was his second straight start with 7.0 scoreless innings pitched.
5/19 - RHP Jake Thompson (3-1, 1.80 ERA) ... Thompson had a tough going his last time out on May 15 at Bradenton as the Marauders roughed him up for four runs on eight hits in just 3.0 innings in his shortest stint of the season. The four runs allowed matched the number he had given up in his last four starts combined (23.1 innings). Thompson is 3-0 with a 0.88 ERA in five starts at Joker Marchant Stadium this season.

WINNING LATE ... In game two of the Bradenton doubleheader on Thursday, Chad Wright and Jeff McVaney hit back-to-back doubles to score the go-ahead run in the top of the 8th of the scheduled seven-inning game. It was the tenth win in the team’s final at bat this season. Lakeland is now 9-4 in one-run games and 17-6 in games decided by two runs or fewer.

TOUGH TYLER ... Tyler Clark is 3-1 his last four appearances out of the bullpen with a 0.00 ERA allowing just one unearned run in 4.1 innings in those four games. He had won three straight before taking the loss in the first game of the Bradenton doubleheader on Thursday.

LOFTY LOGAN ... Logan Ehler has also been hot out the pen, picking up a pair of wins in his last two outings, working 3.0 shutout innings in a win over Tampa on May 8 and 2.0 shutout innings for the victory over Bradenton in game two on Thursday.

DURABLE DURHAM ... Leon Durham enters this series with a seven game hit streak (8x26,.308) and has hits in 11 of his last 12 games (17x47, .363) with 12 runs batted in those 12 outings. He is hitting .378 (17x45) in 13 home games this season, but is just .212 in 14 away games. Durham’s batting average jumps to .340 with runners on base after batting .234 with the sacks empty.

AN ANGEL IN THE BULLPEN ... With the promotion of Guido Knudson to Erie, Angel Nesbitt has taken over the closer role and has passed with flying colors. Nesbitt has posted five straight saves for the Flying Tigers and is six-for-six in save opportunities this year.

HITTER HARRELL ... Connor Harrell brings a six-game hit streak into this series (8x22, .364). He is batting .313 in 20 road games, but is struggling at home with just a .164 mark in 17 games. Most of those struggles came early in the season as he hit .209 in April, but has rebounded with a .320 average in 13 games so far in May.

POWELL ON A ROLL ... Curt Powell has hits in his last five games (7x21, .333) with three doubles and has hits in nine of his last 10 games (12x39, .308). He is batting .318 in 12 games at Joker Marchant Stadium, but is hitting just .230 in 19 road games.

ROBBINS DRIVES IN FOUR ... James Robbins broke into the box score in a big way on Thursday with four runs batted in during game one of the doubleheader at Bradenton. It was his second four-RBI game of the year.

ROSTER MOVES ... After going silent for a couple of days, the transaction wire buzzed with seven moves in the last five days. On May 12, catcher Patrick Leyland, who began the season on the Disabled List with an ankle injury, was activated from the DL and transferred to West Michigan. The next day, righthander Guido Knudson was promoted to AA Erie with lefty Kyle Longstreth joining the club from Extended Spring Training (EST). Yesterday, lefthander Jade Todd, who began the season on the DL, was added the roster with righthander Johnnie Kirkland being sent back to EST. Kirkland, who played at Southeastern University in Lakeland, had been with the Flying Tigers since May 5, but did not see any action. Friday morning, Jared Reaves was activated from the disabled list from where he had been since April 10, while David Gonzalez was transferred back to EST.

DEBUT TIME ... Two Flying Tigers made their debuts on Thursday at Bradenton on May 15. Ryan Longstreth come on in relief in game one of the doubleheader and worked 3.0 scoreless innings retiring the first seven batters he faced before allowing  one hit. Jade Todd followed Longstreth in the first game, tossing a 1-2-3 ninth, ending with a strikeout. 


UP NEXT ...  The Flying Tigers’ eight-game home streak continues with four games against Charlotte with games May 20-22 at 6:30 pm and May 23 at 7:11 pm.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Bradenton (May 12-15)

THE SERIES ... Lakeland ventures outside the North Division for the first time and heads to Bradenton for a four-game series against the Marauders on May 12-15 with all games getting underway at 6:30 pm. Last season, Lakeland won five of the eight meetings between the two clubs, but split the four games played at McKechnie Field.

THE FLYING TIGERS (23-12, 2nd North, 3.0 GB) ... Lakeland is coming off a series with Tampa having taken three of the four games. The Flying Tigers have now won three in a row, five of their last six, and 10 of their last 12. Since being swept by Brevard County on April 14-16, Lakeland is 16-6, but still remains in second place where they have been since April 18, trailing Dunedin by three games. Lakeland has three pitchers in the FSL top ten in terms of ERA in Jake Thompson (3rd, 1.07—he is also fifth with 39 strikeouts), Kevin Eichhorn (7th, 1.78), and Josh Turley (8th, 1.91) while Guido Knudson is tied for fourth with five saves. Connor Harrell is one of three players tied for fourth in the league with six homers while Dixon Machado is fourth with 26 runs scored. The Flying Tigers staff ERA of 3.02 is third best in the FSL while the .242 team batting average is tied with Bradenton for eighth best.

THE MANATEES (18-18, 3rd South, 3.0 GB) ... Bradenton split its four-game series with Charlotte, but has dropped its last two and is 2-4 its last six games. The Marauders staff ERA of 3.62 is sixth best in the league while the .242 team batting average is tied with Lakeland for eighth. Jonathan Schwind leads the team with a .317 average while Josh Bell is batting .287 with eight hits in the last five games.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/12 - LHP Josh Turley (3-0, 1.91 ERA) ... Turley has won his last two starts and has allowed just one run in his last 13.0 innings in those two starts. In his last start on May 6 at Daytona, he allowed the one run on four hits in 6.2 innings with four strikeouts and two walks. Turley is 2-0 with a 2.00 in three starts after posting a 1-0 record and a 1.74 in five appearances out of the bullpen.
5/13 - RHP Kevin Eichhorn (2-0, 1.78 ERA) ... Eichhorn had his longest outing of the year in his last start on May 7 at Tampa, working 7.0 shutout innings. He struck out four and walked one while allowing four hits, but did not factor into the decision. Eichhorn has given up just two runs in his last 18.0 innings in his last three starts with 11 strikeouts and four walks. He is 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA in four starts after going 0-0 with a 1.46 ERA in three previously relief appearances.
5/14 - RHP Jake Thompson (3-1, 1.07 ERA) ... Thompson worked 5.0 innings in his last start on May 8 at home against Tampa. In that game, he held the Yankees to one run on two hits with four strikeouts, but did not get the win as Lakeland had to rally in the eighth for the win. Thompson has only posted one win in his last four starts.
5/15 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-2, 6.83 ERA) ... Lopez held Daytona to one run on a pair of hits in his last start on May 4 at the Cubs. He worked a season-high 7.0 innings in that start and it followed his shortest outing of the year (2.2 innings) on April 28. All three of his decisions have come at Joker Marchant Stadium.

SON OF A TIGER ... Bradenton pitcher Robby Rowland is the son of former Detroit and Red Sox catcher, Rich Rowland.

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS ... With a .657 winning percentage entering this series, the Flying Tigers are tied for the sixth-best record in the minor leagues. Unfortunately, fellow FSL North Division rival, Dunedin, has the second-best record with a .743 winning percentage, trailing only Hagerstown (Washington) which has a .788 mark and a 26-7 record.

DOUBLE TIME ... Lakeland cranked out 12 doubles in the Tampa series including four each in games two and four.

THE BULLISH PEN ... The Flying Tigers bullpen has allowed just five earned runs in the last 11 games for a 1.25 ERA over that span. In the last two games, relievers have recorded 12 strikeouts in 8.2 innings. The starters have surrendered 13 earned runs in the same 11 games for a 1.64 ERA.

ANOTHER ARM ON THE DL ... Pitcher Edgar De La Rosa was placed on the disabled list on May 9 joining fellow starter Endrys Briceno and relievers Joe Rogers and Jade Todd. De La Rosa was 1-3 with a 2.78 ERA In seven starts for the Flying Tigers. Taking the vacated roster spot is catcher Chris Taladay from Extended Spring Training. Taladay was signed as a non-drafted free agent by Detroit in 2013 out of the University of Central Florida where he was the Conference USA Player of the Year.

BAILEY TAKES THE HILL ... With Edgar De La Rosa going on the Disabled List, Manager Dave Huppert turned to Tanner Bailey to take over in the starting rotation. Taking the hill against the Yankees for his first career start, Bailey worked 4.1 innings and gave up a pair of earned runs on three hits.

TWO FOR TYLER ... Reliever Tyler Clark has picked up wins in each of his last two appearances out of the bullpen, recording six of his nine outs via the strikeout while pitching 3.0 shutout innings.

NASTY NESBITT ... Angel Nesbitt has registered a save in each of his last three appearances out of the bullpen for Lakeland.

CLIMB ANOTHER RUNG ... Lakeland manager Dave Huppert, already the winningest active manager in the minors with a 1,832-1,674 record over 26-plus seasons, is now tied with Roy Majtyka for 19th place on the all-time victories list for minor league managers. Majtyka coached 27 seasons (1968-97) in the Cardinals (8 years), Reds (4), Tigers (5), Braves (4), and Phillies (6) organizations. Next up for Huppert is Jack Lelivelt, who is in 18th place with a 1,861-1,439 in 20 seasons from 1920-1940.

FORMER FLYING TIGER LOY INJURED ... Brandon Loy, who began the season with the Flying Tigers and is now with AA Erie, was injured in a game May 7. The shortstop collided with centerfielder Jamie Johnson and was taken off the field on a cart with an injury reported by TigsTown.com as a broken leg and/or ankle.

UP NEXT ...  The Flying Tigers make up for all the recent road trips with eight straight home games at Joker Marchant Stadium from May 16-19 against St. Lucie and May 20-23 against Charlotte.

WHEN A 16-RUN LEAD JUST ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH ... On May 7, the Burlington Bees were well on their way to crushing the Clinton LumberKings, taking a 17-1 lead after five innings. Clinton then plated six runs in the top of the sixth inning to cut the lead to 17-7. Two innings later, five more LumberKing batters crossed the plate to be followed an inning later by five more Clinton runs as the game was now tied 17-17 to send the contest into extra innings. The LumberKings slowed down a little, but came across with three more runs in the top of the 12th to post an incredible 20-17 win after trailing by 16 runs!

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Tampa (May 7-10)

THE SERIES ... Lakeland heads back across I-4 to play at Tampa on Wednesday at 7 pm before returning back to Lakeland to host the second Education Day Game of the year on Thursday at 10:30 am. The series returns to Tampa for games on Friday at 7 pm and Saturday at 6 pm.

THE FLYING TIGERS (18-10, 2nd, 2.0 GB) ... Lakeland took two of three at Daytona and has now won seven of the last eight games. The Flying Tigers pounded out 28 hits in the three games including a season-high 17 in an 8-6 win in game two and out-hit the Cubs 28-15, but only outscored Daytona 14-10. The Flying Tigers come into this series in second place in the North Division, a place they have been since April 18.

THE YANKEES (15-16, 4th, 8.0 GB) ... Tampa will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak after being swept by Dunedin and being outscored 22-8 in the three games. Zach Wilson brings an 11-[game hit streak into this series—the longest active streak in the Florida State League. He is 18x39 (.462) during the stretch with three homers and 14 runs batted in. Dante Bichette saw his seven-game hit streak come to a close on Tuesday. He had gone 10x31 (.323) during the streak with seven runs scored. Eric Jagielo has hits in six consecutive games and is 7x25 (.280) during the stretch while Jake Cave has gone 8x21 (.321) during a five-game hit streak. Peter O’Brien has hits in six straight games (7x22, .318) and hits in 10 of his last 11 games (15x41, .366).

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/07 - RHP Kevin Eichhorn (2-0, 2.22 ERA) ... Eichhorn has won his last two starts (both on the road) allowing just one run in each start. In his last start on May 1 at Dunedin, he held the Blue Jays to four hits with five strikeouts over 6.0 innings.
5/08 - RHP Jake Thompson (3-1, 0.97 ERA) ... Thompson tossed 7.0 shutout innings in his last start on May 3 at home against Dunedin and held the Blue Jays to three hits on seven strikeouts. It was his third start of 7.0 innings and his sixth in as many starts with five or more strikeouts. All three of his wins have come at home where he has a 0.70 ERA.
5/09 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-2, 6.83 ERA) ... Lopez held Daytona to one run on a pair of hits in his last start on May 4 at the Cubs. He worked a season-high 7.0 innings in that start and it followed his shortest outing of the year (2.2) on April 28. All three of his decisions have come at Joker Marchant Stadium.
5/10 - RHP Edgar De La Rosa (1-3, 2.78 ERA) ... The reigning FSL Player of the Week, De La Rosa was tagged for five runs—four earned—on just two hits in 2.2 innings in his last start on May 5 at Daytona. He is 0-1 with a 4.61 ERA on the road this year compared to 1-2 with a 1.64 ERA at home.

FSL HONORS DE LA ROSA ... Edgar De La Rosa was named the Florida State League Pitcher of the Week for April 28-May 4. The 6-foot-6 righthander won his only start of the week, working 7.0 scoreless innings on April 29 against Daytona. In that game he struck out a team season-high eight batters while walking three in holding the Cubs to just one hit.

LOCAL JOINS CLUB ... Brennan Smith was promoted to AA Erie on  Monday with local product Johnnie Kirkland, a 2013 25th round draft pick out of Lakeland’s Southeastern University, joining the Flying Tigers from Extended Spring Training.

NOT THE ONLY ONE ... Former Flying Tiger Wade Gaynor was selected as the Eastern League Player of the Week for April 28-May 4, going 6-for-29 with four homers and eight runs batted in at AA Erie. In addition, another former Lakeland pitcher, Austin Kubitza was tapped as the Midwest League Pitcher of the Week after striking out 12 and tossing two-hit ball over 7.0 shutout innings on May 1 at Lake County. 

CLIMB ANOTHER RUNG ... Lakeland manager Dave Huppert, already the winningest active manager in the minors with a 1,829-1,673 record over 26-plus seasons, is three wins away from tying Roy Majtyka for 19th place on the all-time victories list for minor league managers. Majtyka coached 27 seasons (1968-97) in the Cardinals (8 years), Reds (4), Tigers (5), Braves (4), and Phillies (6) organizations.

LANCE-A-LOT ... Lance Durham has hits in six of his last seven games going 12x29 (.414) with five runs scored and nine runs batted in during the last seven games. He is batting .333 against righties, but just .174 against lefthanders. In 13 home games, Durham is batting a blistering .378, but his average drops to .171 in nine games on the road.

HOLM BOY ... Jeff Holm has had hits in each of his last four games, including a 3x4 night on May 5 at Daytona. He is 6x15 (.400) in the last four games with three runs scored, two doubles, a homer, and six runs batted in. Holm is hitting .305 against righthanders but has struggled against lefties, batting just .042 in 24 at bats. In 13 road games, he has a .300 average and .121 in 10 home games.

DYNO DIXON ... Dixon Machado saw his nine-game hit streak come to a close on May 4 in the first game at Daytona, but came back with hits in the final two games. He is now 21x54 (.389) with 15 runs scored, two doubles, a homer and five RBI since April 24.  Machado has scored at least one run in 10 of his last 12 games with 15 runs scored over that span.

JOLLY JEFF ... Jeff McVaney has hits in five straight games (6x21, .286); nine of his last 10 games (14x41, .341); and 14 of his last 16 games (21x77, .273). He has scored at least one run in 10 of his last 11 games. McVaney is consistent at home and away, batting .288 at home and .283 on the road. 

POWELL-ERFUL ... Curt Powell has hits in 10 of his last 12 games for a 13x45 (.289) stretch with six runs scored.

BOUNCING BACK? ... Chad Wright put together a 14-game streak from April 10-27 going 23x57 (.404) during the streak, but went 0x16 during the next four games. He has rebounded with four hits in the last two games, including a 3x5 game with a homer on May 5 at Daytona.

UP NEXT ... Lakeland has Mothers Day off and then heads to Bradenton for a four-game series against the Marauders on May 12-15 with all games getting underway at 6:30 pm. The Flying Tigers then make up for all the recent road trips with eight straight home games from May 16-23 against Saint Lucie and Charlotte.



Sunday, May 4, 2014

Mission Notes vs Daytona (May 4-6)

THE SERIES ... Lakeland travels to Daytona May 4-6 for games at 5:35 pm on Sunday, 7:05 pm on Monday, and 10:35 am on Tuesday. The Flying Tigers swept the Cubs in their first series this season. After winning 11-10 in the opener that saw both teams hit grand slams, Lakeland shutout Daytona 7-0 in game two and won big in game three, 11-2.

THE FLYING TIGERS (18-10, 2nd, 2.0 GB) ... Lakeland has won five in a row coming into the Daytona series and has outscored opponents in the last five games by a combined 38-13 score, including 27-3 the last four games. Starting pitcher has been stellar for the Flying Tigers as late, having allowed just one run in the last four games for a 0.34 ERA and just 11 hits in those four outings. The starters have recorded 24 strikeouts and issued just eight walks over the last 26.1 innings and four games. The bullpen has been doing its job as well, giving up just two runs the last four games for a 1.86 earned run average. Jake Thompson has been a big contributor, going 3-1 while ranking third in the Florida State League with a 0.97 ERA. His 35 strikeouts is tied for fourth. Brennan Smith is second among league relievers with a .145 opponents batting average while Guido Knudson is third with 12.41 strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched.

THE CUBS (9-17, 5th, 10.0 GB) ... Daytona hasn’t played since being swept by the Flying Tigers April 28-30 in Lakeland as the series at Clearwater was rained out all three nights. Gioskar Amaya leads the Cubs with a .408 average in 15 games this season while Bijan Rademacher is next with a .355 mark, which is fourth in the FSL for those batters with 2.7 plate appearances per game. Marco Hernandez is the only other Daytona hitter over .300 on the year with a .321 batting average, which ranks ninth in the league. Felix Pena is fifth in the FSL with a 1.55 ERA, but is 1-3 on the year. Rob Zastryzny and Jose Rosario each have 21 strikeouts to lead the staff.

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
5/04 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-2, 8.71 ERA) ... Lopez gave up six runs in just 2.2 innings his last start on April 28 to the Cubs, but thanks to a Lakeland rally, did not take a loss in the game. It was his second straight start allowing six runs and he has now surrendered 17 runs and 21 hits in his last 10.2 innings over three starts.
5/05 - RHP Edgar De La Rosa (1-3, 1.91 ERA) ... De La Rosa held the Cubs to just one hit in 7.0 shutout innings in getting his first win of the year in his last start on April 29. He struck out eight in that game for a second straight outing and has given up seven hits and just two runs in his last 21.0 innings over his last three starts. De La Rosa has held opponents to a .179 average—second best in the league.
5/06 - RHP Josh Turley (2-0, 2.08 ERA) ... Turley gave up four hits and struck out four over 6.1 scoreless innings in getting the win in his last start on April 30 against the Cubs. That outing was just his second start this season after making his first five appearances out of the bullpen. He has allowed just three runs in his last 18.1 innings.

HOME RUN DERBY ... With Jeff McVaney going deep on Saturday, the Flying Tigers have now homered in six straight games with a total of ten homers. Lakeland has now hit 17 home runs in the last 21 games after not going deep in the first eight games of the year.
TOP GLOVES ... Lakeland has the top defense in the league with a .983 fielding percentage having committed just 19 errors in 28 games-—six fewer that any other club.

DOUBLE DIGIT HITS ... Lakeland saw its streak of games with 10 or more hits come to a close on Saturday. The Flying Tigers had six straight games with double digit hits before being held to five by Dunedin on Saturday. Lakeland is now 73x239 during the last seven games for a .305 clip. The Flying Tigers have had nine doubles, six triples and ten home runs in those seven games.

MUCHO MACHADO ... Dixon Machado carries a nine-game hit streak into this series, going 17x39 (.436) with 12 runs scored and four more runs driven in. The nine-game streak is the longest active streak in the Florida State League.

HOWDY HARRELL ... Connor Harrell brings an eight-game hit streak into the Daytona series going 11x29 (.379) with seven runs scored. He has hit four home runs in the last eight games with 13 RBI. The streak is the second longest active streak in the FSL.

MORE OF McVANEY ... Jeff McVaney has hits in 12 of his last 14 games to go 19x58 (.328) during those 14 games with three triples, a homer, and nine runs batted in. McVaney has scored a run in nine straight games, crossing the plate a total of 11 times.

GOOD MORNING, GOOD MORNING ... After executing their own Education Day Game on April 30 with an 11-2 victory over Daytona, Lakeland will play two more morning games this week facing the Cubs at 10:35 on Tuesday morning in Daytona and two days later, hosting a second Education Day Game on Thursday, May 8 against the Yankees.

WINNING CLOSE ... Lakeland is 6-2 in one-run games this season and 4-1 in games decided by two runs. The Flying Tigers are also 2-1 in extra innings this season.

SATURDAY NIGHT’S ALL RIGHT ... With Lakeland’s 2-0 win on Saturday night, the Flying Tigers are now a perfect 5-0 on the last day of the week.

WHY THE LONG BREAK? ... Lakeland plays just two home games the first 15 days of May. While the Flying Tigers are on the road, the Florida College System Activities Association State Baseball Tournament will be played at Joker Marchant Stadium on May 9-14. Local Polk State joins Palm Beach State, Eastern Florida State, Gulf Coast State, Tallahassee, State College of Florida, Chipola, Central Florida, St. John’s River State and Miami Dade. Games are scheduled for 10 am, 1 pm, 4 pm, and 7 pm on May 9-11. Three games are slated for May 12 at 10 am, 1 pm, and 7 pm and May 13 at 1 pm and 4 pm. The championship game will be played May 14 at 10 am (with a second game to follow, if necessary).

UP NEXT ... Lakeland heads back across I-4 to play at Tampa on Wednesday at 7 pm before returning back to Lakeland to host the second Education Day Game of the year on Thursday at 10:30 am.  The series returns to Tampa for games on Friday (7 pm) and Saturday (6 pm).

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Mission Notes vs. Dunedin (May 1-3)

THE SERIES ... The first two games of this series take place Thursday and Friday at 6:30 pm in Dunedin with the two teams heading to Lakeland on Saturday for the 6 pm series finale. The Blue Jays took two of the three games in the earlier series winning 5-3 in game one and 12-4 in game three. The Flying Tigers won the middle game 4-3 when Tyler Hanover  tripled and scored the winning run on an error on the play.

THE FLYING TIGERS (16-10, 2nd, 4.0 GB) ... After holding on for an 11-10 win over Daytona in game one of their series, the Flying Tigers outscored the Cubs 18-2 in the next two games to sweep the series. The opener featured grand slams by both teams in a back-and-forth affair. In game two, Edgar De La Rosa held the Cubs to one hit over 7.0 innings while Guido Knudson preserved the shutout with two scoreless innings of relief. In game three, Lakeland led 11-0 heading into the ninth before  winning 11-2. The series sweep was the Flying Tigers third of the season and puts Lakeland into sole possession of second place, 4.0 games behind Dunedin and 2.0 games ahead of Brevard County and Tampa.

THE BLUE JAYS (20-6, 1st, 4.0 gm lead) ... Dunedin, which has the most wins of any team in the minors, was shut out by Tampa 6-0 on Wednesday to see its five-game win streak snapped. The Blue Jays winning percentage of .769 entering this series, is second only to Hagerstown (18-5, .783), the Nationals’ A affiliate in the South Atlantic League. Matt Boyd leads the Florida State League in wins (4) and ERA (0.29) and with 37 strikeouts, is second to teammate Taylor Cole, who leads the league with 40 Ks. Daniel Norris is third in the FSL with a 0.75 ERA to go with his 3-0 record while closer Arik Sikula is tied for the minor league lead with nine saves. Dalton Pompey is fourth in the FSL with a .354 average and tied for first with 14 stolen bases while Dwight Smith, Jr., is right behind at .330 on the year.  K.C. Hobson is tied for the FSL lead with 27 RBI

LAKELAND PROBABLE STARTERS
    5/01 - RHP Kevin Eichhorn (1-0, 2.42 ERA)
... Eichhorn is making his third start of the season. In his last start on April 26 at Tampa, he picked up his first win of the year after holding the Yankees to one run on five hits over 5.0 innings. Eichhorn is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in two previous starts after going 0-0 with a 1.46 ERA in three relief appearances.
    5/02 - RHP Jake Thompson (2-1, 1.20 ERA) ... Thompson has a 2.00 ERA in his last three starts, but has an 0-1 mark and two no-decisions in that stretch. In his last start on April 27 at Tampa, he gave up one run on five hits in working just 4.1 innings, his shortest stint of the season. Thompson struck out six against Tampa, marking his five straight game with five or more punch outs.
    5/03 - RHP Yorfrank Lopez (1-2, 8.71 ERA) ... Lopez was tagged for six runs on eight hits to the Cubs on April 28 in just 2.2 innings – his shortest outing of the season – and his second consecutive game giving up six runs. He has now allowed 17 runs in 10.2 innings in his last three starts for a 14.34 earned run average. This will be his fifth start at Joker Marchant Stadium this season compared to one road start.

DUNEDIN PROBABLE STARTERS
    5/01 - RHP Taylor Cole (2-0, 2.73 ERA)
... Cole held Clearwater to one run on five hits over 6.0 innings on April 26, but did not get the decision. He struck out eight in the game and has punched out seven or more in each of his five starts this season. Cole has struck out 40 and walked seven over 29.2 innings.
    5/02 - RHP Ben White (1-0, 3.57 ERA) ... White is looking for his first win since April 10. In his last outing, he gave up four runs on nine hits against Clearwater on April 27 and has been tagged for 17 hits over his last 13.0 innings. Unlike Cole, White is not a strikeout pitcher, mowing down just nine batters in 22.2 innings.
    5/03 - RHP Jesse Hernandez (2-1, 3.27 ERA) ... Hernandez has won his last two starts. Against Tampa on April 28, he struck out four and held the Yankees to one run on three hits over 6.0 innings, marking the third time in four starts he has worked six frames. Both of wins have come on the road.

GRAND SLAMS ABOUND ... In the series opener against Daytona, James Robbins deposited a pitch over the left field with the bases loaded in the first inning to record Lakeland’s first grand slam since Jordan Lennerton hit one on July 2, 2011 at Clearwater. In the third inning, the Cubs’ Jeimer Candelario answered with his own grand slam.

HOME RUN DERBY ... Someone needs to check the baseballs when Lakeland is hitting as the Flying Tigers have now homered in four straight games. Lakeland has knocked seven out of the park in the last four contests and has now hit 14 home runs in the last 19 games after not going deep in the first eight games of the year.

TRIPLIN’ OUT ... Triples are a somewhat rare event in baseball, but Lakeland has had no problem with the three-base hit, cranking out six triples in a four-game stretch from April 26-29. Jeff McVaney has three of those triples, including a pair of three-baggers on April 28.

DOUBLE DIGIT HITS
... Lakeland has had ten or more hits in each of the last five games and is now 58x175 during those five games for a .331 clip. The Flying Tigers have had six doubles, six triples and seven home runs in the last quintet of games.

LET IT RIP, LEON ... Leon Durham put together memorable back-to-back games against Dunedin going 4x4 on Tuesday with a homer and double for three runs batted in on April 29 and then followed with a 3x4 day with another double and two more runs driven in on April 30.

HOWDY HARRELL ... Connor Harrell brings six-game hit streak into the Dunedin series going 7x22 (.318) with six runs scored. He has hit three home runs in the last six games with 11 RBI.

MUCHO MACHADO ... Dixon Machado has carried the hot bat for Lakeland in the last seven games, getting at least one hit in each game. He is 15x31 (.484) with 10 runs scored and four more driven in to raise his batting average 109 points to .284 on the year.

MORE OF IT, McVANEY ... Jeff McVaney has hits in 10 of his last 12 games to bring up his average 52 points to .292 on the season. He is 17x51 (.333) during those dozen games with three triples and seven runs batted in. McVaney has scored in seven straight games, crossing the plate a total of nine times.

CURT POWER ... Curt Powell brings a seven-game hit streak into this series going 9x27 (.333) during that period.

HUPPERT CLIMBS THE LADDER ... With Lakeland’s 11-2 win over Daytona at home on Wednesday, Flying Tiger manager Dave Huppert moved into the top 20 for all-time wins by a minor league manager. Huppert, the winningest active minor league manager, now has a career record of 1,825-1,672 passing Bert Niehoff (1,824-1,713 record from 1922-1954 with 12 different teams), to move into the 20th spot among all-time minor league managers.

UP NEXT ... Lakeland hits the road for three games at Daytona on May 4-6. The series opens on Sunday at 5:35 pm and continues on Monday at 7:05 pm. The series finale is set for Tuesday at 10:35 as the Cubs host their Education Day.

THE BREVARD BOOM
... Brevard County dropped a bomb on Clearwater on Tuesday, drowning the Threshers 20-0 behind a 5x5 night by Tyrone Taylor, who singled twice, double, tripled and homered for the Manatee’s first-ever cycle. Brevard scored in each of the first six innings en route to a 16-0 lead after the sixth inning.