Results tagged ‘ Jair Jurrjens ’
G-Braves Notes for 6.8.12 at Lehigh Valley
Jurrjens will try and snap Gwinnett’s four-game losing streak tonight. (Karl Moore/Gwinnett Braves)
Everything I said in yesterday’s post about turning things around can be repeated about tonight’s game. For six and a half innings of last night’s game, it looked like Kris Medlen and the G-Braves were going to halt the slide. Medlen turned in 5.0 scoreless innings, his first scoreless start since 2009 while also with Gwinnett, and the G-Braves held a 2-0 lead heading to stretch time. After the bottom of the seventh, Lehigh Valley had struck for five runs in an inning that featured a hit-by-pitch, missed catch error, wild pitch and balk. The IronPigs went on to a 5-2 win.
So now it’s Jair Jurrjens’ turn to play the role of stopper. The G-Braves haven’t lost five-straight this season, and if they don’t want to reach that point tonight, it’ll be on Jurrjens to look more like that 8.0-inning ace from May 27 than the struggling pitcher that allowed 10 runs and three homers his last time out on June 1. Meanwhile, the lineup has got to produce more than the four runs they’ve scored over the first three games of this series. Facing left-hander Pat Misch (3-8, 5.01) tonight might be the cure to what ails the bats, but keep in mind that Misch is looking to end a three-game losing streak of his own and pitched fairly well against Gwinnett despite a loss on May 29 (7.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 ER).
Tonight’s Game Notes: 6.8.12 GBraves Game Notes
First pitch from Coca-Cola Park is up at 7:05 PM, listen in on WDUN 550 AM / 102.9 FM and WDUN.com.
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Atlanta Braves Minor League Report (June 2012)
Photo courtesy of Kyle Hess
Atlanta Braves (31-25, 2nd place)
The big league club plays in arguably the toughest division in Major League Baseball, alongside the American League East. However, the Braves are having another solid season and are in line for one of the five playoff spots in the 2012 MLB Playoffs as they trail the Washington Nationals by 2 games in the NL East standings. Atlanta is succeeding with a host of players from their deep minor league system. Everyone knows about the quick ascentions of Craig Kimbrel and Freddie Freeman and a year earlier with Tommy Hanson and Jason Heyward, but how about the contributions from former Gwinnett Braves such as; Jose Constanza, J.C. Boscan and Randall Delgado this season? Enough can’t be said for the guys in Gwinnett who’ve already made their presence felt in Atlanta like; Tyler Pastornicky, Jair Jurrjens and Cory Gearrin. The Braves most highy-piblicized promotion this season came from Double-A Mississippi, when the Braves promoted Andrelton Simmons to Atlanta. Since entering the Major League fold, the highly touted shortstop has been brilliant both defensively and offensively. He was one of the top ranked shortstop prospects in minor league baseball and the No. 4 overall prospect in the Braves system according to Baseball America. The Braves are 19-5 this season when Chipper Jones is in the starting line-up, so look for more good times ahead as the living legend is eligible to return from the DL on Friday, amidst his final season in an illustrious Hall-of-Fame career.
Gwinnett Braves (33-27, 2nd place)
Photo courtesy of Chris Roughgarden
The G-Braves have been struggling as of late, from both an offensive and pitching standpoint. In their last two games, Gwinnett has allowed 15 runs to their opposition, while the G-Braves offense has accumulated just five hits and two total runs over that span. For the month of May, Gwinnett registered a 15-15 record after securing the best mark in the International League (17-7) in April. The G-Braves are now 1.5 games behind the IL South leading Charlotte Knights after Gwinnett squandered a maximum first place lead in April of 7.0 games. Julio Teheran is the unquestionable ace of the staff and Todd Redmond has been the most consistent starter in 2012. In fact, Redmond was named the IL Pitcher of the Week the same week as teammate Ernesto Mejia was awarded the IL Batter of the Week. You can’t talk about the offense without mentioning the guy who got them going and the G-Braves 2011 MVP, Stefan Gartrell. Gartrell was named the IL Batter of the Week the first week of May after transforming his batting average from .165 on April 29 to .263 a month later on May 29. Luis Durango and Christian Marrero were also instrumental to the G-Braves offense through the month of May. Cory Gearrin has solidified the closer’s role in the bullpen and has six saves on the season. Jaye Chapman, Anthony Varvaro, Jose Lugo and Buddy Carlyle have excelled out of the bullpen this month for Gwinnett.
Mississippi Braves (26-34, 5th place)
Photo courtesy of Melinda Pease
The Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves has a great deal of star-power, but that has yet to be realized 100-percent with their 10-9 record in the month of May. Mississippi, as a team, does not have a great deal of power or speed, totaling just 18 home runs all season and not one player on the M-Braves has double-digit stolen bases. Mississippi is led by one of the best catching prospects in baseball in the form of Christian Bethancourt. This season, the do-it -all catcher is batting .257 with 29 hits, 10 RBI and 31 total bases. In 43 games with Mississippi this season, Simmons batted .292 with 28 runs scored, 50 hits, nine doubles, two triples, three home runs, 21 RBI, 10 stolen bases and an extraordinary 1:1 walk to strikeout ratio with 20 of each, prior to his promotion. Ian Gac and Evan Gattis supply a majority of the power for this team, as the two have combined for 10 home runs and 41 RBI in 2012. Todd Cunningham is their one-base guy, as he boasts a team-leading .325 batting including his team-high 54 hits and .371 on-base percentage. The former Independent League star Gary Moran has transitioned to affiliated ball brilliantsly this season after coming over from the River City Rascals of the Frontier League. This year, the big righty has a 1-4 record with a 3.00 ERA, alongside 41 strikeouts to just 19 walks in 57.0 innings of work. Zeke Spruill leads the team in wins with five and Mark Lamm is the team -leader in saves with six in eight opportunities. Don’t forget the Braves first round pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, Sean Gilmartin who has 3-5 mark with a 3.39 ERA in 11 starts, including 52 stirikeouts and 17 walks in 69.0 innings pitched.
Lynchburg Hillcats (29-28, 1st place)
Photo courtesy of Karl Moore
Medlen Set To Start For Gwinnett Saturday
Photo courtesy of Melinda Pease
The opener of a four-game home-and-home series between the top two teams in the International League South Division went to second-place Charlotte on Friday night at Coolray Field. The Knights put up 10 runs on the strength of three home runs to defeat the South-leading Gwinnett Braves, 10-3. Charlotte’s win trimmed the G-Braves’ lead in the division to 1.5 games.
Starter Jair Jurrjens (L, 3-3) surrendered 10 runs, six earned, on 12 hits in a losing effort. Former IL MVP Dan Johnson blasted solo home runs off Jurrjens in the third and fifth innings, and Hector Gimenez homered as well in the fifth against the G-Braves’ right-hander.
The G-Braves jumped out to an early 1-0 lead as Tyler Pastornicky singled in his first plate appearance with Gwinnett, took second on a single by Stefan Gartrell, stole third and scored on an RBI single by Felix Pie.
Photo courtesy of Chris Roughgarden
Charlotte Knights (31-25, 2nd IL South) vs Gwinnett (32-23, 1st IL South)
The Atlanta Braves want to turn Kris Medlen into a starting pitcher, so they have reassigned the big leaguer to Triple-A Gwinnett to stretch him out. The right-hander has been with the Braves since the 2009 season as a middle reliever and an occasional spot-starter. In fact, during the 2010 season Medlen started 14 games for Atlanta and registered a 6-2 record with a 3.68 ERA. The Braves are hoping that the righty can continue that success over the course of an entire Major League season.
This season with the Atlanta Braves, Medlen is 1-1 with a 3.49 ERA amidst 28.1 innings of work. The righty has surrendered 11 runs on 27 hits while he has struck out 17 batters while walking just seven. Since it’s just his first start the G-Braves will be very cautious with him. Medlen is predicted to throw either four innings or 60 pitches, whichever happens first.
Saturday, June 2 Starting Line-up from Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia:
The International League South-leading Gwinnett Braves (32-23) conclude their 10-game homestand on Saturday in the series finale against the Charlotte Knights (31-25). Right-hander Kris Medlen (0-0, 0.00) will make his first start since being optioned to Gwinnett by Atlanta. He’ll be opposed by Charlotte right-hander Terry Doyle (4-3, 3.05). First pitch at Coolray Field is scheduled for 7:05 PM. The game will be broadcast on radio on WDUN 550 AM and 102.9 FM with Tony Schiavone calling play-by-play.
The first 2,000 fans attending Saturday night’s game will receive a Chopper Coin Bank presented by Delta Community Credit Union. Chopper and the G-Braves will also celebrate a belated “Groundhogs Day” at Coolray Field. Tickets for all Gwinnett Braves home games are on sale now at the Coolray Field Box Office. Call (678) 277-0340 or visit GwinnettBraves.com for more information.
Photo courtesy of Melinda Pease
Charlotte Knights Batting Order:
1) Greg Golson – CF
2) Drew Garcia – 2B
3) Dan Johnson – DH
4) Brent Morel – 3B
5) Jordan Danks – RF
6) Josh Phegley – C
7) Jim Gallagher – 1B
8) Justin Green – LF
9) Ozzie Martinez – SS
G-Braves Batting Order
1) Luis Durango – CF
2) Tyler Pastornicky – SS
3) Stefan Gartrell – DH
4) Ernesto Mejia – 1B
5) Felix Pie – RF
6) Joey Terdoslavich – 3B
7) Collin DeLome – LF
8) Jose Yepez – C
9) Lance Zawadzki – 2B
1st Place G-Braves vs 2nd Place Charlotte Friday
Photo courtesy of Melinda Pease
The Gwinnett Braves looked for a series victory, but settled for a split after falling 14-4 to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs in the series finale at Coolray Field on Thursday night. Starter Todd Redmond yielded four runs over 7.0 innings and exited in a 4-4 game, but the IronPigs scored 10 runs over the final two innings to win in a rout.
Early in the game, the G-Braves jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to Ernesto Mejia’steam-leading 40th RBI of the season, coming on a first-inning single scoring Felix Pie. Christian Marrero then laced an RBI single into right field scoring Mejia. Marrero finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs in the losing cause for Gwinnett. Pie doubled twice, finishing 2-for-4 with two runs scored out of the leadoff spot. Wilson also went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and one run scored. Gwinnett tied the game, 4-4 in the seventh inning when Stefan Gartrell registered his second pinch hit of the season with an RBI single scoring Josh Wilson.
Photo courtesy of Chris Roughgarden
Charlotte Knights (30-25, 2nd IL South) vs Gwinnett (32-22, 1st IL South)
Tyler Pastornicky returns to Gwinnett starting line-up after starring for the G-Braves during the 2011 season. He spent the entire 2012 season with the Atlanta Braves up until this point. The promotion of future phenom Andrelton Simmons forced Pastornicky down to Gwinnett and shifted Greg Paiml to Double-A Mississippi. Pastornicky will now take over as the everyday shortstop for Gwinnett moving forward.
The second place Knights are in two for two games in two days before heading to Charlotte for two more games against the G-Braves from June 3-4. Charlotte is hot as of late, winning seven of their last 10 games. The two teams each have four wins against the other this season with 13 games remaining in 2012.
Friday, June 1 Starting Line-up from Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia:
The International League South-leading Gwinnett Braves (32-22) continue their 10-game homestand on Friday with the first of a two-game set against the South Division’s second place team, the Charlotte Knights (29-25). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM at Coolray Field. G-Braves right-hander Jair Jurrjens (3-2, 4.85) is set to oppose Charlotte left-hander Charlie Leesman (4-4, 2.39). The game will be broadcast on radio on WDUN 550 AM and 102.9 FM with Tony Schiavone calling the play-by-play.
Friday night’s game is sponsored by 12 Stone and is “80′s Night”. A full 80′s playlist and clips from the best 80′s movies will be featured all night long at Coolray Field. After the game, stick around for Fox 5 Friday Fireworks, presented by WAGA Fox 5 Atlanta.
Tickets for all Gwinnett Braves home games are on sale now at the Coolray Field Box Office. Call (678) 277-0340 or visit GwinnettBraves.com for more information.
Photo courtesy of Melinda Pease
Charlotte Knights Batting Order:
1) Greg Golson – 2B
2) Tyler Kuhn – DH
3) Brent Morel – 3B
4) Dan Johnson – 1B
5) Hector Gimenez – C
6) Jordan Danks – CF
7) Jim Gallagher – LF
8) Dre Garcia – 2B
9) Ray Olmedo – SS
G-Braves Batting Order
1) Luis Durango – CF
2) Tyler Pastornicky – SS
3) Stefan Gartrell – LF
4) Ernesto Mejia – DH
5) Joey Terdoslavich – 3B
6) Felix Pie – RF
7) Christian Marrero – 1B
8) Josh Wilson – 2B
9) Jose Yepez – C
By: Tony Piraro
Julio Teheran Set For Memorial Day Fireworks
Photo courtesy of Kyle Hess
The No. 1 pitching prospect in the Atlanta Braves organization according to Baseball America and MLB.com is ready to set off some early fireworks for the Gwinnett Braves on Memorial Day. Julio Teheran (4-2, 2.98) will take the mound for the G-Braves against former Major Leaguer and current Lehigh Valley IronPig right-hander Dave Bush (4-3, 2.73) for a 7:05 p.m. scheduled first pitch from Coolray Field.
The Gwinnett Braves honor Memorial Day on Monday night at Coolray Field with players and coaches wearing special camouflage jerseys sponsored by Kipper Tool. Those jerseys will be auctioned off following the game, with proceeds benefitting Fisher House. A special Memorial Day Fireworks extravaganza follows the game. Monday night is also another Kids Eat Free Monday, where all kids 12 and under will receive a voucher for a free hot dog, bag of chips and a small soda.
The IL South leading G-Braves (30-20) boast the second best record in the International League as they prepare to face the Philadelphia Phillies Triple-A affiliate. Lehigh Valley (28-22) is in town for four games at Coolray Field as the two teams play each other just eight times this season. The next match-up will take place in Pennsylvania from June 5-8 amidst a four-game season series finale, barring a playoff match-up.
Sunday afternoon Jair Jurrjens was brilliant against the Rochester Red Wings for eight scoreless innings en route to his third win with Gwinnett. It was a pitchers duel as the G-Braves snuck past the Twins affiliate 1-0 from Coolray Field. With the win, Gwinnett extended their win-streak to three games as they defeated Rochester in the four-game series with three wins and won the overall season series 5-3. Christian Marrero drove in the lone run of the game on his triple, scoring Ernesto Mejia all the way from first base.
Photo courtesy of Chris Roughgarden
Lehigh Valley (28-22, T-2nd IL North) vs Gwinnett (30-20, 1st IL South)
The IronPigs are in Georgia for just four days as the two teams face-off for the first time in 2012. Currently, Lehigh Valley is tied for second place in the IL South alongside Buffalo, the Mets affiliate who defeated Gwinnett in their season series this year 6-2. Aside from the three-game win streak for the G-Braves, they are 5-5 in their last 10 games and 17-8 at home this year.
Memorial Day – Monday, May 28 Starting Line-up from Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia:
Julio Teheran (4-2, 2.98) will take the mound for the G-Braves against former Major Leaguer and current Lehigh Valley IronPig righty Dave Bush (4-3, 2.73) for a 7:05 p.m. scheduled first pitch from Coolray Field. This series features two National League teams, therefore the pitchers will be hitting in all four games. The game will be broadcast on WDUN 550 AM and 102.9 FM with Tony Schiavone calling the play-by-play.
Photo courtesy of Daniel Hamby
Lehigh Valley IronPigs Batting Order:
1) CF – Kyle Hudson
2) 2B – Kevin Frandsen
3) LF – Domonic Brown
4) C – John Suomi
5) RF – Steve Susdorf
6) 1B – Cody Overbeck
7) 3B – Tim Kennelly
8) SS – Andres Blanco
9) P – Dave Bush
G-Braves Batting Order
1) LF – Jose Constanza
2) CF – Luis Durango
3) RF – Stefan Gartrell
4) 1B – Ernesto Mejia
5) 3B – Joey Terdoslavich
6) C – Jose Yepez
7) SS – Josh Wilson
8) 2B – Lance Zawadzki
9) P – Julio Teheran
By: Tony Piraro
Jair Jurrjens Ready To Roll Rochester Sunday
Photo courtesy of Karl Moore
The first place Gwinnett Braves (29-20) bats exploded Friday for 13 runs on 15 hits. A night prior Gwinnett accumulated eight total hits with Josh Wilson and Luis Durango accounting for six of them.
However, the G-Braves accumulated just six hits in the game on Saturday and still won, but scored four total runs in their defeat of the Rochester Red Wings, 4-2, from Coolray Field. Greg Paiml was the player of the game with two hits and three RBI alongside some stellar defense at shortstop as he led the G-Braves charge. The reigning International League Pitcher of the Week, Todd Redmond (W, 5-3) was solid in his 7.0 innings of work.
Photo courtesy of Daniel Hamby
Ernesto Mejia snapped his hit-streak at 13 games on Thursday, which is a season-high for any G-Brave hitter. The last Gwinnett Brave to record a hit-streak of similar measures was the 12-game streak by Tyler Pastornicky during his 2011 campaign with the G-Braves. Meanwhile, Barbaro Canizares owns the all-time hit streak mark in Gwinnett history with a 14-game streak.
Gwinnett is boasting both International League Players of the Week for the past week. Pitcher Todd Redmond received the IL Pitcher of the Week award, while Mejia walked away with the IL Batter of the Week. Both join teammate Stefan Gartrell as this years G-Braves recipients of the award this season. All three will be looking to shoulder the load as Gwinnett looks to start another impressive streak at home from Coolray Field.
Rochester Red Wings (20-28, 6th IL North) vs Gwinnett (29-20, 1st IL South)
The Red Wings are in town for a four-game set as they continue their stretch of eight straight games against one another. The two teams split their four-game set in Rochester just days ago but Gwinnett has taken two of three at Coolray Field for the 4-3 season advantage entering their final game of the regular season on Sunday.
Sunday, May 27 Starting Line-up from Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia:
Jair Jurrjens (2-2, 6.10) will try and get things going in the right direction for the G-Braves as he opposes Rochester spot-starter righty Brendan Wise (0-1, 6.35). The G-Braves will be looking to extend their win-streak to three games for a 2:05 p.m. scheduled first pitch from Coolray Field. The game will be broadcast on WDUN 550 AM and 102.9 FM with Tony Schiavone calling the play-by-play.
Photo courtesy of Kyle Hess
Rochester Red Wings Batting Order:
1) Tsuyoshi Nishioka, DH
2) Pedro Florimon, SS
3) Danny Valencia, 3B
4) Wilkin Ramirez, RF
5) Sean Burroughs, 1B
6) Clete Thomas, CF
7) Michael Hollimon, 2B
8) Ray Chang, 2B
9) J.R. Towles, C
G-Braves Batting Order
1) Jose Constanza, LF
2) Felix Pie, RF
3) Stefan Gartrell, LF
4) Ernesto Mejia, DH
5) Christian Marrero, 1B
6) Joey Terdoslavich, 3B
7) Shawn McGill, C
8) Lance Zawadzki, 2B
9) Greg Paiml, SS
By: Tony Piraro
G-Braves Notes for 5.22.12 at Rochester
Julio Teheran makes his first daytime start of 2012 today. Last year, he went 2-1 with a 3.97 ERA (10 ER in 22.2 IP) in four starts under the sun. (Leslie Watts / Gwinnett Braves)
Playing an 11 AM game on getaway day to end an eight-game road trip is always a good idea, but the quick turnaround is even better when you’ve suffered a difficult loss the night before. Such is the case today for the Gwinnett Braves, who look to forget a 10-1 drubbing at the hands of the Rochester Red Wings in the finale of the four-game series this morning. The Red Wings, the last place team in the IL North, pounded out 18 hits on the night, 11 coming off G-Braves’ starter Jair Jurrjens. Jurrjens gave up seven runs, six earned over 4.1 innings and is 0-2 with a 16.00 ERA (16 ER in 9.0 IP) over his last two starts. That’s following a 2-0, 2.05 mark in his first three starts with Gwinnett.
The lone highlight of the night came courtesy of the red-hot Ernesto Mejia, who connected on a solo home run in the seventh inning to break the shutout. Mejia’s seventh clout of the year extended his hitting streak to 10 games. The newly-minted IL Batter of the Week is hitting .444 (16-for-36) with three homers and 12 RBIs on the streak, his first of double-digits this season.
Moving on to today, it’s right-hander Julio Teheran (3-2, 3.31) going up against Red Wings’ right-hander Daryl Thompson (1-4, 4.42). Teheran was exceptional to start this month, but suffered a four-run, 2.2-inning loss his last time out at Buffalo on May 17. The G-Braves are going to need him to settle down if they want to exit with a series split and finish the trip at a semi-respectable 3-5.
More on Jurrjens, Mejia, Teheran and the rest of the crew in today’s G-Braves Game Notes: 5.22.12 GBraves Game Notes
Today’s broadcast with Tony Schiavone can be heard on 1240 ESPN Radio in Gainesville, GA. Make sure to tune him in there. And, of course, we’ll see you at Coolray Field on Thursday night as the G-Braves return home to start a 1o-game homestand.
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G-Braves Notes for 5.21.12 at Rochester
Former G-Brave, temporary Pirates property, and now apparent Tampa Bay infielder Drew Sutton. We won’t soon forget his 11-game hitting streak from early April, nor his April 16 walk-off double. (Dan Hamby / Gwinnett Braves)
It’s been a busy Monday here in the Gwinnett Braves Media Relations Department (otherwise known as the area in and around my office), what with Todd Redmond and Ernesto Mejia sweeping the International League Player of the Week awards, Drew Sutton being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates (he’s a Tampa Bay Ray now) and Lance Zawadzki joining the G-Braves’ roster in time to start tonight in Rochester. Nobody ever said a job in baseball is short on excitement.
I could fill plenty of lines about all of those topics today, but you can check out the various press releases right now on GwinnettBraves.com. Instead, let’s look ahead to tonight. The G-Braves, fresh off a 2-1 win yesterday that snapped a four-game losing streak, take on the Rochester Red Wings in game three of a four-game series. Mejia is in search of a 10-game hitting streak, Stefan Gartrell looks to keep up his torrid power pace on the road (four homers, seven RBI) and Jair Jurrjens (2-1, 5.06) just looks to put his 12-hit, 11-run debacle in the rear view mirror. The Red Wings have right-hander Jeff Manship (3-1, 3.48) on the hill tonight, first pitch slated for 7:05 PM.
Tonight’s Game Notes: 5.21.12 GBraves Game Notes
Check out the broadcast with Tony Schiavone on WDUN 550 AM /102.9 FM and WDUN.com. And don’t forget, tomorrow’s series finale in Rochester is an 11:05 AM start, which means two things. One, the game can be heard on 1240 ESPN Radio tomorrow, and two, I get to stay up late preparing tomorrow’s G-Braves Notes. Looks like another busy one.
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G-Braves Game Notes for 5.17.12 at Buffalo
The Gwinnett Braves scored seven runs on a season-high 15 hits, getting three-hit, multi-RBI efforts from both Stefan Gartrell (3-for-5, 2 doubles, HR, 2 RBI) and Ernesto Mejia (3-for-5, double, 3 RBI) and a 2-for-4, two-RBI game from Joey Terdoslavich. Yet they still lost. Right-hander Jair Jurrjens entered the Gwinnett record book with a team-high (dating back to 2009) 11 runs allowed, 10 0f them earned on 12 hits over 4.2 innings. Buffalo added three more runs against the bullpen and won the second game of the four-game set by a touchdown.
Stefan Gartrell connected on his team-leading eighth home run last night in Buffalo, but it was a mere side-note in Gwinnett’s 14-7 loss to the Bisons. (Leslie Watts / Gwinnett Braves)
Jurrjens had been stellar in the rotation for Gwinnett prior to last night, entering with a 2-0 record and 2.05 ERA. JJ, however, now holds the dubious distinction of being the first G-Brave to allow more than eight earned runs in an outing (the last one to allow eight ER was Randall Delgado in a loss at Charlotte on August 21, 2011). We’ll see how JJ bounces back in his next outing on Monday against a struggling Rochester club.
In the meantime, it’s Julio Teheran on the hill tonight against the Bisons. Teheran, in case you haven’t already seen, has looked much more like the defending IL Pitcher of the Year and top Braves prospect as of late. In three May starts, he’s 1-0 with a 1.13 ERA (2 ER in 16.0 IP) and is limiting IL opponents to a .214 average. Last time he faced the Bisons, he limited the IL’s top-hitting team (.275 team average) to just an unearned run on five hits across 6.0 innings. He’ll hope to post similar numbers tonight.
Read more about Jurrjens, Teheran, Gartrell, Mejia and other’s in tonight’s G-Braves Game Notes: 5.17.12 GBraves Game Notes
Don’t forget to check out the broadcast with Tony Schiavone on WDUN 550 AM / 102.9 FM and on WDUN.com.
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G-Braves Game Notes for 5.15.12 at Buffalo
The 11-game, 10-day marathon homestand is over, and your IL South-leading Gwinnett Braves take to the road for an eight-game trip through Buffalo and Rochester. They begin things tonight at Coca-Cola Field in Buffalo, NY as they take on Wally Backman’s Bisons’ squad. The two teams met up at Coolray Field recently, with Buffalo taking three of four. Only a Stefan Gartrell walk-off home run on Thursday afternoon could salvage the series for the G-Braves.
If you like great pitching (and who doesn’t), you’ll get a good dose of it as these two teams meet up again. Right-hander Todd Redmond, fresh off his career high-tying 10-strikeout performance against the same Bisons lineup his last time out, takes the baseball for the G-Braves tonight. “Red” yielded just a run on six hits over 6.2 innings in his 116-pitch effort on May 10, this time he’ll be looking to pick up the win. Meanwhile, Buffalo counters with right-hander Jeremy Hefner, owner of the International League’s second-best ERA of 1.77. Hefner’s 3-1 with a modest 23 strikeouts in 40.2 innings, but worked a season-high 7.2 innings with two runs on four hits in a no-decision when he last met with the Gwinnett lineup on May 10. One of those two runs came home on a Christian Marrero solo blast.
We won’t get to see the Julio Teheran vs. Matt Harvey mega-prospect match-up that we just missed out on in the last series, but both pitchers will throw in the four-game set. Teheran is slated for a game three start on Thursday, while Harvey will go up against right-hander Eric Junge on Friday. Right-hander Jair Jurrjens, 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA over his first three starts with Gwinnett, will start on Wednesday night. Plenty of great pitching to keep an eye out for.
Durango’s nine-game hitting streak has led directly to an increase in stolen bases. The speedster swiped nine bags on the recently-completed 11-game homestand. (Melinda Pease / Gwinnett Braves)
As far as the Gwinnett lineup is concerned, we’ve seen hot stretches from Drew Sutton, Jordan Parraz, Jose Constanza and Gartrell since the start of the season. The latest entrant is Luis Durango, who after a combined 3-for-6 effort in the doubleheader, is riding a nine-game hitting streak. Durango is hitting .419 (13-for-31) with two doubles, seven runs scored and five RBI on the streak. The increase in his time on base has led directly to more steals, as he swiped nine bags in 10 games on the homestand. Durango leads all IL players with 20 steals in 24 attempts this year.
More on Redmond, Durango and the rest of the G-Braves in tonight’s Game Notes: 5.15.12 GBraves Game Notes
Game one gets going at 7:05 PM tonight, listen to the broadcast with Tony Schiavone on WDUN 550 AM / 102.9 FM and WDUN.com.
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