In Hickory, N.C.

I want to apologize first for my lack of posting on the blog of late.  The all-star game and the aftermath coupled with July 4th weekend at Perdue Stadium really buried me.  Anyhow, I’m on the road in Hickory and ready for a seven-day stretch against the Crawdads (Rangers) and RiverDogs (Yankees). We got in safe and sound at 6:00 a.m.  Plenty of time to rest up for game time (7:05 p.m.)

‘Birds are 5-6 in the second half after a 4-3 homestand.  There were 74 combined runs scored during that seven game homestand – high octane at Perdue Stadium.  Here are some news and notes about the Shorebirds…

HOTTEST HITTERS

• Brenden Webb -.344 (11-32) in last 9
• Garabez Rosa – .344 (11-32) in last 9
• Jeremy Nowak – .345 (10-29) in last 9

COLDEST HITTERS

• Adam Gaylord – .143 (3-21) in last 7
• Michael Mooney – .200 (6-30) in last 8

The Shorebirds are 19-20 on the road this season.  They have not played at either L.P. Frans Stadium (Hickory) or Joseph P. Riley (Charleston) this season. 

WHO’S FLYING UNDER THE RADAR

How about relief pitcher Ryan Palsha? He has not given up a run in six straight appearances and his ERA has dropped from 4.23 to 2.79 during the stretch.  He has not allowed a run in 14.1 consecutive innings.  Palsha has allowed only eight hits during the span. 

A CHECK OF PROMOTED SHOREBIRDS

• Manny Machado (Keys) - .171 (6-35), 3 runs, HR
• Jonathan Schoop (Keys) - .233 (21-90), 0 HR, 9 RBI
• Kipp Schutz (Keys) – .236 (29-123), 14 R, 2 HR, 21 RBI
• Justin Dalles – .400 (4-10), RBI
• Jason Gurka – 0-0, 2.00 ERA, 9 IP, 5 H
• Clay Schrader – 1-1, 1.10 ERA, 16.1 IP, 24 K’s

‘BIRDS IN THE SAL LEADERBOARD

• Ty Kelly (10th in batting average) – .303
• David Walters (1st in saves) – 19
• David Walters (3rd in games finished) – 25
• Jacob Pettit (5th in innings pitched) – 88.2
• Brenden Webb (6th in walks) – 42
• Brenden Webb (8th in strikeouts) – 84