ode to odd stats

Here are odd stats for Skitz fans, totals through May 15th


Riccio Torrez leads the team in hit by pitch, already ten on the year!

Robbie Price made contact on almost 90% of the first 200 swings he took this year.

Matt Buschmann gets more ground balls than anyone else on the pitching staff.

Merrill Kelly gets the most fly balls, but has allowed only one home run thru mid-may.

Mikie Mahtook leads the Biscuits in line drives.

Kevin Kiermaier tops the team in BABIP at .336.
Mark Thomas is last with just .167 BaBIP.

Riefenhauser allows less than one baserunner per inning, tops on the team with his 0.93 WhIP.

How Earl dealt with being released

TWO GONE
3b Greg Sexton and reliever Zach Quate were given their release by the Biscuits/Rays. Both sort of underachieved with the team this season and will probably catch on elsewhere. Both are good guys, and have better days ahead with different organizations.



TWO COMING
With the leaving of those two, it opens roster spots for a couple promotions.
Its easy to see there are several deserving players ready to move up from Charlotte, Curtis Casali and Taylor Motter are both hitting the ball well right now. Either could be in line to be fitted for a new BigMo lid.

Could Montgomery get Montgomery?

Perhaps the other spot could be for a pitcher, starter Mike Montgomery is on rehab in Charlotte and is working his way back to Durham. He would need a roster spot, but perhaps would only be keeping it warm for Shay Crawford, Jesse Hahn or Len Linsky. Mike Montgomery started on the 13th for High-A Charlotte, striking out six and giving up two hits and a walk in four innings.


Or of course, there could be a trade in the works that would bring in prospects - a deal that would require some wiggle room at the Double-A level?

Only time will tell on that, but of this we can be sure... two empty lockers in the clubhouse need to be filled for a team that still holds onto hope of punching its playoff ticket in the first half.

update: its steven tinoco who was added to the roster, I think I mentioned him as a callup candidate a couple weeks ago when it was Kang getting the promotion

BISCUITS VS STARS 

SERIES STARTING MAY 17th

The Brewers have sent some serious prospects through the Southern league for seasoning, but this years Stars have yet to set the league on fire in spite of top talent.

Three 40 man roster pitchers inhabit the Stars pitching staff.
Dominican born SP Ariel Pena is ranked among the top 20 in the Milwaukee farm system.

The series opens with the Skitz facing the number eight Brewers prospect, Jimmy Nelson.

Game three starter Taylor Jungmann is the number two prospect in the Brewers system, a first round pick in 2011.

Outfielder Kentrail Davis is the lone ranked prospect taking at bats, number 19 at mlb, though he is trying to shed the image that he wont develop as hoped. Davis has nine steals, and has only been caught twice this year.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

The Stars are nine games under five hundred, 15 wins against 24 losses, and sit last in the North Division. They are the oldest team in terms of hitters age, but rank next to last in homers, RBI and stolen bases.

Two of the Stars starting pitchers have ERA's under 3.5 while three are over 5.00.

The Biscuits can handle the Stars if their starting pitching keeps the opposition from piling up big leads early.

Skitz hitters have been good at scoring late in games, I look for high scoring games and more good work from the Biscuit bullpen. 

Hunstville hitters create 3.6 runs per game, their pitchers allow 4.95 runs per game on average, which tells us that they have struggled to put runs on the board without giving them up as well.

By comparison the Biscuits produce around 4.5 runs a game at the plate, and allow a league worst 5.36 runs a game to the opposition. Nobody allows more runs than the Biscuits, and until they do the tighten up with the pitching numbers the Skitz will be swimming against the current to move up in the standings.

I think the Biscuits can take three games of this series and maybe more if the starters perform and reinforcements arrive to fill the empty roster spots.


PROJECTED PITCHERS
Thompson vs Jimmy Nelson
Buschmann vs Ariel Pena
Romero vs Taylor Jungmann
Kelly vs Andy Moye
Mateo vs Arcenio Leon

Stars sample lineup
Shaw 2b
Chavez ss
Davis rf
Rogers 1b
Kjeldgaard lf
Diaz c
Tosoni cf
Vucinich 3b
Walker DH

BELATED CONGRATULATIONS

Congrats to Billy Gardner Jr, who won his 1200th career game as a manager on April 25th in a victory at home over Birmingham. In his seventh season as Montgomery manager he is at the top of the list in terms of victories, pennants, games and of course - ejections.

Doing what managers do