Bats head east to traverse the IL North
It’s a Thursday afternoon, and you’re craving trivial knowledge about the final two cities that the Bats are visiting during their eight-game home. You’ll get it eventually, but first we need to take a brief look at what this road trip means to the Bats now that the final month of the season is upon us and the playoff hunt is still very real.
Here are the basics:
Louisville heads to IL North territory for their final games outside of the IL West this season. They’ll play four in Syracuse starting tonight before heading to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for another set of four games. The Bats are a combined 2–6 against the two teams on the season after both walked away from Louisville Slugger Field with 3–1 series advantages earlier this year.
Syracuse is currently leading the North with a 65–51 record — good for best in the IL — and brings a formidable mix to the table. Brandon Laird leads the offense with a .314 average to go with 13 homers and 66 RBIs. The rotation features a two-headed monster at the top, with IL All-Star starter Taylor Hill (10–5, 2.52) and Aaron Laffey (11–4, 3.20) leading the way. Despite being without a pair of offensive leaders in Steven Souza Jr. (called up to Washington) and Zach Walters (traded to Cleveland), they’ll be a potent offense and difficult staff to face this weekend in New York.
The second half of the trip will take place in Moosic, Pennsylvania, home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. While the RailRiders took three of four from the Bats in May, they have struggled to keep up in the tough North. At 57–60 on the year, they sit in fourth place in the division. The Yankees aren’t known for having a particularly fertile farm system, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been some players worth watching in Scranton/WB this season.
Infielder Jose Pirela and outfielder Adonis Garcia are the two best all-around talents in the RailRider lineup, and played big roles when the Bats saw them in May. Garcia is currently carrying a team-best .322 batting average with nine dingers and 44 RBI. Pirela is right behind him with a .312 average, eight homers and 48 RBI. While he doesn’t hit for as good of an average, the power bat of Zoilo Almonte — who holds team highs in homers (17 ) and RBI (61) can’t be slept on.
Rotation-wise, the RailRiders don’t have a pitcher on the staff with more than five wins. Furthermore, the best ERA from a Scranton/WB pitcher who has ten or more starts on the year is Joel De La Cruz’ 4.52 mark. This is certainly an area that the Bats, who have proven their ability to produce runs in bunches this season, should look to exploit before they head home.
A final note before we get to the fun (albeit relatively unimportant) stuff, the Bats currently sit just four games back from the top of the IL West despite being in last place in the division. This late in the season, every game counts.
Alas, it’s time for the fun facts about the final two cities to host the Bats in 2014. Here we go.
Syracuse
Located in the heart of New York (it’s literally right in the middle), The ‘Cuse is the fifth-most populous in the state. It was names after the Italian city, Siracusa, which is on the Eastern coast of the island of Sicily. Top employers in the city include Wegman’s Food Markets, Lockheed Martin Corporation and, you guessed it, Syracuse University.
The Orange may be the biggest sports show in town, but the Chiefs and fellow minor league franchise Crunch (AHL Hockey) round out the sports entertainment options in the city. Famous Syracusans include actor Tom Cruise, basketball player Andray Blatche, ABC News anchor David Muir and Olympic gold medal swimmer Kim Black.
Scranton
The sixth largest city in Pennsylvania and county seat of Lackawanna County, Scranton is a city that boomed in the mid-1930’s thanks to the coal mining industry. Today, it may be most recognizable as the home and setting of the NBC sitcom The Office. Scranton is also home to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Penguins, the AHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Notable people from Scranton include Vice President Joe Biden, NBA coach and broadcaster P.J. Carlesimo, Oakland Raiders quarterback Matt McGloin and famous television host Bill O’Reilly.
That’ll do it for our authoritative preview of the upcoming road trip for the Bats. Listen in to Matt Andrews on 790 KRD for the action and make sure to check out the Bats Weekly Podcast to hear more about the road ahead for the Bats.
