Gnats Game Notes: Monday, April 19

From Press Release:

Game #12 - Road Game #4 - Monday – 7:00

LHP Jimmy Fuller (1-1, 0.64) RHP Julio Teheran (1-0, 0.93)

State Mutual Stadium - Rome, GA

Radio: WBMQ News/Talk 630, http://www.sandgnats.com/

Tonight: The Gnats finish up their four-game series at Rome before heading off to Augusta for four games. With a win tonight, Savannah could win their first road series since last August 22nd-24th when the team took two of three games from Rome.

Last Night: The Braves beat the Gnats 3-2, in Savannah’s first one-run game of the year. Gnats starter Armando Rodriguez allowed just one hit through five innings, but Rome used a pair of bunt singles to score twice in the sixth inning to take a 2-1 lead. Rodriguez finished with seven strikeouts and no walks in his six innings of work. The Braves added a run in the seventh to make it 3-1. Savannah rallied in the eighth, drawing within a run on a Jeff Flagg RBI single, but left the potential tying run at third base.

Now Pitching: Jimmy Fuller will make his third start as a Gnat. In his last start, Fuller gave up one run on four hits in eight innings while striking out nine batters in a game the Gnats lost 1-0 to Augusta. He is currently seventh in the SAL with a 0.6 ERA, fourth in WHIP (0.57), and fifth among starters for lowest batting average against (.125). Fuller spent all of 2009 with the Brooklyn Cyclones where he was a NYP League All-Star in a season in which he was 3-6 with a 2.86 ERA in 12 games, 11 of which were starts. Fuller struck out 67 batters and walked fifteen for a sterling K/BB ratio of 4.67. Fuller was a DII All-American in 2008 at Southern Connecticut State University where he led DII in strikeouts with 145, averaging 13 whiffs per nine innings. He was 9-3 with a 1.39 ERA and put together a streak of 59 scoreless innings. Savannah is 1-1 when Fuller starts and have supported him with 2.5 runs per game (5 R/2 starts), tied for the second-lowest run support among Gnats starters.

Top of the Charts: Gnats pitching leads the SAL with a 2.11 ERA (23 ER/98 IP). Savannah has the best WHIP (0.98) and is tied with Augusta for the fewest hits allowed (68) in the SAL.

Scoring is Good: In their six wins, the Gnats have scored 35 runs, an average of 5.83 runs per game. In their five losses, the Gnats have scored six total runs, an average of 1.2 runs per game and been shut out twice. Savannah is 6-0 when scoring four or more runs and 0-5 when scoring three runs or fewer.

Alumni Update: The Mets recalled former Gnat Tobi Stoner (who was the first Savannah Sand Gnat as a Mets affiliate to be promoted) on Sunday in the wake of the team’s 20-inning 2-1 win over St. Louis on Saturday. Stoner was charged with the loss Sunday, when he threw 2.1 innings against St. Louis, giving up one run on three hits and three walks in the Mets 5-3 defeat. On Monday, Stoner was optioned back to AAA Buffalo to make room for 1B Ike Davis.