Game #67 - Road Game #32 - Friday – 7:05
RHP Yohan Almonte (2-2, 3.03) vs. RHP Miguel Celestino (4-4, 4.89)
Fluor Field, Greenville, SC
Radio: News/Talk 630 WBMQ & sandgnats.com
Tonight: The First-Half Champion Gnats play game two of a four-game series, their last of the first half, against the Greenville Drive, SAL affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. The Gnats, SAL affiliate of the New York Mets, own the League’s best record at 39-27.
Last Night: The Greenville Drive scored a run in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat the Gnats 3-2, snapping Savannah’s eight-game winning streak. Starter Taylor Whitenton held the Drive to two runs on one hit in six innings.
Now Pitching: Yohan Almonte is scheduled to make his tenth start of the year today. Almonte tossed five innings in his last outing, his longest start since April 26. He has yielded just one run in his last 12 innings with nine strikeouts and no walks in those three starts. He has made four starts since returning from a lower back strain that sidelined him for 27 days. Almonte owns a K/BB ratio of 6.75 (27 K/4 BB). In 2010, Almonte led the New York-Penn League in ERA (1.91), IP (89.2) and WHIP (0.93), averaging nearly six innings per start. He had the second-lowest batting average against among New York-Penn League starters at .207 and the third-lowest unintentional walk/9 IP (1.41) with a K/BB ratio of 4 (60 K/15 BB). The 21-year old Almonte has moved steadily through the Mets system advancing from the Dominican Summer League in 2008 to the Gulf Coast League and then the Appalachian League in 2009, to the New York Penn League in 2010 before joining the Gnats, his first full-season team, in 2011. He was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2007. The Gnats are 5-4 when Almonte starts and have supported him with 3.56 runs per game.
Terrific Tovar: Wilfredo Tovar has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games going 21-51 (.412) with four doubles, a triple, three walks, two strikeouts and four RBI in that span.
Home and Road: After last night’s loss, the Gnats are 2-6 in one-run games on the road and 1-2 in one-run games at home. The Gnats are 25-13 in games decided by two runs or less at home, and 4-9 in games decided by two runs or less on the road.
Playoff History: The Gnats are heading to the playoffs for the second consecutive season. The Savannah franchise last went to the playoffs in consecutive years in 1993 and 1994, when the Savannah Cardinals won the Southern Division and the League Championship both years. Savannah won the SAL Championship in 1996 and then did not make the playoffs until the Gnats won the 2010 first half championship.
Hot Like the Weather: The Gnats have won 20 of 25 games, an .800 winning percentage. Since slipping to 7-14 after April 29, the Gnats are 32-13, a .711 winning percentage.
Playoff Schedule: The Gnats will have home field advantage in the best-of-three Southern Division Championship Series which will begin at the home of the Second Half Champion on Wednesday, September 7 and then return to Savannah on Friday, September 9 for game two and, if necessary, game three on Saturday, September 10.
Strong Arms: The Gnats have the SAL’s best ERA (3.09), six-tenths of a run better than second-place Lakewood. The Gnats have the best WHIP (1.22) and the fourth-most strikeouts (567) and has allowed the second-fewest hits (517) in the League.
Vs. Greenville: The Gnats are 6-3 against the Drive this year, 6-2 at home and 0-1 on the road. After this weekend, Gnats and Drive next play each other during consecutive weekends in August.
from team press release
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