Vegas Wins 5th Straight Thanks to Thor and the Offense

Astronomy Picture of the Day Explanation

Tacoma Rainiers @ Las Vegas 51s

4/25/2014

Jordan Pries @ Noah Syndergaard THOR!!

Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tacoma	0	0	1	2	0	1	0	2	0		6	14	1
Las Vegas	2	1	0	0	2	1	1	0	X		7	11	1

  Pic of the night, tweeted by @ShannonMFox5

The Highlights:

Pitchers

Syndergaard (3-2) – 5 IP, 6 H, 1 HR, 3 ER, 6 SO, 2 BB, 96 pitches, 58 strikes (60.4%), 21 batters faced

Walters – 3 ground balls, 1 swinging strikeout

Batters

Brown – 3-4, 3 R, 2 RBI (2), HR (1), BB

Dykstra – 2-4, RBI (20), 2B (10), SO

Teagarden – 2-3, R, RBI (7), 2 2B (4), BB

Flores – 1-4, 2 R, BB

Recap:

            I had a feeling this was going to be a crazy night when I saw a tweet from someone (Seinfeld’s Jason Alexander) in Las Vegas warning people who were flying into town about the wind – it appeared to be blowing out to RF. It definitely played a factor in this game, as outfielders were having trouble with fly balls all night, resulting in several misjudged fly balls and pop-ups, some of which were dropped or fell in for hits – you can check out the play-by-play notes for specifics. In the end, the 51s came away with their 5^th straight win, moving them to 17-5 on the young season – that’s a 5 game lead in their division (Isotopes – LAD), and a 4 game lead in the PCL (RedHawks – Houston) – thanks to a great start from Noah Syndergaard, another offensive explosion, and a very strong 9^th inning for Jeff Walters. As an aside, if you ever have a chance to listen to or watch Las Vegas 51s games, Russ Langer does an excellent job with the call – he’s engaging, informative and tells a great story of the game.

            Don’t let the 6 hits and 3 ER’s fool you, Thor was very effective Friday night for the 51s. His fastball consistently sat 96-97 MPH, and he didn’t let things get out of control when the wind made things hard for the defense behind him. One thing to nitpick about would be his strike percentage, which was below his season average of around 65%. It’d be nice if his overall pitches/inning was lower too, but he did have to get at least one extra out in the 4^th thanks to the wind – considering the fixed TV angle in Vegas, it was impossible to see Montero’s HR to lead off the 4^th, but Langer did not sound like he or RF Brown expected this ball to go out. That said, those walls in RF are pretty tall, and they get pretty deep towards right-center field, and I don’t think any HR should be discounted just because it is a ‘Vegas HR.’ It was a season high in pitches for Thor, who had a previous high of 91 during his second start.

            Thor’s start by inning:

-       1^st inning – Threw 14 of 15 pitches for fastballs as he retired the side in order with two swinging strikeouts sandwiching a fly out. He can throw a 95-97 MPH fastball with movement, if he can locate in the zone, he should have plenty of easy major league innings like this coming soon.

-       2^nd inning – Had a couple of 3-2 counts, including his first walk, but got through the inning with a strikeout and 2 weak ground outs. The strikeout was on a very nice 77 MPH hook that buckled the knees of former Yankees ‘stud prospect’ Jesus Montero. Worked in a few more off-speed pitches this inning.

-       3^rd inning – Got two outs on a soft liner that he caught on his second attempt and a lazy fly ball to CF to start the inning. Then gave up back-to-back ground balls that led to a run – a hard hit grounder in the SS hole that Flores was nowhere near and a medium chopper past a diving Lutz and down the line for a double. Finished the inning by freezing Julio Morban with a change-up at the knees.

-       4^th inning – The aforementioned HR led off the inning. Over the next two batters, Lutz would make up for a weird spin move that might have cost him an out by starting a double play. Tacoma’s Noriega had a great at-bat battling against Thor after he fell behind 0-2 on a couple of very nice curve balls and would end up dropping a single into CF that bounced off the glove of a sliding M∂D – such a huge CF for him to cover, wind may have had an impact on this ball. Luery Bonilla would follow with a double off the glove of Brown in RF – this hit was definitely wind aided – that looked like it would have ended the inning of the bat. Thor would finally end the inning by getting Xavier Avery to strike out swinging at some 97 MPH heat.

-       5^th inning – A strong and quick bounce back inning, though he got bailed out by his defense this time. After a leadoff walk, Taylor Teagarden threw out James Jones while trying to steal second base. After a fly out, Thor would finish his outing by striking out Julio Morban for a third time – a 97 MPH fastball this time.

While Syndergaard was cruising to a hot start, the offense appeared to be heading for another offensive explosion, though they would ultimately fall short of some of their offensive outputs from earlier in the week. Thanks to a wind aided double in the 1^st, Allan Dykstra was able to drive in Wilmer Flores and Andrew Brown to help the 51s jump out to a quick 2-0 lead. A Taylor Teagarden double in the 2^nd would score Brandon Allen from 1B to make it 3-0. After Thor finished his night in the top of the 5^th, the offense would tack on 2 runs in the bottom of the inning thanks to a Zack Lutz double and never look back. However, they weren’t done scoring, as they would add two crucial runs, one apiece in the 6^th and 7^th, which was on a HR crushed to LF by Andrew Brown. The Rainiers would tack on an unearned run in the 6^th, thanks to an Anthony Seratelli dropped ball error, and 2 more in the 8^th thanks to a wind-aided triple to LF – Seratelli has had a rough time out in LF from what I’ve seen, though the triple landed between Seratelli, Lutz and Flores. In the 9^th, Jeff Walters came in and got 3 ground balls before striking out Ty Kelly swinging on a very nice slider to end the game.

The 51s will look to make it 6 in a row as they send Jacob ∂eGrom to the mound against the Tacoma Rainiers, who have yet to announce their starter, Saturday night at 10:05 PM ET. You can expect a recap posted Sunday morning.

The B-Mets are scheduled for 2 MiLB.TV games against Erie tomorrow, with Matthew Bowman scheduled for game 1. I would like to watch and recap one or both of these games, but I might not have as much time during the day. Energy permitting, I’ll get to at least one during or after the Vegas game.

@LasVegas51s celebrating the win before a Fireworks show

 

Play By Play

1^st inning

Top

1)   James Jones strikes out swinging on a 96 MPH fastball.

2)   Chris Taylor hit a fly ball out to RF, a few steps in front of the warning track. 9/F9D

3)   Julio Morban strikes out swinging on a 96 MPH fastball.

Totals: 2 SO

Bottom

1)   Matt ∂en Dekker hit a weak 2 hopper to 1B. 3u/G3

2)   Eric Campbell hit a medium groundout up the middle. 43/G4M

3)   Wilmer Flores walked on 5 pitches.

*Pries Balked, Flores to 2B

4)   Andrew Brown lined an RBI single into left-center field and went to second on the late throw home. S7/L78

5)   Allan Dykstra hit what appeared to be a lazy fly ball towards the LF corner, about warning track depth, but the wind brought it back towards the middle of the field, landing for an RBI double. 2B7/7D

6)   Zach Lutz hit a medium groundout up the middle. 43/G4M

Totals: 2 R, 2 H, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 LOB

2^nd inning

Top

1)   Jesus Montero struck out looking on a big inside curveball (77 MPH).

2)   Ty Kelly walked on a 3-2 fastball, 97 MPH and very high.

3)   Manuel Pina hit a soft 3-2 chopper near 2B, but Kelly was running on the pitch, so the only play was to 1B. 43/G4M

4)   Gabriel Noriega grounded out to Lutz. 53/G5

Totals: 1 SO, 1 BB, 1 LOB

Bottom

1)   Brandon Allen walked on 5 pitches.

2)   Taylor Teagarden lined a double into the right-center field gap to score Allen from 1B. 2B8/L89

3)   Anthony Seratelli surprised everyone with a perfectly placed bunt single down the 3B line. Teagarden to 3B. S5/B25

4)   ∂en Dekker struck out swinging on a full count with Seratelli running, for a ‘strike-em-out-throw-em-out,’ which put a stop to the rally.

5)   Campbell grounded out to the SS. 63/G6M

Totals: 1 R, 2 H, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 CS, 1 SO, 1 LOB

3^rd inning

Top

1)   Luery Bonilla hit a line drive right back at Thor. The ball would pop out of his glove, but Thor snatched it out of the air with his bare hand. 1/L1

2)   Xavier Avery hit a fly ball to CF that might’ve been made difficult by the crazy winds, but M∂D handled it just fine. 8/F8

3)   Jones hit a hard grounder into RF for a single. S9/G4

4)   Taylor doubled on a medium chopper up the 3B line to score Jones from first. 2B7/G5

5)   Morban struck out looking at a 3-2 change-up.

Totals: 1 R, 2 H, 1 2B, 1 SO, 1 LOB

Bottom

1)   Flores hit a fly ball to LF. 7/F7D

2)   Brown hit a hard grounder at the SS. 63/G6

3)   Dykstra couldn’t check his swing on a breaking ball in the dirt.

Totals: 1 SO

4^th inning

Top

1)   Montero hit a homerun (5) on a high fly ball to RF.

2)   Kelly hit a high chopper to Lutz, who spun and threw onto 1B a step too late. S5/G56S

3)   Pina hit a medium grounder right at Lutz to start a 5-4-3 double play. 543/G5

4)   Noriega fell behind 0-2 on two nasty curves but fought back to hit a sinking liner that bounced off the glove of a sliding den Dekker. S8/L89

5)   Bonilla hit a fly ball to RF that bounced off the glove of Brown for an RBI double. 2B9/F9D

6)   Avery struck out swinging at a 97 MPH ‘laserbeam’ (per Langer).

Totals: 2 R, 4 H, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 SO, 1 LOB

Bottom

1)   Lutz flied out to RF. 9/F9

2)   Allen hit a chopper over the mound that the SS was able to charge and throw onto 1B in time for the out. 63/G6MS

3)   Teagarden doubled to CF.

4)   Seratelli walked.

5)   ∂en Dekker flew out to RF.

Totals: 1 2B, 1 BB, 2 LOB

5^th inning  

Top

1)   Jones walked on a full count.

*Jones caught stealing on a borderline pitch (close to strike 3)

2)   Taylor hit a fly ball to the RF warning track.

3)   Morban couldn’t hold his swing on some 97 MPH heat near the letters.

Totals: 1 BB, 1 SO, 1 CS

Bottom

1)   Campbell grounded out to the 3B. 53/G5

2)   Flores hit a squibber up the 1B line that the catcher tried to shovel to 1B, but had no chance at Flores. S2/G23

3)   Brown walked.

4)   Dykstra flied out to LF.

5)   Lutz doubled off the ‘O’ in the ‘COX’ ad in left-center field wall for a 2-RBI double.

(Substitution: Zach Miner pitching for Tacoma)

6)   Allen hit a medium grounder up the middle that was backhanded by the 2B, who had to double-clutch and was just able to get the out by a step. 43/G4M

Totals: 2 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 LOB

6^th inning

Top (Substitution: Buddy Carlyle pitching for Las Vegas)

1)   Montero hit a one-hopper that was snow-coned by Campbell to prevent the single. 43/G4M

2)   Kelly pulled a change-up past a diving Allen into RF. S9/G3

3)   Pina hit a high fly ball to LF that the wind must have blown the ball around like crazy, as it was giving Seratelli lots of trouble, and would eventually bounce off his glove for an error. E7/F78D

4)   Noriega struck out looking at an outside fastball.

5)   Bonilla popped out just foul of 1B. 3/P3F

Totals: 1 R, 1 H, 1 E, 1 LOB

Bottom

1)   Teagarden hit a shallow popup to the OF that bounced off the mitt of 2B Taylor. E4/P8S

*Teagarden advanced to 3B on wild pitch

2)   Seratelli popped out to the 3B bag. 5/P5

3)   ∂en Dekker hit a sac fly to deep RF. 9/F9D

4)   Campbell skied one halfway up the RF wall for a double.

5)   Flores hit a high fly ball to RF. 9/F9

Totals: 1 R, 1 H, 1 2B, 1 E, 1 LOB

7^th inning

Top (Substitution: Josh Edgin pitching for Las Vegas)

1)   Avery lined a single into CF. S8/L8S

2)   Jones struck out swinging.

3)   Taylor hit a hard one-hopper toward the SS hole that got past a diving Flores. S7/G56D

4)   Morban hit a fly ball deep to the left field corner that Seratelli caught as he was falling down. 7/F7LD

(Substitution: Miguel Socolovich pitching for Las Vegas)

5)   Montero struck out on a 90 MPH fastball out of the zone.

Totals: 2 H, 2 SO, 2 LOB

Bottom

1)   Brown crushed one over the ‘COX’ sign in left-center field – a no-doubter in most other parks.

2)   Dykstra lined a single on a 2-2 change-up into CF. S8/L8S

3)   Lutz couldn’t hold up on a pitch outside.

4)   Allen hit a deep fly ball that was caught at the LF wall. 7/F7D

5)   Teagarden walked.

(Substitution: Danny Muno pinch running for Dykstra)

6)   Seratelli walked to load the bases.

(Substitution: Logan Kensing pitching for Tacoma)

7)   ∂en Dekker struck out swinging on a pitch in the dirt.

Totals: 1 R, 2 H, 1 HR, 2 BB, 1 SO, 3 LOB

8^th inning

Top

1)   Kelly hit a hard groundball single into RF. S9/G4D

2)   Pina hit a line drive RBI double down the left field line that Seratelli just couldn’t get to with a dive. 2B7/L7L

3)   Noriega hit a fly ball down the right field line that was caught by Brown. 9/F9L

4)   Bonilla struck out looking on a fastball on the outside corner (after a couple of nasty change-ups).

5)   Avery popped one down the line in LF that fell between Lutz, Flores and Seratelli, and then bounced towards the bullpen as the runners scored and Avery ran into 3B with a triple. Might have been foul if not for the wind. 3B7/P7LS

6)   Jones grounded out to Allen at 1B, who slipped on his way to the bag but was still able to tag Jones for the out. 3/G3

Totals: 2 R, 3 H, 2B, 3B, 1 SO, 1 LOB

Bottom

1)   Campbell popped out to 2B. 4/P4

2)   Flores hit a fly ball to deep CF for a long out. 8/F8D

3)   Brown pulled a line drive into LF for a single. S7/L7

4)   Muno grounded out to the SS. 63/G6

Totals: 1 H, 1 LOB

9^th inning

Top (Substitution: Jeff Walters pitching for Las Vegas)

1)   Taylor singled on a hard grounder into LF. S7/56D

2)   Morban hit a grounder off the end of his bat, snagged by Lutz to start the double play. 543/G5

3)   Montero hit a grounder up the middle for a single. S8/G4MD

(Substitution: Endy Chavez pinch running)

4)   Kelly struck out swinging on a slider.

Totals: 2 H, 1 SO