PROBABLE PITCHERS
Thursday, June 30, 7 p.m. – LHP Scott Barnes (6-2, 3.63 ERA) vs. TBA (scheduled starter Brayan Villarreal was promoted to Detroit)
Friday, July 1, 7 p.m. – RHP Zach McAllister (8-2, 2.93 ERA) vs. LHP Duane Below (7-4, 3.41 ERA)
TWITTER POST: Hens look to snap 6-game losing streak to C-bus, extend 2-game home win streak in 2-game series vs. Clippers at 5/3 Field Thursday-Friday
CLIPPERS BUZZ: Columbus has been the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians since the 2009 season. … Their manager is Mike Sarbaugh, who is in his second season in that position. … The Clippers enter this series having beaten the Hens twice at home the past two days. Before that Columbus had lost three straight to Gwinnett to snap a six-game winning streak that had included four wins in a row against Toledo. … Columbus enters this series with a 54-26 record, the best in the International League, and is in first place in the IL’s West Division, 10.5 games ahead of second-place Louisville. … Offensively, the Clippers rank second in the 14-team IL with a .274 team batting average. They have scored a league-high 446 runs in 80 games (5.58 runs per game), the highest run total in the league. … IF Luis Valbuena ranks eighth in the league with a .316 batting average and is fifth in the IL with 51 RBIs. … 2B Jason Kipnis is hitting .302 this season and leads the league in triples (nine) and runs scored (58). Kipnis also has 11 homers and 48 RBIs. … OF Ezequiel Carrera is batting .292 and leads the IL with 27 stolen bases. He trails only Kipnis in runs scored with 56. … Columbus ranks seventh in the IL with a 4.18 team ERA and is seventh in runs allowed with 347. … RHP Jeanmar Gomez (who pitched against Toledo Wednesday) is fourth in the league with a 2.49 ERA and is 8-2. … RHP Zach McAllister ranks seventh in the IL with a 2.93 ERA and is 8-2. … Gomez, McAllister and LHP David Huff are all tied for second in the league with nine victories. … RHP Josh Judy is tied for third in the league with a team-high 12 saves.
HEN HIGHLIGHTS: Last year the Mud Hens finished with a 14-8 record against the Clippers – the eventual Governors’ Cup champs – including a 6-5 mark at Fifth Third Field. … Toledo entered this season with a 29-15 record against the Clippers in their first two seasons as a Cleveland affiliate, including a 13-9 record at Fifth Third Field. The Mud Hens began this season 46-35 versus the Clippers at Fifth Third Field since it opened in 2002; Toledo has a winning home record against Columbus in each of those years except 2003 and ‘08. … With the two losses the past two days, the Hens are now 2-10 against Columbus this season, including a 1-4 mark at home. The Hens have hit just .249 against Columbus this season and has a 6.15 ERA against the Clippers. … Individually, 1B Ryan Strieby is hitting .366 in 11 games against Columbus with three homers and eight RBIs. No other Hen is batting better than .286 against the Clippers. … On the mound, RHP Jose Ortega has a 2.25 ERA in two appearances against Columbus, while RHP Brendan Wise has given up just three hits and two walks in 3.1 scoreless innings spread over three games. … For the Clippers, OF Ezequiel Carrera is batting .395 against Toledo with five stolen bases in 11 games, while 2B Jason Kipnis is hitting .368 with two homers and six RBI in 11 games. C Paul Phillips is batting .368 against the Hens, while OF Jerad Head is hitting .342 versus Toledo. … On the mound, Thursday starter Scott Barnes shut out the Hens on just two hits in seven innings while Friday starter Zach McAllister has limited Toledo to six hits – but walked seven – in 13 innings to go 2-0 with 2.77 ERA. Columbus has a 3.58 team ERA versus the Hens while the offense is batting .284 and has scored 76 runs in 12 games (6.33 runs per game).
NEWS WORTH NOTING: The Tigers made several roster moves on Wednesday, recalling LHP Brad Thomas from his rehab assignment with the Hens (he remains on the DL, though) and promoting RHP Brayan Villarreal, Thursday’s scheduled starter for Toledo, to Detroit. LHP Daniel Schlereth was optioned to Toledo. … The Hens enter this season having lost two in a row and 11 of their last 13. The Mud Hens are 7-21 in June, hitting just .249 this month (and scoring 3.25 runs per game) while posting a 4.65 team ERA.
TOP PROSPECTS: 3B Lonnie Chisenhall began this season as Cleveland’s top-ranked prospect, according to Baseball America, but he was promoted to the Indians at the start of the week. … 2B Jason Kipnis ranked third on that list. … LHP Nick Hagadone, who is 2-1 with a 5.82 ERA in 13 relief appearances for the Clippers, began the season as the Indians’ 10th-best prospect.
RADIO & TELEVISION: Both games will be broadcast live on WCWA, 1230-AM and on BCSN.
PROMOTIONS
Friday, July 1, 7 p.m. – There will be post-game fireworks along with a Cub Scout sleepover.
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