5/26 vs. Indy Game Notes

VS. THE TRIBE: The Bats are 2-7 against the Indians so far in 2012 after winning two of three at LSF and losing all six at Victory Field. Last year Louisville went 12-10 against Indy and were 5-6 at LSF. LOU and IND have played each other every season since baseball returned to LOU in 1982. Overall, LOU is 300-314 against IND and 56-55 at Louisville Slugger Field.

DOT, DIGGITY: The Bats have lost four straight. With a loss today they will tie their longest losing streak of the season at five (4/17-4/21; 5/4-5/8)…Kristopher Negron is third in the IL with 15 stolen bases, seven behind GWN’s Luis Durango …As a team, the Bats’ are last in the IL with a .231avg and 13^th with a 4.43era. IND ranks 12^th with a .235avg and has a league-best 2.86era…LOU  is last in the IL with a .204avgw/RISP…The Bats are 10-11 when their starter records a quality start…The Bats are 11-19 against teams starting a RHP and 4-15 against LHP…They are 5-27 when their opponent scores first…Their opponent has scored first in 32 of 49 games… They are 5-25 when being outhit by their opponent and 9-4 when outhitting their oppenent… LHP Jeff Francis is first in the IL in innings pitched (61.2) and is third in strikeouts with 57, just four off the league lead…LOU was shutout for the third time on Tuesday and is now 0-3 in shutout games. They are the only team in the IL to not have thrown a shutout; LHV leads the league lead with seven and IND has six…The Bats have used four or more pitchers in 33 of 49 games (2-5, 5-8, 6-2, 7-1).

ON THE MOUND: RHP Sean Gallagher makes his tenth start for the Bats and will be opposed by RHP Jeff Karstens, who is making a rehab start . In his last start on 5/19 at LHV, he picked up the win going 6.0 innings and allowing four hits and just one earned run. The Bats lost Gallagher’s first three starts, but have won five of his last six (5-4). In his first three starts he did not get into the sixth inning once and recorded an 0-2 record with a 13.04 era (9.2ip, 14er). In his last six starts he is 3-1 with a 3.49 era (36.1ip, 14er), has four quality starts, and has gone at least 5.0 innings every time out. Gallagher spent all of the 2011 season in the Pittsburgh organization with the Indianapolis Indians, going 5-11 with a 5.11 era in 29g (23 starts).

RISPY BUSINESS: Last night the Bats went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, which followsThursday night when they were 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position and left a season-high 14 runners on base. They are now batting .204 on the season w/ RISP, which ranks last in the IL. In their last four games, all losses, the Bats are hitting .049 (2-41) w/ RISP and have left 39 runners on base. They did not record a hit w/ RISP in either of their last three losses (0-29).  In their two wins to start the LHV series, they batted .393 (11-28) with runners in scoring position.

13 BACK, 19 UNDER: With yesterday’s loss to the Indians, the Bats are a season-high 13 games back in the IL West race. Last year they fell as far as 16.0 back. They did not fall 13.0 games out of the race until they lost at SWB on 8/7g2 and were 13.5 out. At 15-34, the Bats are 19 games under .500 for the first time this season. They have not been 19-under since they finished the 1997 season at 58-83. In 1997, they first reached 19-under on 7/26 after losing 4-3 vs. IND.

MAY SHOWERS: The Bats are 6-18 in the month of May. Since 1982, their fewest amount of wins in May is 11 in 1996 (11-17) and 2006 (11-16). With six games remaining they must win all six to not tie the record for the least amount of wins in May. The least amount of wins in any full month, excluding April and September, is seven in July of 1991 (7-22). Their team era is 3.98 (217.1ip, 96er) and their batting average is .234 in May. They have scored 77 runs (3.21rpg) in May.

MAY STARTERS: Bats starters have gone 4-10 with a 4.23era (136.1ip, 64er) in the month of May. In ten of their last 15 games the starters have qualified for a quality start and LOU is 4-6 in those games. Sean Gallagher (5/14g1 vs. LHV, 5/19 at LHV) and Pedro Villarreal (Sunday) are the only starters to record wins in those quality starts. Overall, they have 12 quality starts in May and the Bats have gone 5-7 in those starts.

CONTROL PROBLEMS: On the season Bats pitchers have walked 203 batters, tied for second worst in the IL, and on Tuesday Brett Tomko walked a team-high six batters. The Bats have 357 strikeouts to 203 walks, which is just a 1.76k/bb ratio. Three times the Bats have walked ten or more batters. They walked ten on 4/17 vs. TOL, 11 on 4/19 vs. TOL and a season-high 13 on 4/30  at NOR.

TRANSACTION: Thursday, Cincinnati purchased the contract of OF Joey Gathright from the Bridgeport Bluefish of the Atlantic League and placed IF Chris Valaika on the 7-day disabled list with a right knee strain. Gathright was hitting.240 in 23g at Bridgeport with 13rbi, 20r and 9sb. He has a .263avg in 452 ML games from 2004 to 2011 with Tampa Bay, Kansas City, Chicago (NL) and Boston. Valaika aggravated his knee, running to and rounding first base during the Bats’ 13-inning 7-6 L on 5/21 at LHV.

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Tonight’s lineup: Gathright 8 Negron 5 Harris 4 Soto 3 Dorn 9 Navarro 2 Perez 7 Rojas 6 Gallagher 1 #Bats