April 13 - Mudcats Game Notes

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WILMINGTON BLUE ROCKS (KANSAS CITY ROYALS) at CAROLINA MUDCATS (MILWAUKEE BREWERS)
Saturday, April 13, 2019 | 4:00 PM | Doubleheader | Game 9/10, Home Game 2/3 | Five County Stadium | Zebulon, NC
RADIO: WDWG, The Big Dawg 98.5 FM
STREAMING AUDIO: www.carolinamudcats.com, TuneIn Radio, First Pitch App
STREAMING VIDEO: N/A
Overall Record: CAR: 6-2; WIL: 5-3
Streaks: CAR: W4; WIL: L1
Last 10 Games: CAR: 6-2, WIL: 5-3
Home Record: CAR: 1-0; WIL: 5-2
Road Record: CAR: 5-2; WIL: 0-1
Division Record: CAR: 2-2; WIL: 2-2
Current Series: CAR leads 1-0 (of 4)
Season Series: CAR leads 1-0 (of 13)
CAR v. OPP: 1-0 @CAR (7), 0-0 @OPP (6)

UPCOMING PROBABLE STARTERS:
TONIGHT, 4/13 vs. Wilmington, 7:00 PM: Wilmington LHP Jackson Kowar (0-0, 0.00) at Carolina RHP Noah Zavolas (1-0, 1.80)
TONIGHT, 4/13 vs. Wilmington, TBD: Wilmington LHP Daniel Tillo (1-0, 3.00) at Carolina RHP Dylan File (0-1, 7.20)
SUN, 4/14 vs. Wilmington, 2:00 PM: Wilmington RHP Nolan Watson (0-0, 0.00) at Carolina RHP Christian Taugner (1-0, 1.50)
TODAY: After last night's rain out the Mudcats and Blue Rocks will now play a doubleheader today at Five County Stadium beginning at 4:00 p.m. The Mudcats have won four straight, including Thursday's series opener (and 2019 home opener) 7-6 in walk-off fashion to take a 1-0 lead in the four game set. Today's twin bill will account for games two and three of the four game series... Today's doubleheader will also include game two and three of Carolina's first home stand of the season. The home stand will continue with tomorrow's series finale versus Wilmington and then a three game series versus Fayetteville from April 15 through April 17.
LET'S PLAY TWO: Today's doubleheader is Carolina's second of the season. They last played a doubleheader on April 9 at Potomac, where they won both games, 7-2 and 6-0, while sweeping the twin-bill and series overall versus the Nationals. The Mudcats are 2-0 in doubleheaders this season. They were 6-4 in doubleheaders last season, 8-8 in 2017; 10-18 in 2016, 8-6 in 2015, 6-8 in 2014, 7-10 in 2013 and 7-10 in 2012.
ICYMI: Last night's game was rained out in Zebulon, but the Mudcats did take game one of their current series versus the Blue Rocks after Dallas Carroll blasted a three-run, walk-off, home run in the ninth to lead the Mudcats to a 7-6 victory on Thursday night. The Mudcats trailed 6-4 heading into their half of the ninth on Thursday before Carroll blasted his three-run homer to win the game. The game-winning blast was hit off Wilmington reliever J.C. Cloney and gave the Mudcats their fourth straight victory. It also lifted Carolina to a 6-2 start on the season and snapped Wilmington's winning streak at five straight games.
ABOUT THE LAST ONE: Dallas Carroll's walk-off home run was Carolina's first since Keston Hiura hit a walk-off homer on May 25, 2018 versus Myrtle Beach. Like Carroll, Hiura's was also a 3-run blast, but Hiura's also came in the 10th inning and with two outs in the inning. Carroll's happened in the ninth last night and with two-on and no outs... Before Hiura game-winner last year, the last walk-off home run in Mudcats history came in 2013 when Bryson Myles delivered a game-winning blast to beat the Winston-Salem Dash in the 14th inning at Five County Stadium on July 18, 2013.
MORE FROM THE LAST ONE: Dallas Carroll went 2-for-4 with two home runs in his final home game at Five County Stadium last season and has now homered in back-to-back home games, with three home runs overall, dating back to the 2018 season… Joantgel Segovia went 2-for-2 with a run, two hits and two walks, while reaching safely in all four of his at-bats Thursday night. Segovia is currently 9th in the Carolina League in average (.400), 2nd in OBP (.500), 4th in SLG (.700) and 4th in OPS (1.200).
'CATS v. ROCKS: The Mudcats will face the Blue Rocks 13 times this season, including seven times at home and six times on the road in 2019. The Mudcats are 60-57 all-time versus Wilmington, including a 26-31 record at home and 34-26 record on the road. Wilmington was recently rated as the 6th most talented team in MiLB per MLB.com's Jim Callis. Wilmington's Opening Day roster including a long list of the Kansas City Royals top farm talent including RHP Brady Singer (No. 53 on the MiLB Top 100), RHP Jackson Kowar, LHP Daniel Lynch, C M.J. Melendez, 1B Nick Pratto, OF Seuly Matias and OF Kyle Isbel.
TONIGHT'S STARTER: GM:1 - Noah Zavolas has the start for the Mudcats in game one of today's doubleheader at Five County Stadium against the Blue Rocks. Zavolas is set to make his second start of the season and his first at home in 2019. He last pitched on April 6 at Down East and ended up with the victory after holding the Wood Ducks to one run on six hits over 5.0 innings pitched. The victory also came in his first game as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers farm system and in the first start in his professional career. Zavolas was acquired this past off-season as part of a trade with the Seattle Mariners that saw OF Domingo Santana head to Seattle and OF Ben Gamel and Zavolas going to Milwaukee. Zavolas went 5-2 with a 3.03 ERA over 19 games (11 BB, 41 SO) with Everett and Modesto last season (16 G, 34.2 IP w/Everett; 3 G, 4.0 IP w/Modesto).
TONIGHT'S STARTER: GM:2 - Right-hander Dylan File gets the start for the Mudcats in game two of today's doubleheader. File opened his first start of 2019, and his first start as a Mudcat, on April 7 at Down East with nine straight outs, including six strikeouts, over three perfect innings before allowing a lead off double to start a four run fourth for the Wood Ducks. File stayed in the game for the fifth and finished his 2019 debut with five innings pitched and eight strikeouts. He also walked one and allowed four runs on four hits while reaching 79 pitches (53 strikes). File was a mid-season All-Star last season with Low-A Wisconsin in the Midwest League and went 8-10 with overall a 3.96 ERA over 25 starts with the Timber Rattlers in 2018. He also totaled 114 strikeouts against 28 walks while pitching through 136.1 innings in Low-A last season. File finished 10th in Midwest League last season in ERA (3.96), 5th in innings (136.1) and 2nd in K/BB (4.07).
HOW THEY'RE BUILT: The Mudcats open the 2019 season with 11 returning players from last season... The 2019 squad features three of the Brewers' Top 30 prospects (as rated by MLBPipeline.com) including OF Tristen Lutz (No. 5), C Payton Henry (No. 10) and C Mario Feliciano (No. 22). 
PLAYOFF DROUGHT: The Mudcats failed to reach the playoffs again in 2018, stretching their current playoff drought to seven consecutive Carolina League seasons. Carolina has additionally failed to reach the playoffs in 10 consecutive seasons overall between their time in the Carolina League (2012-Present) and Southern League (1991-2011). The Mudcats last reached the playoffs in 2008 when they lost to the Mississippi Braves in the Southern League Championship Series… Current post-season droughts in MiLB (full-season teams): Buffalo (AAA)/Delmarva: 13 seasons, New Orleans (AAA): 11 seasons, Iowa (AAA): 10 seasons, Hartford (AA): 9 seasons, Louisville (AAA): 8 seasons.
THE MUDCATS HAVE…
... played in Zebulon, NC since 1991 (29th season).
... played in the Carolina League since 2012 (8th season).
... been an affiliate of the Brewers since 2017 (3rd season).
... operated under the ownership of the Brewers since Oct. 2017.
... not made the playoffs since the 2008 season.
... not made the playoffs during their Carolina League era.