Game Notes - 8.28.17 at Memphis

Iowa Cubs (65-67) at Memphis Redbirds (86-48)
RHP Jen-Ho Tseng (5-1, 1.67) vs. RHP Kevin Herget (4-2, 4.25)
Monday, August 28 • 6:35 p.m. CT • AutoZone Park • Memphis, TN

TONIGHT'S GAME: Iowa and Memphis meet for the opening game of a four-game series at AutoZone Park. The clubs will play each other for the fifth consecutive day, recently splitting a four-game series at Principal Park in the I-Cubs' final home series of the season. It's the first and only time that Iowa plays the same team in back-to-back home/road series this season, and the first time Iowa has done that since May 15-22, 2014, when it played Round Rock in eight consecutive games, with the first four coming at Principal Park.
HANNEMANN HIT STREAK: Center fielder Jacob Hannemann is riding a season-high nine-game hit streak that began on August 17. Since then, he's batting .303 (10-for-33) with seven doubles and seven RBI. If he gets a hit tonight, he will tie with Taylor Davis , Mark Zagunis and Victor Caratini for the longest hitting streak for an I-Cub this season.
FINAL HOME STATISTICS: As a team, the I-Cubs batted .265 (603-for-2276) and scored 330 runs at home this season. The 603 hits include 142 doubles, 12 triples, 56 home runs. The team recorded 313 RBI, 217 walks, 547 strikeouts and 52 stolen bases. Last season, Iowa batted .273 in its home ballpark but scored fewer runs (319) and hit less home runs (38) than this year. On the mound at Principal Park this season, Iowa pitching recorded a 4.35 ERA (306ER/633IP) with 637 hits allowed, 240 walks and 594 strikeouts. Last season, Iowa pitching combined for a 4.49 ERA (318ER/637IP) with 603 hits allowed, 262 walks and 614 strikeouts at home. In comparison to Iowa's stats on the road this season, the team has been very balanced offensively, batting .263 on the road, while Iowa's pitching has been much better at home, holding a 5.26 road ERA (302ER/516.2IP), nearly a whole run higher than at home.
MANAGER MILESTONES: Iowa manager Marty Pevey is five wins away from his 1,000th win as a manager. Pevey has managed the I-Cubs for five seasons, and has managed in the minor leagues for 15 seasons. He won 563 games in nine years managing in the Toronto Blue Jays organization, 48 with the Medicine Hat Blue Jays from 1996-97, 81 with the Hagerstown Suns in 1998, 218 with the Dunedin Blue Jays from 2000-02, 79 with the New Haven Ravens in 2003 and 137 with the Syracuse SkyChiefs from 2004-05. He started managing in the Cubs organization in 2009, winning 81 games with the Peoria Chiefs. He's been at the helm for Iowa since the 2013 season, and is also five victories away from becoming the all-time winningest manager in Iowa history, currently ranking second to only Joe Sparks.
AGAINST MEMPHIS: Iowa is 5-7 against Memphis this season heading into Monday night and 2-2 at AutoZone Park. The I-Cubs were last in Memphis from May 27-30, winning the series opener and finale, while dropping the middle two games. In that series, Iowa was narrowly outscored by Memphis 13-12, with three of the four games in the series decided by one run. Last season, the I-Cubs and Redbirds split the season series 8-8, and in 2015 the I-Cubs won the season series by a 9-7 advantage.
ONE-RUN GAMES: Iowa played in its league-leading 44th one-run game of the season on Sunday, falling to 26-18 (.591) in those contests. Iowa's winning percentage in one-run games ranks fourth-best in the PCL, trailing Memphis, Fresno and Reno. The I-Cubs have a chance to lead the PCL in one-run games for the first time since 2012, when they played in 54 one-run games, going 22-32 (.407) in those contests. Before yesterday, Iowa had been in an eight-game stretch of playing in games decided by more than a run.
RUSSELL, GRIMM JOIN IOWA ON REHAB: Infielder Addison Russell and right-handed pitcher Justin Grimm are slated to join Iowa on rehab assignments tonight. Russell played in 11 games in an Iowa uniform in April 2015, batting .318 (14-for-44) with seven runs, four doubles, one home run and nine RBI before his promotion to Chicago, where he made his major league debut on April 21 at PNC Park. Russell's first series with Iowa was against Memphis, where he hit .389 (7-for-18) with five runs, one double, one home run and three RBI at AutoZone Park. In his last game at Memphis, Russell went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer off Tyler Lyons. For reliever Justin Grimm, it will be his fourth stint on Iowa's roster this season and his first on MLB rehab assignment. In eight games out of the bullpen for Iowa this season, Grimm is 0-1 with three saves and a 3.72 ERA (4ER/9.2IP), five walks and 14 strkeouts.
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Iowa wrapped up its 2017 home schedule on Sunday, finishing the season with a 37-34 (.521) record at Principal Park. Iowa owned a home record of just 25-28 (.472) heading into the month of August, before going 12-6 at home in the final full month of the season. Iowa finishes above .500 at Principal Park for the eighth time in the last 10 seasons, with 2012 (29-43, .403) and 2016 (35-36, .493) being the exceptions.
GOLD STAR FOR YOU: C Victor Caratini and P Matt Carasiti were named to the All-PCL team today. It is the first season that Iowa has boasted multiple All-PCL selections since 2014 (2B Arismendy Alcantra, LH SP Tsuyoshi Wada, RH RP Blake Parker).