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Lipka and Garcia Win Weekly Awards

Trenton outfielder Matt Lipka (Mike Dill/Trenton Thunder) and Trenton right-hander Rony Garcia (Mike Dill/Trenton Thunder)
July 15, 2019

SCARBOROUGH, ME - The Eastern League is pleased to announce the winners of the Eastern League Player of the Week Award and Eastern League Pitcher of the Week Award for the period of July 8th through July 14th.

SCARBOROUGH, ME - The Eastern League is pleased to announce the winners of the Eastern League Player of the Week Award and Eastern League Pitcher of the Week Award for the period of July 8th through July 14th.

Trenton Thunder outfielder Matt Lipka has been selected as the Eastern League Player of the Week for the period of July 8th-July 14th. The 27-year old batted .533 (8-for-15) with three doubles, two triples, one home run, five RBIs, five runs scored, one stolen base, and a 1.200 slugging percentage in four games for the Thunder last week. Lipka, who is a native of Snellville, Georgia, had at least one hit in all four games he played in last week and had multiple hits in two of those games. He kicked off his week by hitting for the cycle in a 5-3 loss at Reading on Thursday night, becoming the fourth player in Trenton franchise history to hit for the cycle. It was the second time in his career Lipka has hit for the cycle, as he also accomplished the feat in 2013 with Lynchburg. The 6'1", 215 lb. slugger led all Eastern League hitters in OPS (1.733) last week and tied for the league lead in batting average (.533), hits (8), and triples (2). He also finished ranked among the weekly leaders in total bases (18-2nd), slugging percentage (1.200-2nd), doubles (3-tied 2nd), runs scored (5-tied 3rd), on-base percentage (.533-4th), RBIs (5-tied 4th), home runs (1-tied 9th), and stolen bases (1-tied 9th). Matt was signed by the New York Yankees as a free agent on January 11, 2019. He was originally selected by Atlanta with the 35th pick of the 2010 draft and also spent time in the Texas and San Francisco organizations.
Matt Lipka's Batting Line for the period of July 8-July 14, 2019


Matt Lipka's Batting Line for the 2019 Season

Rony Garcia, a right-handed starting pitcher for the Trenton Thunder, has been selected as the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the period of July 8th-July 14th. The 6'3", 200 lb. hurler started one game for the Thunder last week and had a record of 1-0 with eight strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA. Garcia, who is a native of Mao, Dominican Republic, made his lone start of the week on Friday at Reading and fired eight shutout innings in Trenton's 3-0 victory. He gave up just four singles and struck out eight batters over a career-high eight innings of work while retiring 16 of the final 17 batters he faced. The 21-year old ranked first among all Eastern League pitchers in innings pitched (8.0) last week and tied for the league lead in ERA (0.00) and wins (1). He also finished ranked among the weekly league leaders in strikeouts (8-tied 5th) and WHIP (0.50-tied 5th). Rony, who has a record of 2-7 with 56 strikeouts and a 4.65 ERA over 11 starts in his Double-A debut with the Trenton Thunder this season, was signed by the New York Yankees as a free agent on July 2, 2015.
Rony Garcia's Pitching Line for the period of July 8-July 14, 2019


Rony Garcia's Pitching Line for the 2019 Season