EASTERN LEAGUE CHAMPIONS DIVISION CHAMPIONS PLAYOFF APPEARANCES PLAYERS TO MLB 2010 2004, 2010 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 137 2010, 2015, 2016 BATTING AVG.: -- April 7, 2017 -- Game # 1, Road Game #1 BATTING AVG.: -- TEAM HR: -- TEAM HR: -- WALKS: -- Altoona Curve (0-0) vs. Harrisburg Senators (0-0) WALKS: -- STRIKEOUTS: -- STRIKEOUTS: -- RHP Alex McRae vs. RHP Jaron Long TEAM ERA: -- TEAM ERA: -- WALKS: -- 7 p.m. | FNB Field | Harrisburg, Pa. WALKS: -- STRIKEOUTS: -- STRIKEOUTS: -- () -- EL Rank Radio -- News Talk 1240, WRTA | TV - MiLB.TV () -- EL Rank UPCOMING GAMES & PITCHING PROBABLES Fri., April 7 at Harrisburg 7 p.m. RHP Alex McRae (2016: 8-6, 4.79) vs. RHP Jaron Long (2016: 3-3, 2.37) Sat., April 8 at Harrisburg 6 p.m. LHP Brandon Waddell (2016: 7-9, 4.12) vs. RHP Erick Fedde (2016: 2-1, 3.99) at Harrisburg Game 2 RHP Austin Coley (AA Debut) vs. RHP Mark Blackmar (2016: 4-5, 5.37) Sun., April 9 at Harrisburg 1:30 p.m. RHP JT Brubaker (AA Debut) vs. RHP Greg Ross (2016: 5-1, 0.83) TONIGHT: The Curve open the 2017 season against the Harrisburg Senators for the third consecutive season. Last 2017 E.L. WESTERN STANDINGS season, the Curve went 76-64 and picked up the E.L. West Wild Card, beating out the Senators by a half-game. The Team W-L PCT GB Today final postseason spot came down to the wire on the last day of the regular season, with the Curve needing a win at Bowie 1-0 1.000 -- @ AKR Richmond in extra innings to hold off a late-season charge by the Senators. Altoona went on to fall in the ELDS in four Richmond 1-0 1.000 -- v. HFD games to the eventual-league-champion Akron RubberDucks. The two teams will attempt to kick off the season last Altoona 0-0 -- 0.5 @ HAR night's originally-scheduled opener was postponed for rain. Erie 0-0 -- 0.5 v. TRN Harrisburg 0-0 -- 0.5 v. ALT FAMILIAR OPENING FOE: This year marks the sixth season and the third consecutive year in which the Curve open Akron 0-1 .000 1.0 v. BOW against the Senators. The Curve are 4-1 on Opening Day against the Senators, including a 10-6 loss in Altoona last year. The only time the Curve have opened up the season on City Island came in 2015, a 1-0 win. 2017 E.L. EASTERN STANDINGS Team W-L PCT GB Today FOR ALTOONA: Right-hander Alex McRae takes the hill on Opening Day for the Curve. The will be his second Open- Binghamton 0-0 --- -- @ NHM ing Day start. He took the mound in Bradenton's first game last year against Fort Myers and tossed five scoreless New Hamp. 0-0 -- -- v. BIN innings while picking up a win. Last season he joined the Curve in late-June after making 12 starts in the Florida State Portland 0-0 -- -- v. REA League. After going 2-4 with a 10.25 ERA in his first six starts with Altoona, McRae went 6-2 with a 2.47 ERA (17 Reading 0-0 -- -- @ POR ER/62.0 IP) over his last ten outings (nine starts) from July 14-September 1. A native of Milwaukee, McRae is in his Trenton 0-0 -- -- @ ERI fourth professional season after being drafted by the Pirates in the tenth round out of Jacksonville University in 2014, Hartford 0-1 .000 0.5 @ RIC where he played first and third base along with pitching.For more on McRae, see page two. FOR HARRISBURG: Right-hander Jaron Long gets the season-opening start for the Senators. 2017 marks his fourth 2017 CURVE AT A GLANCE consecutive season in the Eastern League. Originally a member of the Yankees organization, Long pitched for the Overall Record .......................................... 0-0 Trenton Thunder during his first full professional season in 2014, going 7-2 with a 2.35 ERA in 11 outings (ten starts). Home ................................................. 0-0 He pitched again for Trenton in 2015 and split time in Triple-A before being released by the Yankees prior to the 2016 Road .................................................. 0-0 season. The Nationals signed him on April 22, 2016 and he split time last season between Harrisburg and Triple-A Syracuse. Long was 3-3 with a 2.37 ERA over 10 starts with the Senators last year. Place (E.L. Western) .............................T-3rd Games Ahead/Behind .............................0.5 OPENING DAY NOTES: The Curve are 7-11 all-time in season openers over their first 18 seasons and just 1-8 when opening on the road. The Curve are 5-11 on Opening Day against teams from their own division and 4-5 against Streak..............................................................-- National League affiliates. An Altoona starting pitcher has not earned a win on Opening Day since 2010 when Mike Last 5 ..............................................................-- Crotta earned a victory against the Senators. Last 10 ............................................................-- ROSTER: The 2017 Curve roster has 10 players that have worn an Altoona uniform prior to this season. 14 will be 2017 vs. Harrisburg ................................. 0-0 playing at the Double-A level for the first time in their careers. There are 13 pitchers and 12 position players on the at Altoona ....................................... 0-0 Curve roster. 24 of the 25 players were originally signed or drafted by the Pirates, with the lone exception being at Harrisburg .................................. 0-0 catcher Zane Chavez. 23 players have played with only the Pirates organization in their professional careers (RHP All-time vs. Harrisburg ..................173-152 Buddy Borden spent time in the Tampa Bay organization). at Altoona ................................... 96-61 at Harrisburg .............................. 77-91 FAMILIAR FACES: The ten players who were with the Curve last year include pitchers Montana DuRapau, John Kuch- no, Jared Lakind, Alex McRae, Miguel Rosario and Brandon Waddell, catcher Tomas Morales, infieldersEdwin Espinal ‘17 Home Attendance .................................-- and Kevin Newman, as well as outfielderElvis Escobar. DuRapau and Kuchno also spent time on the Altoona roster in Home Openings ...........................................-- 2015. Kuchno and Morales are the only two players on the team with an experience above the Double-A level. Average Attendance ....................................-- A NEW SKIPPER: For the third consecutive season, the Curve will led by a brand new manager in 2017. Indiana, Pa. native Michael Ryan takes over as the manager for the Curve this year after leading the A-Adv. Bradenton Marauders BROADCAST INFORMATION to a championship in the Florida State League last season. Ryan was a coach with the Curve in 2012 before spending the next two years managing the West Virginia Power in the South Atlantic League. He moved up to Bradenton in 2015 for the first of his two seasons there. Ryan was drafted by the Minnesota Twins out of Indiana Area High School in 1996 and he went on to play in 15 professional seasons, including five in the majors with the Twins from 2002- 05 and the Los Angeles Angels in 2010. The last two managers, Tom Prince and Joey Cora, are now members of the Pirates' major league coaching staff. Trey Wilson, Nate Bowen and Max Gun will call the action of the 2017 season on HELLO, NEWMAN: Shortstop Kevin Newman is the top-ranked prospect on this year's Curve roster, rated at No. 4 the flagship of the Curve, News Talk 1240, in the Pirates organization by both MLB.com and Baseball America. He made his Double-A debut with the Curve last WRTA in Altoona. Pregame coverage season and led the Pirates' organization with a .320 overall batting average in his first full professional season, includ- begins 15 min. before all games. ing a .288 mark with the Curve in 61 games. Newman was selected in the first round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of The Curve can also be heard on the following the University of Arizona. affiliate stations for selected games: ON THE ROAD TRIP DU-RAP IT UP: Altoona closer Montana DuRapau finished second in the - WKMC-AM 1370 AM in Roaring Spring - WTRN-AM 1340 in Tyrone Games ....................................................................0 Eastern League with 22 saves last year, fourth-most in Curve history. It was tied for the second-most for a Curve pitcher in a season since 2007, behind - WTRN-FM 100.7 in Tyrone Record ............................................................... 0-0 only 24 by Noah Krol in 2011. He finished first with 43 games finished and - WWGE 1400 AM in Ebensburg Average ................................................. .--- (--/--) fourth with 50 appearances. - Online streaming at AltoonaCurve.com Runs/Runs Per Game .................................--/-- provided by TuneIn Radio PROSPECT WATCH: The Curve roster currently features four of MLB.com's Home Runs..........................................................-- - Via the TuneIn Radio App and the MiLB Top 30 Pirates Prospects: Kevin Nemwan (4), Yeudy Garcia (13), Brandon First Pitch App RISP .......................................................... .-- (--/--) Waddell (17) and Kevin Kramer (21). The same four players are also ranked in Errors .....................................................................-- Baseball America's Top 30 Pittsburgh prospects list: Newman (4), Garcia (16), Waddell (17) and Kramer (21). B.A. also named Newman as the organization's THIS DATE IN CURVE HISTORY ERA .........................................................................-- "Best Hitter for Average" and Waddell as having the "Best Changeup." In 2006, the Curve topped the Trenton Starter W-L ..........................................................-- Thunder, 7-1. Landon Jacobsen pitched Starter ERA ................................-- (-- ER / -- IP) five innings and allowed one unearned Reliever W-L .......................................................-- run. Rich Thompson and Adam Boeve each had two hits and an RBI as the Reliever ERA .............................-- (-- ER / -- IP) Curve won their second of what would Saves/Opps .........................................................-- be five straight wins to open the season. 2017 Altoona Curve Game Information Page 1 TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER 2017 HIGHS CAREER HIGHS RHP ALEX McRAE #28 IP: -- IP: 8.0, 7/14 v.