2018 Akron RubberDucks Game Notes Hartford Yard Goats (21-18) vs. Akron RubberDucks (22-17) Colorado Rockies Cleveland Indians Game 40 • Thursday, May 17, 2018 • 7:05 p.m. Dunkin’ Donuts Park • Hartford, CT Radio: WARF 1350 AM • WARF iHeart Channel • TuneIn App • Television: MiLB.TV Today’s Starting Pitchers: Thu. 5/17, 7:05 p.M. at Hartford: Akron: RHP Shao-Ching Chiang (3-0, 2.08) Hartford: RHP Peter Lambert (1-1, 1.69) UpcoMing GaMes and Pitching Probables (subject to change): Fri. 5/18, 7:05 p.m. at Hartford: Akron: RHP Jake Paulson (2-1, 2.79) Hartford: RHP Parker French (1-3, 8.27) Sat. 5/19, 6:05 p.M. at Hartford: Akron: LHP Matt Whitehouse (1-1, 2.60) Hartford: LHP Jack Wynkoop (2-2, 5.35) Sun. 5/20, 1:05 p.m. at Hartford: Akron: RHP Dominic DeMasi (3-1, 2.65) Hartford: RHP Ryan Castellini (2-2, 3.83) Mon. 5/21—OFF Tue. 5/22, 5:05 p.m. vs. Trenton G1: Akron: LHP Sean Brady (1-3, 4.17) Trenton: TBA Tue. 5/22, 7:30 p.M. vs. Trenton G2: Akron: TBA Trenton: TBA RubberDucks News and Notes: Last TiMe Out Trenton’s Chace Numata cracked a crucial RBI single in the sixth inning Wednesday, giving the Thunder the lead and setting the stage for a 5-4 victory over the Akron RubberDucks at ARM & HAMMER Park in Trenton, New Jersey. Where We Stand At 22-17, the RubberDucks are in 1st place in the EL West, one game ahead of 2nd-place Altoona and Richmond. The RubberDucks… -lost two of three games at Trenton to open the road trip. -are 13-10 on the road. -rank 1st in the EL in ERA (2.47), 8th in batting (.236) and tied for 9th in defense (.973). Player Notes -OF Connor Marabell ranks 7th in the EL in hitting (.327). -3B Joe Sever is hitting a hefty .323 in 15 games so far this month (21-65). -C Sicnarf Loopstok is tied for 2nd in the EL lead in walks (23). About the Opposition Hartford is the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. The Yard Goats are managed by Warren Schaeffer. Home games are played in downtown Hartford at Dunkin’ Donuts Park, which opened to rave reviews last season. The franchise relocated to Hartford after 33 seasons in nearby New Britain, Conn. Notable alumni of the franchise since its switch to the Rockies organization include Trevor Story, David Dahl and Pat Valaika. Transaction Wire The Indians announced that 2B Mark Mathias has been placed on the DL, retro to 5/15, with a strained left hamstring. In a corresponding move, INF Jorma Rodriguez has been received from Low-A Lake County. Rodriguez, 22, was hitting .345 with one homer and 20 RBI with the Captains. On Deck The RubberDucks and Yard Goats will play again on Friday evening at 7:05. Akron Baseball: A Winning Tradition This is the 30th season of Double-A baseball in Northeast Ohio, and the 22nd in downtown Akron. The franchise began as the Canton-Akron Indians in 1989, and then moved to Canal Park in Akron as the Aeros in 1997. Known as the RubberDucks since 2014, Akron has qualified for the Eastern League playoffs 16 times overall, and 10 of the last 16 years. The team has captured five Eastern League titles—2003, 2005, 2009, 2012 and 2016. Notable alumni of the franchise include Jaret Wright, Victor Martinez, CC Sabathia, Grady Sizemore, Charles Nagy, Cliff Lee, Jhonny Peralta, Danny Salazar, Jose Ramirez, Roberto Perez, Francisco Lindor, Giovanny Urshela, Tyler Naquin and Bradley Zimmer. Last GaMe Recap Thunder 5 RubberDucks 4…Wednesday, 5/16/18 SuMMary Trenton’s Chace Numata cracked a crucial RBI single in the sixth inning Wednesday, giving the Thunder the lead and setting the stage for a 5-4 victory over the Akron RubberDucks at ARM & HAMMER Park in Trenton, New Jersey. Turning Point Numata delivered a two-out, run-scoring single to right field against Akron right-hander Nick Pasquale (1-1) in the sixth inning to give the Thunder (24- 14) a 5-4 lead. Numata’s hit, his second of the day, drove in Mandy Alvarez, who had singled and moved to second on an errant pick-off throw. The unearned run was the only run given up by Pasquale in his three innings. Mound Presence Akron starter Sean Brady labored through three innings, tossing 80 pitches. He allowed four runs, one earned, walked three and struck out two. Pasquale followed with three innings of relief work. Kieran Lovegrove and Mitch Brown chipped in one scoreless inning apiece. Duck Tales The RubberDucks (22-17) scored early against Trenton starter Will Carter. Connor Marabell had an RBI double in the first and an RBI single in the second to give the Ducks a 2-0 lead. Bobby Bradley socked a homer, his 7th, in the third to make it 3-1. After Trenton grabbed the lead with three runs in the third, Akron tied it, 4-4, on Andrew Calica’s RBI fielder’s choice in the fifth. Notebook The RubberDucks did not register a hit after the Bradley homer in the third inning…Righthander Andrew Schwaab (2-2) picked up the win with two perfect innings for Trenton…Jordan Foley worked around a ninth-inning walk to earn his sixth save…The RubberDucks committed three errors, leading to four unearned Thunder runs…Trenton took two out of three in the series…Time of game: 3:00… Attendance: 6,408. RubberDucks 2018 Field Staff #6 Tony Mansolino, Manager—Former minor league infielder Tony Mansolino is in his first season as manager of the Akron RubberDucks. Mansolino, 35, was named the 17th manager in franchise history on January 17, 2018. He replaces Mark Budzinski, who was promoted to the major league staff after managing the RubberDucks last season. This season marks Mansolinoi’s third as a manager in the Indians minor league system. A native of Newport Beach, California, and now a resident of Nashville, Tennessee, Mansolino managed the Class-A Lynchburg Hillcats last season. He was named Carolina League “Manager of the Year” after guiding the Hillcats to a stellar 87-42 overall record and a Carolina League co-championship. Mansolino made his managerial debut with the Lake County Captains in 2016. Drafted by the Pirates in the 26th round of the 2005 draft out of Vanderbilt University, Mansolino played professionally for six years in the minor leagues and was a career .231 hitter with 19 homers and 173 RBI. In addition to the Pirates organization, he also played in the Phillies minor league system and with three independent clubs before moving into coaching in 2011. He served as the RubberDucks hitting coach in 2015. Mansolino played four years for head coach Tim Corbin at Vandy, including an NCAA tournament appearance in 2004. Mansolino’s father, Doug, is the minor league field coordinator for the Phillies. #47 Rigo Beltran, Pitching Coach—After spending the past three seasons as pitching coach at Class-A Lynchburg, former major league left-hander Rigo Beltran will serve as the RubberDucks pitching coach in 2018. Beltran, 48, joined the Indians in 2014, following seven years as a pitching coach in the Reds organization. After being selected in the 26th round of the 1991 draft by the St. Louis Cardinals out of the University of Wyoming, Beltran went on to pitch professionally for 16 seasons. He appeared in 78 major league games with the Cardinals, Mets, Rockies and Expos, going a combined 2-3, with a 4.40 ERA. Born in Tijuana, Mexico, and now a resident of Delray Beach, Florida, Beltran served as the pitching coach for Mexico in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. #25 Kevin Howard, Hitting Coach—RubberDucks hitters will have the luxury of getting advice from a College World Series champion this season, as former University of Miami star Kevin Howard will serve as the RubberDucks hitting coach. This will be his fourth season as a hitting coach in the Indians organization. Howard, 36, was a sophomore infielder when the Hurricanes defeated Stanford to win the 2001 college baseball title. The following summer, he was drafted in the 5th round by the Reds and went on to play professionally for 10 seasons. Howard slugged 93 homers and drove in 540 runs during his minor league career. He was born in Hinsdale, Illinois, attended high school in Westlake Village, California, and now makes his off-season home in Miami Beach. #13 Dennis Malave, Bench Coach—A fixture in the Indians player development system, Dennis Malave assumes the role of bench coach for the RubberDucks in 2018. Malave, 38, is entering his 14th year in the organization. He spent the last seven seasons as a hitting coach for Indians rookie-level players in Goodyear, Arizona. He spent two seasons as a bullpen catcher for the Cleveland Indians from 2007-2008. Malave moved into the coaching ranks after playing in the Tribe system for eight years, starting in 1997 when he was signed as a free agent. A native of Caracas, Venezuela, Malave lives in Goodyear during the off-season. JereMy Heller, Trainer—The 2018 season mark’s Heller’s fifth in Akron and his 14th overall as a trainer in the Indians organization. He was named Athletic Trainer of the Year in the Eastern League in 2017. Paul Synenkyj, Strength and Conditioning Coach—Now in his 8th season in the Indians organization, Paul Synenkyj will oversee the team’s strength and conditioning program.