2018 Akron RubberDucks Game Notes Altoona Curve (1-0) vs. Akron RubberDucks (0-1) Pittsburgh Pirates Cleveland Indians Game 2 • Friday, April 6, 2018 • 6:00 p.m. People’s Natural Gas Field • Altoona, PA Radio: WARF 1350 AM • WARF iHeart Channel • TuneIn App • Television: MiLB.TV Today’s Starting Pitchers: Fri. 4/6, 6:00 p.m. at Altoona: Akron: RHP Aaron Civale Altoona: RHP Dario Agrazal Upcoming Games and Pitching Probables (subject to change): Sat. 4/7, 2:00 p.m. at Altoona: Akron: RHP Michael Peoples Altoona: LHP Brandon Waddell Sun. 4/8, 2:00 p.m. at Altoona: Akron: LHP Sean Brady Altoona: RHP Mitch Keller Mon. 4/9, 6:35 p.m. at Binghamton: Akron: RHP Shao-Ching Chiang Binghamton: RHP Joseph Shaw Tue. 4/10, 6:35 p.m. at Binghamton: Akron: RHP Shane Bieber (0-0, 0.00) Binghamton: RHP Drew Gagnon (1-0, 0.00) RubberDucks News and Notes: Last Time Out Altoona’s Logan Hill blasted a three-run homer to left field in the bottom of the eighth inning, completing a six-run rally and breaking a 3- 3 tie, as the Curve rallied to beat the Akron RubberDucks, 6-5, on Opening Night at PNG Field Thursday night. Where We Stand At 0-1, the RubberDucks are tied for 4th in the EL West, one game behind Altoona, Erie and Harrisburg. The RubberDucks… -were 3-9 with runners in scoring position last night. -stole five bases in the game. -had five players in the starting lineup making their Double-A debut. -loaded the bases with no outs in the 3rd inning, but came away empty-handed. Player Notes -3B Sam Haggerty was 2-4, with a double, three RBI and two steals in his Akron debut.. -RF Ka’ai Tom finished 3-4, with a double and two steals in his initial AA game. -LF Tyler Krieger made his first career start in the outfield and made a catch on the first play of the first inning. About the Opposition Altoona is the Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Curve won the 2017 EL title with consecutive three-game sweeps of Bowie and Trenton. Michael Ryan is in his second season as Curve manager. The franchise began in 1999, and is named after the famous Horseshoe Curve, a section of railroad line spanning the summit of the Allegheny Mountains and connecting Altoona and Johnstown, Pa. Transaction Wire No transactions involving the RubberDucks have been announced by the Cleveland Indians today. On Deck The RubberDucks and Curve will play the third game of the four-game series on Saturday afternoon at 2. The teams also will play at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday. The Ducks will then travel to Binghamton, New York, for a three-game series Monday thru Wednesday, to complete the season-opening road trip. 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 Curve 6 RubberDucks 5…Tuesday, 4/5/18 Summary Altoona’s Logan Hill blasted a three-run homer to left field in the bottom of the eighth inning, completing a six-run rally and breaking a 3-3 tie, as the Curve rallied to beat the Akron RubberDucks, 6-5, on Opening Night at PNG Field Thursday night. Turning Point The Curve (1-0) rallied for six runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to erase a 3-0 Akron lead. Shortstop Cole Tucker stroked a two-run double off Dominic DeMasi to cut the deficit to 3-2. Akron righty Argenis Angulo (0-1) entered the game and surrendered a game-tying RBI single to Stephen Alemais, and, after a walk to Will Craig, served up a three-run homer to Hill, which made it 6-3. Mound Presence Akron starter Shane Bieber was masterful in his first start of the season, but settled for a no-decision. The right-hander worked six shutout innings and fanned nine. Bieber allowed just two hits, both of which were harmless singles. Duck Tales Akron third baseman Sam Haggerty made his Double-A debut one to remember with a two-hit, three-RBI performance. He smacked an RBI single in the fifth inning, igniting a three-run rally that gave the Ducks (0-1) a 3-0 lead. Then in the ninth inning, he jolted a two-run double off the left field fence to pull Akron to within 6-5. Haggerty also stole two bases and drew a walk. Notebook The RubberDucks scored two more runs in the fifth when Altoona first baseman Will Craig misplayed a soft line drive off the bat of Dorssys Paulino, allowing two runs to score…Ka’ai Tom recorded three hits in his Double-A debut. He laced a double and a pair of singles and also swiped two bags…Tyler Krieger made his first career appearance in the outfield. He committed an error on a dropped fly ball in the eighth…Lefty Sean Kaselica (1- 0) picked up the relief win for the Curve with a scoreless eighth inning…Despite allowing two runs on Haggerty’s double in the ninth, Altoona closer Geoff Hartlieb picked up the save when he induced Krieger to fly out to end the game…Game time temperature was 41 degrees…Time of game: 2:25…Attendance: 5,024. 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.