th 28 YEAR 22 WINNING SEASONS 19 PLAYOFF APPEARANCES 1994 CHAMPIONS 2012 CHAMPIONS 2016 CHAMPIONS 2017 CHAMPIONS WINNIPEG GOLDEYES 2021 GAME INFORMATION GAME: #3 ROAD GAME: #3 WINNIPEG GOLDEYES (1-1) at SIOUX FALLS CANARIES (1-1) THURSDAY, MAY 20 th , 2021 – SIOUX FALLS STADIUM – 7:05 PM TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHERS: WIN: RHP Joey Gonzalez (0-0, 0.00) SF: LHP Ty Culbreth (0-0, 0.00) CANARIES SNEAK PAST GOLDEYES LATE: The Winnipeg Goldeyes lost 5-3 to the Sioux Falls Canaries at Sioux Falls Stadium on Wednesday night. Nick Gotta broke a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning with a two-out, two-run triple. Caleb Frare retired the Goldeyes in order in the top of the ninth to earn the save. Tyler Hill gave Winnipeg a 2-0 lead in the top of the first with a two-run home run before the Canaries answered back in the bottom half to tie the game. Logan Landon’s two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the fourth made it 3-2 Sioux Falls. Kevin Lachance tied the game in the top of the eighth with an RBI fielder’s choice. Christian James started for the Goldeyes and took a no-decision, allowing three earned runs on two hits in 4.0 innings. James walked six and struck out three. John Gorman took the loss in relief for the Goldeyes. ALL-TIME AGAINST THE CANARIES: The Winnipeg Goldeyes are 174-112 all-time against the Sioux Falls Canaries, including an 84-60 record at Sioux Falls Stadium. The Canaries finished 31-27 and in second place during the abbreviated 2020 American Association season. Sioux Falls ended a 10-year playoff drought and reached the American Association Championship Series where they lost the best-of-seven matchup to the Milwaukee Milkmen in five games. The Canaries were one of the original six members of the Northern League during the birth of modern independent baseball in 1993. With the St. Paul Saints electing to become the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins and the Sioux City Explorers not participating in the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canaries are now the longest-tenured franchise in independent baseball still operating in its original city. The Canaries joined the American Association as a charter member in 2006, and won their first league championship in 2008. The Canaries rebranded themselves as the Sioux Falls Pheasants in 2010 where they made a return trip to the American Association Championship Series. The club changed its name back to the Canaries in 2013. Mike Meyer is in his fifth year as Canaries’ manager. Meyer served as hitting coach for the Laredo Lemurs from 2015-16, which included the Lemurs’ 2015 American Association championship campaign. Meyer previously served as Sioux Falls’ pitching coach from 2007-14, and was a member of their championship staff in 2008. Meyer was 42-39 with six saves and a 4.20 ERA during an eight-year playing career, and was a part of the Saints’ 2004 Northern League championship club. Former Goldeyes’ outfielder Reggie Abercrombie hit 54 of his American Association-record 146 home runs for Sioux Falls from 2010-13. On June 4 th , 2014, five Goldeyes’ pitchers combined to no-hit the Canaries in the nightcap of a double header at Sioux Falls Stadium. The Canaries beat the Goldeyes 14-5 in the first ever game at Shaw Park on June 4 th , 1999. SERIES MATCHUP: The Winnipeg Goldeyes finished 29-31 and in fourth place in the American Association in 2020. The Goldeyes were fourth in the American Association in hitting (.263), third in pitching (4.54), and fourth in fielding (.974). The Goldeyes went 3-2 during their 2021 exhibition schedule. The Canaries were 31-27 in 2020 and finished in second place, which qualified for the American Association playoffs. The Canaries ranked second in the league in batting (.283), fifth in pitching (5.22), and sixth in defence (.969). The Canaries played four pre-season games in 2021, all of which were against the Sioux City Explorers. This is the first of two head-to-head series this season between Winnipeg and Sioux Falls. The Goldeyes were 5-4 against the Canaries in 2020. PROJECTED UPCOMING PITCHING MATCHUPS TONIGHT’S STARTERS: The Goldeyes go with right- 5/21 vs. CHI: TBA vs. TBA hander Joey Gonzalez who will make his first career 5/22 vs. CHI: TBA vs. TBA professional start. Gonzalez last pitched in 2019 for two 5/23 vs. CHI: TBA vs. TBA Houston Astros affiliate. Gonzalez was a combined 4-2 with two saves and a 3.58 ERA in 28 relief appearances for the Low-A Midwest League’s Quad Cities River Bandits and the High-A Carolina League’s Fayetteville Woodpeckers. Gonzalez did not allow an earned run in 15 of his 28 outings. Gonzalez was drafted by the Astros in the 28 th round in 2018 out of Stetson University in DeLand, Florida. During his junior season in 2018, Gonzalez was 8-3 with a 2.07 ERA in 78.1 innings for the Hatters. The 2.07 ERA ranked 15 th in the NCAA among pitchers with at least 70.0 innings. Gonzalez is in his third season of professional baseball and is 8-4 lifetime with five saves and a 3.04 ERA in 43 appearances, all of them in relief. Gonzalez has averaged 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings as a professional. Tonight will be Gonzalez’s first career appearance against Sioux Falls, as well as his first career appearance at Sioux Falls Stadium. The Canaries go with left-hander Ty Culbreth who was 3-2 with a 6.32 ERA in seven starts for Sioux Falls in 2020. Culbreth walked two batters or less in five of his seven starts, and walked three batters or less in all of them. Culbreth also started Game Three of the 2020 American Association Championship Series vs. Milwaukee. Culbreth was 3-8 with a 4.26 ERA in 17 starts and one relief appearance for the Double-A Eastern League’s Hartford Yard Goats (Colorado Rockies) in 2019. Culbreth was drafted by the Rockies in the eighth round in 2016 out of the University of Texas at Austin (Austin, Texas) where he was a combined 14-9 with a 3.47 ERA over four seasons for the Longhorns. Culbreth is in his sixth season of professional baseball and is 24-25 lifetime with a 4.68 ERA in 88 games, 73 of them as a starting pitcher. Culbreth has averaged 2.0 walks per nine innings as a professional. Tonight will be Culbreth’s first career appearance against Winnipeg. Culbreth is 3-2 with a 6.15 ERA in five career starts at Sioux Falls Stadium. GOLDEYES MANAGER: Rick Forney is now in his 16 th season as Goldeyes’ manager, and his 25 th overall within the organization. During his first 15 years at the helm, the Goldeyes have posted a .544 overall winning percentage (784-657), 11 winning seasons, nine playoff appearances, and an American Association-record three championships. Forney was voted American Association Manager of the Year in 2011, and again in 2020 after guiding a team that played all of its games on the road. Forney’s .551 winning percentage in the American Association (2011-20) is the fourth-highest in league history (there have been 58 total American Association managers through the 2020 season). Forney pitched professionally for 10 years, including four seasons with the Goldeyes. During his playing career, Forney was 89-56 (.614) with a 3.63 ERA, and reached the Triple-A level in 1995. TENNESSEE BOUND: Due to the ongoing closure of the Canada/US border, the Winnipeg Goldeyes have partnered with the Jackson Generals professional baseball club to host Winnipeg at The Ballpark at Jackson to begin the 2021 season. The Generals were a Double-A Southern League affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners, and Arizona Diamondbacks from 1998-2019. The franchise hosted the Southern League All-Star Game on two occasions, and won four Southern League championships. The Generals are located in Jackson, Tennessee, which is 208 kilometres southwest of Nashville and 140 kilometres northeast of Memphis. ALL-TIME OPENING NIGHT: Following Tuesday night’s win, the Goldeyes improved to 18-10 all-time in their season-opener. Tuesday also marked just the third time a Goldeyes’ season-opening game resulted in a shutout. The Goldeyes beat the Canaries 6-0 at Sioux Falls Stadium on May 28 th , 1999 and blanked the Canaries again, 2-0, on May 26th , 2000 at Shaw Park. RARE SHUTOUT: Tuesday marked the Goldeyes’ first shutout win at Sioux Falls Stadium since beating the Canaries 14-0 on August 17 th , 2014. The Goldeyes have not been shutout at Sioux Falls Stadium since a 5-0 loss on May 19 th , 2011. Since 2011, Sioux Falls Stadium has surrendered 46 percent more home runs than the average American Association ballpark. BACK TO FULL STRENGTH: The American Association returns to 12 teams and a 100-game schedule in 2021. The league is split into two divisions, with the top two regular season winning percentages from each division qualifying for the postseason. ROSTER RULES RETURN: After waiving all classification restrictions in 2020, the American Association returns to its traditional roster rules. Teams may carry up to 11 players classified as LS-4. Seven of those 11 may be LS-5 or higher, while five of them may be classified as veterans.