Geohagen Series Preview Charlotte vs. Montreal.
Regular Season Records:
Charlotte: 91–72
Montreal: 92-70
Record in August and September:
Charlotte 32-21
Montreal: 24-28
Head to Head Record:
Montreal 9-5 Charlotte
Season Runs Scored:
Charlotte: 831 (5th in JL)
Montreal: 746 (8th in JL)
Head to Head Runs Scored:
Charlotte: 54
Montreal: 70
Season Runs Allowed:
Charlotte: 723 (7th in JL)
Montreal: 655 (1st in JL)
Head to Head Runs Allowed:
Charlotte: 70
Montreal: 54
Injury News:
Charlotte: Dallas Dixon (6.5 WAR) will miss the entire postseason and Manny Toledo (2.7 WAR) will miss the Geohagen Series.
Montreal: Antonio Lopez (2.2 WAR) and Bill McIntosh (0.8 WAR) are eligible to return from injury for the Geohagen Series.
Key Players:
Charlotte:
SS Robert Menzies (.307/.393/.463)
1B Tadataka Yoshikawa (.257/.338/.491)
RF Fuad Demirel (.285/.369/.467)
SP Jim Fleming (5-0, 2.22 ERA with CHA)
SP Juan Marroquin (2-1, 3.64 ERA with CHA)
SP John Rasmussen III (16-8, 3.69 ERA)
SP Mauro Mendoza (11-5, 3.36 ERA)
SU Felix Camarco (6-3, 11 SV, 2.05 ERA)
SU Jim Thompson (7-5, 7 SV, 2.73 ERA)
CL Alejandro Chavez (2-6, 23 SV, 3.16 ERA with CHA)
Montreal:
C Calvin Johnson (.266/.308/.450)
1B Lineu Aldo (.313/.347/.474)
2B Miguel Martinez (.238/.317/.485)
3B Eduardo Gonzalez (.298/.352/.527)
SS Qutuz Madhi (.267/.359/.380)
SP Kinzo Iwamoto (18-7, 3.52 ERA)
SP Nelson Thompson (13-12, 3.86 ERA)
SP Juan Cruz (12-5, 3.55 ERA)
SP Ricardo Negrete (11-12, 3.72 ERA)
SP Todd Schroeder (3-3, 3.31 ERA)
SU Vonne Baloloy (6-3, 4 SV, 3.26 ERA)
SU Adam Bistcoe (6-5, 4 SV, 3.15 ERA)
CL Aelbehrt Schlondorff (2-6, 21 SV, 3.62 ERA)
Outlook:
This should be a series in which pitching takes center stage. While Montreal has the better overall pitching statistics, the Flyers have seen a dramatic improvement in their pitching numbers from the trade deadline to the end of the year. Charlotte’s bullpen, ranked near the bottom of the JL in ERA around the All-Star break, ended up with a better ERA than Montreal’s bullpen at season’s end. Charlotte’s starting rotation also saw a big makeover with the additions of Marroquin and Fleming. Both pitching staffs have been fantastic. The series will likely come down to which team’s hitters can break through in big moments. Montreal has more power (190 HR) than Charlotte (153 HR) but the Flyers have scored more runs overall. The Flyers have some key injuries to offensive players and the Blazers have no injuries to speak of. In the end, that could be the deciding factor. Will Montreal’s big name players do what they are known for, or will Charlotte get production out of players who weren’t supposed to be starting games? This should be a fascinating series to pay attention to.