POSTGAME NOTES
Thursday, August 16, 2018 vs. Iowa Cubs (IOW)
Colorado Springs Sky Sox (61-59) | Iowa Cubs (45-76)
SKY SOX FALL TO CUBS 9-3 IN SERIES FINALE
DES MOINES, Iowa - The Sky Sox dropped the final game and series to the Iowa Cubs by a score of 9-3 on Thursday afternoon at Principal Park in Des Moines. Outfielder Quintin Berry highlighted the afternoon with his 2-for-4 performance and three stolen bases in the contest.
Following a scoreless two frames in Colorado Springs' final game ever in Des Moines, the Sky Sox got a head start in the third with two runs to take the first lead. Dylan Moore struck a single and moved to third following a pick-off throwing error. With no outs, Quintin Berry hit an RBI single and got into scoring position after stealing second base during Zach Davies at-bat. After a sacrifice bunt and Nate Orf walk to put runners on the corners, Tyler Saladino knocked in the second run with his single to left field.
Facing a 2-0 deficit in the contest, the Cubs evened things quickly with two runs of their own in the bottom half of the third. With one out, Stephen Bruno doubled to plate Terrance Gore who singled and stole second base. The additional run was brought in on three consecutive walks to tie the game at 2-2.
In the fourth, the Cubs broke open the game with six runs to take a commanding 8-2 advantage in the matinee contest. With two outs and a runner on second, Sky Sox rehab starter Davies walked Chris Coghlan. Southpaw reliever Nick Ramirez took over from there and delivered a walk to load the bases and a two-RBI base hit by Ryan Court. A batter later, Jason Vosler cleared the bases on his eighth home run. One more run was manufactured on a fielding error and two singles.
The Sky Sox only scored one additional run in the fifth by Quintin Berry who singled, stole second and third base, and scored on a wild pitch. But Iowa added the run back in the seventh after Bruno doubled for a second time, plating Coghlan, who was hit by a pitch, making it a final 9-3 score.
The Sky Sox return home tomorrow, August 17, to host the Omaha Storm Chasers for three games before hosting the Cubs for three more games. For all information on Sky Sox, follow along on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and visit the team's website at www.skysox.com.
__NOTES__
Tomorrow's Preview: The Sky Sox head into the first game of the three-game set against the Omaha Storm Chasers, Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, with first pitch scheduled for 6:40 p.m. MST. Omaha righty Trevor Oaks will get the nod while right-hander Aaron Brooks will go for the Sky Sox.
Berry's Trio: Outfielder Quintin Berry stole three bases for the Sky Sox on Thursday afternoon in the final game against Iowa, marking the first time since June 2 when Dylan Moore met the feat. It was the third time this season where a Sky Sox player stole three bases in a game (Dubon on 5/4, Moore on 6/2).
Orf Alert: The hit by pitch by Nate Orf in the seventh inning of game three against Iowa was his 19th HBP this season, the second most in a season by any Sky Sox player. Clint Barmes holds the single season record with 22 HBP in the 2007 season. The hit by pitch by Orf is also his 36th HBP in the regular season in his Sky Sox career, moving him past former Sky Sox catcher Mark Strittmatter (35) for second place all-time. Strittmatter played parts of seven seasons with the Sky Sox (1993, 1995-2000). Clint Barmes holds the career HBP record with 47 HBP (2003-2004, 2007-2008).
Swipin' Bags: The 147 Sky Sox stolen bases this season is currently the fourth most for the team in a single season. The team record is 169 stolen bases, which was set in 2009. The next feat to reach is third-most 149 set in 2000 while the second-most 151 is held by 2016 squad.
Davies' Rehab: Zach Davies made his fifth rehab start with the Sky Sox on Thursday afternoon while marking his third losing decision. On Thursday, Davies tossed three and two-thirds innings while allowing four runs on three hits and walked five batters. Overall, he has totaled 17.0 innings while allowing 12 runs on 18 hits with 12 walks and 13 strikeouts.
Sweet Tally: With the loss on Thursday, manager Rick Sweet's win count stays at 270 total (regular season) with the Sky Sox. Sweet trails Brad Mills by only one win to tie Mills' club record 271 wins as Sky Sox manager. If you include postseason wins, Sweet is at 272 overall wins, trailing Mills by only four overall wins.
Early Scoring: Nashville held the easy advantage in early scoring in the series against Colorado Springs this weekend. Over the four games, the Sounds outscored the Sky Sox by a total of 15-6 in the first three innings.
Three Outs, One Play: The Nashville Sounds completed the first Triple Play in the PCL this season on Sunday the 12th. In the bottom of the sixth with two on and no outs, Dylan Moore grounded right at the third base bag, which resulted in a five-four-three triple play to end the inning. It marked the seventh triple play against the Sky Sox, last happening on July 20, 2015 at home also against Nashville. In the 8th inning that game, with Jason Rogers at second and Matt Clark at first, and both running on the pitch, Matt Dominguez for the Sky Sox lined out to Nashville center fielder Craig Gentry on a diving catch for the first out. Gentry threw to second baseman Joey Wendle to get Rogers for the second out, then Wendle threw to first baseman Anthony Aliotti at first base to complete the triple play. Nashville won that game, 10-5.
Double That: The Sky Sox' 16 hits total on Sunday more than doubled their amount over the previous two games against Nashville at home. It marks the most in a game during the series. In game one, the Sky Sox collected 10 hits.
Swept: The Sky Sox were swept for the first time this season by the Nashville Sounds this weekend. The Sky Sox now total one sweep against an opponent and one sweep by an opponent with 11 series wins, nine series losses, and 10 series ties.
Extras: The Sky Sox played their 10th extra-inning game of the season on Sunday, falling in their fourth straight. Colorado Springs is now 2-8 in extra-inning contests in 2018. The team is now 0-6 at home in extra innings. Last year was the first time the Sky Sox had lost four at home in extra innings (2-4). The last time the Sky Sox lost eight games in extra innings was in 2003 (1-3 at home, 3-6 on the road).
Leading Into the Ninth: The Sky Sox marked their third defeat when leading in a game after eight innings on Sunday. The squad is now 47-3 when losing the lead after eight innings.
Red Hot: The Sky Sox could not end the red-hot Nashville Sounds, dropping the fourth straight game of a four-game set with a 9-7 score in extra innings. The Sounds collected their 13th win in a row.
The Hunt For First: The Sky Sox continue the hunt for their second-consecutive playoff run, battling it out with other top contender of the American North - the Oklahoma City Dodgers. Last season, the Sky Sox broke one of the longest postseason droughts in professional sports - taking the American North division for the first time and breaking their 20-year absence. Currently, the Sky Sox trail the Dodgers in the standings.
'Pen holding it down: After three runs were allowed by starter Paolo Espino through five frames on Saturday, relievers Bubba Derby and Mike Zagurski held off any additional scoring. Derby tossed three, two-hit frames while Zagurski tossed a 1-2-3 ninth.
Quality from Brooks: Aaron Brooks dominated once again in his 13th start with the Sky Sox on Friday night against Nashville. In seven innings, he delivered seven solid frames while allowing just three runs on nine hits and recorded a season-high eight strikeouts on the night. It marked his second consecutive quality start and third overall this season with the Sky Sox.
Five or Less: The Sky Sox were held to five or less hits for the 23rd time this season last Friday. It marked the eighth time in 2018 where the Sky Sox were held to four hits exactly.
Heavy Damage: The 18 runs the Sky Sox surrendered last Thursday night marked the most runs they've given up in a game all season. The previous high of 17 runs also came at home in Security Service Field, on 6/19 against the Salt Lake Bees.
Lengthy Evening: The three-hour and 55-minute contest last Thursday night was the longest game the Sky Sox have played all season, unseating the previous long of three-hours and 53-minutes, which came less than a month ago on the road in New Orleans against the Baby Cakes on 7/14. The 3:55 time for the 18-9 game marks the longest nine-inning Sky Sox game (time) against the Nashville Sounds. The previous longest nine-inning game in time between the Sky Sox and Nashville was at 3:47, taking place on April 10th, 2015, where Nashville won that game, 12-8.
This Week's Preview: The Sky Sox are back at Security Service Field for a a split seven-day homestand with three-game sets against the Omaha Storm Chasers and the Iowa Cubs.
NEXT GAME: Friday, August 17 at 6:40 p.m. MT vs. Omaha Storm Chasers @ Security Service Field
RHP Aaron Brooks (8-4, 3.66) vs. RHP Trevor Oaks (8-6, 2.88) - Broadcast on XTRA Sports 1300
Promotion: Friday Night Post-Game Fireworks
COS TOP PERFORMERS
 Quintin Berry (2-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 3 SB)
 Tyler Saladino (1-for-4, RBI)
 Jacob Barnes (1.1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 K)
IOW TOP PERFORMERS
 Stephen Bruno (3-for-4, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI)
  Jason Vosler (1-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB)
 Kyle Ryan (3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 K)