April 26 Game Notes at Oklahoma City

Iowa Cubs (4-13) at Oklahoma City Dodgers (13-4)
Thursday, April 26 • 7:05 p.m. CT • Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark • Oklahoma City
RHP Duane Underwood Jr. (0-2, 4.15) vs. RHP Justin DeFratus (1-0, 1.59)

TONIGHT'S GAME: Iowa and Oklahoma City play the second of a scheduled five-game set at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark tonight. The Dodgers lead the PCL American North Division, while the I-Cubs sit nine games behind in fourth place. 
3X THE FUN: Taylor Davis led the I-Cubs with three hits last night. Davis's last three-hit game was on Aug. 5, 2017 vs. Fresno. 
IN PERIL: 17 games in, Iowa is just one win ahead of the worst start in franchise history. The 2000 team was off to a 3-15 start at the same point in the schedule. That season, the team finished 6-17 in April. In each season since, Iowa has won at least eight games in April. 
WALK NOT WHIFF: With 11 walks and 10 strikeouts on the season, Mark Zagunis is one of 10 PCL players (40+AB) with more walks than strikeouts. Through his Iowa Cubs career, Zagunis has walked 103 times and struck out 145 times in 164 games. His 11 walks this season lead the I-Cubs. 
HITTING MACHINE:Stephen Bruno has collected a four-game hitting streak, elevating his season average from .154 to .273 by going 8-for-18. 
DISTANCE RUNNER: Alec Mills spun 7.0 innings on Monday, the longest outing for an Iowa starter this season. Allowing three earned runs, he also tabbed his first quality start of the season and Iowa's third. Jen-Ho Tseng was the last I-Cub starter to log 7.0, making the run on Sept. 2, 2017 at Omaha. 
IN A BLINK: Monday's 2:06 hour game time against Memphis was Iowa's fastest 9.0-inning game since the team sped through a 2:05 game on June 8, 2015 in a 2-1 win over the Redbirds. In that game, the two teams combined for eight hits, three walks and 12 strikeouts. 
AGAINST OKLAHOMA CITY: This is the second time Iowa has squared off against Oklahoma City this season. Iowa opened 2018 with the Dodgers, but lost two of the scheduled five games due to inclement weather. The I-Cubs went 1-2 in the series, but the pitching was solid as the staff posted a 2.77 ERA with eight walks and 22 strikeouts. Bijan Rademacher was 4-for-9 in the series with one RBI. 
POWER IT UP: Mark Zagunis collected his team-leading fifth multi-hit game last night, going 2-for-4. Zagunis was 3-for-23 with five walks (.130) through seven games to begin the season, but has since done a 180. The outfielder has a hit in eight of nine games since, batting .483 (14-for-29) with a scalding .568 on-base percentage. His average leads the PCL over this span, while his OBP ranks second to only Tacoma's Chris Herrmann (.611).
PUTTING IT TOGETHER: The I-Cubs have been slowly finding their swings, batting .257 as a team through the last five games. Prior, the team held a .211 season clip. Five I-Cubs have hit over .300 over this stretch -- Stephen Bruno (.364), Taylor Davis (.389), Bijan Rademacher (.375), Ali Solis (.333) and Mark Zagunis (.429). 
ARM CANDY: Iowa's pitching has been steady, holding the fourth-place spot in the PCL with a 3.73 team ERA. Road games have been more of a challenge as the ERA elevated to 5.03 away from Des Moines and drops to 2.68 at Principal Park. Alberto Baldonado (1.0IP), Anthony Bass (2.0IP), Randy Rosario (4.2IP) and Michael Roth (6.0IP) have yet to allow an earned run in a road game.
SHORT HOPS: Iowa has lost four-straight -- its longest losing streak of the season...The I-Cubs have scored a PCL-low 54 runs this season...Randy Rosario remains the only I-Cub with a 0.00 ERA on the season (6G, 9.0 IP)...Bijan Rademacher is 3-for-8 with one double, one home run and two RBI since coming off the DL Sunday.