Dayton Dragons Homestand Preview (July 27 - August 1)

****Back to Full Capacity****

In accordance with the Governor’s elimination of COVID related health orders and restrictions, the Dayton Dragons have officially opened Day Air Ballpark to full stadium capacity. If you are fully vaccinated, you do not have to wear a mask, unless you prefer. If you are not vaccinated, you should wear a mask per CDC guidelines.

Many COVID safety measures will remain in place including touchless technology inside all restrooms, plexiglass at customer service areas, and cashless concessions. All 125 hand sanitizing stations will remain, and the Dragons will continue to adhere to special cleaning protocols for the facility and high-volume touch points.

Single-game tickets for all 24 remaining full capacity home games through the rest of the season from July - September are now available for purchase through the following outlets:

• Online at https://www.milb.com/dayton/tickets/single-game-tickets
• The Dragons Box Office located next to the main entry gates at Day Air Ballpark
• By phone by calling the Dragons Box office at (937) 228-2287; or Ticketmaster charge-by-phone at (937) 228-2323
• The Dragons App which can be downloaded through the App Store (Apple) or Google Play Store (Android)

**Game and Radio Broadcast Schedule**

• Tuesday, July 27– Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 7:05 p.m.
• Wednesday, July 28 – Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 7:05 p.m.
• Thursday, July 29 – Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 7:05 p.m.
• Friday, July 30 – Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 7:05 p.m.
• Saturday, July 31 – Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 7:05 p.m.
• Sunday, August 1 – Lake County Captains (Indians) at Dayton Dragons (Reds), 2:05 p.m.

All games are broadcast on Fox Sports 980 AM and HD Radio on 104.7 WTUI HD 2. All games are also streamed via the Dragons website at www.daytondragons.com. Broadcasts are also available on the Dragons App for Apple and Android devices.

Scheduled Dragons starting pitchers for these games:

Tuesday: Lyon Richardson (RHP)

Wednesday: Eduardo Salazar (RHP)

Thursday: Noah Davis (RHP)

Friday: Jacques Pucheu (LHP)

Saturday: Carson Spiers (RHP)

Sunday: Lyon Richardson (RHP)

**Dragons On TV**

• The games on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday will be televised on Dayton's CW (WBDT-TV). It is available on the following outlets: Cable Channels 13 and 1013, Direct TV and DISH Network Channel 26, and over the air channel 26.1.
• WDTN Sports Director Jack Pohl will join as color commentator for all three broadcasts this weekend.

**Dragons 50/50**

• The Dragons 50/50 will be a rolling pot and will run from Tuesday through Sunday. As part of the “Rebuilding the Arts” program, sponsored by Day Air Credit Union, all of the charity proceeds of the raffle will go to Dayton Live to help them recover from the pandemic. Fans can purchase raffle tickets in stadium, or online by clicking here: https://www.milb.com/dayton/fans/50-50-raffle.

**Wendy’s Friends and Family Deal**

• The Wendy’s Friends and Family Deal is available for the Dragons games this weekend on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, July 30 – August 1. The deal includes a Dragons ticket, Wendy’s 4 for $4 meal voucher, and a Dragon’s hat all starting at $12.00 per ticket. Call the Dragons box office at 937-228-2287 or visit daytondragons.com to purchase tickets.

**Community All-Stars Honoree**

• The Dragons Community All-Star Program sponsored by Flying Ace Express Car Wash, CenterPoint Energy, Great Clips, and Synchrony will be honoring Officer Del Rio during a special inning break on Wednesday, July 28.

**Veteran Salute Honoree**

• CareSource’s Veteran Salute Program will honor Ms. Catherine Beers-Conrad, a 6-year U.S. Air Force veteran, the entire homestand against the Lake County Captains, and with a special in-person break on Sunday, August 1.

**Rob Schneider Comedy Show Tickets**

• The Dayton Dragons, along with East Coast Entertainment/The Comedy Zone, will host their second comedy show at Day Air Ballpark on Thursday, August 12**th** at 7:30 p.m. Former Saturday Night Live and movie star, Rob Schneider, will take the stage at Day Air Ballpark. Prices are $35.00 for general tickets, and $65.00 for V.I.P tickets. Tickets can be purchased at the Dayton Dragons Box Office by calling (937) 288-2287 and via Ticketmaster at this link: https://www.ticketmaster.com/rob-schneider-comedy-show-dayton-ohio-08-12-2021/event/16005ADE83012105. Schneider is recommended for ages of 18-years and up.

**Nitro Circus**

• Nitro Circus at Day Air Ballpark is Saturday, August 28th at 7:00 p.m. The event will include high-flying tricks on a variety of platforms including freestyle motocross, mountain biking, BMX, skateboarding, inline skating, scooters and more. Tickets for the show at Day Air Ballpark are now available for purchase at https://www.ticketmaster.com/nitro-circus-dayton-ohio/event/16005761D214687C. Click here to visit the Fan Page on Facebook for the Nitro Circus appearance at Day Air Ballpark. Click here for a video of the Nitro Circus experience. For more Nitro Circus news, including exclusive behind-the-scenes content and more, go to https://nitrocircus.com/tour/ and follow Nitro Circus on Instagram and Facebook.

**Legislation to Aid Minor League Baseball **

• On June 25th members of Congress from both parties in the House and Senate introduced legislation to help keep minor league baseball across the country alive. U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and U.S. Representatives Doris Matsui (D-Calif.-06) and David McKinley (R-W.Va.-01) introduced the Minor League Baseball Relief Act, legislation to provide emergency assistance to Minor League Baseball (MiLB) clubs who have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Unlike their counterparts in Major League Baseball and other major sports leagues, MiLB clubs cannot rely on TV ad revenues to supplement the loss of proceeds from ticket sales, concessions, and in-person advertising. Even with the return of fans this year, many clubs are facing immense financial hardship.
• “We would like to ask the Dayton community to take one (1) minute to ask their Ohio representatives in Congress to support the Minor League Baseball Relief Act,” stated Dragons president Robert Murphy. “All you have to do is visit https://minorleaguebaseballrelief.com/ and type in your name and address, and a letter will be sent to your Members of Congress asking them to co-sponsor this critical legislation.”

**Dragons On The Field**

• Dayton has been streaky in July so far with an 11-11 record this month. The Dragons have experienced the highs and lows with a five-game win streak and six-game losing streak. Currently, the Dragons sit in second place in the High-A Central East Division behind Great Lakes by just a half game. The Dragons have been able to hang close thanks to sweeping the Saturday and Sunday games the past two weekends. Dayton most recently took those weekend contests at Fort Wayne to earn a series split. While the Dragons have been better at home this year (21-15), they have a respectable 18-17 road record. Dayton will try and recapture its home magic after losing its last home series against the Loons. The Dragons are also looking for revenge against Lake County after dropping their only series against the Captains so far in Eastlake, Ohio at the start of June. Another critical series against a top-three opponent in the East Division will be on display at Day Air Ballpark this week.
• The last time Dayton and Lake County played, the Dragons did lose this series – but also had their best offensive game of the season on June 5th. Dayton won 15-4 in a game that featured a few season-highs. Fifteen runs is the most the Dragons have scored in a single game since 2015, and 19 hits is the most Dayton has produced in one game since 2018. Quin Cotton went a career-best 4-6 with two home runs that day as Dayton ran away with the win. The Dragons overall scored 36 runs against the Captains that week, which is the third most in one series by Dayton this season.
• Francisco Urbaez captured the Dragons longest-hitting streaking this season in Fort Wayne, but it also came to end on Thursday. Urbaez’s hit streak lasted 15 games, which was the longest by a Dragons player since Jose (Garcia) Barrero in 2018 (17 games). Urbaez is batting .332 this year, which ranks second in the High-A Central League. Another streak is still alive for Urbaez, as he’s reached base in 32 consecutive games.
• Former Dragons players Mark Kolozsvary and Todd Frazier are on the United States baseball Olympic team that is competing in Tokyo this week. RHP Daniel Duarte, who pitched for the Dragons this year, is on the roster for Team Mexico.
• New players added to the team this week include RHP Vin Timpanelli and catcher Garrett Wolforth (from Low-A Daytona). RHP Braxton Roxby and catcher Jose Tello were promoted to Double-A Chattanooga, while RHP Jesse Stallings was released. Roxby led the Dragons with 21 appearances out of the Dayton bullpen and posted a team-best 1.30 ERA. Tello batted .211 with four home runs for the Dragons in 28 games.

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