Tom Sox and Turks Face Off Saturday in Charlottesville

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Charlottesville Tom Sox (1-1) will face the Harrisonburg Turks (1-1) tonight at 7 P.M. from CHO Airport Field in Charlottesville. The game will air live on the Tom Sox Facebook Page and Tom Sox TV.

Coverage: Viewers can head to the Tom Sox Facebook Page or Tom Sox TV to watch tonight’s game. A link to the live stats is available on Pointstreak. The Tom Sox Twitter account (@CvilleTomSox) will provide live updates.

Ticket Information: Admission to Tom Sox games is $5 for one person or $10 for a carload. All tickets include parking.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Harrisonburg: RHP Sean Culkin – James Madison

Charlottesville: LHP Sam Massey – Charleston Southern

LEADING OFF

• After playing eight games against the Turks last season, the Tom Sox will play their first of four against Harrisonburg tonight.

• The Tom Sox earned their first win of the season last night with an 8-1 win in Covington.

• Charlottesville has won the last 16 home games against Harrisonburg, with the last loss coming in June 2017.

• The Tom Sox stole nine bases against Covington, a new team record.

• Through two games, the ‘Sox pitchers lead the VBL in ERA and strikeouts.

• Charlottesville will start Charleston Southern lefty Sam Massey, the second-straight lefty starter for the ‘Sox. He will be opposed by Harrisonburg returner Sean Culkin.

• The ‘Sox will make their first ever trip to Culpeper on Sunday, facing the Cavaliers at 7:30.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS, AGAIN

• Charlottesville won their third Valley League Championship last season with a series sweep over the Woodstock River Bandits.

• The ‘Sox did not lose a playoff game, winning all six of the games they played in a postseason plagued by rain. The Tom Sox played only one of the six games at home, with both the division semifinal and division championship rounds being played away from CHS.

• The ‘Sox swept Covington in the first round (in a doubleheader in Harrisonburg), Waynesboro in the division championship (both games played in Waynesboro), and Woodstock in the league championship.

• The Tom Sox trailed in only three of the 54 postseason innings played, all coming in the first game of the Waynesboro series.

• Christian Martin led the Tom Sox at the plate in the playoffs with a .417 average and .517 OBP. The Tom Sox staff was masterful, with a 2.17 ERA and 60 strikeouts in the six games.

44 GAMES STRONG

• With the addition of a 12th team, the 2023 Valley League schedule will feature 44 games in the regular season for the first time in team history, up from 42 in previous seasons.

• Divisions are eliminated this season, with each opponent facing off against the others four times – twice at home and twice on the road.

• Doubleheaders, which were commonplace in inter-division matchups in 2021 and 2022, are also a thing of the past (albeit for Charlottesville and Winchester’s four games).

• In addition to the regular season schedule, the Valley League will play their annual all-star game and home run derby on Sunday, June 25 in Front Royal.

AGAINST HARRISONBURG

• Charlottesville will play the first of four against Harrisonburg, after eight such games last season.

• The Tom Sox have won the last 17 home games against the Turks.

• Charlottesville is 16-5 against Harrisonburg since the start of the 2019 season.

• The ‘Sox swept a home doubleheader against the Turks to close last season’s slate, winning both games in walk-off fashion. The first was a 15-4 run-rule win, with Cole Wagner hitting a three-run home run to end it. The second was a little tighter, but Gavin Abrams was able to walk it off with a 3-run walk-off homer to win it 10-7.

• Five of the last seven home games against Harrisonburg have been decided by three or fewer runs.

COLEMAN’S IN CHARGE

• Valley League veteran Lyndon Coleman will don the head coach title for the season in Charlottesville after two seasons in Winchester.

• Coleman’s Royals earned a VBL Playoff berth in both his seasons, advancing to the North division championship series in 2017 before falling to the Express in three games.

• Coleman is currently Head Coach at Pasco-Hernando State College in New Port Richey, Florida, where he led the team to an NJCAA D-II World Series berth in 2019. He has coached four MLB players and 27 players who have played pro ball.

• Coleman’s summer teams have a knack for stealing bases. The 2016 Royals led the VBL with 120, the 2017 team finished third with 86, and his 2018 Keene SwampBats team led the NECBL with 111 (5 shy of the league record).

• Coleman will be assisted by ‘Sox alum Trevon Smith, recent Miami (OH) alum Cristian Tejada, and coaching veteran Brian Wirth.

READY TO RUN IT BACK

• Seven players from the 2022 Championship team will return to the ‘Sox in 2023, with four on the active roster to begin the season.

• Kyle Edwards served as the ‘Sox’s starting shortstop for much of the season, starting 42 of the team’s 48 games at short. Edwards was named an All-Star Reserve after fielding at a .971 clip and stealing 12 bases. He led the ODU Monarchs in hitting this spring with a .341 average, six homers, and a 1.038 OPS as an infielder and outfielder.

• Braden Halladay returns to Charlottesville after a 2022 summer which saw him post a 3.86 ERA in 18.2 innings with 25 strikeouts and only 7 walks. He turned in over half his innings over his final two appearances alone, allowing one run and striking out seven in six innings at Staunton (July 20) and punching out a career-high nine batters in five innings in a playoff game at Waynesboro (July 30). Halladay worked to a 4.61 ERA in 41 innings for High Point this spring, striking out 29.

• Kalvin Alexander only played the back half of the season for the Tom Sox last summer, but made it count. Alexander hit six home runs in 18 games, tying him for the team single-season record. He also served reliable behind the plate, catching four batters stealing on the summer. Alexander hit 10 homers for Georgia Southwestern this spring, combining with nine doubles and a triple for a .423 slugging percentage.

• Shane Stossel only appeared in one game for Charlottesville last summer – game two of a doubleheader at Waynesboro – but made it count, tossing 5.2 scoreless innings of relief on 105 pitches to clinch the 1 seed in the South division playoffs. Stossel was named All-Conference as a pitcher and utility for Lebanon Valley this spring, posting a 3.73 ERA while hitting .331 with ten home runs and 55 RBI.

LOOKING BACK

• Charlottesville earned the #1 seed in last season’s playoffs with a 26-16 overall record, winning a tiebreaker over the Generals courtesy of a 5-2 head-to-head record.

• The ‘Sox finished third in the league in batting average, first in walks drawn per game, first in stolen base percentage, sixth in ERA, and third in strikeouts per nine innings. They scored five runs per game (6th in the league) and allowed runners to reach at a .222 clip (second).

• The ‘Sox were led by a 3-headed monster at the plate in Christian Martin, Carter Cunningham, and Cole Wagner. The trio hold the fourth, third, and sixth spots respectively in the single-season record book for batting average, while occupying three of the top four spots in both slugging and on-base percentage (joined in both by Michael Wielansky, 2017 VBL MVP).

• Wagner finished the season on a 38-game on-base streak, the longest in team history.

• On the mound, the ‘Sox were led by a variety of starters and relievers. No Tom Sox pitcher threw more than 32 innings, with Emmett Bice pitching the most with 31.2. Notable starters included Trey Yesavage (1.73 ERA, 32 K in 26 IP), Bice (3.98, 24, 31.2), and Bobby Olsen (3.63, 15, 22.1).

• Relievers included John Armstrong (0.00, 20, 15.2), Tyler McLoughlin (0.73, 27, 12.1), Chandler Marsh (1.86, 29, 19.1), Jackson Nove (2.64, 25, 30.2), and Drew Bryan (2.70, 34, 26.2).

SCOUTING HARRISONBURG

• Harrisonburg enters tonight’s game 1-1 after a 6-4 home loss to Strasburg last night and a 7-4 road win over Woodstock to open the season.

• Wingate’s Cameron Harris leads the Turks at the plate so far, going 4-for-6 with a walk.

• The Turks’ .316 batting average is third in the league, as is their 3.50 ERA (tied).

• Harrisonburg’s lineup includes notable players from around the country, including Ben Barrett – Preseason ACC Freshman of the Year (according to D1Baseball).

• The Turks return two players from last season, both James Madison Dukes – Casey Smith, who hit a pinch-hit walk-off single against Charlottesville in last season’s opener, and Sean Culkin, who sported a 3.51 ERA and 20 punchouts for Harrisonburg last season.

• They also feature two VBL veterans in Tyler Borges (Waynesboro) and Robert Kelley (Strasburg).