CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Ho Ho Ho! The Charlottesville Tom Sox (10-9) will face the Staunton Braves (7-16) on Christmas in July night at Charlottesville High School. It will be broadcast live on the Tom Sox Facebook page and Tom Sox TV. First pitch is set for 7 P.M.
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 (@CvilleTomSoxVBL) will provide live updates.
Ticket Information: Admission to all Tom Sox games in 2022 is free, courtesy of Carter Bank & Trust. Parking is available at a first-come, first-served basis in the CHS upper, lower, and student lots. Fans are encouraged to wear their favorite Christmas garb while accounting for the temperatures.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Staunton: RHP Luke Payne, Mansfield (0-1, 2.07 ERA, 13.0 IP, 4 BB, 4 K)
Charlottesville: LHP Luke Wagner, Georgia (0-0, 5.06 ERA, 5.1 IP, 4 BB, 7 K)
LEADING OFF
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The Tom Sox begin their longest stretch of consecutive games this season with a home game against Staunton.
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It is Christmas in July night at Charlottesville High School, with special Christmas-themed promotions, music, and much more.
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The Tom Sox snapped their four-game losing skid on Wednesday, walking off Harrisonburg on a Garrett Spikes RBI single.
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Charlottesville scored double-digit runs in four-straight games from June 15-19, but has not accomplished the feat since.
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Luke Wagner will make his second start of the season, and first since last Tuesday against Waynesboro. In that game, he struck out five Generals while allowing one earned run.
SERIES vs STAUNTON
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The Tom Sox are 2-1 against the Braves this season. Both of their wins have come at home.
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Charlottesville has scored double-digit runs in both wins against Staunton. In each of the last six meetings between the ‘Sox and Braves, at least one of the teams has scored 10+.
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On June 16, the Tom Sox won their second of six consecutive games, defeating Staunton 15-7. The ‘Sox hit four home runs in the contest, their first four-homer game in almost five years. Cole Wagner hit two in his second game of the summer. Drew Bryan shut down the Braves down the stretch with a season-high seven punchouts.
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The Tom Sox and Braves were scheduled to play last Wednesday (6/22), but that game was called just minutes before the first pitch due to a torrential rainstorm. It will be played on July 11 in Staunton.
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The Tom Sox defeated Staunton in three games to advance to the 2019 VBL Championship, where they took down Strasburg 2-0.
WALK ‘EM OFF, SPIKES!
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Charlottesville snapped their four-game losing skid on Wednesday with a 3-2 walk-off win over Harrisonburg.
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Harrisonburg held a 2-0 lead entering the bottom of the seventh before Charlottesville’s offense got to work. A sacrifice fly from Logan Amiss and RBI single from Brody Moss tied the game up.
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Both teams loaded the bases in the ninth inning, but Casey Smith and Chandler Marsh were able to get out of their respective jams. Jack Billings worked out of his own bases-loaded situation in the tenth, striking out the side.
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After Satchell Norman reached on an error in the bottom of the frame, joining ghostrunner Matthew Prevesk, Garrett Spikes delivered the heroics – a walk-off single that just missed the top of the fence.
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The win was Charlottesville’s second of the season over Harrisonburg (both at home), and third in four games this season that ended in walk-off fashion.
STRUGGLING AT THE DISH
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After an explosion during Charlottesville’s six-game win streak, the Tom Sox offense has struggled over the last five games (four of which have been losses).
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The ‘Sox are batting .196 over that span, with only two hitters – Cole Wagner and Hunter Teplanszky – batting over .300.
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They have scored 11 runs over the last five (2.2 runs per game) and were shut out in both ends of the doubleheader against New Market – the first time in team history that the ‘Sox were shut out in back-to-back games.
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The team OPS over the last five is .540, and Tom Sox hitters have hit only five extra-base hits. They have also only stolen three bases, while opponents have stolen a whopping 19 over the same span.
MAKE OR BREAK TIME
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The Tom Sox begin their longest stretch of consecutive games tonight.
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They will play 13 games in the next 11 days, including road doubleheaders at Winchester (2 hour drive) and Front Royal (1:30).
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Five of the games will be at home, while the remaining eight will be on the road.
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The 2021 ‘Sox played a similar stretch last season, playing 11 games in 12 days from June 10-20. The stretch was originally scheduled similar to this season – 13 games in 11 days – but two dates were postponed.
