Preview: Lake Elsinore Storm vs. San Jose Giants

SAN JOSE - The San Jose Giants host the Lake Elsinore Storm in a three-game California League series beginning tonight. At Municipal Stadium · Monday, April 20th at 7:00 PM · Tuesday, April 21st at 7:00 PM · Wednesday, April 22nd at 12:35 PM Pitching Match Ups · Monday – Jeremy Hefner (0-2, 3.86) at Clayton Tanner (0-0, 10.12) · Tuesday – Cory Luebke (1-1, 1.42) at Tim Alderson (0-0, 4.32) · Wednesday – Jeremy McBryde (1-0, 1.80) at Madison Bumgarner (2-0, 0.00) THE SAN JOSE GIANTS… return to Municipal Stadium Monday evening to begin a three-game series against the Lake Elsinore Storm. San Jose took three-of-four games at Stockton in their most recent series, including a come-from-behind 5-4 victory yesterday afternoon. The Giants are currently in second place in the North Division with an 8-3 record – two games behind the Visalia Rawhide (10-1) for the top spot. San Jose enters the series having won four out of their last five games. Late-Inning Home Runs Lead To Victories… The Giants used late-inning home runs to record victories in Stockton during the last two days. On Saturday, Brandon Crawford belted a two-out, two-run homer in the top of the 11th inning to propel San Jose to a 5-3 win. Yesterday, Nick Noonan delivered a two-run home run with none out in the top of the ninth inning to bring the Giants even at 4-4. Three batters later, Roger Kieschnick ripped a mammoth solo home run down the right field line to give San Jose their first lead of the afternoon. The Giants have hit 14 home runs overall this season – tops in the California League. Three Giants Among Top Five In Hitting… Three San Jose Giants are among the top five hitters in the league heading into Monday’s action. Brandon Crawford is currently third in the California League with a .421 batting average while Buster Posey is fourth (.405) and Angel Villalona (.395) is fifth. Prospect Bonanza… According to Baseball America, the top five prospects in the San Francisco farm system and six out of the top seven (#1 Madison Bumgarner, #2 Buster Posey, #3 Angel Villalona, #4 Tim Alderson, #5 Nick Noonan, #7 Conor Gillaspie) are on San Jose’s roster. Posey Leads A Potent Offense… Catcher Buster Posey has been swinging a hot bat throughout the opening week and a half of the 2009 season. The former first round draft pick is 15-for-30 (.500 AVG) with three home runs in his last eight games and is currently fourth in the league in batting average, tied for third in home runs (3), tied for fourth in RBI’s (10), second in on-base percentage (.519) and third in slugging percentage (.690). Posey won the Golden Spikes Award at Florida State University last spring before the Gants selected him with the fifth overall pick in the draft. Tanner Looks To Bounce Back… 21-year old left-hander Clayton Tanner is slated to start on the mound in Monday’s series opener against the Storm. In his 2009 debut on April 14 versus Bakersfield, Tanner struggled as he allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits over 2 2/3 innings. He did not receive a decision in a game the Giants eventually lost by a 10-6 score. Tanner is in his fourth professional season and second with San Jose. He enjoyed a solid 2008 campaign with the Giants as one of the youngest pitchers in the league (20) compiling a 10-8 record and 3.69 ERA over 24 starts. Entering 2009, Tanner was rated the #20 prospect in the San Francisco farm system according to Baseball America. Giants Near The Top… Entering Monday’s action, the Giants are second in the California League in batting average (.294) and second in ERA (2.97). The San Jose pitching staff has also issued the fewest walks in the league with only 19 free passes over 100 innings (Lancaster next-closest with 27). Media Coverage… The entire series with Lake Elsinore can be heard live on www.sjgiants.com with Joe Ritzo calling all of the action. All 140 games this season will be aired live on the club’s official website. The San Jose Giants and Comcast have also joined forces to bring fans 14 live television broadcasts during the 2009 season. The games can be viewed live on Comcast Hometown Network Channel 104 throughout most Northern California regions and anytime through Comcast On Demand Channel 1. The next scheduled television broadcast is on Friday, May 1st against the Modesto Nuts. Lake Elsinore Storm… The Storm, an affiliate of the San Diego Padres, enter Monday’s game with a 5-6 record this season. The Storm had lost six out of their first seven games this season before earning a four-game sweep at Bakersfield in a series that concluded yesterday. Lake Elsinore outscored the Blaze 19-4 in the series. The Storm are third in the California League with a 3.00 team ERA, but are only seventh in batting average (.244) and have hit the second-fewest home runs (4) in the league. Right-hander Jeremy Hefner is slated to start on the mound on Monday. Hefner has lost his first two starts this season, despite a solid 3.86 ERA and 13 strikeouts over 9 1/3 innings pitched. Lake Elsinore is managed by former San Jose skipper (1995-96) Carlos Lezcano. This series marks the Storm’s only regular season visit to Municipal Stadium in 2009. If you like the daily news of the Raw Feed, SUBSCRIBE TODAY to the nation's only alternative professional sports magazine, SZ, with original features and great action photography in baseball, hockey, basketball, and football. Just $11.99 per year for an e-zine like you’ve never seen!