Naturals Hit The Road To Wichita
The Arkansas Naturals {1-2}will hit the road, to Wichita, Kansas, to take on the Wichita Wind Surge {2-1} in a six-game series beginning Tuesday. The Naturals are coming off an opening season series loss to Midland, with losses on Friday and Saturday, to the RockHounds. Northwest Arkansas will be looking to get off to a hot start with a win to open the series. We will look at their opponent, how they have played coming into this series, what the series history between the organizations is, and who will make the start each day for each team.
Who Are The Wichita Wind Surge?
The Wind Surge are the AA Affiliate of the Minnesota Twins The Surge come into this home opening series looking for their first-ever home opening series win. In the two seasons of this organization, they lost to Amarillo SodPuppies in 2021, and Tulsa Drillers last season. Wichita comes in with 98 at-bats on the season. Out of these at-bats, the Surge has 20 hits, 10 runs, 4 doubles, and 9 RBIs so far through three games. Wichita has 10 walks along with 29 strikeouts from the plate. The Surge come into this series with a team batting average of .204, an on-base percentage of .286, and a slugging percentage of .245.
On the mound, Wichita has a team ERA of 3.12. In the 26 innings pitched, the Surge have allowed 18 hits, 12 runs, 3 home runs, 5 walks, and 30 strikeouts. Wichita has allowed a batting average of .194 on the season. The Surge have 10.28 strikeouts per nine innings, 2.42 walks, and a 4.29 strikeout-to-walk ratio this season. The pitching from this organization will be something to watch in this series.
How Has Wichita Played Recently?
Wichita would start the season in Springfield, Missouri, to take on the Cardinals. After winning the opener, 4-1, and game two, 2-0, they would drop the final game, 9-4, on Saturday. Wichita proved in the opening series that they can score runs in a hurry at times. Based on the above stats, the Naturals will need to get the bats and defense going quickly while on the road. Can the Naturals keep the Surge at bay and get a series win on the road?
Series History
The Naturals and Wind Surge will meet for the first, of 24 meetings, this season. Last season, Wichita took down the Naturals 15-8 in the series. Overall in their history, the Naturals trail Wichita, 23-18, and in Wichita they trail, 13-11, all time. This will be the first six-game series for either team in 2023.
Who Is On The Mound?
Pitching will be key for both teams in this series. Each game will feature a nice matchup between starters. Below are the starters for each game.
Tuesday – 7:05 PM – Wichita – Carlos Luna {RH} vs Naturals – Alec Marsh {RH}
Wednesday – 7:05 PM – Wichita – Blaine Enlow {RH} vs Naturals – Beck Way {RH}
Thursday – 7:05 PM – Wichita – David Festa {RH} vs Naturals – Anthony Veneziano {LH}
Friday – 7:05 PM – Wichita – Travis Adams {RH} vs Naturals – Jonathan Bowlan {RH}
Saturday – 2:05 PM- Wichita – Aaron Rozek vs Naturals – Andrew Hoffman {RH}
Sunday – 1:05 PM – Wichita – TBD vs Naturals – Alec Marsh {RH}
