South Atlantic League baseball
Greenville Drive
at Lexington Legends
What: Three-game series
When: Monday through Wednesday (7:05 each night)
Where: Whitaker Bank Ballpark
Tickets: Call (859) 422-7867
Major League affiliates: Kansas City Royals (Legends), Boston Red Sox (Drive)
Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Monday, LH Daniel Stumpf (5-6, 3.63) vs. RH Francellis Montas (1-6, 6.41); Tuesday, RH Christian Binford (4-3, 2.09) vs. LH Cody Kukuk (4-7, 4.27); Wednesday, LH Crawford Simmons (0-1, 6.46) vs. RH Jacob Dahlstrand (1-4, 6.47).
David Chester
Drive to watch: All-star DH David Chester (6-foot-5, 270 pounds, age 24, bats and throws right, from Collinsville, Okla.) is among the league leaders in RBI (63 through Saturday), with a .262 average, 11 homers, 22 doubles, 126 total bases, a .338 on-base percentage and .465 slugging. A 33rd-round draft pick in 2011, out of the University of Pittsburgh, Chester led the Big East Conference with 16 homers as a senior, also leading the Panthers in RBI (60) and on-base percentage (.470) while batting .345. A first-team All-Big East selection, he ranks sixth in school history in homers (31) and eighth in RBI (125) even though he played only two seasons. In his first season of pro ball, Chester led the Gulf Coast League Red Sox in homers (9) and RBI (23). Last year, over 43 games with Lowell of the New York-Penn League and seven games with Salem of the Carolina League, he hit a combined .249 with 10 homers and 33 RBI. This season, he’s batting .313 at home, .205 on the road. In 10 games since the All-Star break, Chester is batting .308 with a homer and 10 RBI.
Matt Murray
Legend to watch: RHP Matt Murray (6-3, 240, 22, from Phoenixville, Pa.) is 1-0 with one save and a 2.08 ERA over nine relief appearances. Over 13 innings, Murray has struck out 17 and walked four, with a 1.00 WHIP and .191 opponent batting average. A 2011 10th-round draft pick, he is a 2008 graduate of Owen Roberts High School in Pottstown, Pa. He went 5-1 with a 0.27 ERA over 42 innings as a junior and was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 39th round of the 2008 draft. He opted to attend Georgia Southern University, where he went 16-9 over three seasons. Included was a 4-3, 2.39, nine-save season as the Eagles’ closer in 2011. He was named Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year and first-team all-conference. As a professional rookie, Murray went 2-4 with a 3.40 ERA over 12 starts for Burlington of the Appalachian League, striking out 48 and walking 10. He did not play last year due to an injured right elbow.
Radio: WLXG-AM 1300
