AAA: Round Rock 9, @ El Paso (SDP) 6
Round Rock: 15 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 5 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 5-4, 1 GB
SP Adrian Sampson: 4 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO, 84 P / 49 S, 5.00 ERA
RP Jonathan Hernandez: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
RP Cole Winn: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 6.75 ERA
3B Dustin Harris: 2-6, 2B, HR (3)
SS Davis Wendzel: 3-5, 2 2B
RF Sandro Fabian: 3-5, 2B, SB (1)
CF Derek Hill: 3-5
Like yesterday, El Paso wasn’t offering outside the zone, and Adrian Sampson issued three free passes and hit a batter in four innings. Antoine Kelly (0.2 IP) and Marc Church (1.2 IP) both surrendered a run on a hit and walk. Kelly was magnificent in his previous outing, but on the whole, neither has given cause to be chosen over Grant Anderson as a relief replacement for Texas.
Dustin Harris hit an inside-the-park homer to right-center. In the early going, the batting hero is Sandro Fabian, who has been the best combination of contact and exit velo, hitting .483/.500/.759 with just three strikeouts in 30 trips to the plate.
Texas signed RHP Codi Heuer, part of the cross-Chicago trade for Craig Kimbrel in July 2021. Heuer had more success after the trade despite worse control, but Tommy John surgery and a subsequent elbow fracture kept him off the mound most of the last two years. He’d been a free agent since November.
AA: Frisco 12, @ Wichita (MIN) 8
Frisco: 14 hits, 6 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 2-1
SP Nick Krauth: 3.2 IP, 7 H (2 HR), 6 R, 5 BB, 3 SO, 76 P / 40 S, 14.73 ERA
RP Grant Wolfram: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA
CF Kellen Strahm: 1-4, 2 BB
DH Liam Hicks: 2-4, 2B, BB
1B Abi Ortiz: 2-4, 2 2B, BB
RF Josh Hatcher: 2-5, 2B, SB (1)
2B Max Acosta: 3-5, 2 2B, SB (1)
Down 6-3 early and 8-7 in the 9th, Frisco scored five to take the series. Abimelec Ortiz’s second double plated Kellen Strahm and Liam Hicks, both of whom had walked. Ortiz also doubled in Hicks in the 1st.
Nick Krauth faced ten batters and threw 35 pitches in a six-run 1st but was allowed to continue and fared well thereafter. 24-year-old Tyler Owens, the return for JP Martinez, struck out three in two scoreless innings.
Hi-A: Hickory 0, @ Rome (ATL) 3
Hickory: 3 hits, 0 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 7 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 0-3
SP Brock Porter: 2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 4 BB, 2 HBP, 2 SO, 50 P / 23 S, 4.50 ERA
RP Florencio Serrano: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
Brock Porter had some success with his high fastball, but control was sorely lacking in his 2024 debut. In his pro career covering 71.2 innings, only 39 batters have hits, but 56 have reached on walks or HBPs.
Hickory totaled one run, 16 hits (all singles), and three walks in the three-game series.
Jacob Maton and Larson Kindreich threw scoreless two-K innings.
Lo-A: Down East 7, Lynchburg (CLE) 6 (11)
Down East: 6 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 4 walks, 16 strikeouts
Record: 3-0
SP David Davallilo: 4 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 59 P / 38 S, 0.00 ERA
RP Alberto Mota: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 0.00 ERA
RP Bryan Magdaleno: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 SO, 0.00 ERA
3B Gleider Figuereo: 2-5, 2 HR (2)
Catcher Jesus Lopez singled in Echedry Vargas with two out in the 11th.
3B Gleider Figuereo homered in his first two at-bats. He hit nine last year and slugged .323. More is expected in 2024.
I caught David Davallilo on an off day last month. He was in better form under more meaningful circumstances in his first start. Now 21, Davallilo had one successful start for Down East at the end of 2023 after a successful complex league run.
In 2023, Bryan Magdaleno missed plenty of bats but still had trouble keeping runners off base. He had no trouble Sunday, fanning six consecutive batters, five swinging, all with the tying run on second base in extras.
Five Years Ago Yesterday
IF Chris Seise reached safely 11 times in Hickory’s four-game series at Lakewood. To my knowledge, he hasn’t signed anywhere since becoming a free agent last fall.