AAA: Round Rock 13, @ Albuquerque (COL) 1
Round Rock: 13 hits, 8 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 15-15, 5.5 GB
SP Adrian Sampson: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 99 P / 60 S, 4.83 ERA
RP Antoine Kelly: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.45 ERA
RP Jesus Tinoco: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 4.30 ERA
CF Jose Barrero: 2-5, 2B, HBP
DH Andrew Knapp: 1-3, 3 BB, .324/.418/.527
C Sam Huff: 3-5, 2 HR (6), .276/.364/.563
1B Blaine Crim: 3-6, 2 2B, .216/.336/.433
RF Trevor Hauver: 2-3, 2B, HR (3), BB, .243/.356/.419
The Express scored early and often. Trevor Hauver’s 1st-inning grand slam was only the 29th hardest-hit ball of the night (a still-solid 95.4), but he angled it perfectly into a strong tailwind.
Antoine Kelly is back and no worse for wear. His eighth and final pitch of the night was 99.3 MPH, his fastest ever in AAA, and he averaged 98.5 during an all-fastball 7th.
Jose Barrero manned center after two nights at shortstop. He’s usually shredded AAA pitching, so a gaudy slash line might not be indicative of much. (The gap between his MLB and AAA performance is gargantuan.) Maybe the underlying data will have some insight.
AA: Frisco 0, @ Corpus Christi (HOU) 7
Frisco: 2 hits, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 7 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 15-10, tied for first
SP Dane Acker: 4.2 IP, 6 H (2 HR), 6 R, 4 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 88 P / 49 S, 3.52 ERA
Not Dane Acker’s night. Consensus top Houston prospect Jacob Melton was 3-5 with his fourth homer.
Hi-A: Hickory 9, @ Rome (ATL) 8 (12)
Hickory: 9 hits, 7 walks, 18 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 8 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 10-14, 2.5 GB
SP Joseph Montalvo: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 83 P / 52 S, 4.80 ERA
RP Adrian Rodriguez: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 2.61 ERA
CF Jayce Easley: 1-2, 3 BB, .122/.294/.122
SS Sebastian Walcott: 1-4, 2B, 2 BB, .188/.301/.325
DH Quincy Scott: 3-5, 2B, BB, .178/.247/.260
Not to say the teams weren’t trying, but I think everyone was happy just to get this finished. An opening rain delay, ongoing drizzle, and three extra innings extended the proceedings to well past 11pm. Rome had a position player on the mound in the 12th, and Hickory might have joined the fun in the 13th. In extras, the teams combined for nine runs and stranded seven runners.
Lo-A: Down East 2, @ Fredericksburg (WAS) 7
Down East: 6 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 8 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 11-13, 6.5 GB
SP Jose Gonzalez: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 66 P / 37 S, 1.93 ERA
RP Luke Savage: 2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 3.60 ERA
DH Arturo Disla: 1-3, 2B, BB, .265/.405/.353
The Nats scored five off Kyle Larsen, who caught my eye in Surprise but has been wild out east, walking or hitting 14 batters in 11 innings.
Arizona Complex League
New names began to appear late Friday night in advance of today’s opener. Among them:
— 38-year-old Johnny Cueto.
— Converted OFs DJ Peters and Michael “Buddy” Reed. Peters switched last year. I didn’t see Reed in Surprise, but he was listed as a pitcher in an intersquad.
— RHP Brock Porter.
— RHP Izack Tiger, a hard-throwing 2023 pick delayed by injury this spring.
— Other 2023 selections RHP Caden Scarborough (6th round) OF Maxton Martin (11th), LHP Michael Trausch (15th), RHP Kamdyn Perry (17th), and RHP Brendan Morse (18th)
— Rehabbing IF Cam Cauley
— 2023 International signings OF Braylin Morel, OF Pablo Guerrero and C Juan Sulbaran. Morel received some favorable attention along with a portion of the international budget Texas didn’t spend on Sebastian Walcott. Pablo is Vlad’s son.
I’m never going to pretend my list is definitive, but I count the maximum-allowed 165 domestic minor leaguers in the organization, and the rookie squad still lacks a complete set of infielders. Another 15, all pitchers, are on either the 60-day or full-season injured list.
Today’s Starters
AAA: Garabito
AA: Teodo
Hi-A: Santos
Lo-A: TBA
Five Years Ago Yesterday
Lefty Joe Palumbo fanned ten of 18 batters for Frisco, but Emmanuel Clase was stung for five runs and took the loss in a 7-4 defeat to Arkansas. Nashville’s 8-20 start was the worst by a Texas AAA team since at least 2005, the earliest year for which records are readily available. The Sounds would rebound to finish a mundane 66-72