AAA: Round Rock 5, Tacoma (SEA) 6 (10)
Round Rock: 8 hits, 7 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 33-33, 10.5 GB, eliminated
SP Owen White: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 94 P / 60 S, 5.01 ERA
1B Blaine Crim: 1-3, 2 BB, .223/.327/.382
2B Jax Biggers: 2-2, HR (1), 2 BB, .275/.419/.362
Owen White tallied a season-high 16 misses. Unfortunately, they didn’t produce a better result, primarily because two walks to start the game would score on a balk and single.
OF Derek Hill returned to the Rangers on a new contract. He’d been a free agent for three days according to the transaction wire.
Justin Foscue walked twice and played first with the rookies last night. He’d missed a few days in his ongoing recovery from his oblique injury.
Max Scherzer will start for Round Rock tonight, opposing Dallas Keuchel. Keuchel hasn’t been his old self for a long while, but this is still almost an unheard-of matchup in minor league ball.
AA: Frisco 4, Amarillo (ARI) 3 (10)
Frisco: 7 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 41-20, 6 G up, magic number 3
SP Nick Krauth: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 SO, 80 P / 47 S, 4.94 ERA
RP Robby Ahlstrom: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.25 ERA
RP Tyler Owens: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.61 ERA
CF Kellen Strahm: 2-4, HBP, SB (12), .286/.372/.386
Amarillo tied the game in the 9th, but Keyber Rodriguez’s bases-loaded single in the 10th ended it. Combined with Midland’s loss, Frisco’s magic number has fallen to three with eight to play in the first half. Frisco scored everything with singles. In addition to Strahm, Cody Freeman had two singles including one to lead off the 10th.
Hi-A: Hickory 4, @ Aberdeen (BAL) 6
Hickory: 6 hits, 4 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 3 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 26-35, 8 GB, eliminated
SP Jose Montalvo: 5 IP, 6 H (3 HR), 4 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 93 P / 56 S, 2.68 ERA
3B Sebastian Walcott: 2-4, 2B, 3B, .224/.341/.380
The difference in run-scoring between Texas’s high-A and low-A leagues isn’t gigantic, but homers are about 40% more frequent. If Jose Montalvo didn’t know that, he does now, having allowed three dingers last night. He’s up to seven after his final first-half start compared to nine for the entirety of 2023 in low-A. Suddenly, his opposing slugging percentage is a lofty .391, but he’s still having a fine year with five times as many strikeouts as walks.
For the first time this season, Sebastian Walcott is above the league average in both OBP (him .341, league .329) and slugging (.380 vs. .369). Hickory’s stadium is playing close enough to league average that you needn’t bother with park factors. He’s 18. A young 18. If you see him in Surprise early next March, you’ll be looking at an 18-year-old.
Lo-A: Down East 3, Charleston (TAM) 2
Down East: 5 hits, 1 walk, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 34-26, 3.5 GB, elimination number 3
SP Jose Gonzalez: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 9 SO, 83 P / 57 S, 1.41 ERA
RP Ivan Oviedo: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 5.40 ERA
3B Gleider Figuereo: 2-4, HR (11), .250/.360/.480
DH Arturo Disla: 2-4, .267/.364/.400
Why stress myself with the need for new material when I can just rerun yesterday: “Several Down East pitchers would appear ready for the next challenge, although one can’t just charter a bus to Hickory without knowing who’ll replace them.” Although he isn’t repeating the level and doesn’t even have a huge number of lower-level innings to his credit, Jose Gonzalez will be 23 in six weeks. Moving up to Hickory at some point wouldn’t be a surprise, but sticking around wouldn’t be a disappointment.
Down East scored single runs in the 7th, 8th, and 9th, to walk off victorious a third straight night. Two HBPs and a single preceded Arturo Disla’s game-winning grounder to left.
Today’s Starters
AAA: Scherzer
AA: Acker
Hi-A: Santos
Lo-A: TBA (Rosario’s turn)
Five Years Ago Yesterday
Ricky Vanasco threw four scoreless innings and fanned seven on Spokane’s Opening Day, a 9-1 victory. Frisco defeated NW Arkansas 5-1 to snap a seven-game losing streak. The 2019 version of the squad never had as large a division lead as the current bunch, but they were poised to claim a title until sliding into a tie for third (which, in a four-team division, was also a tie for last) at 33-36.