AAA: Round Rock 4, at El Paso (SDG) 3
Round Rock: 9 hits, 3 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 6 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 19-18, 7 GB
SP Ty Blach: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 73 P / 52 S, 0.00 ERA
1B Jake Burger: 2-3, BB, .357/.471/.357
Newcomer Ty Blach missed 11 bats, mostly with the change. He signed last week and pitched in the Complex League opener. He’s pitched 520 MLB innings for the Giants and Rox.
Cole Winn still hasn’t allowed an earned run but was on the mound when the game ended. An errant throw from 3B Cody Freeman put a runner on first to start the 9th. After a sac bunt and two walks (one intentional), Oscar Gonzalez hit a hard, high chopper than just eluded 2B Justin Foscue to plate the winning run.
David Buchanan signed with Taiwan’s Fubon club. Now his release makes more sense. Not that he was pitching well for Round Rock, but he was a Triple A Inning Eater, the type whose run-prevention prowess is almost secondary to organizational needs.
Baltimore outrighted reliever Walter Pennington. The Orioles had claimed him off waivers from Texas. Finally pitching in real games, he walked six of ten batters across outings with high-A Aberdeen and AAA Norfolk.
AA: Frisco 4, at San Antonio (SDG) 3
Frisco: 4 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 6 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 20-11, 3 G up
SP Ben Anderson: 4.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 3 SO, 84 P / 51 S, 6.29 ERA
Frisco had only four hits, but the Missions committed at least that many defensive mistakes including three meaningful errors. Bryan Magdaleno walked a couple and gave up two runs in two innings. He’s having a devil of a time control-wise, walking or hitting 14 in 9.2 innings and dealing strikes on only 51% of his pitches.
Hi-A: Hub City 1, Greensboro (PIT) 3
Hub City: 4 hits, 6 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 1 walk, 10 strikeouts
Record: 17-14, tied for first
SP David Davalillo: 6 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 6 SO, 76 P / 46 S, 1.37 ERA
CF Anthony Gutierrez: 2-4, SB (13), .271/.339/.299
C Julian Brock: 2-3, 2 2B, BB, SB (3), .171/.244/.300
David Davalillo pitched well, again, but Greensboro crept ahead late with runs off Willan Bormie and Joey Danielson.
Lo-A: Hickory 7, at Augusta (ATL) 4
Hickory: 9 hits, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 15-16, 4 GB
SP Mason Molina: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 71 P / 41 S, 4.50 ERA
RP Luke Savage: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 1.23 ERA
1B Maxton Martin: 2-5, 2B, .294/.325/.471
DH Pablo Guerrero: 2-4, 2B, HR (3), .250/.293/.389
3B Rafe Perich: 1-3, 2 BB, .188/.310/.302
2B Antonis Macias: 2-3, 2B, BB, SB (1), .234/.413/.325
Pablo Guerrero has six hits including two homers in his last four games. Nobody’s expecting him to be Vlad or Vlad Jr. or Vlad anything, but he is a first baseman, so keep the big hits coming.
I knew Rafe Perich would be the type to reach base even when slumping, but I didn’t think he’d be hitting .188 into mid-May. He’s 2-for-26 with 11 walks in his last nine games. Plenty of time, though.
Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Bratt
Hi-A: McCarty
Lo-A: Mejia
Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
Texas’s ultimate walk machine during 2007-2024 was Jayce Easley, a 2018 fifth-rounder. Drew Robinson has the most, courtesy of a lengthier career, and Trevor Hauver has the most in a season, but for me, Easley had the best combination of high walk rate, a long-enough career, and dependence on walks. In 321 full-season games, Easley drew 214 walks and had 203 hits, one of only two players in the system with more freebies than hits (current Ranger Ian Moller is the other). 2021 was especially fun: 78 walks, 76 hits, 70 stolen bases.
I might have arrived at a different conclusion (like Johnny Whittleman) had I adjusted my data for seasonal league-wide walk rates, which have risen considerably post-covid. A 15% walk rate isn’t what it used to be. But after an exhausting work deadline and two-thirds of a glass a wine, the only adjustments were to my positioning on the couch.
Easley was released last summer and is currently the offensive coordinator for his high school team in Glendale, AZ.
Most walks:
Drew Robinson, 424
Preston Beck, 333
Johnny Whittleman, 322
Most walks, season:
Trevor Hauver, 93 (2022)
Aaron Zavala, 89 (2022)
Johnny Whittleman, 89 (2008)
Highest walk rate (min. 900 PA):
Jayce Easley, 18%
Ian Moller, 17%
Trevor Hauver, 16%
Highest walk rate, season (min. 300 PA):
Trevor Hauver, 21% (2022)
Jayce Easley, 19% (2021)
Nick Vickerson, 18% (2014)
Walk/hits ratio (min. 900 PA):
Ian Moller, 1.06
Jayce Easley, 1.02
Nick Vickerson, 0.98
Walk/Hit ratio, season (min. 300 PA):
Trevor Hauver: 1.26 (2022)
Marcus Smith, 1.22 (2022)
Aaron Zavala, 1.09 (2023)