AAA: Round Rock 21, at Salt Lake (LAA) 2
Round Rock: 26 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 2 walks, 15 strikeouts
Record: 29-30, 6.5 GB
SP Cory Abbott: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 82 P / 52 S, 7.36 ERA
RP Nolan Hoffman: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 SO, 5.59 ERA
RP Luis Curvelo: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 1.64 ERA
CF Dustin Harris: 4-7, 2B, 3B, HR (1), .226/.344/.292
3B Cody Freeman: 3-7, 2B, HR (6), .311/.355/.485
2B Justin Foscue: 3-5, 2 HR (8), BB, .299/.400/.537
1B Blaine Crim: 2-6, 2B, BB, .283/.349/.513
RF Kellen Strahm: 3-6, 2 2B, SB (22), .267/.377/.400
Round Rock scored 20+ runs for the second time in two weeks. Dustin Harris hit for the cycle, an especially noteworthy accomplishment given his one extra-base hit in the previous 26 games. The homer was off catcher Sebastian Rivero. Cody Freeman hit a 400-ft. homer and 405-ft. double. Round Rock combined for 22 hard-hit balls, hitting .773 with a 1.818 slugging percentage.
AA: Frisco 1, Springfield (STL) 3
Frisco: 4 hits, 1 walk, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 4 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 31-21, 0.5 GB
SP Kohl Drake: 4 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 7 SO, 87 P / 60 S, 3.38 ERA
LF Aaron Zavala: 1-4, HR (5), .262/.415/.418
Former Ranger TK Roby squelched the bats of several former Frisco teammates. Since the trade nearly two years ago, Roby has pitched only 98 innings and is still seeking his first AAA appearance. Injuries to the shoulder (incurred while still a Ranger) and elbow have limited his availability. St. Louis added him to the 40 last November. I don’t know how the Cardinals handle matters, but I’d expect him to be in Memphis before long.
The loss placed Frisco behind Midland for the first time in two weeks with 16 games remaining in the first half.
Hi-A: Hub City 4, @ Greensboro (PIT) 0
Hub City: 6 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 4 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 28-25, 1.5 GB
SP Aidan Curry: 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 67 P / 44 S, 5.28 ERA
RP Josh Mollerus: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.89 ERA
2B Casey Cook: 1-3, HR (3), BB, .175/.268/.246
RF Yeison Morrobel: 2-4, .205/.283/.313
Casey Cook hit the third pitch of the game over the fence, and Hub City nursed that slender lead until the 8th when Yeison Morrobel singled in two and Keith Jones II followed with an RBI double. Aidan Curry has pitched pretty well of late. Josh Mollerus has pitched well pretty much all season. He’s allowed three homers in 28 innings but no other extra-base hits, and he’s walked only seven. He’s middle relief if things work out for the best.
Lo-A: Hickory 2, Columbia (KAN) 6
Hickory: 5 hits, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 5 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 27-25, 1.5 GB
SP Enrique Segura: 6 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 7 SO, 69 P / 51 S, 4.63 ERA
C Beycker Barroso: 1-3, 2B, BB, SB (7), .205/.350/.253
Not a debut for the level but a strong first start by 20-year-old Enrique Segura, acquired from Philly wen reliever Daniel Robert was designated for assignment. Segura has one of the looser and quirkier deliveries you’ll come across, lifting his knee nearly to his chin, sweeping the ball low across his mid-section before heading toward the plate, falling leftward and pulling his pitching hand back to his midsection after the release. Likewise, everything he throws moves unpredictably. Unsurprisingly, his control in the Philadelphia system was usually poor, but the Rangers have received better results so far.
Robert has pitched sparingly for the Phils, making two MLB appearances (one marred by three walks) and six scoreless one-inning outings for AAA Lehigh Valley.
Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Stephan
Hi-A: Trentadue
Lo-A: TBD
Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
The seventh-best pitching team in the organization during 2007-2024 was last year’s Frisco Roughriders.
Runs: 4.0 per game, 15% better than average
ERA-: 86
FIP-: 93
OPS+: 91
wRC+: 93
Frisco solid rotation featured Emiliano Teodo, Dane Acker, Ben Anderson, Ryan Garcia, Josh Stephan, and late additions Winston Santos, Mitch Bratt and Kohl Drake. Teodo and Acker would switch to relief late. Kumar Rocker arrived, overwhelmed Texas League hitters for five starts, and left. Tyler Owens logged eight saves before being traded to Detroit. Frisco didn’t have a set closer otherwise, and 13 relievers registered between one and four saves.
The Riders weren’t particularly adept in RISP situations but were great at avoiding them, with 168 fewer batters faced with runners in scoring position than the league median. I try to separate defense from these rankings, but Frisco’s was clearly beneficial, turning the most double plays and allowing the fewest steals.