Rankings
MLB.com’s updated top-thirty list places Hub City catcher Malcolm Moore at #11, noting he was “getting too passive at times and having trouble turning on pitches.” I haven’t witnessed enough at-bats to judge the “turning” part, but I did mention a while back that he had more opposite-field balls in play than pulled, which wasn’t what I expected even from an “all fields” hitter. Baseball America re-rated him 13th. These rankings are harsher than my “slightly down” assessment from last month, in which I was giving him the benefit of the doubt because of an injury that sidelined him for a long while.
Both MLB and Baseball America ranked Texas 26th in organizational talent. I don’t follow other system in nearly the depth to judge. Instead, I tend to view the system by comparison to past years, and in that respect, I can’t offer much disagreement. Systems have cycles, and we’re in a down period. Some of that is graduations, but not having Alejandro Rosario, Winston Santos, and (for most of the season) Emiliano Teodo is a blow, as are the first full seasons from top 2024 picks Moore and Dylan Dreiling.
Deadline trades weakened the system as well. Ignoring for the moment the players acquired, I do think the answer to “should Texas have traded” is a strong yes. The team is built to win now and should be supported accordingly. Yes, it’s more fun to see Texas’s prospects grow up and graduate as Rangers, but to be perfectly blunt, back-of-the-rotation candidates are born to be traded. The success rate for these types isn’t good; better to capitalize on their value as prospects if the parent club has a chance at a playoff run.
Box Scores
AAA: Round Rock 1, Sacramento (SFO) 3
Round Rock: 4 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 20-18, 6 GB, 54-59 overall
SP Michael Plassmeyer: 5.2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 85 P / 58 S, 4.77 ERA
RP Gavin Collyer: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA
1B Cody Freeman: 2-4, .332/.379/.544
RF Abi Ortiz: 1-3, BB, .429/.571/1.000
Since returning to Round Rock, Cody Freeman has played once at first (yesterday), twice at second, thrice in left, and nine times at third. He’s played occasionally at short but mostly in May and not once since the beginning of July.
AA: Frisco 7, Midland (ATH) 4
Frisco: 9 hits, 13 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 7 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 17-23, 8 GB, 55-53 overall
SP Josh Trentadue: 2.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 63 P / 34 S, 6.10 ERA
RP Emiliano Teodo: 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 0 SO, 18.00 ERA
RP Geraldo Carillo: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.25 ERA
C Ian Moller: 2-3, 2 BB, .232/.321/.333
In his third AA appearance, Josh Trentadue allowed his fewest runs but had to deal with a bunch of traffic, leaving the bases loaded in the 2nd and needing reliever Ryan Lobus to grab the last out with the bases juiced against in the 3rd. In his first appearance in over two months, Emiliano Teodo allowed four of seven batters to reach and missed on nearly half his pitches. Frisco did win, though, thanks to a bounty of hits from some of the returning free agents I mentioned recently (Keyber Rodriguez, jax Biggers, Frainyer Chavez).
Hi-A: Hub City 0, at Brooklyn (NYM) 3
Hub City: 4 hits, 3 walks, 15 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts
Record: 22-21, 1.5 GB, 53-55 overall
SP Dylan MacLean: 4.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 59 P / 40 S, 3.43 ERA
RP Jesus Gamez: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 1.59 ERA
3B Gleider Figuereo: 3-4, 2 2B, .212/.293/.379
My rankings piece above was originally here because 1) this game was a dud, and 2) Malcolm Moore plays for Hub City. I decided it was worth moving to the top, but as for this game, I don’t have anything to add to the basic stats.
Lo-A: Hickory 6, at Charleston (TAM) 0
Hickory: 11 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 0 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 26-17, 5 GB, 59-49 overall
SP Enrique Segura: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 65 P / 47 S, 3.91 ERA
RP Frank Martinez: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 6.00 ERA
RP Grant Cherry: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 5.00 ERA
RP William Privette: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 4.78 ERA
LF Maxton Martin: 2-4, 2B, BB, .265/.348/.454
DH Braylin Morel: 2-4, HR (2), .216/.259/.392
RF Paxton Kling: 2-4, 2B
1B Pablo Guerrero: 3-4, 2B, .207/.300/.315
In his pro debut, 7th-rounder Paxton Kling lined a single and double with a simple, compact swing absent any leg kick. Braylin Morel powered a fly over the fence in left-center despite s slight lunge in his swing.
When Enrique Segura’s BB+HBP rate is less than one per nine batters, his ERA is 2.10. When it’s over, 5.81. I know “walks bad” isn’t terribly insightful, but batters at this level aren’t having much success when they have to swing (.202 bat, .271 slug), so his success really does hinge on control.
23-year-old Frank Martinez improved on a one-frame, two-run low-A debut last week. At the complex, he had a 4.35 and 34 strikeouts in 31 innings, prone to extra-base hits (one per trip through the order) but only doubles and triples. He signed in 2023.
Today’s Starters
AAA: B. Anderson
AA: Lopez
Hi-A: Curry
Lo-A: Lafalaise