Category: Daily Report

Texas announced its Arizona Fall League contingent: Pitchers Kumar Rocker, Jake Latz, Nick Starr, and Grant Wolfram, catcher Cody Freeman, infielder Luisangel Acuna, outfielders Jayce Easley, Trevor Hauver, and Aaron Zavala. An impressive bunch on the whole. Rocker will be making his his debut in MiLB, having already pitched professionally in the indy Frontier League for a handful of starts.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 3, at El Paso (SDG) 9
Round Rock: 8 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 13 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 75-64, 3 GB

SP Cole Winn: 5.1 IP, 10 H (2 HR), 8 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 92 P / 61 S, 6.31 ERA

That’s not a pretty line, but if Winn had been having a decent season and surrendered all these runs, I’d just say “forget it, Cole, it’s El Paso.” And he’d say “who are you, and why are you making 1970s movies references to a 22-year-old.” Winn is unfortunately not having a decent season at all, but despite the runs, I’m just happy he that threw strikes. Only two walks to 28 batters, the second one (annoyingly) to the final batter faced, and a 66% strike rate. All I’m hoping for in his last one or two starts is acceptable control, something to build on for next year.

Eight batters had exactly one hit. Ezequiel Duran doubled and walked, and Blaine Crim singled and walked.

AA: Frisco 11, at NW Arkansas (KAN) 6
Frisco: 13 hits, 5 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 6 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 37-29, 2 G up, 73-62 overall, division champions

SP Mason Englert: 4.2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 3 R, 4 BB, 5 SO, 85 P / 54 S, 4.11 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 2-4, 2 BB, SB (14), .299/.361/.425
RF Evan Carter: 3-4, 2B, BB, .462/.529/.615
2B Justin Foscue: 2-4, 2B, HR (15), .289/.369/.486
LF Kellen Strahm: 2-4, HR (10), BB, .274/.390/.406

Frisco is in the postseason for the first time since 2014. The intervening years weren’t pretty: five straight losing seasons with an average record of 62-77, then covid, then a better 2021 (64-55) that concluded with an agonizing, extra-inning, playoff-missing loss on the season’s final day.

Frisco has been busy trailing and overtaking Midland during the past several weeks. Midland officially dropped from contention by losing earlier in the evening, but Amarillo presented another unexpected obstacle due its recent hot streak. Amarillo won its sixth straight to keep pace, but the Riders, as they’ve done so often lately, put more than one crooked number on the board and won with relative ease. Frisco has scored seven runs or more in ten of the last 16 games. They and the Sod Poodles could finished tied, but Frisco won the season series 11-7 for the tiebreaker.

Mason Englert walked four for only the second time all season but was able to wriggle out of excessive trouble. A two-run homer ended his night and regular season. Between Hickory and Frisco, Englert held the opposition to a .199/.261/.356 line and posted a 3.64 ERA in 118.2 innings with 31 walks. Barring some outrageous happenings in AAA, Englert’s 136 strikeouts will lead the organization.

Six regulars have an OPS over .900 in September (Hauver, Stowers, Foscue, Kapers, Strahm, the departed Crim), and Evan Carter and Thomas Saggese are in the same lofty range with four and three games played, respectively.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Spencer Howard
AA: Ricky Vanasco

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 10, at El Paso (SDG) 4
Round Rock: 16 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 5 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 75-63, 2 GB

SP Kolby Allard: 5 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 4 R, 4 BB, 9 SO, 99 P / 61 S, 5.00 ERA
RP Grant Anderson: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 6.75 ERA
2B Ezequiel Duran: 2-5, 2B, .264/.298/.491
1B Yohel Pozo: 3-5, 2B, .344/.379/.507
DH Blaine Crim: 5-5, 2B
SS Ryan Dorow: 1-5, HR (5), .241/.327/.355

Blaine Crim went 5-5. Only two balls were hit in excess of 74 MPH, but they all count. (Sometimes Statcast is a spoilsport.) In any case, the performance serves to remind that Crim is actually a fairly well-rounded hitter, not an all-or-nothing type. His career professional batting average is .308.

Kolby Allard made what I consider a quality start for the Mountain Time Zone.

AA: Frisco 3, at NW Arkansas (KAN) 6
Frisco: 5 hits, 9 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 14 hits, 4 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 36-29, 2.5 G up, 72-62 overall, magic number 1

SP Seth Nordlin: 4 IP, 7 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 63 P / 41 S, 3.44 ERA
CF Evan Carter: 2-3, SB (2)

Down 3-0 in the 6th, Frisco tied the game on just two singles plus three walks. Northwest Arkansas quickly responded with three off Marc Church, and the Riders were quiet afterwards. Church maintained his previous dominance in his first four appearances upon promotion to AA, but since then: 9.2 innings, nine runs, four homers, a .333/.417/.643 opposing line. In terms of the upcoming postseason, the Riders could use another reliable arm. Four of the top five in both games finished and saves (Ozuna, Anderson, Lee, Jacobsen) have moved on to Round Rock.

Only newcomer Evan Carter had two hits. Jonathan Ornelas, Aaron Zavala and Trevor Hauver drew two walks apiece.

Midland also lost. One Frisco win or one Midland loss in the next three days will secure the second-half division title. The Riders last reached the postseason in 2014.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Winn
AA: Englert

Box Score

AAA: Round Rock 2, at El Paso (SDG) 3
Round Rock: 9 hits, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 74-63, 3 GB

SP Zak Kent: 5.1 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 2 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 93 P / 65 S, 0.51 ERA
3B Davis Wendzel: 1-4, HR (16), .211/.290/.415
CF JP Martinez: 2-3, 2B, BB, .198/.341/.396

Zak Kent has excelled in three AAA starts. He’s been a little lucky, with a .213 average in balls in play and some very hard and well-angled hits that ended up as deep outs instead of homers, but just about any pitcher with an 0.51 ERA is lucky. Kent isn’t blowing anyone away, he’s just spotting a large repertoire well.

Davis Wendzel has ten homers in 30 games since returning from injury, contrasted to six in 44 games before. Strangely, his batted ball data isn’t that much different between the two periods. He’s hit a bunch of balls that have had a decent but not extremely high chance of leaving the park, and in his case they’re all leaving.

Ex-Rangers RHP Collin Wiles made his MLB debut in Oakland against the Rangers last night. Wiles was selected 53rd overall in 2012 and spent ten seasons in the Texas organization.

AA: Frisco 9, at NW Arkansas (KAN) 2
Frisco: 13 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 36-28, 2.5 G up, 72-61 overall, magic number 2

SP Cody Bradford: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 97 P / 67 S, 5.01 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 3-5, .299/.357/.425
2B Thomas Saggese: 3-4, 2 2B, 3B

Me, six weeks ago: “Cody Bradford probably has six starts remaining, and barring something amazing, the first digit of his ERA is going to be a five.” Bradford didn’t quite pull his ERA below five, but he was still pretty amazing: 2.50 ERA, five walks, 42 strikeouts in 36 innings.

Thomas Saggese doubled twice and tripled in his AAA debut. RF Evan Carter was 1-4 with a two-run double.

Midland was rained out and will play a doubleheader Saturday.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Allard
AA: Nordlin

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 4, at El Paso (SDG) 9
Round Rock: 8 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 6 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 74-62, 2 GB

SP Yerry Rodriguez: 2 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 23 P / 17 S, 4.47 ERA
DH Yohel Pozo: 3-4, 2B, .340/.376/.505
3B Davis Wendzel: 2-4, 2B, HR (15), .210/.291/.410

In his AAA debut, Blaine Crim was 1-3 with a sac fly, hitting the ball in excess of 97 MPH three times.

Lucas Jacobsen is back. The lefty fanned 20 in 14.2 innings at Frisco before hitting the IL in late May. He allowed a solo homer and struck out two in his one inning.

In 21 games since Dallas Keuchel was called up, a relief pitcher has started seven times for the Express. The squad has averaged 3.6 relief appearances per game, 50% more than in 2012. Round Rock isn’t alone in this respect. El Paso, which has allowed the most runs in the league, has averaged 4.2 per game, and even league-best Tacoma has used 3.9 per game.

The Giants added Willie Calhoun. He’s 1-5 with a run-scoring single in two games. Fellow SF employee Steele Walker is hitting .208/.269/.313 in AAA Sacramento.

AA: Frisco 4, at NW Arkansas (KAN) 8
Frisco: 6 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 9 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 35-28, 2 G up, 71-61 overall, magic number 3

SP Jack Leiter: 4.2 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 5 R, 6 BB, 4 SO, 94 P / 52 S, 5.54 ERA
3B Justin Foscue: 3-4, .286/.369/.476
C Scott Kapers: 1-3, HR (3), .179/.303/.375

Jack Leiter’s regular season ended with a splat. No clean innings, a homer, a triple that missed leaving the park by about a foot, a season-high six walks including four during a protracted effort to reach five full innings. Splitting his season into 14 appearances before the All-Star break and nine after, his ERA improved from 6.30 to 4.64, but the underlying stats that I care about more than ERA barely budged. Essentially, the ERA drop relates to sequencing of runners and a strand rate improving from exceptionally poor to ordinary. Thanks to that strand rate, his ERA of 5.54 is about 8% worse than average, but his opposing slash stats of .247/.359/.381 equate to a 94 OPS+, meaning he held hitters to a below-average line.

Leiter is in line to start the first playoff game if Frisco advances.

Evan Carter went 0-2 with a walk and stolen base as the DH in his Frisco debut. Thomas Saggese did not play. Two days after manning 1B for the first time professionally at the end of a blowout, Trevor Hauver made his first start at the position.

Midland also lost. Furthermore, I’m told the head-to-head tiebreaker between Midland and Frisco applies to the entire season, not just the second half as I mistakenly thought. The teams are tied 9-9, but Frisco holds the second tiebreaker, best record over the final 20 — no, 21 games. That, combined with a cancelled game (which helps the tea ahead in the standings), reduces Frisco’s magic number to three, not the five shown in the official standings. Five games remain.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Kent
AA: Bradford

Differing numbers of games and end-of-season dates across levels is strange after more than a decade of everybody finishing on Labor Day, but the new schedule affords a “bonus round” of promotions. Up to AA Frisco now that Hickory is done are OF Evan Carter and IF Thomas Saggese, per local reports. And 1B Blaine Crim will head to El Paso instead of Springdale, Arkansas, as a member of the AAA Round Rock Express.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 1, Sugar Land (HOU) 5
Round Rock: 4 hits, 2 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Record: 74-61, 1 GB

SP Spencer Howard: 4 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 66 P / 45 S, 3.58 ERA

Howard pitched well, in particular getting eight swinging strikes with a heavily employed slider. His velocity was fine. He didn’t throw a change, and curves weren’t in abundance or effective. Podcast mate Sean Bass has been calling for a relief role for Howard for some time, and at this point I’m inclined to agree. The flipside of deciding which prospects to place on the 40-man roster this November is which marginal players to remove. It would be nice to see something out of Howard in these last few weeks, and letting him air out a truncated repertoire might be to his benefit.

AA: Frisco 18, Tulsa (LAD) 3
Frisco: 11 hits, 11 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 6 walks, 15 strikeouts
Record: 35-27, 2 G up, 71-60 overall, magic number 5
SP Ricky Vanasco: 3.1 IP, 5 H (HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 76 P / 43 S, 8.10 ERA

1B Blaine Crim: 4-5, 2B, HR (24), BB, .295/.363/.508
SS Luisangel Acuna: 1-4, 2B, 2 BB, SB (10), .231/.310/.377
DH Trevor Hauver: 1-2, 3 BB, .220/.437/.520
CF Josh Stowers: 3-4, 2 HR (10), BB, SB (22), .228/.337/.383

18 runs on 11 hits? Okay. Frisco put 17 runners on base with something other than a hit, and ten would score. I vaguely recall wondering if Blaine Crim might fall shy of 20 homers. He had 16 entering the last day of August including just six in a span of three months wherein he slugged .358. In 11 games since, he’s gone deep eight times and slugged 1.083.

Ricky Vanasco’s AA debut had some of everything, much like a most of his high-A outings. He allowed a leadoff homer in the 1st and needed 29 pitches that inning, but he also struck out five of 17 batters.

Midland also won to maintain its two-game deficit. Frisco heads to lowly Northwest Arkansas (55-76) to conclude the regular season, while the Rockhounds have the advantage of finishing at home but must face 74-57 Wichita. The victor will face San Antonio (Padres) in the league semifinals. Wichita (Twins) and Tulsa (Dodgers) have locked up the northern playoff spots.

High-A: Hickory 2, Rome (ATL) 4
Hickory: 11 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 5 walks, 16 strikeouts
Record: 38-28, 3.5 GB in first half, 28-37, 11.5 GB in second half, 66-65 overall

SP Dane Acker: 2.1 IP, 3 H (2 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 66 P / 42 S, 10.66 ERA
RP Ryan Garcia: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 SO, 0.00 ERA
LF Jayce Easley: 1-3, 2 BB, SB (21), .230/.372/.345
LF Zion Bannister: 2-3, SB (1), .222/.417/.222
RF Angel Aponte: 2-4, 3 SB (17), .259/.338/.392

Dane Acker recorded six of seven outs via strikeout but expended 66 pitches getting there. Immediate post-TJ performance is always tricky to assess. Some pitchers act like they were never gone, some have a longer acclimation.

Ryan Garcia finished with three straight scoreless five-inning efforts. He posted a 1.91 ERA for the season with 74 strikeouts in 56.2 innings and held opponents to a .166/.256/.241 line.

Crawdads pitchers struck out at least ten batters in each of the last ten games and 127 total. The team lost seven of those ten, unfortunately.

Low-A: cancelled
Record: 33-33, 2 GB in first half, 32-33, 10.5 GB in second half, 65-66 overall
Down East lost its chance at a .500 season, but southern Maryland did need the rain.

Today’s Starters
off

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 6, Sugar Land (HOU) 3
Round Rock: 8 hits, 9 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 74-60, 1 GB

SP Cole Winn: 5 IP, 4 H (2 HR), 2 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 93 P / 52 S, 6.12 ERA
RP Fernery Ozuna: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 6.23 ERA
DH Meibrys Viloria: 1-2, 2B, 2 BB, .336/.465/.518
3B Ezequiel Duran: 2-4, BB, .284/.323/.545
CF JP Martinez: 2-3, 2B, BB, .189/.333/.387

For two innings, Cole Winn was the version of 2021 and early 2022: sharp, workmanlike, at ease. He faced the minimum, threw 16 of 24 pitches for strikes, missed five bats. In the 3rd, the troubled version returned, although he was able to mix in enough quality pitches to avoid being run out of the game early. The slider and change remained acceptable overall, often quite good, but he missed on 13 of 21 fastballs in his final three innings. A 3-0 get-me-over heater was taken deep for Sugar Land’s first run.

While I’ve never given up on Winn, not even close, it was nice to see the old Cole make an appearance.

Long-time division-leading OKC lost, yet Round Rock didn’t claim a share of the division lead. El Paso won its eighth straight and now stands a game ahead of both the Express and Dodgers.

I can’t remember whether I wrote about this or just thought about it, but back when Dallas Keuchel was making his first start and fans were understandably less than thrilled, I thought something to the effect of “yeah, he’s bad, but he can top 100 pitches and probably get through five innings. Ugly innings, but innings nonetheless. The alternative are Kolby Allard and Tyson Miller.” Well, Keuchel is gone, Texas just designated Kohei Arihara for assignment, and Miller is back. He’s marginally better than Arihara, a little stretched as a starter.

Jon Gray will be back tomorrow, per local media. Hallelujah. 

AA: Frisco 7, Tulsa (LAD) 10
Frisco: 8 hits, 6 walks, 13 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 8 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 34-27, 2 G up, 70-60 overall, magic number 6

SP Seth Nordlin: 3 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 57 P / 33 S, 3.25 ERA
RP Antoine Kelly: 2.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 8.10 ERA
DH Aaron Zavala: 1-5, HR (5), .333/.459/.589
3B Justin Foscue: 1-3, BB, SB (3), .285/.368/.479
1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, HR (23), .289/.358/.496

Per usual, Frisco had a very noisy late inning to climb back from several runs down, but it wasn’t enough. Justin Foscue’s two-run single and Blaine Crim’s three-run homer erased a 7-2 deficit in the 7th, after which only Tulsa would score.

Midland lost as well. The standings say Frisco’s magic number is seven, but both teams have a rainout that won’t be rescheduled, which reduces the number to six. I believe Midland holds the tiebreaker.

High-A: wet, cancelled

No doubleheader tomorrow. The lost game confirmed a winning record for the Crawdads, currently 66-64with one to play.

Low-A: Down East 4, at Delmarva (BAL) 11
Down East: 3 hits, 2 walks, 13 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 11 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 32-33, eliminated, 65-66 overall

SP Josh Gessner: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 5 BB, 2 SO, 50 P / 22 S, 6.33 ERA
DH Maximo Acosta: 1-3, BB, SB (44), .262/.341/.361
CF Yosy Galan: 1-4, HR (20), .206/.299/.429
RF Jose Rodriguez: 1-2, HR (4), BB, .197/.280/.285

Yosy Galan hit his league-leading 20th homer. In 36 games since July 27, Galan has ten doubles, seven homes, and just three singles. He’s more power-oriented than most, but one single every two weeks is really something.

Ideally, Down East will steal five bases tomorrow to tie for the most by any team since at least 1990, and Galan will have three of them to secure a 20/20 season.

Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD (No idea. Me, maybe.)
AA: Weems
Hi-A: TBD (Garcia? Acker?)
Lo-A: TBD (Curry)

Some pitching moves just as I hit the “send” button yesterday:
RHP Ricky Vanasco up to Frisco from Hickory
RHP Gavin Collyer up to Hickory from Down East
RHP Ivan Oviedo up to Down East from Arizona

Vanasco’s moved will permit an extra outing, as Frisco’s season last a week longer.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 9, Sugar Land (HOU) 11 (12)
Round Rock: 14 hits, 4 walks, 15 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 7 walks, 15 strikeouts
Record: 73-60, 1 GB

SP Kolby Allard: 5 IP, 5 H (2 HR), 4 R, 1 BB, 7 SO, 77 P / 50 S, 4.98 ERA
RP AJ Alexy: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 6.02 ERA
LF Elier Hernandez: 3-6, 2 2B, .286/.351/.514
DH Yohel Pozo: 2-5, 2B, .333/.372/.495
SS Ryan Dorow: 3-6, .243/.329/.351

A win would have given Round Rock a share of the division lead for the first time since early June. Ezequiel Duran did not participate in the offensive festivities, going 0-6 with three strikeouts in his first game back with the Express.

AA: Frisco 2, Tulsa (LAD) 14
Frisco: 4 hits, 4 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 15 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 34-26, 2 G up, 70-59 overall

SP Mason Englert: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 87 P / 60 S, 3.38 ERA
LF Trevor Hauver: 1-2, 2B, 2 BB, .217/.393/.543

Mason Englert cruised through the first four innings. Three would score in the 5th aided by Englert’s only bout of wildness, wherein a walk, HBP and balk preceded a two-out double.

Kellen Strahm singled and stole his ninth and tenth bases.

Trevor Hauver played first base professionally for the first time. For one batter, in the 9th, with IF Frainyer Chavez on the mound.

Corpus walked off victorious in both ends of its doubleheader with Midland, so Frisco gained one-half game despite the loss.

High-A: Hickory 4, Rome (ATL) 5
Hickory: 11 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 3 hits, 5 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 28-36, eliminated, 66-64 overall

SP Gavin Collyer: 3.2 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 5 R, 4 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 78 P / 46 S, 2.45 ERA
RP John Matthews: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 4.32 ERA
2B Thomas Saggese: 1-4, HR (14), BB, .310/.361/.489
RF Angel Aponte: 3-5, 2 2B, .254/.336/.390

In his high-A debut, Gavin Collyer’s struggled with his control but maintained a close game until the 5th, when a two-out grand slam (following an error by SS Griffin Cheney) ended his night. Down three in the 9th, Thomas Saggese hit a two-run homer, and Angel Aponte and Chris Seise both reached safely, buy Cody Freeman’s fly to right was caught.

Rome clinched the second-half division title with the win.

Low-A: Down East 1, at Delmarva (BAL) 3
Down East: 4 hits, 3 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 6 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 32-32, eliminated, 65-65 overall

SP DJ McCarty: 1.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 44 P / 20 S, 10.80 ERA
RP Ivan Oviedo: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 SO, 0.00 ERA
RP Nick Lockhart: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 33 SO, 4.22 ERA
3B Miguel Villarroel: 1-3, BB, SB (8), .323/.405/.392
1B Tucker Mitchell: 1-3, HR (4), .185/.325/.319

Ivan Oviedo had a nice full-season debut. The 19-year-old was among the rookie squad’s most reliable starters. Also debuting, on his 20th birthday no less, DJ McCarty ran into trouble in the 2nd. His 31st and final pitch that inning was ball four to first-overall 2022 pick Jackson Holliday. Holliday is batting .238/.439/.333 in 12 games.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Winn
AA: Weems
Hi-A: TBD (Garcia)
Lo-A: TBD (Gessner)

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 3, Sugar Land (HOU) 0
Round Rock: 9 hits, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 73-59, 1 GB

SP Zak Kent: 6.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, 91 P / 60 S, 0.73 ERA
RP Kyle Cody: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 SO, 1.42 ERA
1B Andy Ibanez: 2-4, 2B, .270/.337/.418

For the second straight AAA start, Zak Kent was in top form, and this outing included the swinging strikes and strikeouts lacking in the debut. Kent missed 15 bats, eight with a slider that was atypically ineffective last week. Perhaps because the slider was in full force, Kent mostly ignored the change that worked well previously, but the two he threw registered a foul and swinging strike. In terms of a 40-man spot this winter, I’d thought of Kent as being on the outside looking in, but he’s adding to the intrigue.

AA: Frisco 4, Tulsa (LAD) 3
Frisco: 8 hits, 4 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 34-25, 1.5 G up, 70-58 overall

SP Cody Bradford: 5 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 2 R, 1 BB, 10 SO, 89 P / 56 S, 5.22 ERA
RP Justin Slaten: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 7.07 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 2-4, .299/.358/.428
LF Trevor Hauver: 2-3, HR (4), .205/.368/.523

Cody Bradford reached ten strikeouts for the third time in 2022 and is up to seven starts with no more than one walk allowed. During that stretch, he’s walked four and struck out 45 in 36.1 innings.

Frisco scored everything in the 4th, mostly on Trevor Hauver’s homer. Luisangel Acuna walked twice and stole two bases.

High-A: Hickory 5, Rome (ATL) 4
Hickory: 6 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 2 walks, 17 strikeouts
Record: 28-35, eliminated, 66-63 overall

SP TK Roby: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 12 SO, 79 P / 55 S, 4.64 ERA
RP Michael Brewer: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 4.07 ERA
DH Evan Carter: 2-3, BB, SB (25), .289/.390/.481

TK Roby let it fly in his final 2022 start, striking out a career-best 12. Roby currently leads the organization with 126 Ks in 104.2 innings. That won’t last because others barely behind him have aren’t done yet, but Roby will finish with the most strikeouts at either A level. He allowed 13 homers in his first 11 starts but only six in the final 11.

Hitters to reach double digits in doubles, triples, homers, and steals during my time on this gig (2007-present): Evan Carter, Drew Robinson (2016 in AAA), Engel Beltre (2012 in AA).

Low-A: Down East 1, at Delmarva (BAL) 4
Down East: 4 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 7 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 32-31, eliminated, 65-64 overall

SP Emiliano Teodo: 4.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 6 SO, 79 P / 45 S, 3.09 ERA
RP Jose Corniell: 3.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 5.45 ERA

Emiliano Teodo improved on his already prodigious strikeout rate from 30% in his first 11 starts to 35% in the second 11, but he was more prone to extra-base hits. Teodo was and is on the wild side, but he had a fine season overall, especially in the unexpected role of starter.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Allard
AA: Englert
Hi-A: TBD (Vanasco)
Lo-A: TBD (Collyer)

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Down East defeated Myrtle Beach 2-1 to become co-champions (along with Lynchburg) of the Carolina League. With Hurricane Irma looming, league powers decided to reduce the semifinals to a best-of-three and then eliminated the championship round entirely. Starter Brett Martin retired only five of 12 batters but escaped with just one run on his ledger thanks to two double plays and an out on the bases. The bullpen (Emerson Martinez, Jeffrey Springs, Scott Williams) was outstanding as always. Staked to a one-run lead, Williams retired rehabbing Cubbie Wilson Contreras for the final out. Including the postseason, Williams finished 2017 with a 30-inning scoreless streak.

Sadly, that would be the apex of Williams’ career. An injury erased his following season, and more troubles limited him to 30 batters faced in 2019. He would be released in the early-June covid purge of 2020.

This concludes “Five Years Ago” for 2017. The minor league season was over for the Rangers, and I didn’t write anything else until late November.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 2, Sugar Land (HOU) 7
Round Rock: 5 hits, 7 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 72-59, 1 GB

SP Tyson Miller: 3.2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 4 R, 3 BB, 2 HBP, 6 SO, 71 P / 45 S, 4.73 ERA
RP Grant Anderson: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 9.00 ERA
DH Josh Jung: 1-4, 2B, HBP, .273/.321/.525
1B Yohel Pozo: 2-4, BB, .338/.378/.503

Heavy rain followed by cloudless, windless conditions turned the stadium into a double boiler during a rare midday contest. Rehabbing Eli White was removed after two innings and one plate appearance. Pitching for the first time in three months, Jake Latz allowed two runs in an inning.

AA: Frisco 11, Tulsa (LAD) 0
Frisco: 12 hits, 7 walks, 4 strikeouts
Opponent: 3 hits, 1 walk, 10 strikeouts
Record: 33-25, 1 G up, 69-58 overall

SP Tim Brennan: 4.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 52 P / 37 S, 2.76 ERA
RP Triston Polley: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 3.64 ERA
RF Aaron Zavala: 1-4, 2B, BB, .358/.490/.605
2B Justin Foscue: 2-4, 2B, BB, .290/.370/.489
DH Blaine Crim: 2-4, 2 2B, BB, .293/.361/.498
SS Luisangel Acuna: 3-5, SB (7), .243/.310/.400
LF Kellen Strahm: 2-4, 2B, BB, .284/.396/.417

Frisco didn’t need Amarillo’s environment to reach double-digit runs, taking an 11-0 lead after just three innings.

Unfortunately, Tim Brennan crumpled to the ground with pain in his arm after releasing his 52nd pitch. There’s no news and I’m not going to speculate, but it certainly didn’t look good.

High-A: Hickory 0, Rome (ATL) 5
Hickory: 4 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 2 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 27-34, 65-62 overall

SP Larson Kindreich: 1.2 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 45 P / 23 S, 5.40 ERA
RP Luis Tejeda: 3.1 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 1 R, 2 BB, 7 SO, 4.75 ERA
2B Thomas Saggese: 1-2, BB, .310/.360/.484

High-A: Hickory 2, Rome (ATL) 8
Hickory: 3 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 2 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 27-35, eliminated, 65-63 overall

SP Robby Ahlstrom: 4.1 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 6 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 72 P / 52 S, 6.14 ERA

Hickory struck out 23 Braves in 14 innings but was swept handily. After an opening strikeout in the 2nd, Larson Kindreich’s inning proceeded walk, error, walk, grand slam. Rome also hit a grand slam in the nightcap.

Low-A: Down East 4, at Delmarva (BAL) 2 (11)
Down East: 6 hits, 7 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 4 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 32-30, eliminated, 65-63 overall

SP Winston Santos: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 82 P / 54 S, 3.49 ERA
RP Alberto Mota: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 2.45 ERA
RP Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.09 ERA
CF Marcus Smith: 1-1, 4 BB, 2 SB (47), .180/.338/.264
LF Yosy Galan: 1-5, HR (19), .210/.304/.431

Down East has the most steals of any team in low-A history (1990-present, as defined by the official division of A ball into two distinct levels):
302: Down East (TEX), 2022
299: Beloit (MIL), 1991
295: Capital City (NYM), 1998
290: Down East (TEX), 2021
290: Columbia (NYM), 1992

The 2017 high-A Lancaster Jethawks have the most steals at any level since 1990 with 313 (with a schedule eight games longer than Down East). I’ll have to double check, but on a steals-per-game basis, I think the top two teams at any full-season level since 1990 are the 2021 and 2022 Wood Ducks.

Yosy Galan cranked a three-run homer in the 11th.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Kent
AA: Bradford
Hi-A: TBD (Roby)
Lo-A: TBD (Teodo)

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Down East defeated Myrtle Beach 4-1 in the opener of the league semifinals, as Jonathan Hernandez (5.1 IP), Jeffrey Springs (1.2 IP), and, in his high-A debut, CD Pelham (2 IP) limited the Pelicans to six hits. Hurricane Irma shorted the series to a best-of-three to be decided the next day by either one or two seven-inning games. Spokane again lost to Vancouver 2-1 and was eliminated from the Northwest League playoffs. I’d mentioned Vancouver held a sizable starting pitching advantage in the preview, and Nate Pearson and Zach Logue combined for one run allowed in 12 innings. Joe Barlow threw 3.2 scoreless and fanned six in relief of Cole Ragans (4 IP, 2 R, 6 SO), who made what turned out to be his last real-game appearance until 2021.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 4, Sugar Land (HOU) 0
Round Rock: 7 hits, 2 walks, 13 strikeouts
Opponent: 2 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 72-58, 1 GB

SP Yerry Rodriguez: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 33 P / 22 S, 4.47 ERA
RP Ryder Ryan: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 3.76 ERA
RP Fernery Ozuna: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 7.36 ERA
RP Daniel Robert: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 5.56 ERA
RP Nick Snyder: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 4.36 ERA
3B Josh Jung: 2-4, .274/.317/.526
SS Davis Wendzel: 1-2, HR (14), BB, .211/.295/.406

Five relievers combined on a two-hit shutout.

Davis Wendzel, pre-injury: .193/.281/.329, 31% SO
Davis Wendzel, post-injury: .244/.320/.544, 19% SO

A persistent issue with Wendzel is pop-ups and sky-high flyouts; he hits them at about double the rate of his teammates, about one of every four balls in play.

AA: Frisco 7, Tulsa (LAD) 11
Frisco: 6 hits, 8 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 9 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 32-25, 1.5 G up, 68-58 overall

SP Jack Leiter: 4 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 4 R, 3 BB, 6 SO, 78 P / 48 S, 5.32 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 2-3, 2B, 2 BB, SB (13), .298/.357/.429
1B Blaine Crim: 1-3, 2B, BB, .291/.359/.493
CF Kellen Strahm: 1-3, HR (9), BB, 2 SB (8), .281/.393/.413
RF Miguel Aparicio: 1-3, BB, 2 SB (3), .206/.342/.302

A typical outing for Jack Leiter in his penultimate regular-season start. I watched a portion on MiLB.tv, and as usual was amazed by his stuff and  frustrated by the actual line. The Drillers swung at 38 of his pitches and came up empty 19 times. He fanned six of 20.

He also walked three and allowed three unnervingly solid flies. One fly disappeared, one was prevented from leaving by CF Kellen Strahm, and one was corralled by RF Aaron Zavala on the track. The 1st inning encapsulated his season: six-pitch walk, two-run homer, then three strikeouts on nine pitches.

High-A: rain

Two today. Hickory was eliminated last week, while visiting Rome leads Asheville by two games for the second-half division title. Two Crawdads wins will secure their tenth winning season in 13 as a Texas affiliate.

Low-A: Down East 2, at Delmarva (BAL) 5
Down East: 6 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 13 hits, 5 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 31-30, eliminated, 64-63 overall

SP Mitch Bratt: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 5 SO, 84 P / 54 S, 2.45 ERA
2B Maximo Acosta: 1-3, BB, 2 SB (43), .262/.342/.359
SS Cam Cauley: 2-4, 3B, .215/.312/.298

In his final 2022 start (assuming no unlikely final-day start on four days rest), Mitch Bratt was slightly out of form and had to endure more than one instance of “I got it, you take it” by his defensive compatriots. Nevertheless, Texas’s 2021 fifth-rounder had a fine first full season, striking out 99 against 28 walks in 80.2 innings with a 2.45 ERA. On to Hickory.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Miller
AA: Brennan
Hi-A: TBD (Stephan / Ahlstrom)
Lo-A: TBD (Santos)

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Spokane lost its playoff opener to Vancouver 2-1. 28th-overall pick Nate Pearson of the Canadians struck out ten in four innings and touched 100 on the stadium gun several times. Down East’s playoff opener against Myrtle Beach was postponed by rain. MiLB also shortened the series to a best-of-three in anticipation of Hurricane Irma.