We knew Kumar Rocker couldn’t maintain his 74% whiff rate on curves against MLB hitters, but would you settle for 62%? Mariners missed completely on 12 of 19 swings. As pointed out by Michael Bowman yesterday, the best individual pitch in the Majors in this regard is Mark Leiter’s splitter, which has generated a 59% miss rate. We’ll need more MLB outings from Rocker to confirm, but the curve has the makings of a singularly effective pitch. I don’t blame folks for calling it a slider even with the contradictory assertion from the man himself. It doesn’t into an easy category. It moves horizontally more like a cutter or maybe a gyro slider, but the drop is between a typical slider and curve.
Seattle’s stadium is among baseball’s friendliest to pitchers, but that Collin Snider homer leaves only eight of 30 parks.
One potential concern is how Rocker’s addition affects the 40-man roster. He’ll occupy a spot over the winter, of course, leaving one less space for offseason maneuvering. Sometimes that could cause trouble, but in this case I don’t see it. Texas has 45 players on the 40-man roster including those on the 60-day IL, but no fewer than nine will become free agents at season’s end. The Rangers will be able to reinstate the injured without breaking a sweat. Also, the number of 40 additions this fall could be as few as two. The Rangers have only one Rule 5-eligible pick from the truncated 2020 draft (pitcher Dylan MacLean, who’s hurt) and four from 2021, none of whom I expect to be protected. The “roster crunch” has the texture of oatmeal. Even with free agent additions, Texas should be able to find room without too much difficulty.
SP Ryan Garcia: 5.1 IP, 7 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 92 P / 56 S, 3.08 ERA RP Avery Weems: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA RP Jacob Latz: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.86 ERA DH Sam Huff: 1-3, BB, .247/.310/.406
Ryan Garcia had to fend off a little more trouble than usual. The opposition was 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position but managed to plate three on a solo homer, wild pitch, and sac bunt.
Round Rock needs three wins in the final nine games to avoid becoming the first Texas AAA team to finish at least ten games below .500 since 1997.
SP Mitch Bratt: 6 IP, 8 H (2 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 83 P / 54 S, 5.45 ERA DH Josh Hatcher: 1-5, HR (11), .295/.344/.436 1B Abi Ortiz: 2-4, 2B, BB, .232/.315/.397 3B Sebastian Walcott: 3-5, 2 2B 2B Keyber Rodriguez: 2-4, 2 2B, .230/.280/.356
Sebastian Walcott had a busy evening. With two out in the 1st, he grounded up the middle to plate the game’s first two runs. He then hit among the least likely doubles you’ll ever see, a chopper along the line that bounded off 3B Jesus Valdez 60 feet to the home dugout. Walcott never stopped running, and the scorekeeper never ruled an error, so a double it was. Walcott followed with a lasered double to the wall that was common in Hickory. He also bounced a throw from third well in front of first base for his first AA error.
Mitch Bratt pitched in Amarillo for the first time. Mitch Bratt allowed two homers for the first time. He’ll finish 2024 with a slightly unfair 5.73 ERA given the .260/.327/.420 line.
Today’s listed starter is Kohl Drake, who is on four days rest for the first time. I expect a brief outing.
Today’s Starters AAA: Solomon AA: Drake
Five Years Ago Yesterday Hickory extended its season with a 5-1 victory at Lexington. Ricky Vanasco shut down the Legends for 3.2 innings and fanned six but finished with three consecutive walks. Tai Tiedemann was able to squash that threat. Tyreque Reed plated three on a two-out single, solo homer, and sac fly.
SP Adrian Sampson: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 5 BB, 2 SO, 91 P / 50 S, 5.57 ERA RP Robby Ahlstrom: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 3.78 ERA RP Marc Church: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 2.60 ERA C Sam Huff: 3-4, 2 2B, .246/.308/.407 LF Trevor Hauver: 1-3, HR (8), BB, .229/.345/.381 CF Kellen Strahm: 1-3, BB, SB (10), .250/.362/.333
Sam Huff had a fine evening, smacking three hard liners for two doubles and a 7th-inning RBI single that broke a 5-5 tie. Unfortnately, Huff has truly struggled since around the beginning of June, hitting .231/.270/.357 with a very respectable 20 doubles but only four homers in 64 games. His walk rate is down from 14% in 2023 to 8% this year, while the strikeout rate has increased from 24% to 32%. As to his future, I think the likelihood of him being on the 40 next April is very low. If he is, he’d be the #2 catcher (or #3, if Texas went that route) on the active roster because he’s out of options. But if the Rangers considered him a viable #2, I think he’d have more than his four 2024 MLB plate appearances. If he’s in the organization next season, I’d say the most likely way is by sliding through waivers.
SP Winston Santos: 5 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 67 P / 45 S, 4.89 ERA RP Bryan Magdaleno: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA RP Skylar Hales: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 2.17 ERA RP Dane Acker: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.08 ERA SS Max Acosta: 3-4, HR (8), .280/.344/.417
Winston Santos finished the regular season with consecutive solid outings. For the season, he posted a 3.67 ERA with 34 walks and 138 strikeouts in 110.1 innings split between Hickory and Frisco. Last year, he fanned only 88 against nearly the same number of batters faced. Despite some homer-proneness upon promotion to Frisco, on the whole he was much less likely to surrender the long ball. All told, a fine and encouraging season. He’ll be added to the 40 in a couple of months.
Max Acosta had missed a few days and watched Sebastian Walcott’s debut Tuesday from the dugout. Last night, he offered evidence that he deserves to play as well. A while back, I mentioned him as someone who’s produced decent if modest numbers that don’t assure a promotion each year, but he gets promoted and hits just as well. His current line of .280/.345/.417 would be his best if it holds. And he’ll probably join Round Rock next March.
Best as I can tell, at 18 years and 180 days as of yesterday, Sebastian Walcott is Texas’s youngest AA position player ever. He was 11 days younger than Roy Howell, who made his AA and professional debut for the Pittsfield Rangers on June 26, 1972. Howell had been drafted out of high school fourth-overall 20 days prior.
Youngest AA Position Player Debuts in Rangers History: Sebastian Walcott, 2024, 18 years / 180 days Roy Howell, 1972, 18 / 191 Jurickson Profar, 2012, 19 / 45 Nomar Mazara, 2014, 19 / 101 Ivan Rodriguez, 1991, 19 /128* Juan Gonzalez, 1989, 19 / 168* Rougned Odor, 2013, 19 / 179 Ruben Sierra, 1985, 19 / 180* Elvis Andrus, 2008**, 19 / 221 Donnie Scott, 1981, 19 / 229*
* Estimated based on assumption of a first game in early April. I don’t have schedules prior to 2005. To whatever extent I’m off, I shouldn’t be off on the low side by more than a few days. I found Roy Howell’s exact debut date in a story about a fog-shortened no-hitter.
** When I published a Frisco-only version of this list, I had Andrus’s debut year as 2009 instead of 2008, but his age was correct.
Elsewhere, the Cardinals promoted IF Thomas Saggese, who started at short and went 0-4 in his MLB debut. He’d taken some time acclimating to AAA but had batted .291/.351/.524 with 12 homers in 55 games since July 1st. The Ranger traded Saggese and pitcher TK Roby to St. Louis for Jordan Montgomery last summer.
SP Dane Dunning: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 69 P / 48 S, 1.38 ERA RP Josh Sborz: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 6.23 ERA RP Jacob Latz: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 6.75 ERA RP Daniel Robert: 1.2 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 3.13 ERA 1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, 2B, BB, .282/.376/.475
Two rehabbing and two optioned pitchers accounted for most of the innings. Dunning pitched well overall and the runs were unearned, although he was not blameless in Sacramento’s two-run first. Given the upcoming activation of Jake deGrom and Kumar Rocker’s MLB debut, plus the presumed return of Josh Sborz, if not Jacob Latz, Dunning may not see Arlington again in 2024 no matter how he performs.
The sides traded threes in the 10th, but Round Rock could not answer Sacramento’s five runs off Aidan Anderson in the 11th.
The Express are in last among eight teams contending for the second-half title, but I think they can still succeed with as few as eight wins in the last 11 games. For example (ignoring first-half winner Sugar Land and bottom-dwelling El Paso): Round Rock: 37-37 ABQ, OKC, Sacto, Salt Lake, Tacoma: 37-38 Las Vegas, Reno: 36-38
SP Nick Krauth: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 2 SO, 58 P / 37 S, 5.78 ERA SS Sebastian Walcott: 1-4, 2B C Cooper Johnson: 3-4, 2B, HR (13), .233/.351/.471
Walcott’s mound opponent was Stephen Giesting, who brought a 5.25 ERA into the game but generates more misses than you’d expect from someone with a fastball in the 88-91 range. Giesting would in fact tie a career-high 19 swinging strikes and deliver seven innings of one-run ball with seven Ks. Walcott swung through a fastball in his first plate appearance but stung another heater down the left field line for a double. He would strike out against Giesting again, then ground out to second to end the game. In the field, he handled five plays without incident.
Today’s Starters AAA: Sampson AA: Santos
Five Years Ago The Day Before Yesterday Low-A Hickory lost the first game of the South Atlantic League finals 6-4 to the KC-affiliated Lexington Legends. Starter Ronny Henriquez pitched well, but a couple of mid-game defensive miscues, reliever Kelvin Gonzalez’s worst outing all season, and lack of timely hitting doomed the Crawdads.
Five Years Ago Yesterday Hickory lost again, 7-0. Early success by Cole Winn ended for naught with a three-run 5th that put the Crawdads down 4-0. A later three-run homer off Daniel Robert sealed the defeat. Hickory batters not named Kole Enright or Pedro Gonzalez were 5-for-52 with a double and three walks so far in the series. Hickory would head to Lexington needing three straight wins for a title.
Per local reports, infielder Sebastian Walcott will head to AA Frisco to finish the year. Even in an organization with a history of hyper-aggressive assignments (less so lately), Walcott stands out. I don’t know if he’ll play Tuesday, but let’s assume he does for the following:
Youngest AA Debuts by a Texas hitter, 2003-present: Sebastian Walcott, 2024, 18 years / 180 days Jurickson Profar, 2012, 19 / 45 Nomar Mazara, 2014, 19 / 101 Rougned Odor, 2013, 19 / 179 Elvis Andrus, 2009, 19 / 221 Evan Carter, 2022, 20 / 15
Engel Beltre debuted at 19 years and 304 days at the end of 2009 but would spend the first half of the following season in high-A before returning. I’m also ignoring any brief, just-in-case assignments like 19-year-old Esteban Mejia last month.
How young is Walcott? Even if the Rangers delayed his arrival until next April, he’d still be the youngest Texas hitter in AA in at least 21 years.
SP Robby Ahlstrom: 1.2 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 1 SO, 42 P / 22 S, 4.30 ERA RP Marc Church: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 2.76 ERA RP Grant Wolfram: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.42 ERA CF Dustin Harris: 2-5, BB, .278/.365/.403 SS Jax Biggers: 3-5, 2B, BB, .273/.395/.385 1B Blaine Crim: 2-6, 2B, .280/.375/.474 LF Trevor Hauver: 3-5, 2B, BB, .226/.337/.371 C Matt Whatley: 2-5, BB, .208/.295/.338
Round Rock finally opened up a can on Las Vegas after scoring 12 runs in the previous five games. The Express didn’t go deep but collected at least 18 hits for the fourth time this season.
On a bullpen day, Robbie Ahlstrom drew the short straw and had to start in one of baseball’s least forgiving climates. Out of 12 pitchers on the two sides, only Marc Church and Grant Wolfram avoided allowing an inherited runner or one of their own to score.
The Express will head home to face Sacramento, followed by a season-ending to Tacoma.
SP Kohl Drake: 5 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 1 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 81 P / 50 S, 3.63 ERA RP Skylar Hales: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 2.33 ERA RP Dane Acker: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.12 ERA CF Alejandro Osuna: 2-5, 2B, .302/.377/.509
Kohl Drake leads the organization with 146 strikeouts and will likely finish best even if he doesn’t throw again.
Frisco’s home schedule is done until the playoffs. The Riders head to Amarillo this week. Midland has tied Frisco for the league’s best overall record, but Frisco will have home field advantage for their upcoming semifinal tilt regardless.
SP David Davalillo: 6 IP, 9 H, 1 R, 5 BB, 3 SO, 79 P / 49 S, 2.10 ERA RP DJ Peters: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 5.52 ERA 2B Cam Cauley: 1-3, 2B, BB, .235/.297/.411 SS Sebastian Walcott: 1-4, 3B, .261/.342/.443 RF Yeison Morrobel: 2-4, 2B, .211/.287/.323
David Davalillo walked a career-high five and allowed 15 runners in six innings. Somehow, only one scored, and he averaged a tight 13.2 pitches per inning.
Walcott led the South Atlantic League and leads the Texas organization with 40 combined doubles and triples. Among league qualifiers, he was tenth in average (.261) and slugging (.443).
Top picks Malcolm Moore and Dylan Dreiling were both 0-4. Moore finished with a tepid line of .209/.298/.374 in 25 games but was solid after a chilly pro introduction. He swatted three homers and six doubles. Dreiling was .198/.340/.279 with a homer, four doubles, and 19 walks in 24 games.
Cam Cauley hit eight of his 12 homers during a 16-game stretch in July and early August. The rest of the season, he batted .225 and slugged .349.
Hickory was 50-46 after a 12-24 start during which the offense scored one or zero runs 16 times. Next year, the Crawdads will drop to low-A, their home from 1993 through 2020.
Lo-A: Down East 1, Augusta (ATL) 4 Down East: 5 hits, 3 walks, 16 strikeouts Opponent: 8 hits, 6 walks, 15 strikeouts First-Half Record: 35-30, 3rd place, 6 GB Second-Half Record: 30-33, 4th place, 8 GB Overall Record: 65-63 Offense: 4.0 R/G, 8% worse than average, .227/.306/.337, 98 OPS+ Pitching: 3.6 R/G, 16% better than average, .212/.307/.305, 89 OPS+
SP Wilian Bormie: 4 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 81 P / 49 S, 3.47 ERA RP Josh Trentadue: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 4.46 ERA RP Adonis Villavicencio: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 4.56 ERA 3B Beycker Barroso: 1-3, BB, .229/.342/.374
Yesterday afternoon in front of an announced crowd of 1,878, 2B Antonis Macias grounded out to conclude the existence of the Down East Wood Ducks as an affiliated club of Minor League Baseball. Down East was 476-448 in seven seasons with the Rangers, winning a co-championship in their inaugural season, posting one of the best records in Texas’s minor league history two years later (as chronicled in this year’s Five Years Ago segments), and reaching the postseason twice more after dropping to low-A.
The marriage between Texas and Kinston was admittedly of convenience. The Rangers were desperate to escape the California League’s High Desert Mavericks (who would mercifully fold after 2016). Kinston was desperate to replace a 34-year affiliation with Cleveland lost after 2011 and had an older if suitable facility. I never expected the Rangers to stay any longer than necessary, and I was surprised the Rangers signed a twelve-year lease until discovering how easily they could terminate it with, at best, a nominal penalty. I feel bad for the people of Kinston losing their team, but even ignoring MiLB clubs descending to vassal status in the new agreement with MLB, the expensive facility upgrades required of most parks, and Diamond Baseball Holdings acquiring the Wood Ducks and 34 (!) other teams, I anticipated a new park in a new city by the time the lease expired. As I’ve mentioned, Kinston is about the size of Corsicana and isn’t growing. Expecting the city to renovate Grainger Stadium to modern standards was absurd. Had not the Rangers owned the team at the time, Down East almost certainly would have been one of the casualties of the 2021 reorganization.
All that said, it wasn’t a loveless marriage. Kinston offered a far better situation than Adelanto, CA, or Bakersfeld in the previous decade. It was never a place to dread or mock, and the Rangers never had to fret about sending their prospects there like those other two cities. Players and personnel could shift between the low-A and high-A locations in around four hours. Rain is a problem, but on the whole the climate is generous to baseball.
As for the game, 21-year-old Wilian Bormie reeled off a fifth consecutive start with two or fewer runs allowed. 2024 8th-rounder Anthony Susac recorded Down East’s final out on defense and can say he made eight appearances covering 9.1 innings without allowing a run and stranding six runners bequeathed. IF Echedry Vargas had the day off but among qualifiers finished sixth in average at .276 and second in slugging at .454. He also ranked second in hits (118), eighth in doubles (24), fifth in homers (14), and 19th in steals (29).
Five Years Ago Yesterday Down East lost the deciding Game 5 of the Carolina League semifinals 6-3 to Fayetteville. Seven straight Woodpeckers reached in the 7th, and four would score. The 2017 edition of the Wood Ducks won a co-championship with a phenomenal bullpen featuring Jeffrey Springs, CD Pelham, Scott Williams, and Adam Choplick. The 2019 version wasn’t so formidable, allowing 37 runners in 17 innings. The Woodies were 87-52 during the regular season, the fourth-best record of any Texas affiliate in franchise history.
SP Max Scherzer: 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 53 P / 39 S, 3.60 ERA 1B Blaine Crim: 3-4, 2B, 2 HR, (19), .280/.375/.474 LF Kellen Strahm: 1-3, 3B, BB, .257/.364/.403
Not that anyone was seriously questioning Max Scherzer’s desire to return, but for any doubters, he spent his evening in Summerlin, Nevada, dealing fastballs in a black and green alt-identity Round Rock Chupacabras jersey. Scherzer retired the first 11 in order, then issued an intentional walk, perhaps to practice with a runner aboard or flip from a lefty to another righty hitter. Scherzer would hit that batter an fan the next for his final out. Peter Solomon extended the no-hitter into the 8th.
Blaine Crim homered twice and doubled, all on shots in the 105-107 MPH range. I wrote about Crim and his tricky path to the Majors last week.
SP Jacob deGrom: 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 49 P / 35 S, 1.50 ERA RP Jacob Latz: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 12.46 ERA RP Bryan Magdaleno: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA RP Ryan Lobus: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA CF Alejandro Osuna: 1-4, HR (7), .300/.376/.507
DeGrom settled for five strikeouts compared to Scherzer’s five in what is presumbaly his final rehab appearance. He, Jacob Latz, Bryan Magdaleno, Seth Clark, and Ryan Lobus combined on a three-hit shuotut. Frisco was limited to three hits as well, but the team’s first ball in play left the yard courtesy of Alejandro Osuna.
SP DJ McCarty: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 6 SO, 88 P / 56 S, 4.43 ERA RP Damian Mendoza: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 4.85 ERA RP Gavin Collyer: 2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 6 SO, 3.24 ERA 2B Cam Cauley: 2-5, SB (27), .234/.295/.409 SS Sebastian Walcott: 2-5, 2B, 2 SB (26), .261/.343/.441 1B Arturo Disla: 2-3, 2 2B, BB, .264/.333/.529 RF Yeison Morrobel: 1-5, HR (9), .209/.285/.319
Yeison Morrobel hit a walk-off three-run homer in the 10th. Gift-runner Sebastian Walcott had retied the game by advancing to third on a single and jogging home on a balk. Morrobel has endured a very rough second half but is hitting hard when he connects, slugging .493 with 12 extra-base hits in his last 19 games.
Four Hickory pitchers combined for 19 strikeouts. Since mid-May, Sebastian Walcott is batting .291/.362/.497 with 42 extra-base hits and 24 steals.
Lo-A: Down East 3, Augusta (ATL) 5 (10) Down East: 8 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts Opponent: 9 hits, 10 walks, 11 strikeouts Record: 30-32, eliminated, 65-62 overall
SP Kolton Curtis: 3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 SO, 70 P / 40 S, 2.85 ERA RP Alberto Mota: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 2.25 ERA CF Chandler Pollard: 2-5, 2B, 2 SB (39), .238/.315/.326 SS Echedry Vargas: 1-3, 2B, BB, SB (29), .276/.321/.454 C Jesus Lopez: 2-5, .242/.306/.351
In front of an announced crowd of 1,911, the Wood Ducks played their penultimate game in affiliated ball. 1B/C Ben Hartl recorded the final out in the 10th. 17th-rounder Joey Danielson took the loss but finished with an opposing line of .207/.303/.207 in his debut season.
Jimmy Ryals of the Assembly wrote at length about Down East’s departure. The Wood Ducks play their final game as an affiliate of the Texas Rangers this afternoon. Worth nothing: the situation affecting Kinston, Modesto, Myrtle Beach, and other cities was created neither by the minor league franchises nor the host cities.
Five Years Ago Yesterday Down East and Fayetteville split their second doubleheader in the Carolina League semifinals by scores of 5-4 and 2-7. In the opener, Yanio Perez homered in the 7th to tie the game and singled in Sam Huff with the winner in the 8th. In the nightcap, Down East threw 193 pitches in seven innings and walked nine. Fayetteville starter and Houston prospect Luis Garcia faced the Woodies three times in his final four starts, allowing four runs in 17 innings and striking out 32. The teams would play a deciding game the next day.
SP Kumar Rocker: 5 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 65 P / 50 S, 1.80 ERA RP Marc Church: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.93 ERA CF Dustin Harris: 2-4, 2B, HR (10), .280/.367/.407 C Matt Whatley: 1-3, HR (5), .200/.287/.336
Kumar Rocker sat at his locker before yesterday’s game, perused Alan Nathan’s “The Physics of Baseball: Baseball at High Altitude,” and chuckled softly to himself. As if those rules would apply to him.
Swings at curves: 1st start: 14 swings, 11 misses, 2 fouls, 1 in play 2nd start: 17 swings, 12 misses, 3 fouls, 2 in play
In the PCL, results on curves (and sliders) are divided nearly equally between misses, fouls, and balls in play. Rocker has a 75% whiff rate, 15% fouls, and 10% in play.
The PCL is hitting .216/.284/.376 in plate appearances that end in a curve and .231/.300/.400 ending with sliders. Opponents are 1-for-18 with 15 strikeouts against Rocker’s breaker.
Here’s Rocker’s miss chart:
I would argue his most impressive pitch of the night was the green dot, a first-pitch changeup that dove under Hoy Park’s bat. He hadn’t begun a plate appearance with a change before in AAA. If he’s willing and able to land that pitch, he can add some mystery to what has already been a nearly unhittable repertoire.
Rocker did hang a flat curve that Colby Thomas sent into the stratosphere and the Stratosphere. Earlier, Carlos Perez, who goes oppo as infrequently as nearly anyone in the PCL, cued a double down the first-base line and eventually scored. Perez has three homers and two doubles in four games against the Express.
The Express are in a funk. Seven straight losses, and 3.1 runs scored per game since planting 18 on Salt Lake 17 days ago. A Texas AAA squad hasn’t finished more than nine games below .500 since 1997, and until now, I hadn’t had reason to recall that stat.
SP Andy Rodriguez: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 57 P / 36 S, 2.82 ERA RP Jackson Kelley: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 3.78 ERA RP Skylar Hales: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 2.42 ERA 3B Cody Freeman: 2-4, 2B, .272/.329/.449 2B Theo Hardy: 1-2, 2B, BB
Per local media, Alejandro Rosario needed some rest, so Andy Rodriguez drew the spot start. Rodriguez had been knocked around some lately but was more than up to last night’s task. Wichita also lost a remarkable six of eight runners on the bases courtesy of four double plays and two unsuccessful steals.
SP Brayan Mendoza: 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 7 SO, 88 P / 53 S, 3.48 ERA RP Ivan Oviedo: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA C Malcolm Moore: 2-2, 2B, HBP, .220/.316/.402 2B Danyer Cueva: 2-4, 2B, HR (1), .225/.304/.367
Malcolm Moore is hitting .367/.460/.700 during an eight-game on-base streak.
Sebastian Walcott tripled in four trips to the plate. Across the entire minors, he ranks in the bottom half of the top ten in combined doubles and triples with 38.
Lo-A: Down East 0, Augusta (ATL) 4 Down East: 1 hit, 1 walk, 11 strikeouts Opponent: 5 hits, 7 walks, 10 strikeouts Record: 30-31, eliminated, 65-61 overall
SP Kamdyn Perry: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 43 P / 26 S, 7.20 ERA RP Eric Loomis: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 SO, 3.00 ERA RP Caden Scarborough: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 8.31 ERA RP Luke Savage: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 3.77 ERA RP Anthony Susac: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0.00 ERA
Down East spread the early innings around some relative newcomers. Kamdyn Perry was Texas’s 17th-rounder in 2023. He didn’t pitch in 2023 (customary for young mound picks) and tossed 26 innings for the rookies this summer with a 6.58 ERA, 18 walks, and 22 strikeouts.
The offense: 14 outs, Beycker Barroso walk, Keith Jones II single, 13 outs.
Five Years Ago Yesterday High-A Hickory knocked off the South Atlantic’s best team in two straight. 90-win Delmarva, playing beyond the regular season for the first time in 14 years, discovered the capriciousness of the minor league playoffs. Abdiel Mendoza (6 IP), Hever Bueno (2.2), and Kelvin Gonzalez (1) combined on a ten-inning, two-hit shutout. The Crawdads scored the winner absent a hit, loading the bases on two walks and an HBP. Kole Enright scored the winner on Jax Biggers’ sac bunt. Hickory would advance to the finals against KC-affiliated Lexington, which had a losing regular season but vanquished 77-61 Augusta.
Spokane was eliminated by Tri-City in the Northwest League semis 3-2 in ten. In the previous year’s finals, reliever Emmanuel Clase gained unwanted fame by committing a walk-off balk to bring in the championship-winning run for Eugene. 2019’s victim was Nic Laio, who brought a 5% walk rate into the contest but walked the leadoff batter bottom half of the 10th and issued a four-pitch walk with the bases loaded. Little did we know that Spokane was playing its final game as a Texas affiliate and as a member of a short-season league.
SP Ryan Garcia: 5 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 87 P / 56 S, 2.76 ERA LF Dustin Harris: 2-2, 2 BB, SB (33), .278/.366/.397 C Sam Huff: 1-3, HR (11), BB, .239/.305/.403
Ryan Garcia carried a no-hitter into the 5th, but if you’re a pitcher in Vegas, the house always wins. Five Aviator homers in a span of 12 batters turned a close game into a rout. Tyler Soderstrom’s 92 MPH homer off Garcia was the softest hit at 26 degrees all season in the PCL. The Express are in ninth place, so “7 GB” undersells the difficulty of reaching the postseason.
SP Mitch Bratt: 2.1 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 58 P / 37 S, 5.33 ERA RP Bryan Magdaleno: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA RP Dane Acker: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.17 ERA 3B Cody Freeman: 2-4, BB, SB (15), .270/.328/.446 1B Abimelec Ortiz: 1-4, 3B, BB, .233/.318/.403
Last night wasn’t pretty, but on the whole, Mitch Bratt has pitched better than his 5.33 ERA in Frisco. Bryan Magdaleno fanned batters with a slider and fastball in his AA debut.
SP Jose Gonzalez: 4 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 59 P / 36 S, 6.75 ERA CF Dylan Dreiling: 1-3, 2B, 2 BB, .195/.351/.286 SS Sebastian Walcott: 2-5, 3B, .260/.343/.436 DH Malcolm Moore: 2-5, 2B, .200/.297/.363
Malcolm Moore’s batting average now begins with a “2.” The next step is a “3” to lead off the OBP. Honestly I wouldn’t stress about how he and other 2024 picks perform in the short run. There are exceptions (Langford), but for the most part, the post-draft period is about acclimating to the professional lifestyle. Also, the assignments of Moore and 2nd-rounder Dylan Dreiling are aggressive. Josh Jung, picked eighth overall in 2019, spent his late summer after the draft at low-A Hickory. Davis Wendzel (41st overall) only reached short-season Spokane. Justin Foscue began in high-A but only after missing any 2020 action because of covid. Aaron Zavala (38th overall) played for low-A Down East initially.
In 88 low-A innings, Jose Gonzalez allowed three homers, all solos. In his high-A debut, the 12th batter he faced connected on a three-run shot.
Lo-A: Down East 6, Augusta (ATL) 5 Down East: 10 hits, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts Opponent: 10 hits, 3 walks, 14 strikeouts Record: 30-30, eliminated, 65-60 overall
SP Kyle Larsen: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 77 P / 49 S, 5.36 ERA RP Adonis Villavicencio: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 4.98 ERA RP Jake Jekielek: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA DH Ben Hartl: 2-4, HBP, .367/.533/.500 RF Yeremi Cabrera: 2-4, BB, .200/.310/.267
In the 10th, 2024 17th-rounder Joey Danielson surrendered his first three runs of the season. No matter. Down East responded with four runs straight out of a DSL summary: infield single, HBP, HBP, sac fly, reached-on-error, reached-on-error. 10th-rounder Jake Jekielek out of Northwood University in Illinois made his pro debut
Five Years Ago Yesterday Spokane extended the Northwest League semifinals to a deciding game with a 5-1 victory over Tri-City. RF Heriberto Hernandez hit a two-run homer. Starter Teodoro Ortega (4.2 IP) and Billy Layne (4.1) took some pressure off a staff that had four relievers throw multiple innings the night before.
SP Dane Dunning: 4 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, 72 P / 46 S, 2.57 ERA
Excluding rehab appearances, Dane Dunning hadn’t started a minor league game since 2018, and never on optional assignment. He’d been added to the White Sox 40 at the end of 2019 while recovering from elbow surgery, and his next appearance would be in the Majors the following August. He handled the atmospheric conditions better than most and missed 12 bats, although he would throw only two pitches of 90 MPH or better. Fellow 40 members Daniel Robert (1 IP, 3 runners, 3 runs) and Owen White (1 IP, 3 runners, 1 run) combined for a four-run 7th.
OF Dustin Harris walked twice and stole his 32nd base. He remains with Round Rock along with fellow 40 member Sam Huff while OF Sandro Fabian finds himself wearing number 40 as a member of the Texas Rangers. I wasn’t expecting this, although I’d seen fit to keep mentioning his better days in the report unlike a good number of free-agent signs. Also, at this point, viable replacement options are limited: him, Harris, Huff, non-40 1B Blaine Crim, maybe veteran IF Matt Duffy (who I haven’t mentioned because he’s not hitting well at all and is 33).
Fabian is hitting .270/.343/.462 with 33 2B/3B an 17 homers in 116 games. He’s graded out slightly above average in contact and power, slightly below in OBP, and a 104 OPS+ overall. Somewhat surprisingly for his power-oriented swing, Fabian whiffs as little as anyone on the Express save Foscue. His exit velocities are vanilla near the median, and his hard-hit rate of 33% is slightly below the league average, but his top-end velo improves relative to his peers, creating ample power. He’s hitting .370/.441/.693 against lefties, .231/.305/.371 vs. righties. Fabian has spotted in center but is best suited to right, where his able arm can vanquish greedy runners.
Fabian could be sent back to AAA in short order in favor of someone else, so I don’t yet want to suggest what this transaction says (if anything) about Harris. But I’ve written about Harris and his issues at length during the season. At this moment, Fabian is more likely to do some damage, especially against lefties. (The left-handed Harris is actually hitting lefties quite well, but the batted-ball data strongly favors Fabian.) Maybe he’ll get some hacks against Angels LHP Samuel Aldegheri on Friday. Like I said, I wasn’t expecting this, but Fabian isn’t undeserving. The 28-man roster limit prevents clubs from doling out multiple cups of coffee, but perhaps the Rangers can hand out some of those little paper cups.
SP Winston Santos: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 81 P / 59 S, 5.27 ERA RP Jacob Latz: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 23.14 ERA RP Jackson Kelley: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 4.30 ERA RP Ryan Lobus: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA RF Alejandro Osuna: 2-3, HR (6), HBP, SB (7), .302/.381/.503 2B Max Acosta: 1-3, 2B, BB, .277/.343/.408
Winston Santos struck out his most batters in AA, having stuck on seven in four previous starts.
Alejandro Osuna didn’t hit a double or triple last night, but I noticed his 19 combined doubles and triples in 45 games at Frisco exceed any previous full season. His 15 homers between high-A and AA are already a career-best by six. International signings often present difficult 40 decisions because of their young age and level. In Osuna’s case, starting in low-A as an 18-year-old after signing in late 2020 and hitting well enough to advance in timely fashion (despite persistent injuries) should give the Rangers an easier decision, which isn’t required until after 2025.
Six wins in the final ten games will give the Riders a record of 84-54 (.608), which would be the best AA regular season ever by a Texas affiliate. The 2007 squad was 85-55 (.607).
SP Paul Bonzagni: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 81 P / 51 S, 3.55 ERA C Malcolm Moore: 2-4, 2B, .187/.291/.347 1B Arturo Disla: 3-4, 2B, .264/.328/.536 RF Yeison Morrobel: 2-4, 2 2B, .210/.289/.317
The Crawdads were fortunate to avoid a worse margin. Rome had 22 baserunners and four steals, and Hickory added two runner-advancing errors, three wild pitches, and a balk. Starter Paul Bonzagni escaped before the flood, concluding his solid season with his fewest runs allowed in five high-A starts. Bonzagni was more prone to extra-base hits at Hickory (nearly everyone is) but showed slight improvements in his walk and strikeout rates compared to Down East.
Just-promoted Victor Simeon walked a season-high four and allowed three runs in the 9th.
Lo-A: Down East 4, Augusta (ATL) 3 (10) Down East: 5 hits, 2 walks, 14 strikeouts Opponent: 4 hits, 4 walks, 14 strikeouts Record: 29-30, eliminated, 64-60 overall
SP Josh Trentadue: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 43 P / 23 S, 4.57 ERA RP Kai Wynward: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 SO, 2.85 ERA RP Alberto Mota: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 SO, 2.48 ERA RP Anthony Susac: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA 1B Ben Hartl: 2-4, 2B, .346/.525/.500
Echedry Vargas (1-5) singled in the winner in the 10th. Assuming he advances to high-A next year, he’ll never have a claw on his cap, as Hickory resumes its former place as Texas’s low-A affiliate.
A 29-pitch 2nd for Josh Trentadue resulted in an outing short enough that he could pitch on Sunday if needed. As it stands, the 22-year-old drafted in last year’s 14th round out of Southern Idaho posted a 28% strikeout rate and 10% BB/HBP rate in 69 innings. 2024 8th-rounder Anthony Susac probably has one more outing to extend his professional scoreless streak.
Down East secured a non-losing record with the victory.
Five Years Ago Yesterday The playoffs began. High-A Down East (87-52) split a hurricane-prompted doubleheader with Houston-affiliated Fayetteville (72-67) by duplicate scores of 3-0. Sal Mendez (6.1 IP) and Joe Kuzia (0.2) three-hit the Woodpeckers in the opener. CF JP Martinez, DH Yohel Pozo, and RF Yanio Perez contributed two hits apiece. Fayetteville’s Miguelangel Sierra memorably turned a homer into an out when he failed to touch the plate. In the second game, starter Scott Engler surrendered a two-run homer to Jeremy Pena.
Low-A Hickory (83-52) defeated Baltimore-affiliated Delmarva (90-48) 4-3 in the opener of the best-of-three semifinals. Ricky Vanasco allowed two runs in the 1st but no more in five subsequent innings, backed up by Nick Snyder and high-leverage specialist Kelvin Gonzalez. Delmarva’s Grayson Rodriguez (6 IP, 4 R) surrendered three 1st-inning runs via doubles from Jax Biggers, Josh Jung, and Miguel Aparicio, and Tyreque Reed’s later homer provided the margin. Rodriguez’s battery mate was Adley Rutschman (1-4, double).
Short-season Spokane (45-31) lost 4-3 in 12th to Pads-affiliated Tri City (38-38). The Dust Devils quickly scored three off Jeifry Nunez, who walked four in three innings after not having walked more than two in any previous outing. Spokane would recover in part by a two-run homer from Heriberto Hernandez, a virtual newcomer to the level, but stranded would-be game-winning runs later on.
Baseball America’s updated top-100 prospect rankings include Kumar Rocker up to #30 and leading all Rangers, followed by Sebastian Walcott (#55), Alejandro Rosario (#86), and Emiliano Teodo (#97).
SP Adrian Sampson: 6 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 94 P / 59 S, 5.72 ERA RP Marc Church: 2 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.14 ERA CF Dustin Harris: 2-4, 2B, .277/.361/.397
Las Vegas’s lone hit with runners in scoring position was a grand slam by Carlos Perez.
SP Ben Anderson: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 99 P / 65 S, 3.67 ERA RP Skylar Hales: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.52 ERA RP Ricky DeVito: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 3.96 ERA RP Larson Kindreich: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 3.38 ERA SS Max Acosta: 2-5, 3B, HR (7), .276/.342/.406
This is Monday’s game; the teams had last night off. Max Acosta is hitting .44/.553/.793 in his last eight games, boosting the perennially modest but decent production I’d mentioned a little while back.
Texas promoted righties Alejandro Rosario and Ryan Lobus and lefty Bryan Magdaleno to Frisco from Hickory. Rosario and Lobus were two of the three Rangers listed as “unlikely breakouts” along with Kohl Drake. All three and Magdaleno began the season at low-A Down East, and I saw Rosario and Magdaleno with the Woodies barely over two months ago. In seven outings with the Crawdads, Magdaleno declined to allow a hit in eight innings, walked two, and struck out 14 (54%), and opponents drew air on 39% of swings. In late June, I saw a 96-97 fastball that touched 98 and an 83-84 slider.
SP Aidan Curry: 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 78 P / 48 S, 6.44 ERA DH Malcolm Moore: 1-3, BB, .169/.280/.324
Aidan Curry’s strikeout rate fell from 28% in the first half to 21% in the second, but also declining was the barrage of extra-base hits that kept his Run Average above nine until early July.
Malcolm Moore is hitting .212/.317/.404 in his last 14 games after a very slow start.
RHP Victor Simeon has joined Hickory to replace Magdaleno. He fanned 54 of 148 batters (36%) at Down East ad held opponents to a .132/.277/.240 line.
Rays-affiliated Bowling Green clinched the second-half division title and will advance to the postseason for the seventh time in eight seasons.
Lo-A: Down East 2, Augusta (ATL) 1 Down East: 10 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts Opponent: 3 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts Record: 28-30, eliminated, 63-60 overall
SP Thomas Ireland: 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 8 SO, 83 P / 53 S, 2.16 ERA RP Luke Savage: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO, 3.95 ERA RP Joey Danielson: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0.00 ERA SS Echedry Vargas: 2-4, HR (14), .279/.323/.460 2B Casey Cook: 1-3, 2B, BB, .209/.308/.254 C Julian Brock: 2-4, .258/.325/.386 LF Keith Jones II: 1-3
Thomas Ireland finished the season strong. Drafted in 2021’s 13th round out of Polk State (Junior) College, Ireland missed 2022 after arm surgery and spent more time at the complex this season than last.
Ninth-rounder Keith Jones II singled in his first professional plate appearance but was denied an RBI when Esteban Mejia was thrown out at the plate.
Five Years Ago Yesterday Nothing happened, as the full-season and short-season leagues ended the day before. AAA Nashville completed what turned out to be the only year as a Texas affiliate with a 13-inning win aided by Andy Ibanez’s 20th homer. Salt Lake led the 2018 PCL with 173 homers; 14 of 16 teams would best that amount in 2019 with the bouncier MLB ball. In extreme getaway-day fashion, AA Frisco dropped the final contest at NW Arkansas 2-0 in a mere hour and fifty-three minutes. At 68-71, the Riders were below .500 and absent from the postseason for a fifth straight year.
High-A Down East lost but finished 87-52 (.626), the best mark by any Texas full-season affiliate since 1993. Low-A Hickory wasn’t far behind at 83-52 (.615), the highest winning percentage from a Texas low-A club since 1989. Finally, Spokane would post its best record (45-31) since 2008. All three would continue to the postseason, all facing pitching staffs which set single-season records for strikeouts in their respective leagues.
Among prospects, Sam Huff led the system with 28 homers, trailed by Curtis Terry (25) and Pedro Gonzalez (23). Demarcus Evans: 0.90 ERA, 100 strikeouts in 60 innings (43% K rate), .119/.266/.175 oppo line.
The Rangers would not renew the contracts of AAA manager Jason Wood, AA manager Joe Mikulik, AAA pitching coach Brian Shouse, or AAA bullpen coach Eric Gagne.
The next regular season game would be in 610 days.
SP Jacob deGrom: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 43 P / 30 S, 0.00 ERA LF Dustin Harris: 1-3, BB, .274/.360/.294 RF Kellen Strahm: 2-4, 2B, .284/.390/.364
A soft single and walk in the 2nd were the only blemishes to Jacob de Grom’s record. OKC swung at 50% of his out-of-zone pitches (league rate 28%) and whiffed on half of those (league rate 45%).
Yesterday I discussed Owen White, recalled yesterday to the Rangers. Today, Dustin Harris, who was not but has received some attention lately by hitting .331/.406/.483 since the beginning of July.
My persistent worry with Harris has been the lack of exit velocity. Last I checked, his median and 90th-percentile velocities would rank at or near the bottom among MLB hitters with at least 100 trips to the plate. He simply doesn’t hit very hard. He succeeds with angles, avoiding excess grounders and spraying liners that might reach to and beyond the fence if hit hard enough or will drop in front of fielders if hit softly. His profile is fairly similar to Josh Smith when he was in AAA. The difference is Smith can play just about anywhere, while Harris is a LF/1B (and CF in a pinch).
Has that profile changed in the past two months? A little. His top-end velocity hasn’t budged. His mid-range velocity has improved, and that’s important. That’s an area where seemingly small increases can have a large impact on hit rate. He’s also getting a bunch of soft hits. The league is hitting .200 on airborne balls hit in the 60-75 MPH range. Harris is hitting .692, 9-for-13. That’s nearly 20% of his hits during this hot stretch. Even with his knack for angles, that just seems incredibly lucky. Put another way, I’d be very reluctant to count on that type of production at the MLB level. So on the whole, I’d say his recent success is combination of genuinely better results and a healthy portion of luck.
SP Willian Bormie: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 80 P / 54 S, 1.98 ERA RP Eric Loomis: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 BB, HBP, 5 SO, 5.40 ERA SS Echedry Vargas: 2-4, SB (26), .277/.321/.452
16th-round righty Eric Loomis made his pro debut. The Missouri State alum featured a low-90s fastball with enough tail to fluster both opposing hitters and himself. He added an occasional slider.
The loss eliminated Down East from division contention. The official page says otherwise, but I believe it still assumes some rainouts will be made up. The Woodies host league-worst Augusta (46-77) next week for their final six games as an affiliate of the Texas Rangers.
Five Years Ago Yesterday Tim Dillard threw 125 pitches in seven innings for AAA Nashville. Dillard was 36 and threw relatively gently from a low slot, so he could ignore modern usage standards. Tyler Phillips threw 6.1 innings of one-run ball for Frisco. The previous week, I saw him in Springfield, MO, the last game I would watch in person for a very long time.
