Scott Lucas

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 7, Tacoma (SEA) 4
Round Rock: 10 hits, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 5 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 4-2, 1 GB, 38-43 overall

SP Cory Abbott: 3 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 1 SO, 58 P / 34 S, 8.60 ERA
RP Peyton Gray: 2 IP, 1 H (0- HR), 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.48 ERA
RP Craig Kimbrel: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 4.50 ERA
RP Codi Heuer: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.81 ERA
RF Dustin Harris: 3-5, 2 HR, (5), .243/.335/.365
LF Trevor Hauver: 2-4, 2B, .276/.378/.442

The Express scored 58 runs across the six games and would have won five instead of four if not for that unsustainable nine-run lead on Friday.

Dustin Harris hit five homers in June, four more than his output in April and May combined. I haven’t had a chance to delve into the Statcast data, but the exit velocities ought to be better. He’s 26 in a few days, not old but not a kid, and given his other skills, better exit velocities are the difference between his current up-and-down role and fourth-outfielderdom.

AA: Frisco 7, Tulsa (LAD) 8
Frisco: 9 hits, 7 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 5 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 2-4, 1 GB, 40-34 overall

SP Trey Supak: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 91 P / 62 S, 4.17 ERA
SS Sebastian Walcott: 1-4, BB, .247/.349/.395
LF Aaron Zavala: 1-3, 2 BB, SB (4), .253/.389/.396

Sebastian Walcott will play in the Futures Game. Some others prospects had a shot, but I wouldn’t say anyone was cheated out of a spot.

Hi-A: Hub City 5, Aberdeen (BAL) 4
Hub City: 9 hits, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 4-5, 2 GB, 35-39 overall

SP Jose Gonzalez: 5 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 7 SO, 68 P / 49 S, 3.14 ERA
RP Adonis Villavicencio: 2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 4.23 ERA
RP Eric Loomis: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 2.31 ERA
1B Quincy Scott: 2-3, HR (4), SB (8), .209/.315/.320
SS John Taylor: 2-3, BB, SB (1)

Hub City seems to have been on the wrong side of several comebacks in recent weeks, but yesterday they scored three in the 9th. After a one-out Quincy Scott two-run homer to tie the game, newcomer John Taylor singled, stole second, advanced to third on a fly and scored on a wild pitch.

So, in his first three games of affiliated ball, John Taylor has been involved in two game-ending plays at the plate. Credit Texas’s front office and scouts for thinking outside the box. I’d have never considered Duran Duran’s 65-year-old bassist capable of the rookie league, much less high-A.

Eric Loomis has consecutive two-inning five-K performances. He’s fanned 40 of 96 batters in high-A.

Lo-A: Hickory 3, at Salem (BOS) 0 (7)
Hickory: 7 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 1 hit, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts
Record: 6-2, tied for 1st, 39-34 overall

SP David Hagaman: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 39 P / 24 S, 0.00 ERA
RP Brock Porter: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.56 ERA
RP Jesus Gamez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0.75 ERA

Delayed by rain in his full-season debut, David Hagaman re-read the team policy memo (“First pitcher to allow a hit buys everyone dinner”) and tossed three innings without a fair knock. Brock Porter had one of his longer and better days. Hickory needed only 85 pitches (about 12 per inning).

Lo-A: Hickory 8, at Salem (BOS) 0 (7)
Hickory: 10 hits, 4 walks, 3 strikeouts
Opponent: 2 hits, 0 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 7-2, , 40-34 overall

SP Caden Scarborough: 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 46 P / 35 S, 4.23 ERA
RP Aneuris Mejia: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 6.69 ERA
RP William Privette: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.29 ERA
SS Devin Fitz-Gerald: 1-1, 3 BB, SB (3), .250/.447/.286
CF Yeremi Cabrera: 2-4, HR (3), SB (22), .239/.356/.315
C Ben Hartl: 2-3, 2B, .215/.352/.264

Younger yet more pro-seasoned than Hagaman, Caden Scarborough lasted four innings without a hit, and the Crawdads again let the opposition know they were in over their heads. Hickory is good, not great, at preventing runs on the whole, but they’re nearly best in hits allowed and seem to at least float the idea of a no-hitter with amazing frequency.  Equally amazing is Scarborough’s 13 walks in 44 innings. Admittedly, my knowledge and first-hand observations were limited entering the season, but my strong impression was that he was very much a work in progress, and I was expecting a fairly messy walk rate.

Recently promoted Devin Fitz-Gerald has a Rickey-Henderson-at-age-42 line, which is fine, I’m not complaining.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 15, Tacoma (SEA) 4
Round Rock: 16 hits, 6 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 6 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 3-2, 1 GB, 37-43 overall

SP Caleb Boushley: 4.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 84 P / 47 S, 1.17 ERA
LF Trevor Hauver: 3-5, .260/.370/.429
CF Kellen Strahm: 2-5, HR (7), .269/.367/.397

The way to avoid squandering a nine-run lead is to build a 13-run lead. Weirdly, 14 of 16 hits were singles. Every batter reached safely at least twice.

Texas released Robert Dugger. The stalwart rotation leader of of a very good 2023 squad, Dugger had been shockingly poor in his return, allowing more runs than innings pitched in six of ten appearances.

AA: Frisco 1, Tulsa (LAD) 6
Frisco: 6 hits, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 4 walks, 15 strikeouts
Record: 2-3, 1 GB, 40-33 overall

SP Mitch Bratt: 5.1 IP, 7 H (2 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, 86 P / 57 S, 2.65 ERA
RP Skylar Hales: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 5.26 ERA
RP Geraldo Carillo: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 5.57 ERA
SS Sebastian Walcott: 1-3, BB, SB (18), .246/.346/.398

The Riders and KTCK The Ticket have partnered to carry Frisco’s remaining Saturday home games. In his first game, podcast partner Sean Bass witnessed Mitch Bratt’s worst outing of the season by a fair margin. Sean will be replaced if this happens again. Bratt’s five runs and two homers were season highs, and the hits and walks tied previous peaks.

Hi-A: Hub City 1, Aberdeen (BAL) 3
Hub City: 7 hits, 2 walks, 14 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 7 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 3-5, 2 GB, 34-39 overall

SP Mason Molina: 5 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 6 SO, 75 P / 45 S, 2.00 ERA
RP Joey Danielson: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.78 ERA
RF Yeison Morrobel: 2-4, .200/.263/.314

Aberdeen scored twice in the 4th when Mason Molina temporarily forgot who and where he was. Two walks, two wild pitches, a balk and a bunt single plus his own throwing error. He rebounded with a perfect 5th. Molina’s a back-end rotation type, not currently on the level of some others I’ve mentioned lately, but it’s possible. I imagine he’s been 6’2″, 230 probably since he was seven years old.

Lo-A: Hickory 1, at Salem (BOS) 6
Hickory: 2 hits, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 5-2, 0.5 GB, 38-34 overall

SP Garrett Horn: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 38 P / 25 S, 0.00 ERA

This is the completion of Friday’s suspended game. The regularly scheduled contest still beckons. Unfortunately, the offense wasn’t informed of the restart until the 9th, and even then, the lone run was due to Salem’s largesse.

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
History is on a planned week-long summer break unless I get frisky. That doesn’t excuse you from the required reading, and don’t forget next Monday’s quiz. Clara is handling my office hours this week.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 12, Tacoma (SEA) 17
Round Rock: 16 hits, 5 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 17 hits, 7 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 2-2, 1 GB, 36-43 overall

SP Michael Plassmeyer: 5 IP, 5 H (2 HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 77 P / 47 S, 4.59 ERA
CF Dustin Harris: 2-5, 2B, .234/.329/.326
3B Cody Freeman: 3-4, 2 BB, SB (7), .321/.372/.500
DH Trevor Hauver: 3-6, 3B, .260/.370/.429
LF Kellen Strahm: 1-4, HR (6), .269/.367/.397
1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, 2B, HBP, .302/.380/.532

The Express led 12-3 after five, after which the Rainers posted four consecutive and increasingly large crooked numbers. Down the the final strike in the 9th, none other than Leody Taveras laced a three-run triple off Luis Curvelo to put Tacoma ahead, and Craig Kimbrel surrendered a two-run homer. Earlier, Taveras committed a ghastly error, jogging into position on an ordinary fly only for the ball to zip over his outstretched glove,allowing two runs to score.

Michael Helman was hitting .246/.306/.451 in 30 games for the Express at the time of his call-up. The Statcast data isn’t especially noteworthy. Helman likes to attack first pitches, tend to hit airborne, and has some pop despite lukewarm exit velocities. Probably more noteworthy is his selection over Dustin Harris. Helman does have more versatility, with the ability to play pretty much anywhere in a pinch, and he bats righty.

AA: Frisco 0, Tulsa (LAD) 11
Frisco: 4 hits, 3 walks, 15 strikeouts
Opponent: 14 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 2-2, tied for 1st, 40-32 overall

SP Ryan Lobus: 1.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 45 P / 29 S, 4.91 ERA
RP Frainyer Chavez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0.00 ERA

One of those nights. IF Frainyer Chavez retired the final side in order on seven pitches.

Hi-A: Hub City 5, Aberdeen (BAL) 6
Hub City: 11 hits, 5 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 3-4, 2 GB, 34-38 overall

SP Dalton Pence: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 33 P / 19 S, 0.00 ERA
LF Keith Jones II: 2-3, 2 SB (14), .274/.408/.461
DH Anthony Gutierrez: 3-5, 2B, .240/.310/.313
2B Casey Cook: 4-5, SB (18), .193/.274/.256

Down by three in the 9th with the bases loaded, Casey Cook lined to the gap, scoring two easily, but the tying run was thrown out at the plate by about one-twelfth of an inch. The runner was John Taylor, signed just yesterday and making his first appearance in affiliated ball as a pinch-runner for Gleider Figuereo. The 24-year-old was undrafted out of UL-Lafayette (a teammate of now-fellow Spartanbuger Julian Brock) and had been pummeling the ball for indy Southern Maryland (.288/.419/.513).

Lo-A: suspended

I’ll pick it up when it concludes.

Elsewhere
The “Blue” Rangers of the Dominican Summer league lost 29-0. 20 hits, 15 walks, four hit batters, seven wild pitches, seven errors, six stolen bases allowed.

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
The 13th-best season by a Texas minor league position player during 2007-2024 belongs to Rougned Odor in 2013.

Odor was among Texas’s top ten prospects essentially from the day he signed in 2011. As a 17-year-old, he bypassed the complex for short-season Spokane, and he joined low-A Hickory the following season. In 2013, he jumped to high-A Myrtle Beach. In a tough park for hitters, Odor batted .305/.369/.454 with just five homers but a combined 37 doubles and triples in an even 100 games. Advanced to AA Frisco, he continued to hit for average while tapping into burgeoning power. He’d moved off shortstop for good after just one season, but he had established himself as a bat of potential All-Star quality and Texas’s top prospect.

The Rangers had no reason to rush him in 2014 since an offseason trade of Ian Kinsler had bestowed the starting role to Jurickson Profar. You know how that went. After scraping by at second with Josh Wilson and Donnie Murphy, Texas called up Odor for his MLB debut in early May. 2024 is recalled as a washout because of so many injuries, but it’s worth remembering that the Rangers still aspired to competitiveness despite all the bad luck, and they were 17-17 and two games out of first when Odor played his first game.

Odor looked like a future star despite some OBP issues but in 2017 commenced a slow, permanent backslide that resulted in a designation for assignment and trade to the Yankees for two minor leaguers of little consequence in 2021. In mid-2023, San Diego released him. He never took the field after signing in Japan and with the Yankees again, and his career appears over, meaning he played his final professional game before he turned 30. 

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 8, Tacoma (SEA) 1
Round Rock: 12 hits, 2 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 2-1, 0.5 GB, 36-42 overall

SP Patrick Murphy: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 39 P / 27 S, 3.54 ERA
1B Blaine Crim: 1-3, BB, .300/.377/.530

Robbie Ahlstrom and Codi Heuer threw scoreless innings. Cody Freeman had a pinch-hit two-run single.

Most of the hitting excitement was from free-agent types on whom I typically don’t spend much time unless they’re truly breaking out. I’ve tended to cover AAA fairly heavily the past couple of years because of my ability to see them in person, their proximity to the Majors, the personnel, and the bonus of Statcast data. Unfortunately, the squad is pretty light in prospects at the moment.

AA: Frisco 6, Tulsa (LAD) 7
Frisco: 4 hits, 7 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 2-1, 0.5 G ahead, 40-31 overall

SP Josh Stephan: 3 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 6 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 63 P / 43 S, 5.28 ERA
RP Daniel Missaki: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 6.17 ERA
RP Josh Mollerus: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
LF Aaron Zavala: 1-5, HR (7), .257/.388/.405
1B Abi Ortiz: 0-0, 4 BB, .226/.338/.387

When I mentioned that most of Texas’s back-end rotation prospects were on course, that doesn’t quite extend to Josh Stephan, who’s still displaying great control but has been a little hittable and a lot homer-able. His 11 surrendered are third-most in the league and second excluding Amarillo pitchers, and his .479 opposing slug is fifth-highest, third excluding Amarillo. Josh Mollerus had a successful AA debut.

Abi Ortiz saw 23 pitches, led off three innings with a walk and scored twice.

David Davalillo is on the development list at the moment and not among the weekend’s scheduled starters. He made his AA debut last Friday.

Hi-A: Hub City 2, Aberdeen (BAL) 7 (7)
Hub City: 7 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 3 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 2-3, , 33-37 overall

SP Josh Trentadue: 3 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO, 58 P / 34 S, 1.32 ERA
RP Josh Sanders: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.93 ERA
RF Keith Jones II: 2-3, BB, .269/.401/.458
3B Rafe Perich: 1-3, 2B

We’ll have to see how Rafe Perich and Gleider Figuereo get along. Both are almost exclusively third basemen as professionals. Perich didn’t destroy low-A but probably would have been in Hub City sooner if not for the presence of Figuereo, who hasn’t hit his way out of the level yet.

Hi-A: Hub City 4, Aberdeen (BAL) 3 (8)
Hub City: 5 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 4 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 3-3, 2 GB, 34-37 overall

SP Kolton Curtis: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 SO, 6 P / 3 S, 6.25 ERA
RP Dylan MacLean: 4 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 2 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 3.90 ERA
RP Eric Loomis: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 2.53 ERA
3B Gleider Figuereo: 1-4, HR (12), .223/.289/.393
SS Casey Cook: 1-2, BB, .180/.264/.245

Curtis departed mid-at-bat after just six pitches. He appeared to be walking gingerly and holding his hip at times, so hopefully whatever’s ailing him isn’t the arm (not to say an injury elsewhere can’t be serious).

Opponents missed on nine of 17 swings against Eric Loomis, who has a four-pitch mix but focused heavily on the four and two-seamers in the area of 93-94 last night.

Lo-A: Hickory 7, at Salem (BOS) 2
Hickory: 13 hits, 4 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 5-1, tied for 1st, 38-33 overall

SP Brooks Fowler: 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 44 P / 24 S, 0.82 ERA
RP Michael Trausch: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 1.99 ERA
LF Maxton Martin: 2-5, 3B, .278/.341/.480
1B Beycker Barroso: 3-5, 2 2B, .214/.343/.268
RF Hector Osorio: 2-3, 3B, BB, .221/.383/.343

Technically, the scheduled starter was David Hagaman. After an hour-long rain delay in the top of the 1st, Brooks Fowler appeared instead. I think that fully explains Hagaman’s absence but will have to check.

Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Lobus
Hi-A: Pence
Lo-A: Horn

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 13, Tacoma (SEA) 4
Round Rock: 17 hits, 5 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 14 hits, 5 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 1-1, 1 GB, 35-42 overall

SP Ty Blach: 5 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 HBP, 3 SO, 84 P / 57 S, 4.20 ERA
CF Michael Helman: 4-6, 2 2B, HR (5), .248/.310/.462
1B Blaine Crim: 3-4, 2B, HR (13), BB, .299/.375/.533
3B Cody Freeman: 4-5, 2B, HR (10), .312/.360/.487
LF Dustin Harris: 2-4, BB, SB (18), .234/.333/.326

Crim’s homer cleared the double-deck roof beyond the berm in left field.

Leody Taveras is among Round Rock’s opponents. Since being outrighted to Tacoma, he’s hitting .250/.313/.273 in 11 games. He’s still just 26, but he’s also broken, as least for now.

AA: Frisco 3, Tulsa (LAD) 1
Frisco: 6 hits, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts
Record: 2-0, 1 G up, 40-30 overall

SP Kohl Drake: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 79 P / 51 S, 2.44 ERA
CF Cam Cauley: 2-4, SB (20), .247/.330/.406
SS Sebastian Walcott: 2-4, .252/.349/.407

Two strikeouts in six innings are unprecedented in Kohl Drake’s pro career, but he still kept the Drillers off the bases. Gavin Collyer and Skylar Hales handled the final two innings.

After a hitless stretch worthy of next year’s Daily Report Primer (0-for-22), Cam Cauley has reached 10 times with four extra-base hits and three steals in his past four games.

Hi-A: wet

Two today.

Lo-A: Hickory 2, at Salem (BOS) 5
Hickory: 7 hits, 8 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts
Record: 4-1, 1 GB, 37-33 overall

SP Enrique Segura: 6.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 69 P / 51 S, 4.10 ERA
SS Devin Fitz-Gerald: 2-4, BB, .300/.440/.350
DH Maxton Martin: 2-4, HR (8), .276/.340/.474
2B Antonis Macias: 1-3, 2B, BB, .267/.425/.332

Yesterday, I mentioned that Hickory had six no-hit starts of at least four innings. That actually entails starters who departed with no hits, not those who might have held the opposition hitless for a lengthy spell but allowed some later. Last night was such an example, as Enrique Segura carried a perfect game into the 7th but departed down a run with another to come. After he retired the first 19 batters on a scant 56 pitches, an honest single, HBP and another single plated the game’s first run. Brock Porter surrendered a three-run homer in the 8th.

Segura was acquired for Daniel Robert, who’s been handled in Philly as he was here, mostly the “down” part of an up-and-down role.

Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Stephan
Hi-A: Curtis  TBD
Lo-A: TBD

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024, Part I
The sixth-best relief season during 2007-2024 belongs to the 2019 season of Demarcus Evans.

Evans was also amazing in 2018, so much so that I can’t discuss it yet. 2019 was a continuation of the previous year’s breakout, putting him on the 40-man roster and the cusp of the Majors, which he would briefly reach during the covid-shortened 2020. I usually deal in ratios and percentages because it makes for better comparisons, but let’s have a peek at Evans’ raw figures from 2019:

60 innings
23 hits
39 walks
100 strikeouts

That is ridiculous. Even during a period in which strikeouts were exploding, Evans still fanned batters 79% more often than the league average. He also walked far more than average, almost immaterial in the minors because he was unhittable, but that lack of control and a downtick in stuff blunted his effectiveness and reliability on the big stage. The Evans entry at Baseball Reference shows him donning the cap of the New York Yankees, where he signed after being non-tendered by the Ranges after 2022. An injury kept him off the field the entire season, and since then, he’s pitched sparingly in indy ball. Cleburne released him after one appearance, but he’s since joined Gary (the city, not some guy named Gary).

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024, Part II
The 13th-best rotation season was, unfortunately, by Edinson Volquez in 2007.

I say “unfortunately” because Volquez had already pitched 45 MLB innings across 2005-2006 and wasn’t the type I would consider a prospect for the purpose of this exercise. Since I’d already covered several players because realizing my mistake, I’m leaving him in. Ranking Volquez cheated Guillermo Moscoso’s 2009 out of the 20th spot on my list. Sorry, Guillermo.

Volquez’s MLB experience was dismal, and the Rangers didn’t believe mere AAA seasoning would be enough to become a worthy big-league pitcher, so they optioned him to high-A. Not just high-A, but high-A Bakersfield, one of professional ball’s worst facilities. Volquez was understandably peeved.

He started off very poorly, walking eight and allowing 14 runs across his first two starts, and only had two quality results in seven starts. Still, Texas bumped him to AA, where he finally began to round into form. Once back in AAA, he routinely lasted seven innings with eight or more strikeouts. In August, he fanned 45 and walked ten in 33 innings with an ERA of 0.55.

The experiment had worked. Volquez rejoined the Texas rotation for six starts and was capable if not captivating. In the offseason, Texas packaged him with reliever Danny Ray Herrera for OF Josh Hamilton. Volquez’s time with Cincy was injured-plagued and only intermittently successful, but in 2008 he made the All-Star team and was fourth in Rookie Of The Year voting. He later rebounded and won a ring with the Royals in 2015.

Rest In Peace
Blue
2010(?) – 2025

Podcast
Sean Bass of Ticket, Michael Tepid and I talked ball this morning. Links at the bottom of email or the here on the website.

First-Half All-Stars
C Cooper Johnson
AA/AAA, .268/.361/.377, 5 HR

Good for Johnson, but catcher aside from Malcolm Moore is thin.

1B Blaine Crim
AAA, .276/.357/.488, 12 HR, 30 BB

Blaine Crim.

2B Antonis Macias
Lo-A, .258/.421/.320, 9 2B, 55 BB

Can Macias take the Yonny Hernandez route to the Majors? One negative factor is the number of games Macias has played at short: zero in 150 career games.

3B Cody Freeman
AAA, .300/.348/.473, 18 2B, 9 HR

Freeman has also played a large handful lof games at short for the first time since 2019.

SS Sebastian Walcott
AA, .244/.345/.404, 16 2B, 8 HR, 12 SB

Not an eye-popping line, but not a worry given his age. He’s fine.

COF Keith Jones II
Hi-A, .266/.397/.463, 10 HR, 44 BB

Statistically the systems’ best first-half hitter.

COF Maxton Martin
Lo-A, .277/.340/.469, 7 HR, 32 XBH, 8 SB

Leads the system in extra-base hits as a 20-year-old after a couple of so-so seasons at the complex.

CF Cam Cauley
AA, .241/.325/.401, 21 XBH, 19 SB

Cauley has played only a third of his games in center, but he belongs on the list somewhere.

Bonus Hitter Aaron Zavala
AA, .265/.400/.405, 14 XBH, 45 BB

I would hope for some AAA action to get a better handle on his resurgence.

Bonus Hitter (Rookie) Devin Fitz-Gerald
Rk/Lo-A, .305/.421/.508, 6 HR, 7 SB

Hit his way out of the complex in a hurry.

SP Mitch Bratt
AA, 62.2 IP, 2.15 ERA, 4% BB/HBP, 30% SO

SP David Davalillo
Hi-A/AA, 55.2 IP, 2.26 ERA, 8% BB/HBP, 32% SO

SP Kohl Drake
AA, 49.1 IP, 2.74 ERA, 11% BB/HBP, 34% SO

SP Josh Trentadue
Hi-A, 38 IP, 1.18 ERA, 9% BB/HBP, 32% SO

SP Leandro Lopez
Hi-A, 53.2 IP, 2.01 ERA, 10% BB/HBP, 29% SO

SP Jose Gonzalez
Hi-A, 52.1 IP, 2.92 ERA, 8% BB/HBP, 28% SO

2025 hasn’t been the most exciting farm season I’ve covered, but one bright spot is that most of the back-end rotation prospects who’ve stayed healthy have progressed nicely.

RP Peyton Gray
AA/AAA, 37.1 IP, 2.65 ERA, 9%, BB/HBP, 24% SO

Destroyed indy ball in 2022-2023 and has pitched to form after losing a year to injury while with Cincy. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen him in person yet. Fastball 93-94, broad mix.

RP Cole Winn
AAA, 23.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 13% BB/HBP, 23% SO

I did throw some cold water on his 0.00 ERA when he was recalled but he’s continued to put zeros on the board despite some walks.

RP Luis Curvelo
AAA, 26.2 IP, 1.69 ERA, 13% BB/HBP, 26% SO

Not exactly screaming for a recall but has pitched well enough to justify the 40 spot given when signed.

RP Codi Heuer
AAA, 30 IP, 3.00 ERA, 12% BB/HBP, 30% SO

Pitched himself back to the bigs after an injury season.

Movement
RHP Josh Mollerus from Hub City to Frisco
LHP Dalton Pence from Hickory to Hub City
C Malcolm Moore activated in Hub City (off IL)
3B Rafe Perich from Hickory to Hub City

Cody Bradford you know about. Now word comes that reliever Marc Church has been placed on the IL with elbow inflammation. Church threw five pitches on Sunday including one fastball at 94.2 (about one tic slower than usual) and four sliders in a range of 82.2-85.2 (compared to his season average of 86.3). 

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 3, Tacoma (SEA) 5
Round Rock: 7 hits, 5 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 2 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 0-1, 1 GB, 34-42 overall

SP Ryan Garcia: 3 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 43 P / 29 S, 9.19 ERA
RP Joe Barlow: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 4.67 ERA
RP Craig Kimbrel: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.86 ERA
3B Cody Freeman: 2-4, BB, .303/.353/.473
1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, 2B, .292/.368/.513
LF Trevor Hauver: 1-1, 2B, 2 BB, HBP, .248/.365/.418

Tyler Locklear’s two-run homer off Luis Curvelo in the 8th put the Rainiers ahead for good. Craig Kimbrel missed on nine of 20 pitches but didn’t get into any trouble like his previous outing.

AA: Frisco 5, Tulsa (LAD) 1
Frisco: 10 hits, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts
Record: 1-0, tied for first, 39-30 overall

SP Ben Anderson: 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 SO, 85 P / 56 S, 3.94 ERA
3B Sebastian Walcott: 2-4, 3 SB (15), .248/.347/.406
SS Cam Cauley: 1-3, 2B, BB, .243/.327/.404
C Ian Moller: 2-3, BB, 2 SB (3), .212/.321/.305

MLB.com showed the game, so viewers were able to see Sebastian Walcott steal three bases for the second time in his career.

Ian Moller woke up feeling spry, I guess, attempting three steals in one game after trying twice in the previous 35 games. Moller actually had an impressive record entering the season, swiping 42 bases against just five caught.

Hi-A: Hub City 4, Aberdeen (BAL) 3
Hub City: 8 hits, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 2 walks, 16 strikeouts
Record: 2-2, 1 GB, 33-36 overall

SP Leandro Lopez: 5 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 1 R, 1 BB, 7 SO, 68 P / 46 S, 1.99 ERA
RP Dalton Pence: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA
RF Keith Jones II: 1-2, 2 BB, .268/.402/.464
DH Anthony Gutierrez: 1-3, BB, 2 SB (21), .230/.303/.300
C Malcolm Moore: 2-4, .294/.467/.471

Hub City has nine 2024 draft picks on the active roster plus another acquired in trade (Mason Molina), two non-drafted 2024 signings (RHP Josh Sanders, C Cal Stark. IF Theo Hardy.

Lo-A: Hickory 8, at Salem (BOS) 0
Hickory: 10 hits, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 0 walks, 6 strikeouts
Record: 4-0, tied for first, 37-32 overall

SP Ismael Agreda: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 60 P / 35 S, 2.33 ERA
RP Grant Cherry: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 4.50 ERA
RP Jake Jekielek: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 6.31 ERA
SS Devin Fitz-Gerald: 2-5, 2B, .250/.400/.313
2B Antonis Macias: 3-5, .266/.424/.327
RF Hector Osorio: 1-2, BB, HBP, .212/.373/.321

Agreda is the sixth Hickory pitcher to throw at least four no-hit innings in a start, so Hickory has either teased or accomplished a no-hitter about once every two weeks.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Blach
AA: Drake
Hi-A: Trentadue
Lo-A: Segura

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 8, at Oklahoma City (LAD) 10
Round Rock: 10 hits, 7 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 16 hits, 6 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 34-41, 15 GB, 8th place of 10, first half over

SP Cory Abbott: 2.1 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 48 P / 30 S, 8.89 ERA
RP Peyton Gray: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.84 ERA
3B Cody Freeman: 2-5, 2B, .300/.348/.473
CF Dustin Harris: 1-5, HR (3), .235/.335/.331
RF Kellen Strahm: 1-2, 2B, 3 BB, SB (26), .274/.375/.396

Round Rock lost five of six at OKC to fall to a season-worst seven games under .500. This is where I’m duty-bound to say that a Texas AAA team has not finished ten or more games below .500 since 1997, a truly remarkable run.

Las Vegas won the first-half title handily (49-26).

AA: Frisco 8, at San Antonio (SDG) 1
Frisco: 11 hits, 6 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 3 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 38-30, 0.5 GB, 3rd place of 5, first half over

SP Trey Supak: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 8 SO, 81 P / 60 S, 4.30 ERA
RP Daniel Missaki: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 6.75 ERA
RP Aidan Anderson: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
CF Cam Cauley: 1-3, 3B, 2 BB, 2 SB (19), .241/.325/.401
1B Abi Ortiz: 2-5, 2B, .224/.318/.388
C Tucker Mitchell: 3-4, 2 SB (3), .211/.246/.257

An important lesson in baseball and life: If you fail, bring others down with you.* Having eliminated Frisco the night before, San Antonio could have claimed the first-half title with either a win or Midland loss.** Midland won earlier in the day, so San Antonio needed another victory.

Instead, Frisco quickly pinned a season-high five runs on Luis Patino, who’d allowed a total of two runs in three previous AA starts. That would be plenty, as Trey Supak and friends continued to dominate Missions hitters. Frisco allowed only 12 runs in the six-game series, a total that would seemingly assure at least three wins and a division title, but alas.

Cam Cauley has improved on an 8.1% walk rate that left him with a sub-.300 OBP last year. This year, it’s, 10.9%, good for an extra 14 times on base if spread over 500 plate appearances. He’s also striking out quite a bit less, but that hasn’t budged his average or power. Regardless, he’s having a pretty good season split almost precisely between second, short and center.

* Please don’t actually live your life this way.

** I’d mistakenly reported on Sunday that Midland’s magic number was one; in fact, San Antonio held that advantage.

Hi-A: Hub City 8, @ Bowling Green (TAM) 2
Hub City: 13 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 1-2, 2 GB, 32-36 overall

SP Jose Gonzalez: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 76 P / 51 S, 2.92 ERA
RP Joey Danielson: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.73 ERA
CF Dylan Dreiling: 1-4, HR (7), .225/.329/.382
3B Gleider Figuereo: 2-5, BB, .222/.290/.382
DH Anthony Gutierrez: 2-5, 2 2B, .228/.300/.299

Jose Gonzalez’s K rate has dipped from 33% last year in low-A to a still-impressive 28% at a higher level. Dreiling hit a grand slam in the 9th to quell any thoughts of a Bowling Green comeback.

Lo-A: Hickory 8, Delmarva (BAL) 5
Hickory: 8 hits, 8 walks, 4 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 9 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 3-0, tied for 1st, 36-32 overall

SP William Privette: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 16 P / 9 S, 3.42 ERA
2B Antonis Macias: 2-4, BB, .258/.421/.320
DH Maxton Martin: 1-4, BB, SB (8), .277/.340/.469
3B Rafe Perich: 1-2, 2 BB, .249/.361/.364

Hickory couldn’t quite claim the division but made a meal of Delmarva, taking five of six and outscoring the Birds by 15 runs. The Crawdads now have a better overall record than Columbia, which won the first-half title but has opened the second half 0-3.

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
The worst Texas-affiliated pitching staff during 2007-2024 is the 2017 Round Rock Express.

Runs allowed: 5.2 per game, 11% worse than park-adjusted league average
ERA-: 115
FIP-: 118
Opposing OPS: 114

This bunch rates 11th-worst of 794 teams, They actually weren’t that bad at run prevention (56th-worst, easily best among the worst-overall 15 staffs) but were lucky to have allowed as “few” runs as they did, ranking 4th-worst in FIP and 14% worse than average in homers and walks.

Round Rock’s road ERA of 6.31 and opposing line of .307/.387/.490 were the worst in the league. True, the Express played in a pitcher’s park, meaning a tougher road schedule than most teams, but the extremely unbalanced schedule prevented an excess of games in the mountains. They didn’t visit Albuquerque, El Paso, Reno or Salt Lake in 2017, so the performance wasn’t as heavily skewed by park factors as you might think (and in any case, my analysis accounts for parks).

The four busiest pitchers were Tyler Wagner, Clayton Blackburn, James Dykstra and Eddie Gamboa. As you doubtlessly remember. On Saturday, I mentioned a tolerance of inflated ERAs in exchange for innings in AAA, but this group extended that to the breaking point, as all but Blackburn posted an ERA of 6.25 or higher. Wagner, Blackburn, Dykstra, Dillon Gee, Tanner Scheppers, Frank Lopez and four others wouldn’t pitch in affiliated ball beyond that season.

Still, an acceptable offense and some luck resulted in a mundane 66-72 record. Since their badness relied more on peripherals and park factors than actual runs allowed, they’re honestly pretty boring compared to their peers. Oh, well.

Since the worst three staffs were all in AAA, here’s the worst at the other levels:
AA: Frisco 2018, 4th-worst of 68 in system
Hi-A: Bakersfield 2007, 8th
Lo-A: Hickory 2017, 7th

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 3, at Oklahoma City (LAD) 4
Round Rock: 7 hits, 11 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 4 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 34-40, eliminated

SP Michael Plassmeyer: 4.1 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 3 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 77 P / 49 S, 4.50 ERA
2B Cody Freeman: 2-4, BB, .298/.348/.416

Round Rock stranded 14. Cody Freeman lost his hitting streak earlier this week but has reached safely in 24 straight (.340/.393/.566).

AA: Frisco 2, at San Antonio (SDG) 3
Frisco: 7 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 4 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 37-30, eliminated

SP Mitch Bratt: 5 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 9 SO, 89 P / 65 S, 2.15 ERA
CF Cam Cauley: 3-4, 2 HR (6), .240/.319/.393
3B Keyber Rodriguez: 2-4, 2B, .262/.310/.357

Frisco has held the division lead outright for 39 games and a portion for nine more, but they don’t lead now and won’t by the end of today. The Riders have lost four of five at San Antonio despite allowing only 11 runs. They’ve scored seven. Since peaking at 31-19, Frisco has lost 11 of 17, permitting only 3.8 runs per game but scoring just 2.9.

Cam Cauley nearly won the game by himself, leading off a rain-delayed 1st with a solo homer and retying the contest with another solo homer in the 8th. Veteran Keyber Rodriguez doubled for the third time this week, but additional help was not forthcoming. Abi Ortiz is o-for-16 with two walks and ten strikeouts this week, Sebastian Walcott is 3-for-21 with two walks, and Cauley himself was o-for-16 entering the day. It’s been a tough week.

Mitch Bratt was solid per usual. San Antonio broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th in especially aggravating fashion. After a leadoff double and sacrifice, Travis MacGregor intentionally walked Francisco Acuna and struck out Devin Ortiz. MacGregor then walked Brandon Valenzuela on eight pitches to load the bases and hit Moises Gomez on the sixth pitch after an 0-2 start. San Antonio’s walk-off sequence was textbook: walk, sacrifice, single. Some individual relief performances have been frustrating, but on the whole the pitchers have held their part of the bargain and then some.

Midland owns the tiebreaker and would clinch with either a win or San Antonio loss.

Hi-A: Hub City 1, @ Bowling Green (TAM) 7
Hub City: 7 hits, 2 walks, 13 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 8 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 0-2, 31-36 overall, 2 GB

SP Mason Molina: 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 4 SO, 73 P / 48 S, 0.00 ERA
RF Keith Jones II: 2-4, HR (10), .266/.397/.467

Seth Clark walked five straight to open the 7th, and Bowling Green would eventually score four. Keith Jones is seventh in the league with his ten homers and also fifth in doubles (13) and third in walks (44). Jones is among 13 ninth-rounders last year drafted out of college and signed for under $100,000. Of course, upside is always hoped for, but the basic requirement for such a hitter is quality performance at the A levels, and Jones has certainly provided that.

Lo-A: Hickory 6, Delmarva (BAL) 4
Hickory: 10 hits, 6 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Record: 2-0, 35-32 overall, tied for 1st

SP Caden Scarborough: 3 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 40 P / 30 S, 4.65 ERA
RP Thomas Ireland: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 2.83 ERA
LF Maxton Martin: 2-3, 2 2B, .277/.339/.473
RF Hector Osorio: 1-3, HR (3), BB, .206/.367/.321

Scarborough’s 40 pitches were a season low, for workload purposes I would assume. In the past 22 games, Hickory has outscored the opposition by 60 runs but is only 13-9, courtesy of a 1-6 record in one-run games. Hickory has a history of such misfortune (see below).

Today’s Starters
AAA: Abbott
AA: Supak
Hi-A: Gonzalez
Lo-A: TBD

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
The unluckiest Texas-affiliated team (and sixth-unluckiest of 794 teams in my database) during 2007-2024 is the 2021 high-A Hickory Crawdads.

Record: 46-68
Run-Differential Record: 56-58
Component Record: 56-58

These Crawdads have the worst winning percentage (.409) of any Texas full-season team in the past 18 years. Purely in terms of runs and components, they’re perhaps 25th-worst. They weren’t good, starting the season 4-11 and never seriously hinting at a return to .500, but they somehow managed to go 20-17 in blowouts (margin of 5+ runs) and 26-51 in closer games including 9-22 in one-run contests.

On the morning of August 25th, Hickory had a record of 45-52 and a run differential of positive 37. Hickory then reeled off 16 consecutive losses, only three by one run, so this particular period was fairly well-earned. Future Majors Leaguers participating in the streak were Jonathan Ornelas, Dustin Harris, Ezequiel Duran, Grant Wolfram and Justin Slaten. Jared Walker, a 25-year-old ex-Dodger signed to help out, did not help out, going 3-for-50 with 30 strikeouts in this stretch. Bad weather and covid outbreaks capsized the season-ending series at Rome. The teams played only three of six games, and Hickory finally won 7-1 on a Friday night that turned out to be a season finale.

Texas has recalled Justin Foscue to replace the injured Jake Burger. Foscue has continued to hit quite well in Round Rock, trading a few walks for a slight uptick in power. He’s essentially the Foscue you know, and certainly a better hitter than what he displayed in the Majors last year, but as to whether he’ll have much of a chance to prove it, who can say. Ezequiel Duran is starting at first today, and Josh Smith is the DH.

Let’s all watch David Davalillo warm up.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 13, at Oklahoma City (LAD) 4
Round Rock: 11 hits, 7 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Record: 34-39, eliminated

SP Ty Blach: 5 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 91 P / 64 S, 4.28 ERA
RP Joe Barlow: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 4.96 ERA
RP Robby Ahlstrom: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.22 ERA
RP Codi Heuer: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.83 ERA
3B Cody Freeman: 2-5, .295/.343/.470
1B Blaine Crim: 1-3, 2 BB, .292/.370/.522
DH Billy McKinney: 3-4, 2 HR (2), BB, .276/.425/.431
C Cooper Johnson: 3-5, 2B, .218/.346/.299

Round Rock broke its losing streak with malice against Kyle Funkhouser (4 IP, 11 R), who was in the Texas system in 2023 but barely appeared because of injuries. Texas signed the 30-year-old McKinney last month after he’d been released by the Mets. He’s played in the Majors in parts of the past seven seasons, but an eighth, particularly as a Ranger, will take some doing.

AA: Frisco 1, at San Antonio (SDG) 2
Frisco: 6 hits, 1 walk, 16 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 37-29, 0.5 GB, magic number 3 (MID) and 4 (SAT)

SP David Davalillo: 4.2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 2 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 75 P / 46 S, 3.86 ERA
RP Ryan Lobus: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.97 ERA
RP Larson Kindreich: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.72 ERA
RP Geraldo Carillo: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 5.50 ERA
LF Aaron Zavala: 2-4, .276/.411/.422

I traveled to San Antonio to see David Davalillo’s AA debut and the rest of the Riders. The 22-year-old has emerged as one of Texas’s better pitching prospects and joins an already impressive rotation. Davalillo had a good night, not awe-inspiring but solid, workmanlike. He exhibited confidence in his whole repertoire and didn’t let occasional misfortune like a 1st-inning solo homer affect him. Two years ago at this time, Davalillo’s stateside output consisted of 2.2 innings a the complex.

His fastball ranged from 91 to 94, tending toward the higher side early and nearly always 91 late. He threw it slightly less than 50% of the time and didn’t miss any bats with it. It served to set up other pitches. I’ve seen a more effective version, and it’s quite possible he wasn’t working with his best stuff last night. Next in usage was a sweepy low-80s slider, then a low-80s splitter and handful of upper-70s curves. The splitter impressed the most, generating five of his six swinging strikes and getting him out of a first-and-third, one-out situation unharmed. The sweeper and curve were capable, if not at the level of the splitter. I’ve have video later. Davalillo profiles as a back-end starter.

Unfortunately, Sebastian Walcott had an utterly forgettable day, striking out in three of four at-bats at the DH. I have video, which I will transfer to VHS and burn in my backyard.

Aaron Zavala’s two hits exited at 102 and 107 MPH. With the exception of last night, my data on him is essentially limited to anecdotes, but I can cautiously offer that he looks much more like the 2022 version than the hampered post-surgery 2023-24 Zavala. Left field can be a minefield on a windy early evening in San Antonio, but he caught some tricky, tailing flies with ease.

Down 2-0 in the 7th, Keyber Rodriguez doubled in Josh Hatcher to trim the lead. With two out, Frainyer Chavez lined a single to center, but OF Nerwilian Cedeno threw out Rodriguez at the plate to prevent the tying run. Purportedly. The Riders to a man and some relatively neutral observers near me behind the plate believed otherwise. A safe call wouldn’t have given Frisco the win, of course, but certainly changes the outlook. The Riders couldn’t muster a rally in the final two innings, and five of the six outs were strikeouts.

Frisco must win today and tomorrow in San Antonio, and Midland must lose at least once. Best as I can tell, Frisco has never been in third place in the division until now.

Frisco is understandably mad at the world right now. Once in the catbird seat with the title in view, they’ve scored five runs in four games and struck out 62 times. Putative Sunday starter Trey Supak was ejected mid-game for arguing balls and strikes. Rodriguez was ejected before he could even stand up from his slide in the 7th, and manager Carlos Cardoza quickly followed. Opposing players were jawing at each other during the game, and the benches emptied after its completion. I recall a conversation with Express (and now Missions) CEO Reid Ryan, who was involved in the reconfiguration of the minor league system. While the six-games-on, one-game-off format is a huge net positive, one downside is elongated exposure to sources of negativity. Prior to 2021, Frisco would have hopped a bus out of town after last night’s game. Now, they’ll see the same opponent and umpiring crew today and tomorrow. Hold tight.

Hi-A: Hub City 5, @ Bowling Green (TAM) 12
Hub City: 11 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 6 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 0-1, 1GB

SP Kolton Curtis: 4 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 5 R, 3 BB, 5 SO, 69 P / 37 S, 6.37 ERA
LF Keith Jones II: 1-4, HR (9), BB, .262/.395/.452
CF Dylan Dreiling: 2-5, SB (9), .225/.333/.374
3B Gleider Figuereo: 2-4, HR (11), .217/.284/.382
DH Anthony Gutierrez: 1-4, BB, SB (19), .224/.297/.286

Kolton Curtis allowed all the runs in a 30-pitch 1st and allowed a single baserunner thereafter. Dylan Dreiling is working toward getting back on track after a thin May (.178/.288/.333) and time missed with wrist soreness.

Lo-A: Hickory 11, Delmarva (BAL) 3
Hickory: 13 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 4 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 1-0, tied for first

SP Garrett Horn: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 SO, 45 P / 27 S, 0.00 ERA
RP Brock Porter: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 3.26 ERA
1B Pablo Guerrero: 3-5, 2B, .216/.289/.333
CF Yeremi Cabrera: 3-5, 2 SB (21), .243/.364/.311
RF Marcos Torres: 2-4, 3B, .248/.336/.413

Delayed by injury, 2024 6th-rounder Garrett Horn is making up for list time, manhandling complex competition (13 K in 6.1 IP) and striking out five of ten batters in his full-season debut. Brock Porter’s walk/HBP rate of 16% is actually slightly better than 2023 (17%), when we acknowledged the problematic control but were awed at his ability to miss bats and squash meaningful contact. This year, the strikeout rate is good (27%) but lower, and he’s allowed more extra-base hits, although if you’d told me have have a .172/.304/.336 at the midway point, I’d be more than satisfied given what transpired in 2024. He was always a high-risk, high-variance project, and we’ll just have to see how things play out.

Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Bratt
Hi-A: Molina
Lo-A: TBD

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
Alas, it’s not all rainbows and puppy dogs here at The Lucas Report. My history lessons also include some of the worst performances and teams during 2007-2024, starting today. That said, I’m reducing my original plan of covering the five worst teams and three worst offenses and defenses because of excessive overlap. The three worst offenses are subsets of the four worst teams, so I’ll cover the offenses within the team writeups. The three worst pitching staffs are all in AAA during a relatively confined period, so I’ll skip the third, Round Rock in 2018. (Fourth-worst was Frisco in 2018. We’ll cover that squad later. Will we ever.)

The second-worst pitching performance was by the AAA Express in 2012.

Runs allowed: 5.2 per game, 11% worse than park-adjusted league average
ERA-: 111
FIP-: 115
Opposing OPS: 108

5.2 runs per game sounds respectable in the Pacific Coast League, but at the time, Round Rock was the Seattle or San Diego of parks, extremely pitcher-friendly. Much of the problem was the two gentlemen who by themselves supplied a quarter of the team’s innings. First was former Colorado second-overall pick Greg Reynolds, who provided 163 frames but allowed 5.96 runs per nine. Closely behind was Zack Jackson with 158.1 innings and 5.8 runs per nine allowed. Those aren’t strong performances, to be sure, but in a time of 12-man pitching staffs, inning-eaters were enormously valuable. Reynolds lasted at least five innings in 25 of 27 starts, Jackson in 24 of 27. Some prospects didn’t have much fun, including Neil Ramirez (74 IP, 7.66 ERA) and Mark Hamburger (45 IP, 6.55 IP).

Round Rock wasn’t terrible at suppressing homers or walks, but a league-worst 16% K rate left them at the whims of the BABIP gods. Reynolds in particular stopped striking out batters the day he was drafted from Stanford, and his rate in Round Rock was an impossibly low 9.5%. The top six in innings, responsible for more than half the team’s innings, had a combined 13% K rate. That’s a tough way to do business in the PCL.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 6, at Oklahoma City (LAD) 7
Round Rock: 9 hits, 5 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 9 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 33-39, eliminated

SP Dane Dunning: 3.2 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 1 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 66 P / 39 S, 4.47 ERA
CF Dustin Harris: 2-4, BB, 2 SB (16), .237/.341/.322
DH Michael Helman: 2-4, 2B, HR (4), .245/.311/.447

Round Rock’s five-game losing streak consists of three blowouts and two in which they recovered from a huge deficit only to lose late. Last night was the latter, as the Express scored five in the 9th to knot the game at six, only for Craig Kimbrel to surrender a single and three walks in the bottom half. 16 of his 31 pitches were balls, nearly all out glove-side. I was asked on social media if the experiment should end immediately, and I guess my answer would be something like “meh.” He’s not on the 40 and not occupying a more deserving reliever’s spot with the Express (the staff already contains two “just in case” types), and there’s a non-zero chance he could be the best option for Texas if someone is needed. Perhaps he’s released today, who knows, but I don’t see the harm in him hanging around if both sides are amenable.

Notably, Kimbrel had thrown 21 pitches the night before. Perhaps last night was a test of what he might offer the Rangers, but he’s been around forever, so pitching on consecutive days doesn’t sound the alarm in his case.

Marc Church also walked three and allowed three hits and four runs while retiring one batter.

AA: Frisco 2, at San Antonio (SDG) 1
Frisco: 10 hits, 3 walks, 14 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 37-28, 0.5 G up, magic number 3 (MID) and 4 (SAT)

SP Josh Stephan: 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 87 P / 60 S, 4.75 ERA
RP Skylar Hales: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 5.56 ERA
LF Aaron Zavala: 2-5, .271/.409/.420
RF Josh Hatcher: 3-4, HR (8), BB, SB (9), .285/.310/.443
C Ian Moller: 3-4, .211/.317/.312

Josh Hatcher played the hero with a two-run homer in the 3rd, and the pitchers and defense made it stick. Josh Stephan has consecutive seven-inning outings, and the Riders have consecutive seven-inning starts. Might as well be 2010; we need an appearance from Wilfredo Boscan. Anyway, San Antonio’s Brandon Valenzuela, last night’s walk-off hitter, created some unwanted drama by leading off the 9th with a sharp single off Skylar Hales, but he would advance no father as Hales retired the rest in order.

Last night wasn’t technically a must-win but might as well have been. Frisco, San Antonio and Midland now sit equal with 37 wins, but the Riders hold the lead by virtue of an earlier cancelled game that leaves them with 28 losses versus 29 for the others. To claim the division, Frisco must take two of the next three and match Midland’s win total.

Into this situation steps 22-year-old David Davalillo for his AA debut. Yours truly will be there tonight.

Hi-A: Hub City 3, @ Bowling Green (TAM) 1
Hub City: 6 hits, 1 walk, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 5 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 31-34, 3.5 GB, 3rd place of 6, first half over

SP Dylan MacLean: 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 37 P / 31 S, 3.80 ERA
RP Anthony Susac: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 3.91 ERA
RP Adonis Villavicencio: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 4.18 ERA
CF Dylan Dreiling: 2-4, HR (6), .220/.332/.373

Hub City took advantage of Hangover Day (opposing Bowling Green clinched the division the night before) to end a lengthy losing streak. The Spartanburgers will continue to play Bowling Green through the weekend, but the games now apply to the second half.

Lo-A: Hickory 4, Delmarva (BAL) 5
Hickory: 4 hits, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 5 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 33-32, 2.5 GB, 4th place of 6, first half over

SP Brooks Fowler: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 50 P / 30 S, 0.00 ERA
RP J’Brielle Easley: 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.55 ERA
SS Devin Fitz-Gerald: 1-3, 2 BB, 2 SB (2)
1B Antonis Macias: 1-3, BB, SB (2), .257/.422/.322
RF Marcos Torres: 1-4, HR (3), .239/.331/.393

Welcome to full-season ball, Devin Fitz-Gerald.

Antonis Macias finished the first half with 52 walks. The last Texas minor leaguer to reach triple digits was Carlos Pena with 101 for AA Tulsa in 2000. Pena needed 138 games, 15 more than Macias will achieve if he plays every remaining game, which he won’t. Macias is walking 36% more often than Pena but within a league with a 25% higher walk rate.

KC-affiliated Columbia won the division with a 36-30 record. Kannapolis held the lead last week but concluded with seven straight losses.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Plassmeyer
AA: Davalillo
Hi-A: Curtis
Lo-A: TBD

Rangers Minor League History, 2007-2024
Now, the unluckiest full-season teams. Coming in third are the 2011 high-A Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

Record: 72-67
Run-Differential Record: 76-63
Component Record: 82-57
 
The Pelicans batted .256/.328/.372 versus the opponents’ .240/.305/.345. That difference should amount to a differential of over 100 runs, but the Pelicans outscored the opposition by only 57. Also, over one-third of their games were decided by a single run, and their record was only 23-27. Myrtle Beach did make the playoffs, and I watched the clinching game in person (see Joe Wieland below). Unfortunately, a team built around terrific pitching (which will be discussed down the road) fell short in the postseason, surrendering 24 runs across three losses to Kinston in the league semi-finals.

In second place are the AAA 2010 Oklahoma City Redhawks.

Record: 73-70
Run-Differential Record: 78-65
Component Record: 80-63

Like the Pelicans, OKC had the league’s best pitching and a bland offense resulting in a large difference in slashes (.271/.349/.421 hitting, .265/.333/.395 pitching) and a margin of over one-half run per game. That should have resulted in a win percentage of around .550 instead of a scant measure above .500. Also like the Pelicans, the Redhawks weren’t overly punished, still reaching the postseason in a weak division, but they too were eliminated in the first round by Memphis.