Scott Lucas

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 9, El Paso (SDG) 4
Round Rock: 12 hits, 6 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 5 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 26-16, tied for first

SP AJ Alexy: 5 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 4 R, 3 BB, 6 SO, 92 P / 55 S, 6.57 ERA
RP Ryder Ryan: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.18 ERA
RP Yerry Rodriguez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 7.63 ERA
CF Bubba Thompson: 2-5, SB (21), .319/.331/.426
3B Josh Smith: 3-3, 2B, BB, SB (7), .277/.383/.394
C Yohel Pozo: 2-3, 2 BB, .337/.378/.462

Round Rock scored seven after having two outs and none on in the 5th, aided substantially by El Paso’s sloppy defense. Josh Smith led off with a single, stole second, and was tagged trying to get a head start toward third during Leody Taveras’s at-bat. Smith redeemed himself with a two-run double later in the inning.

Bubba Thompson has been singles-heavy of late and isn’t walking at all, but he’s still reaching at a solid pace. He’s also running at will. By my imperfect count, Thompson has reached first 19 times in his last 13 games, and he’s stolen 14 bases in that span. (I’m using reaching first safely as a very loose proxy for stolen base opportunities; the actual calculations are too onerous to deal with right now.)

My daughter waved at Ryder Ryan and he waved back. A few minutes later, Ryan sent down three Chihuahuas on 13 pitches. Be nice to my daughter and success will follow.

I wasn’t watching AJ Alexy carefully, but the stats matched what I saw.

Nomar Mazara collected three singles and a walk for El Paso. He signed with San Diego in mid-March after spending eight months without a job. Mazara’s hitting .340/.442/.576, which has to be downgraded in the context of where he plays, but on the other hand, he’s also hitting well in the PCL’s small number of pitcher-friendlier parks. Perhaps he’ll get another shot, as the Padres aren’t getting much from their outfield and DH spots right now. Had potential been achieved, Mazara would be in his walk year as a Ranger, gearing toward a free agent contract at the age of 27, or perhaps he’d already signed to an extension. Mazara is younger than Willie Calhoun and Nick Solak.

AA: Frisco 7, Corpus Christi (HOU) 6
Frisco: 14 hits, 4 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 3 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 22-17, 2 G up

SP Zak Kent: 1 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 21 P / 16 S, 5.82 ERA
RP Justin Slaten: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 7 SO, 4.57 ERA
RP Chase Lee: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 0.00 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 4-5, 2B, 3B, SB (2), .362/.399/.497
1B Blaine Crim: 3-5, .300/.364/.536
SS Ezequiel Duran: 2-4, 2B, .304/.356/.561
RF Josh Stowers: 2-3, BB, SB (8), .235/.333/.347

Listed starter Justin Slaten entered after an opening inning from Zak Kent, who’d started Tuesday. Opponents are hitting .091/.206/.091 against Chase Lee, who’s allowed five singles and seven walks as May draws near a close.

In the last two weeks, Frisco has scored 7.4 runs per game (and allowed 7.3). Scoring is up nearly a run per game versus 2021. Ezequiel Duran’s team-leading .561 slugging percentage is only 13th-best in the league, and JP Martinez’s .441 OBP ranks 9th. Jonathan Ornelas’s .362 average does top the league list.

High-A: Hickory 8, at Greenville (BOS) 5
Hickory: 12 hits, 6 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 5 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 22-16, 1 GB

SP Mason Englert: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 6 SO, 88 P / 56 S, 3.60 ERA
RP Spencer Mraz: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 5.79 ERA
RP Eudrys Manon: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 4.91 ERA
RF Aaron Zavala: 2-3, 2B, 2 BB, .275/.442/.400
LF Evan Carter: 2-4, BB, .308/.381/.508
DH Trevor Hauver: 1-3, HR (5), 2 BB, .237/.402/.430
2B Thomas Saggese: 2-4, 2 2B, .268/.321/.394
1B Frainyer Chavez: 2-4, 2B, SB (3), .319/.410/.389

Trevor Hauver batted .500/.609/1.278 with four homers in six games at Greenville. A good reminder not to place too much stock in any small number of games, even those you see in person. Imagine if I’d seen those games from Hauver instead of the .154/.313/.154 line he produced while I visited Hickory.

Hickory took five of six against the Drive, scoring 7.6 runs per game. Aaron Zavala batted .435/.500/.565, Evan Carter .360/.385/.640.

Brought in with a runner on second and a four-run lead in the 5th, Marc Church was unusually hittable, giving up a double and homer to cut the lead to one.

Low-A: Down East 5, at Carolina (MIL) 3
Down East: 9 hits, 4 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 16-23, 5.5 GB

SP Larson Kindreich: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 62 P / 41 S, 2.03 ERA
CF Alejandro Osuna: 2-5, 2B, HR (5), SB (11), .348/.420/.539
RF Marcus Smith: 1-5, HR (4), .160/.331/.330
SS Maximo Acosta: 1-3, 2B, BB, .235/.336/.339

Pitching on Sunday for the first time, Larson Kindreich dominated again. Aside from some control lapses, the 22-year-old has been virtually untouchable. Opponents are hitting .151/.266/.208 with no homers.

Two days after losing a four-run lead with two out in the 9th, the Woodies found themselves in a similar situation. Up 5-0 in the final frame, Winston Santos surrendered two singles and a walk to start the inning. All would score and more would reach, forcing Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa’s entrance with two out and the winning run at the plate. A swinging strikeout prevented another amazing comeback by the Mudcats.

Today’s Starters
AAA: off
AA: off
Hi-A: off
Lo-A: off

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Jurickson Profar was 4-5 with two doubles. I was confused as to why he was appearing so frequently in the 2017 reports until I realized I was off on my years. I thought 2016 was Profar’s last lengthy spell in AAA, but no. Profar had been optioned in late April and would spend only about ten more days in MLB in 2017. He was pointedly not recalled in September, leaving him seven days short of another full year of service time and extending Texas’s control through 2020. Offhand, it’s the only prominent example I can recall of the Rangers handling someone’s service time in such a fashion, and even then, this wasn’t a Kris Bryant situation. Profar had received two years of time during 2014-2015 without a single MLB plate appearance, as injuries limited him to a few minor league games. He was Super 2 arbitration-eligible after 2015 despite only 94 MLB games. (Incidentally, Nomar Mazara was on pace to reach the required six years of service for free agency in six years flat, until his hitting troubles prevented it. Texas brought him up less than a week into the 2016 season, and he was never subsequently optioned.)

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 3, El Paso (SDG) 4
Round Rock: 7 hits, 5 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 7 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 25-16, tied for first

SP Jake Latz: 3 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 1 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 59 P / 36 S, 4.79 ERA
RP Daniel Robert: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 7.36 ERA
RP Demarcus Evans: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 9.00 ERA
RP Dan Winkler: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO, 3.78 ERA
3B Davis Wendzel: 1-4, HR (6), .208/.293/.377
CF Josh Smith: 1-4, BB, SB (6), .261/.369/.373

Not to detract from his success, but Davis Wendzel hit one of the softest homers possible: 90 MPH off the bat at an angle of 30 degrees. Computer error crossed my mind, but MLB hitters have 28 homers at that speed during 2019-2021, although none at a 30-degree angle. It’s not impossible, just very rare.

Demarcus Evans is back. Evans had pitched during spring training but spent the first six weeks of the season without an assignment. His fastball was in the 90-92 range, significantly lower than his peak but actually a tick or two higher than what I saw last September and heard in March. The curve (75-78) has returned as the primary breaker. These are velocity ranges necessitating better command than Evans has traditionally shown, so we’ll see how this transpires.

AA: Frisco 8, Corpus Christi (HOU) 2
Frisco: 9 hits, 4 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 3 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 21-17, 2 G up

SP Cole Ragans: 6 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 3 BB, 9 SO, 99 P / 57 S, 2.83 ERA
RP Grant Anderson: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 1.61 ERA
RP Fernery Ozuna: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO, 2.89 ERA
1B Blaine Crim: 2-3, 2B, BB, .289/.357/.533
2B Ezequiel Duran: 2-4, 2B, .299/.352/.556
LF Dustin Harris: 3-4, 2 HR, (7), SB (8), .268/.362/.472

Dustin Harris had a day. He’s now homering at a slightly better pace than 2021 and drawing more walks/HBPs. In the other direction are his average (.268 vs. 327) and strikeouts 22% vs. 15%).

High-A: Hickory 15, at Greenville (BOS) 11
Hickory: 14 hits, 6 walks, 4 strikeouts
Opponent: 11 hits, 4 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 21-16, 2 GB

SP Owen White: 5.2 IP, 4 H (2 HR), 6 R, 4 BB, 8 SO, 95 P / 61 S, 5.08 ERA
LF Trevor Hauver: 3-4, 2 2B, HR (4), BB, .233/.393/.400

Hickory mostly singled Greenville to death: two from Aaron Zavala, Evan Carter, Frainyer Chavez, and Cody Freeman. Trevor Hauver is getting his name in the report more frequently, and not for drawing walks. Hauver’s slugging percentage was a lowly .227 just a week ago. Since then: three homers, two doubles, three singles.

Owen White had a mixed night. Plenty of strikeouts, hard to hit, but three of four hits were triples or homers.

Low-A: Down East 1, at Carolina (MIL) 2
Down East: 6 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 4 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 15-23, 6.5 GB

SP Mitch Bratt: 3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 53 P / 35 S, 4.09 ERA
RP Damian Mendoza: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 2.08 ERA
RP Dylan MacLean: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.25 ERA
CF Alejandro Osuna: 2-4, .345/.421/.509
DH Marcus Smith: 1-4, HR (3), .157/.336/.303

Dylan MacLean is Texas’s 4th-round pick from 2021, assigned to Down East late last week. I didn’t mention it previously because I mixed his name with the similarly named DJ McCarty, an undrafted signing who pitched alongside MacLean last summer with similar, walk-heavy results. MacLean was the last of the five 2020 picks (Foscue, Carter, Roby, MacLean, Saggese) to reach full-season ball and was exceptionally wild in rookie ball, with 19 walks, three hit batters and six wild pitches in 17 innings). Conversely, in four innings with Down East, his totals in those three negative stats are zero, zero and zero.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Alexy
AA: Slaten
Hi-A: Englert
Lo-A: Santos

Five Years Ago Yesterday
In a 5-0 victory for Round Rock, Jurickson Profar drove in the final run on a ten-pitch, bases-loaded walk. Oft-clobbered Allen Webster threw seven scoreless. My daughter cheered for the correct team (instead of her favorite uniform color), ate a grilled cheese sandwich and ran the bases after the game. 

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 8, El Paso (SDG) 3
Round Rock: 11 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 7 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 25-15, 1 G up

SP Spencer Howard: 4 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 3 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 67 P / 48 S, 6.10 ERA
RP Jason Bahr: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 6.65 ERA
RP Hever Bueno: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.79 ERA
DH Zach Reks: 1-4, 2B, BB, .292/.395/.477
SS Davis Wendzel: 1-3, BB, .206/.295/.357

Every Express batter had a hit. Exactly one, save two for 1B Elier Hernandez and 2B Nash Knight.

Willie Calhoun (off Friday) is not yet hitting in a way to return him to Arlington in short order or draw opposing interest: .220/.289/.293. He’s swinging and missing at an extraordinarily low rate, but his combined rate of popups, grounders and softer-than-average contact is 66%, highest on the team.

Spencer Howard was what you see above. He wasn’t hit especially hard, but enough balls in play landed unfavorably. Opponents are hitting .304/.373/.478 in three AAA starts against him, including a .448 average on balls in play. Howard does have 16 strikeouts in 10.1 innings.

AA: Frisco 9, Corpus Christi (HOU) 11
Frisco: 12 hits, 5 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 2 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 20-17, 1 G up

SP Jack Leiter: 3.2 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 6 SO, 83 P / 52 S, 6.38 ERA
RP Chase Lee: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA
RP Lucas Jacobsen: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 2.13 ERA
SS Jonathan Ornelas: 3-5, 2B, .360/.399/.482
CF JP Martinez: 3-4, 2B, HR (6), BB, .333/.445/.576
2B Justin Foscue: 2-4, BB, .309/.424/.543
1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, 2B, .280/.346/.515

Through three innings, Jack Leiter allowed a lone runner while striking out five, and I joked on twitter that “what happened last week in Tulsa [stayed] in Tulsa.” Control wasn’t great — Leiter reached a three-ball count on five of ten batters — but his fastball, slider and curve were menacing.

And then… Leiter hit a batter on a 2-2 count and allowed three consecutive singles. He recorded the next two outs, but a hard grounder up the middle that just eluded both his glove and Justin Foscue’s, a grounded double just inside the line, and a seven-pitch walk ended his night with four in and three on. And then… reliever Tyler Thomas surrendered a grand slam. Not that Leiter doesn’t deserve those runs, but the ERA difference between a third out and a grand slam is a whopping 1.17.

The nice thing about minor league ball is we can compartmentalize. Chase Lee and Lucas Jacobsen were great! The offense was terrific! Down 11-2 in the 6th, Frisco managed to bring the tying run to the plate in the 8th and 9th.

I forgot to mention that Texas released Matt Carpenter. Carpenter was hitting just fine but not not forcing the issue. Arguably, he might offer more than Brad Miller or Andy Ibanez, but his 2020-2021 record calls that into question. Also, Miller’s not going anywhere, and Texas needs to find out whether Ibanez has a future. It was always a weird fit. Carpenter didn’t become a regular for St. Louis until 2021, so I can wish him well without underlying bitterness.

High-A: Hickory 9, at Greenville (BOS) 7
Hickory: 14 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 20-16, 3 GB

SP Nick Krauth: 5 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 72 P / 55 S, 5.10 ERA
RF Aaron Zavala: 2-4, 2B, BB, .261/.434/.387
C Cody Freeman: 1-5, HR (6), .228/.319/.426
LF Trevor Hauver: 3-4, HR (3), .209/.376/.326
CF Angel Aponte: 3-3, HR (1), BB, .333/.403/.444

I’d mentioned that Destin Dotson’s control problems vanished while I visited Hickory. Last night he walked four of ten batters but managed to complete 2.1 innings with just one run allowed. Marc Church replaced him with one out and the bases loaded and managed to strand two.

Trevor Hauver is hitting .279/.415/.419 in May. At last, some hits are joining his prodigious walk total.

Low-A: Down East 6, at Carolina (MIL) 8
Down East: 6 hits, 8 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 4 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 15-22, 6.5 GB

SP Josh Stephan: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 8 SO, 86 P / 54 S, 4.55 ERA
DH Yosy Galan: 1-4, HR (6), .274/.367/.505
CF Daniel Mateo: 2-3, 2 BB, SB (8), .220/.281/.303
3B Junior Paniagua: 2-4, 2 2B, .208/.260/.333

Trying to close out a 6-2 lead, Leury Tejeda struck out the first two batters. And then… (yes, we’re doing “and then” again, and this one is worse)… Tejeda allowed four straight runners to cut the lead in half. On came Jackson Leath, making just his second pro appearance. I happened to sit at my computer just as he entered and thought “nice time to get a first look at him.” Well, I don’t know if Leath was nervous or just had a bad day or both. We’re all human. Leath’s first toss bounced in front of the catcher’s circle, so, maybe a 50-ft. pitch. He then induced an easy comebacker but threw wide of first to extend the inning. Hendry Mendez swatted the next pitch the opposite way just inside the pole for a game-ending grand slam.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Latz
AA: Ragans
Hi-A: White
Lo-A: TBD (Bratt/Kindreich)

Ten Years Ago Yesterday
How about Martin Perez? I’m thrilled he’s pitching so well.By coincidence, ten years ago yesterday I offered this gloomy assessment:

Martin Perez looked like a man defeated yesterday. I’ve never seen him throw worse. In three exhaustingly prolonged innings, Perez allowed seven runs on eight hits, four walks and four strikeouts. He threw 85 pitches to record nine outs, including 41 in his final inning. For most of his outing, Perez had no functional fastball. The velocity was present — he ranged anywhere from 89 to 95 in the 1st — but it mostly existed in a binary state of missing badly or running over the heart of the plate.  In later innings, he appeared to pull back slightly in order to throw more strikes, to little avail. He was also throwing across his body. By far, his best pitch was his changeup, and by my rough count he threw 25 of them including at least eight of 14 pitches in the second. Three of his four third strikes were on changes. As is often the case, he suffered more than his fair share of misfortune. Several hits wafted lazily over the infield, and the defense didn’t provide all the support it could.  He also committed his own error on an pickoff throw, but I’d pin that one firmly on 2B Yangervis Solarte, whose hesitation in covering the bag let Perez’s throw reach the outfield. But, once again, he responded poorly. After a soft single by Fresno’s Nick Noonan that plated two, Perez walked the next two batters. After his error, he immediately offered a pancake-flat changeup that Justin Christian ripped for a two-run single. Then, another walk. I always preach patience for the younger guys. Perez is the youngest pitcher in AAA. In fact, he’s younger than every active starter in Texas’s system except for Myrtle Beach’s Cody Buckel and Hickory’s Luke Jackson and Victor Payano. Development can be slow and fitful. For examples, you need look no farther than Matt Harrison and Derek Holland, two established MLB starters who still leave us scratching our heads sometimes. On the other hand, by the end of 2012, Perez will have logged  three full seasons and close to 400 innings in the upper minors. I’m not worried now (well, not overly worried), but if he’s pitching in early September like he is now, I certainly will be. The Rangers advanced Perez extremely rapidly because they felt he could make the adjustments and handle adversity. Lately, he’s not, at all. This summer may be the most critical phase of his career.

Perez would make his MLB debut five weeks later and has thrown over 1,100 MLB innings, but he never quite became what we’d hoped for a decade ago. Now, signed to a modest one-year deal to eat some innings for a rebuilding club, Perez is enjoying the most successful stretch of his career. May it stretch out for a long time.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 5, at Sugar Land (HOU) 3
Round Rock: 7 hits, 5 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 24-15, tied for first

SP Cole Winn: 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 94 P / 59 S, 5.94 ERA
RF Zach Reks: 2-5, 2B, .295/.394/.475
C Meibrys Viloria: 1-2, HR (2), 2 BB, .342/.451/.513

A better if still odd performance from Cole Winn. Winn walked only two of 22 batters and threw 63% of his pitches for strikes, ending a three-game streak of alarming wildness. The strange part: Winn threw only 38% of his fastballs for strikes, but the rates for changes, curves and sliders were all between 75% and 78%. Likewise, 12 of his 13 swinging strikes were non-fastballs.

Willie Calhoun singled twice.

AA: Frisco 5, Corpus Christi (HOU) 9
Frisco: 9 hits, 6 walks, 5 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 6 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 20-16, 1 G up

SP Cody Bradford: 4 IP, 6 H (2 HR), 6 R, 4 BB, 3 SO, 84 P / 51 S, 9.62 ERA
RP Tim Brennan: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA
3B Jonathan Ornelas: 2-5, 2B, .351/.392/.470
DH Blaine Crim: 1-4, HR (8), .276/.345/.512
LF Dustin Harris: 2-5, HR (5), .261/.357/.429
C David Garcia: 2-3, 2 HR (3), BB, .234/.300/.438

Cody Bradford’s walk/HBP rate has doubled from 2021, and he’s not the type to pitch his way around them. In the minors, Joe Barlow could say “my control’s not great but I’m unhittable, so ha ha.” Bradford will give up his share of hits, so those extra walks are a problem.

Blaine Crim overtook Sam Huff for the organization lead in homers. Dustin Harris has homered in three straight games. David Garcia homered twice for the second time in his career.

Tim Brennan (2018, 7th round) pitched for the first time this season.

High-A: Hickory 9, at Greenville (BOS) 4
Hickory: 11 hits, 4 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 19-16, 3.0 GB

SP Ben Anderson: 5 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 1 R, 3 BB, 2 SO, 76 P / 47 S, 3.16 ERA
RP Joe Corbett: 2 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 2.93 ERA
CF Jayce Easley: 2-4, 2B, 3B, .238/.273/.381
LF Evan Carter: 2-5, 2B, .300/.375/.517
RF Aaron Zavala: 3-5, .252/.429/.374
3B Thomas Saggese: 1-4, HR (2), BB, .272/.336/.395
2B Keyber Rodriguez: 1-4, HR (3), .296/.330/.407

So far in 2022, Thomas Saggese is hitting for slightly better average (.272 vs. 256 in 2021) but fewer extra-base hits and walks. Like last year, Texas’s 2020 fourth-round pick is moving between second, third, and short, but with a greater emphasis on shortstop this season. Aaron Zavala dumped his “walk to first or the dugout” style during the last week of April. He’s hitting .344/.488/.516 in 17 games since going hitless in a four-game span at Wilmington.

Low-A: Down East 2, at Carolina (MIL) 9
Down East: 3 hits, 2 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 10 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 15-21, 5.5 GB

SP Robby Ahlstrom: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 SO, 72 P / 45 S, 6.00 ERA
RP Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 1.35 ERA

Jose Corniell, who I saw in person last week, couldn’t retire any of five batters and departed after 24 pitches and just ten strikes. Cam Cauley (1-4) stole two bases.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Howard
AA: Leiter
Hi-A: Krauth
Lo-A: Stephan

Five Years Ago Yesterday
I watched Frisco’s Connor Sadzeck throw eight innings of one-run ball. Sadzeck barely offered any changeups, but the curve looked as good as ever. Given his style, a future relief role was likely, but at that moment I mused optimistically about him sticking as a starter. In fact, Sadzeck would start only four more games before moving to the bullpen permanently. Sadzeck is currently pitching well for Milwaukee’s AAA club in Nashville.

The Rangers activated Mitch Garver and optioned Nick Solak. I haven’t studied Solak to the extent of Willie Calhoun, but they share some characteristics. Both have actual numbers seemingly below expectations based on exit velocities and angles, but they’re also 27 with upwards of 800 MLB plate appearancesand no apparent upward trajectory.Solak does have some positional flexibility, if not prowess. His upcoming arrival in AAA adds to a crowd. Round Rock has the second-youngest group of hitters in the PCL and is remarkably light on AAA veterans. Solak has only played OF in 2022, but Round Rock already has Leody Taveras, Bubba Thompson, Josh Smith on occasion, Zach Reks, Steele Walker and Calhoun vying for playing time in the grass. 

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 11, at Sugar Land (HOU) 3
Round Rock: 9 hits, 11 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 23-15, tied for first

SP Kolby Allard: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO, 56 P / 34 S, 4.91 ERA
RP Ryder Ryan: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 2.29 ERA
RP Yerry Rodriguez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 8.16 ERA
3B Josh Smith: 0-3, BB, 2 HBP, .262/.367/.381
CF Leody Taveras: 2-5, 2B, BB, SB (6), .331/.362/.562
C Yohel Pozo: 3-5, 2B, .333/.366/.469
1B Sherten Apostel: 1-3, 2 BB, .230/.319/.459

Round Rock’s hitters did not hack the computerized strike zone. Houston’s minor league pitchers just don’t throw many strikes. After a slow start in that regard, Josh Smith has 11 walks in May, nearly one of every five plate appearances.

Sherten Apostel is hitting .391/.440/.826 at high-elevation Salt Lake and Reno and .132/.250/.211 everywhere else.

AA: Frisco 5, Corpus Christi (HOU) 7
Frisco: 4 hits, 6 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 3 walks, 7 strikeouts
Record: 20-15, 2 G up

SP Avery Weems: 5 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 2 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 71 P / 45 S, 6.75 ERA
2B Justin Foscue: 1-3, 2B, BB, HBP, SB (1), .315/.427/.575

Single runs in the 7th and 8th put Corpus ahead, and a rare poor outing by Fernery Ozuna (1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 HR, 3 R) created a gap that Frisco couldn’t quite close. Down two with two on and two out in the 9th, Ezequiel Duran saw a tasty pitch but got underneath it for a game-ending popout.

Avery Weems hadn’t allowed a homer in his previous three starts, but on the whole the long ball has troubled him as it did last season at Hickory. He’s surrendered four in 25.1 innings.

Justin Slaten pitched briefly (0.2 IP, 4 runners, 1 run) and will rejoin the rotation on Sunday, pushing everyone else forward a day. Jack Leiter will start on Friday.

High-A: Hickory 6, at Greenville (BOS) 3
Hickory: 11 hits, 1 walk, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts
Record: 18-16, 3 GB

SP Ricky Vanasco: 5 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 2 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 70 P / 50 S, 6.05 ERA
RP John Matthews: 4 IP, 2 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 3.44 ERA
RP Marc Church: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 1.96 ERA
RF Evan Carter: 1-5, HR (4), SB (7), .296/.374/.513
SS Luisangel Acuna: 3-5, 2B, HR (2), .263/.349/.526
DH Chris Seise: 2-5, .221/.275/.442

Ricky Vanasco avoided the walk and reached five innings for the first time this season. His walk rate entering Wednesday was an untidy 22%. Vanasco was unusually fly-prone, resulting in a 1st-inning homer and two triples. 

Since last Monday, Evan Carter has homered in every game in which I was not in attendance. Admittedly, I did look askance at his second-round selection back in 2020, but no more than anyone else, so I don’t know why he’s singling me out for punishment. Much as I like Luisangel Acuna, I don’t foresee that .526 slugging percentage holding up, but he does have serious pop, enough to translate to a position other than shortstop if needed. Acuna has played only ten games because of a hamstring injury.

Low-A: Down East 1, at Carolina (MIL) 8
Down East: 5 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 4 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 15-20, 4.5 GB

SP Brandon Webb: 5 IP, 3 H (1 HR), 2 R, 2 BB, 4 SO, 77 P / 47 S, 5.40 ERA
RP Emiliano Teodo: 2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 3.50 ERA
DH Alejandro Osuna: 1-3, BB, .340/.415/.515

Ugh, I don’t know. You try writing something about this game. Revisiting Marcus Smith’s extraordinarily high strikeout rate despite an ordinary swing-and-miss rate, I’d much rather have him than someone who missed more often, other factors being equal. That said, the only sizable difference between his April and May output is a 50% reduction in walks. Smith had the same problem in 2021, but I didn’t pay it any mind because a hamstring injury limited him to just 14 games. Smith has 73 strikeouts in 155 full-season plate appearances (47%).

Today’s Starters
AAA: Winn
AA: Bradford
Hi-A: Anderson
Lo-A: TBD, probably Corniell

Five Years Ago Yesterday
I belabored Round Rock’s astonishing homer-proneness, noting that the Express were on pace to allow 29 more homers than the worst team in PCL history (excluding the Sacramento Solons, which played in an absurdly configured stadium converted from a track-and-field complex). I can’t remember when the tide turned, but the Express had allowed 1.7 homers per game to that point but would cut that rate nearly in half the rest of the season.

Cole Winn’s walk and strikeout rates have reversed between his first four and most recent three starts. In the first four, Winn walked 7% of opposing hitters and struck out 22%. Since then, an incomprehensible 22% walk rate and 7% K rate. Other stats of note:

Strike Rate: 65% in starts 1-4, 53% in starts 5-7
Swinging Strike Rate: 14% vs. 7%
Swings Putting Ball In Play: 36% vs. 54%
Average On Contact: .289 vs. .314
Slugging On Contact: .378 vs .412

The primary change is simply far fewer strikes. An additional one of every eight pitches have been called balls in his most recent three starts. The other major difference appears to be location in the zone. Opponents aren’t swinging as much but are putting the ball in play much more often when they do. Far fewer pitches are resulting in swinging strikes and fouls. Essentially, he’s just not placing the ball where he wants.

The good news is Winn’s velocity hasn’t decreased, and his spin rates seem fine. He’s lost a little break on his curve and slider, and gained a little vertical break on the fastball (not desired when working high), but I don’t know if the difference is meaningful. Opponents are having more success when they make contact, although the difference isn’t gigantic.

Winn has been here before. Back in 2019, I heard phenomenal reports about his sessions in Arizona, but when he arrived in low-A Hickory, he was frankly a mess. His control was poor overall, his execution varied wildly from pitch to pitch. He’d throw a nice fastball, then one in the dirt, another nice one, then a foot outside. Not until late in 2019 did he substantially improve. Since then, and until this May, he’s been the dominant pitcher you’ve hoped for. I’ve mentioned that the exploits of the Major League club aren’t relevant to his arrival in Arlington. He wasn’t getting promoted in May, so this rough stretch won’t delay his MLB debut assuming he can rectify the situation in a reasonably short time.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 5, at Sugar Land (HOU) 2
Round Rock: 7 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 5 hits, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 22-15, 1 GB

SP AJ Alexy: 5.2 IP, 4 H (2 HR), 2 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 89 P / 64 S, 6.48 ERA
RP Jake Latz: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO, 4.96 ERA
RP Dan Winkler: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO, 4.02 ERA
3B Josh Smith: 2-4, .268/.362/.390
1B Matt Carpenter: 2-4, 2B, HR (6), .275/.319/.613

Yesterday ushered in the automated strike zone for the Pacific Coast League. It’s probably coincidence, but the change prompted an outstandingly controlled performance from AJ Alexy, who didn’t issue a walk until his 19th batter. No, two homers in a pitcher’s park aren’t great, but relative to what’s occurred lately, I’ll live with it.

Jake Latz worked in relief for the first time.

In last year’s Low-A Southeast, the only league to employ automated umps at the time, both walk and strikeout rates were elevated. Last night, PCL teams averaged 3.8 walks and 8.9 strikeouts, both about 0.4 below the season averages. One night is just an anecdote, of course, but at least we didn’t see any wild results.

AA: Frisco 13, Corpus Christi (HOU) 7
Frisco: 11 hits, 8 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 10 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 20-14, 2 G up

SP Zak Kent: 4.2 IP, 4 H (1 HR), 2 R, 6 BB, 7 SO, 95 P / 56 S, 5.23 ERA
RP Chase Lee: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA
SS Jonathan Ornelas: 2-4, BB, .360/.398/.480
LF Dustin Harris: 1-5, HR (4), .254/.356/.404
2B Ezequiel Duran: 1-3, HR (6), 2 BB, .303/.352/.576
CF JP Martinez: 1-3, 2B, 2 BB, SB (11), .322/.433/.552
C David Garcia: 2-4, .213/.273/.328

On Screaming Child Day — I’m sorry, Education Day — at the park, Frisco took full advantage of Corpus Christi’s terrible control plus some shaky defense. Houston’s four minor league affiliates rank worst or second-worst in walk rates in their respective leagues. Zak Kent’s control was no better, a season-long issue, but the slider was hunting, and he registered seven strikeouts.

Dustin Harris hit hit fourth homer and turned a towering warning-track fly into an adventure-filled double. He’s definitely improved defensively since early April, but he’s not what you’d call fluid.

High-A: Hickory 6, at Greenville (BOS) 11
Hickory: 8 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 14 hits, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts
Record: 17-16, 4 GB

SP TK Roby: 5 IP, 6 H (1 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 3 SO, 83 P / 54 S, 7.67 ERA
CF Evan Carter: 2-5, HR (3), .300/.381/.500
C Cody Freeman: 2-4, 2B, .231/.330/.418
LF Trevor Hauver: 2-4, HR (2), .190/.361/.278

Trevor Hauver has his second homer. May it be the second of many. Hauver plays left field, not first base, but his path to the Majors runs entirely through his bat. Hauver mostly played second as Yankee in 2021 but less so once traded to the Rangers, and in 2022 he hasn’t seen the infield at all. I saw Evan Carter four times last week. He homered in one of the two games of that series I missed and the first game since I returned to Texas. Oh well.

Low-A: Down East 8, at Carolina (MIL) 5
Down East: 9 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 7 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 15-19, 4.5 GB

SP Gavin Collyer: 4 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 5 SO, 86 P / 54 S, 5.24 ERA
RP Jackson Leath: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0.00 ERA
LF Alejandro Osuna: 2-4, 2B, SB (10), .340/.412/.520
RF Marcus Smith: 3-5, HR (2), .167/.350/.295

Here’s a fun little chart:

The lonely red dot is Marcus Smith. Fourth-worst strikeout rate in the league, and one of the worst is all of the minors, but a perfectly ordinary swinging strike rate. Smith also takes a ton of pitches and has one of the league’s highest walk rates, so I assume he’s also seeing many more called strikes than the average hitter. I lack that particular data.

2021 12th-round righty, Tennessee alum, and Waxahachie native Jackson Leath made his pro debut.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Allard
AA: Weems
Hi-A: Vanasco
Lo-A: Teodo

Five Years Ago Yesterday
On Yohander Mendez’s sudden increase in homers: “In five previous seasons covering 293 innings, he gave up only 15.  This year: 49 innings, 11 homers.” This increase was permanent. From Frisco in 2017 to his current station in Monterrey, Mendez has been very homer-prone.

As it turns out, I did get the offending email some of you mentioned, but since it looked addressed to me, I wasn’t as suspicious. A good number of people were also unsubscribed by the listserv. Obviously, if you’re getting this, that’s not an issue, but in case it happens again, you can resubscribe here. You didn’t miss a Monday report. Sunday’s recap is below.

Rangers Farm Report: Games of Sunday 15 May
Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 14, Oklahoma City (LAD) 13
Round Rock: 16 hits, 6 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 16 hits, 7 walks, 18 strikeouts
Record: 21-15, 1 GB

SP Spencer Howard: 2.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 7 SO, 71 P / 43 S, 7.11 ERA
RP Ryder Ryan: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 2.50 ERA
RP Spencer Patton: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
CF Bubba Thompson: 2-6, SB (18), .325/.339/.447
DH Yohel Pozo: 4-5, .333/.370/.471
1B Matt Carpenter: 2-3, HR (5), .263/.374/.566

Round Rock led 9-4, trailed 13-9, and scored three in the 9th to win. Even with the new pitch clock that has dramatically reduced game times, this one took three hours and 48 minutes. Singles by Yohel Pozo and Matt Carpenter followed by one-out walks from Nash Knight and Jack Kruger plated one and loaded the bases. Bubba Thompson then reached on a fielder’s choice, and Josh Smith’s fly single ended it. Thompson has reached safely 16 times and stolen 11 bases in his last nine games.

Five of six balls in play against Howard were medium-hard or harder and at angles conducive to damage. Production from Yerry Rodriguez (1 IP, 3 R, homer, walk) hasn’t improved. Rodriguez wasn’t on the cusp of a call-up entering the season, in my opinion, but six weeks of solid pitching would have put him in that position. As it stands, he’s not remotely under consideration.

AA: Frisco 18, at Tulsa (LAD) 4
Frisco: 17 hits, 6 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 4 hits, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 19-14, 1 G up

SP Cole Ragans: 5 IP, 4 H (2 HR), 4 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 85 P / 53 S, 2.79 ERA
RP Lucas Jacobsen: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 2.31 ERA
RP Fernery Ozuna: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.20 ERA
CF JP Martinez: 2-5, 3B, BB, .321/.424/.548
SS Jonathan Ornelas: 2-6, HR (4), .355/.391/.479
2B Ezequiel Duran: 4-4, 2 2B, 2 HR, (5), BB, .302/.343/.558
3B Trey Hair: 3-5, 3 HR, (4), .231/.275/.492
1B Blaine Crim: 1-4, 2 BB, .287/.351/.522

No need for a comeback. Frisco scored in every inning but the 5th. Ezequiel Duran swatted four extra-base hits for the first time in his career. He’d hit three as a Yankee a couple of times. Duran is hitting as well as could be hoped in AA, producing a lot of hard, airborne contact while striking out much less than usual. Highly encouraging.

27-year-old Trey Hair has been a handy addition since signing out of indy ball in June 2021. Tampa Bay released the 2017 34th-rounder in November 2018 despite a respectable low-A line.

Fernery Ozuna has a strong 29% strikeout rate but one of the lowest swinging strike rates in the organization, just 8.3%. Highest in AA/AAA are Dan Winkler (19.1%), Lucas Jacobsen (18.7%), and Cody Bradford (16.2%).

High-A: Hickory 3, Greensboro (PIT) 4
Hickory: 9 hits, 2 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 13 hits, 0 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 17-15, 3 GB

SP Mason Englert: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 8 SO, 83 P / 57 S, 3.23 ERA
RP Marc Church: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.08 ERA
1B Cristian Inoa: 2-4, .282/.347/.388
2B Thomas Saggese: 2-4, .278/.328/.380
3B Keyber Rodriguez: 2-4, .299/.337/.392
C Scott Kapers: 2-4, 2B, .282/.310/.462

Before the game started, I applied sunscreen and laid a towel over a hot seat. By the 5th, I had an umbrella over my head, a poncho over my backpack, and that towel over my camera. Rain afflicted four and delayed two of the six games i saw, but all were played to completion. The joke in Texas is to wait a minute if you don’t like the weather, but North Carolina had me changing clothes and switching gear in the middle of the day multiple times.

Mason Englert doesn’t eschew the high fastball, but it certainly isn’t a point of emphasis like most starters I saw in NC. It ranged from 91 to 93 plus a single pitch at 90. Englert tends to throw across his body a little. I don’t mean in an uncomfortable or out-of-sync way; it’s just his style. As such, all of his pitches including the fastball tended to lean glove-side, regardless of the handedness of the batter. However, one quirk is he sometimes spins his slider into a corkscrew shape, creating the unusual sight of a right-handed pitcher whose fastball drifts away from righties while the slider runs inside. Usually, the slider moved typically, and with his body action, it and the change often operated along similar paths and were hard to me to differentiate. Best as I could tell, the slider ranged from the low to mid 80s, the change squarely in the mid 80s. Like TK Roby, Englert delayed the intro of his curve but then frequently led the at-bat with it, grabbing four called strikes and a groundout out of six thrown.

Englert finished with 12 swinging strikes. Of the ten I categorized, five were fastballs, and every pitch was represented. In the 1st, Greensboro was happy to see him, collecting four lined hits in the 1st, two for extra bases, although Englert did fan the side in that inning. Thereafter, most balls in play were grounders. No pitch was what I’d call dominant, but everything worked, a rarity in high-A. Only three batters reached a three-ball count. Englert’s control has always been above average.

During a hard drizzle that I thought would force a delay, Marc Church was effective, if not quite so dominant as when I saw him earlier in the week. At odds with his pro and college careers, Triston Polley allowed homers by consecutive batters in the 8th to reverse a one-run lead.

Scott Kapers had the only extra-base hit, and Aaron Zavala, Evan Carter and Luisangel Acuna were hitless. Carter and Acuna did draw walks, and Zavala and Carter lost hits on hard shots to good outfield defense. As a group, Hickory makes contact but isn’t power-oriented.

Low-A: Down East 11, Lynchburg (CLE) 2
Down East: 14 hits, 4 walks, 7 strikeouts
Opponent: 8 hits, 3 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 14-19, 5.5 GB

SP Winston Santos: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 SO, 86 P / 56 S, 3.76 ERA
RP Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 1.46 ERA
LF Alejandro Osuna: 3-4, BB, SB (9), .333/.409/.510
2B Cam Cauley: 2-5, .095/.136/.095
1B Tucker Mitchell: 2-4, HR (1), HBP, .216/.394/.333
C Ian Moller: 2-3, 2 BB, .167/.313/.167
3B Junior Paniagua: 2-3, HBP, .186/.245/.279

2021 picks Cam Cauley and Ian Moller have their first full-season hits after multiple games without, including those I saw in person. Tucker Mitchell (2021, 14th round) hit his first full-season homer.

Winston Santos fanned a career-best eight. Dylan MacLean and Theo McDowell also threw scoreless innings. Bubba Hoopii-Tuionetoa’s 21.4% swinging strike rate is the highest in the system, shared with Church.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Alexy
AA: Kent
Hi-A: Roby
Lo-A: TBD

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Kyle Cody fanned ten and walked one in seven scoreless innings. Still an outfielder, Jairo Beras made his first pitching appearance and touched 98 despite an all-arm delivery.

Greetings, once last time, from Hickory. A couple of you told me you’d received a suspicious email from the listserv.  Jamey and I subscribe to the list, too, and didn’t receive anything ourselves, and I haven’t been able to find anything wrong. Hopefully, it’s a one-time glitch. You shouldn’t ever receive anything other than from Jamey and me, so please be careful.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 1, Oklahoma City (LAD) 5
Round Rock: 6 hits, 3 walks, 9 strikeouts
Opponent: 10 hits, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts
Record: 20-15, 2 GB

SP Tyson Miller: 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 1 HBP, 9 SO, 84 P / 56 S, 3.81 ERA

OKC scored three quickly against Tyson Miller, who retired 13 of his final 15, eight via strikeout. Round Rock had nobody with more than one hit.

AA: Frisco 1, at Tulsa (LAD) 11
Frisco: 4 hits, 5 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 6 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 18-14, 1 G up

SP Jack Leiter: 1.2 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 1 SO, 46 P / 25 S, 4.43 ERA
RP Chase Lee: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0.00 ERA
SS Jonathan Ornelas: 3-5, .357/.393/.461

A week after his best pro showing, everything went wrong for Leiter, right for Tulsa. The Drillers swung at only 19 of Leiter’s pitches but put 11 into play, seven for hits. 78% of the pitches Tulsa took were called balls. Those are uncommonly, downright weirdly high figures, especially in tandem.

Catcher David Garcia drew three walks. OF Kellen Strahm had the other hit and a walk.

High-A: Hickory 7, Greensboro (PIT) 5
Hickory: 12 hits, 7 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 5 walks, 15 strikeouts
Record: 17-14, 3 GB

SP Owen White: 5 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 SO, 80 P / 54 S, 4.50 ERA
RP Spencer Mraz: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 6.59 ERA
RP Destin Dotson: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0.00 ERA
CF Aaron Zavala: 2-5, 2 HR, (3), .250/.448/.380
DH Evan Carter: 2-5, 2B, .307/.388/.495
SS Luisangel Acuna: 2-4, 3 SB (3), .292/.393/.542
LF Trevor Hauver: 1-3, 2 BB, .173/.356/.227
2B Thomas Saggese: 2-5, 2B, .269/.321/.375

Owen White came out hunting with the high fastball, recording eight swinging strikes out of 24 thrown in the first two innings. It ranged from 93 to 96 MPH, and the Grasshoppers simply couldn’t touch it. White struck out the side swinging in the 1st. Conversely, the lower version of his fastball was hittable. He allowed four line drives on them in the first three innings, and all went for hits, two for extra bases. In the last two innings, Greensboro finally laid off the high fastball, but at the same time, White was working in other pitches and sequences that awarded him two called strike threes on lower fastballs.

All told, White had 15 swinging strikes: ten on heat, four with sliders, and one change. The slider picked up for the absence of high swinging strikes as the game progressed. It was the primary pitch giving Greensboro trouble by the 5th. White threw six curves, five for balls, although one was a terrible call. It actually looks like it could be a proper pitch, but he just couldn’t locate it. The change was also relatively infrequent but had its moments, nabbing a surprise swinging strike on a full count in the 3rd.

One run scored with two out on a delayed double steal in the 2nd. Catcher Cody Freeman probably should have kept that ball in his pocket. The other scored on a double-triple sequence.

Eudrys Manon worked high-leverage relief down the stretch in low-A last season, walk-prone but hard to hit. Now I see why. Manon’s hitchy, spasmodic delivery makes strike-throwing seemingly impossible. Indeed, he walked his first batter on four pitches with an 88-92 fastball. Then, he dialed up to 93-95 with control plus an impressive slider. Suddenly, that delivery was a weapon. But in his second inning the chaos returned, and he nearly allowed a game-tying grand slam (instead a 375′ moonshot single off the wall thanks to inexplicable baserunning). Spencer Mraz (92-96 fastball with an offspeed and breaker) prevented the inning from completely derailing.

Once again, Destin Dotson’s control was far better in front of me than the statistics claim. He commanded his 94-96 fastball with more success than is customary at this level, and he added an occasional slider and curve.

On the first pitch of the 1st, Aaron Zavala lasered a pitch over the wall in right-center. I mentioned on twitter that the hit was “not really elevated, that’s just not how he hits.” Two at-bats later, Zavala got more loft on a drive that not only cleared the wall but the triple deck of advertising behind it. Good comeback. In truth, Zavala doesn’t hit a high proportion of flies and hadn’t shown much power, but the bat had been more lively lately even before today’s heroics.

Greensboro’s Nick Dombrowski emphasized a changeup that read 81-82, looked ten MPH slower and baffled several Hickory hitters. Evan Carter was among them early in an at-bat, but when Dombrowski tried to trick Carter with a two-strike 89 MPH fastball, Carter drilled it down the 1B side for a double. I haven’t seen much solid contact from Carter so far. He’s batting .307 with a .495 slugging percentage, so I assume it’s just my misfortune, not a commentary on his bat.

The announced lineup had Chris Seise at DH and Evan Carter in CF. By game time, Carter was DH and Seise was absent. I know nothing beyond that.

Low-A: Down East 2, Lynchburg (CLE) 4
Down East: 3 hits, 4 walks, 16 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 13-19, 6.5 GB

SP Mitch Bratt: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO, 54 P / 38 S, 4.50 ERA
RP Larson Kindreich: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 6 SO, 2.52 ERA
CF Alejandro Osuna: 1-3, BB, SB (8), .315/.390/.500
3B Yenci Pena: 1-2, HR (2), BB, .232/.380/.393

I’d liked to have seen Bratt and Kindreich, but this isn’t Spring Training where I need only a ten-second walk to switch between the low-A and high-A games. I had to choose.

Yenci Pena’s homer was the only extra-base hit by a Texas minor leaguer in the three games I didn’t attend. Lucky me. After taking the opener, Down East has scored only ten runs on 18 hits in four straight losses.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Howard
AA: Ragans
Hi-A: Englert
Lo-A: TBD

Five Years Ago Yesterday
Round Rock’s Ronald Guzman homered twice, and Down East’s Josh organ hit a walk-off grand slam.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 5, Oklahoma City (LAD) 6
Round Rock: 9 hits, 1 walk, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 11 walks, 5 strikeouts
Record: 20-14, 1 GB

SP Cole Winn: 6 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 4 BB, 2 SO, 87 P / 52 S, 6.03 ERA
3B Josh Smith: 2-5, SB (5), .263/.359/.395
CF Leody Taveras: 1-4, HR (5), .348/.378/.598
LF Zach Reks: 1-3, HR (1), .286/.394/.464
1B Matt Carpenter: 2-4, HR (4), .247/.349/.521
SS Davis Wendzel: 1-4, HR (5), .212/.295/.381

Cole Winn walked or hit five batters in his first four starts. The total in the last three starts is 17. Those starts came after being hit on the heel by a hard grounder, but he made his next start on normal rest, so I can’t imagine that’s an issue. When I’m back home, I may dig into Statcast to see of anything noteworthy.

Winn had partners in crime, as Nick Tropeano and Jesus Tinoco walked the based loaded in their respective innings. Tropeano escaped, while Tinoco allowed the ultimate go-ahead run on a balk.

David Wendzel batted .146/.241/.160 in the 13 games between homers.

AA: Frisco 8, at Tulsa (LAD) 6
Frisco: 9 hits, 4 walks, 10 strikeouts
Opponent: 12 hits, 2 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 18-13, 2 G up

SP Cody Bradford: 5 IP, 6 H (2 HR), 4 R, 1 BB, 10 SO, 88 P / 60 S, 9.00 ERA
RP Fernery Ozuna: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.35 ERA
1B Blaine Crim: 2-5, 2B, HR (7), .302/.358/.557
LF Dustin Harris: 1-2, 2 BB, .265/.378/.378
CF JP Martinez: 3-4, HR (5), .316/.419/.532

Bradford’s ten strikeouts aren’t a career high (14 last summer at Asheville) but are his most by a fair margin in 2022. It is, however, the third time this season Bradford’s allowed two homers in  a start this season compared to just twice all of last year.

I saw a handful of Ozuna’s pitches. Good velocity, crazy tailing movement on everything. He’s walked only three in 15.1 innings.

JP Martinez has tied last year’s five homers in 60 fewer games. He’s hitting more line drives than last year but not more flies. Last year, he hit lefties far better than righties even through he’s left-handed, but 2022 is a complete reverse. That’s probably sample size, but I hope the power remains.

High-A: Hickory 3, Greensboro (PIT) 0
Hickory: 6 hits, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts
Opponent: 2 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
Record: 16-14, 3 GB

SP Nick Krauth: 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 5 SO, 65 P / 44 S, 4.32 ERA
RP Joe Corbett: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 SO, 2.19 ERA
RP Marc Church: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO, 2.30 ERA
CF Evan Carter: 1-4, HR (2), .302/.387/.490
2B Thomas Saggese: 2-3, .263/.318/.364
SS Keyber Rodriguez: 1-3, HR (2), .281/.323/.371

Krauth, Corbett and Church shut down the Grasshoppers on 112 pitches in under two hours. Krauth was undrafted out of Connecticut in the covid-shortened 2020. Corbett, out of West Texas A&M, mastered low-A well enough to earn an early promotion last year but was mauled in Hickory. He’s handling high-A much better in a second try.

Evan Carter could’ve saved that homer for my return to Hickory today, but that’s okay.

Low-A: Down East 4, Lynchburg (CLE) 6 (10)
Down East: 6 hits, 2 walks, 12 strikeouts
Opponent: 6 hits, 4 walks, 11 strikeouts
Record: 13-18, 5.5 GB

SP Josh Stephan: 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 7 SO, 96 P / 51 S, 4.94 ERA
RP Leury Tejada: 3 IP, 1 H (1 HR), 1 R, 0 BB, 4 SO, 5.50 ERA
LF Alejandro Osuna: 1-3, HR (4), BB, .315/.386/.506
DH Jose Rodriguez: 1-4, HR (2), .202/.306/.298
SS Maximo Acosta: 2-4, SB (11), .261/.364/.380

A tough loss. Down 3-2 in the 7th, Down East scored twice to take the lead, promptly lost it, and committed two errors in the 10th.

DH Jose Rodriguez bounced a fly over the yellow stripe atop the wall in right-center for his second homer. A catcher in theory but never in practice, Rodriguez will need to hit like crazy if he’s not going to wear a mask. LF Alejandro Osuna later hit a fly about ten feet deeper the same direction.

In the 7th, Maximo Acosta led off with a soft fly single and stole second off pitcher Jack Leftwich, the only person in the stadium unaware that Acosta would run. Acosta scored on a triple by Daniel Mateo, who himself scored on Ian Moller’s sac fly. In my second viewing of Moller, he hit a couple of oppo flyouts and drew a walk. One one attempt at nabbing a baserunner sailed over Acosta’s head. Fellow newcomer Cam Cauley had the night off.

The 10th opened with a tough error on 3B Junior Paniagua: A bunt that hinted foul stayed fair, and Paniagua’s hurried throw sailed offline, but nobody advanced more than an ordinary bunt single. The killer came with two out and the bases loaded, when 1B Abi Ortiz simply missed Acosta’s throw from short on a grounder. Cleveland reliever and Clemson alum Davis Sharpe has an untouchable slurve (for low-A, at least) and sent down the Woodies with ease to end it.

Josh Stephan used an 88-92 fastball and a huge number of low-80s sliders. I was wandering around attempting some actions shots early on, so I don’t have more about him. Leury Tejeda’s fastball/slider combo (sorry, no speeds) was dominant except for one pitch, a no-doubt game-tying homer in the 8th.

Today’s Starters
AAA: TBD
AA: Leiter
Hi-A: White
Lo-A: TBD

Five Years Ago Yesterday
A day after Yohander Mendez took a no-hitter into the 7th at San Antonio, the Missions returned the disfavor with a complete-game no-hitter from Kyle Lloyd, who fanned only three but induced a zillion grounders. Lloyd made his one and only MLB appearance two months later. Hickory lost 14-2 to Greensboro and was allowing a historically poor two runs per game more than the league average.

Greetings from drizzly Kinston, NC.

I’m glad the big boys won, because the farm scored 11 runs and allowed 46, both the worst of the season when all four teams played. I sat through an hour-long rain delay and a perpetual horizontal mist, and I was at only the second-worst game of the night.

Here’s Ricky Vanasco video from Wednesday.

Box Scores

AAA: Round Rock 0, Oklahoma City (LAD) 19
Round Rock: 3 hits, 1 walk, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 19 hits, 10 walks, 9 strikeouts
Record: 20-13, tied for first

SP AJ Alexy: 2.2 IP, 9 H (2 HR), 8 R, 3 BB, 4 SO, 77 P / 47 S, 7.16 ERA
CF Josh Smith: 1-3, .257/.357/.394

Well. I wish I could offer something mitigating in the advanced stats about Alexy, but no. He’s issuing walks, not missing bats, and has the highest hard-hit rate on the squad.

Round Rock didn’t use any position players on the mound.

Yesterday, Josh Smith drew four walks, not four HBPs. Sorry about the mistake.

AA: Frisco 7, at Tulsa (LAD) 9
Frisco: 8 hits, 8 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 13 hits, 3 walks, 8 strikeouts
Record: 17-13, 1 G up

SP Justin Slaten: 0.1 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 0 SO, 32 P / 14 S, 4.67 ERA
RP Seth Nordlin: 4.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 SO, 2.63 ERA
2B Justin Foscue: 2-3, 2B, 2 BB, .318/.418/.591
1B Blaine Crim: 2-4, HR (6), .297/.356/.525

Frisco at least made a game of it after trailing 5-0 in the 1st and 9-3 into the 6th. Kellen Strahm drew three walks, giving him a team-best 16 alongside just eight hits (.136/.329/.220). He’s batted over .280 in two previous seasons, so I’d expect improvement even at this advanced level.

High-A: Hickory 1, Greensboro (PIT) 7
Hickory: 6 hits, 5 walks, 8 strikeouts
Opponent: 9 hits, 4 walks, 13 strikeouts
Record: 15-14, 3 GB

SP Ben Anderson: 4 IP, 5 H (1 HR), 5 R, 2 BB, 6 SO, 76 P / 49 S, 3.48 ERA
RP Eudrys Manon: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.18 ERA
3B Thomas Saggese: 2-3, BB, .250/.308/.344

Jayce Easley (1-5) is back.  The 2018 5th-rounder showed minimal power but reached at a .403 clip and stole 70 bases as part of Down East’s record-setting 2021 squad.

Low-A: Down East 3, Lynchburg (CLE) 11
Down East: 7 hits, 4 walks, 11 strikeouts
Opponent: 14 hits, 3 walks, 14 strikeouts
Record: 13-17, 5.5 GB

SP Jose Corniell: 3 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 8 SO, 68 P / 46 S, 7.02 ERA
RP Teodoro Ortega: 1 IP, 0 H,  0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO, 6.55 ERA
RP Robbie Ahlstrom: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 SO, 6.35 ERA
CF Daniel Mateo: 2-4, 2B, SB (7), .222/.280/.278
2B Maximo Acosta: 2-3, BB, .250/.359/.375
LF Yosy Galan: 1-3, BB, .309/.398/.543

Texas picked up Jose Corniell in the Rafael Montero trade. Still just 18, Corniell offers a 90-94 fastball, 75-79 curve, and a mid-80s slider and change that weren’t employed much. The curve has about as much lateral movement as possible, practically a 10-4 angle. Hitters couldn’t do anything with it, and most preferred not to try. Six of his eight strikeouts were on curves (three swinging, three called), and nobody put one in play. The fastball has good run, if not always the desired location. Seven of eight balls in play were hits, and I wouldn’t attribute that to bad luck. Several were pretty firm. Corniell could have allowed far fewer runs, but a two-out, 0-2 HBP in the 1st was followed by a hard single and triple, and with the bases loaded, two out, and another 0-2 count in the 3rd, two more hits plated four.

In increasingly damp conditions, lefty Robby Ahlstrom (part of the Jose Trevino trade) ground through four innings with an 88-91 fastball and a low-to-mid-70s curve, both of which cut across the plate from the 1B side. Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa delivered a 93-96 fastball, mid-80s change and tight curve. Defensive miscues and a couple of hard-hit balls ratcheted his pitch count to 30 with two outs, forcing infielder Jose Acosta to grab the final out of the 9th.

OF Yosy Galan has a hole in his swing that could well prevent him from reaching his potential, but he’s a blast to watch: tall, athletic, rangy, quick bat, fast out of the box. In the 9th, Galan dropped a gimme fly gearing up for a throw to the plate with a runner on third. That aside, he’s worth the price of admission.

Maximo Acosta had two medium-hard liners for hits, once hustling into second when the defense didn’t handle a cutoff properly. The most consistent contact came from 20-year-old Daniel Mateo, who crept into the lower end of some prospects lists after a flashy 2021. 19-year-old Cam Cauley (0-4), last year’s 3rd-round pick, seems to have plenty of arm for shortstop to my eyes. DH Ian Moller (4th round 2021) didn’t have a fun night, hitting into a double play and striking out three times, twice on three-ball counts.

Today’s Starters
AAA: Winn
AA: Bradford
Hi-A: Krauth
Lo-A: Stephan

Five Years Ago Yesterday
RHP Joe Wieland was assigned to AAA Durham (TAM) and catcher Kellin Deglan was activated in Buffalo (TOR). Wait, this happened yesterday. Five years ago, I saw Frisco’s Yohander Mendez carry a no-hitter into the 7th at San Antonio. Mendez wasn’t especially sharp (3 BB, 1 HBP), but the change, his money pitch at the time, was a beast, and he reintroduced his largely abandoned curve.