Snake Stars:
3 Stars: Kane County RHP Sam McWilliams 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, GS 77
2 Stars: Visalia LHP Cody Reed 6 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K, GS 66
1 Star: Missoula C Gavin Stupienski 2 for 3, 2B, HR (1), 2 RBI
0 Stars: Missoula RHP Brady Muller 4 1⁄3 IP, 12 H, 9 R (6 ER), 0 BB, 4 K, GS 1, L (0-2)
AJ Pollock Rehab (Reno): 1 for 4, 2B, 1 K
Yasmany Tomas Rehab (AZL): 0 for 2, 1 K
Pavin Smith (Hillsboro): 1 for 4
2017 Draft Pick Debuts: 40th rounder Terence Connolly, 32nd rounder William Gorman, 11th rounder Tra’Mayne Holmes
Reno Aces 3, Salt Lake Bees 9: With the Aces scheduled starter Braden Shipley getting promoted to fill in for the bullpen, the Aces were scrambling for a starter. They ultimately chose Nick Baker from Visalia and it went about as well as you could expect. The Aces scored 3 runs in the first on a 2-run double by Christian Walker that scored AJ Pollock (double) and Oswaldo Arcia (walk) followed by an RBI single by Socrates Brito. Unfortunately they didn’t score in the other 8 innings and with a replacement starter on the mound, things turned ugly quick. Ketel Marte went 0 for 4 and is batting .163 in his last 10 games with 6/7 BB/K, so this looks like a BABIP correction related slump.
Jackson Generals Off Day
Visalia Rawhide 1, Modesto Nuts 2: Another quality start wasted by lack of offense. Cody Reed pitched 6 shutout innings (see above), but got zero run support. Sometimes baseball just plain sucks. Tyler Baker once again played hero with an RBI double in the 9th to score Marty Herum and tie the game at 1. Unfortunately, the fun lasted 1 inning and JR Bradley gave up a triple and a walkoff single in the 10th.
Kane County Cougars 3, Clinton Lumber Kings 2: Apparently the Cougars are the only Dbacks full season affiliate that remember how to win baseball games these days. The Cougars got an excellent performance by Sam McWilliams, who pitched 7 scoreless innings without a walk and 3 strikeouts. The offense scratched across two runs thanks to an RBI groundout from Francis Christy in the 5th and an RBI single from Marcus Wilson in the 6th. McWilliams was in line for the win until Jake Winston allowed 2 runs in the 8th inning. Fortunately, the Cougars brought in a better pitcher and was able to get out of that jam. That would turn out to be big as the Cougars plated the winning run on 2 singles and 2 walks, with Francis Christy drawing a walk with the bases loaded. Now that’s a walk-off (proceeds to run off stage before getting lynched by the humor police).
Hillsboro Hops 2, Eugene Emeralds 5: The 2017 draft class was well-represented today with Pavin Smith (see above), Tim Susnara, Camden Duzenack, and Tra’Mayne Holmes (see above) each picking up a hit in the game. Unfortunately, the Hops struggled to make contact with 13 strikeouts vs. 1 walk and were unable to string together hits. With Drew Ellis signing for slot value, offensive help is on the way. Jhoan Duran’s 3rd start wasn’t as good as his first 2 as he allowed 3 runs while getting pulled in the 3rd inning.
Missoula Osprey 5, Billings Mustangs 10: Brady Muller got blasted for the 2nd consecutive start, allowing 9 runs (6 earned) on 12 hits over 4 1⁄3 innings. Somehow that resulted in a positive game score of 1. Gavin Stupienski was stupendous with a 2-run homer in a 3-run 2nd inning and added a double and a walk. 3 errors did not help the pitching at all, which struggled enough on their own. Joey Rose added an RBI triple in the game.
AZL Dbacks 7, AZL Angels 3: The Dbacks got a good start from Jake Polancic, who allowed just 1 unearned run over 4 innings with 1 walk and 6 strikeouts. Unfortunately, due to arbitrary baseball scoring rules, he didn’t get the win and the guy who pitched behind him did despite giving up 2 runs in 2 innings. William Gorman and Terence Connolly made their organizational debut and contributed their first hits as a pro. Another story line is Diamondbacks Left Fielder* Yasmany Tomas, who went 0 for 2 with a strikeout and a flyout to LF.
*denotes the player plays left field at the MLB level, albeit very poorly