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I’ve combined Saturday and Sunday into one Weekend Recap. Not a lot of wins overall, so no Snake Stars. Instead, here’s some prospect ranking news via..
Minor League Notes
Over at Fangraphs.com, they’ve made their final adjustments to their prospect rankings on The Board. Kristian Robinson has now leap frogged Daulton Varsho as our number one prospect. In terms of top 100 prospects, fangraphs lists Robinson at 63, Varsho at 66, Alek Thomas at 79, and Geraldo Perdomo has now moved up four spots to be number 98 on the list. Corbin Martin sits just outside the top 100 at 106, and J.B. Bukauskas sits at 113. (Ignore Jazz Chisholm and Isan Diaz on the list)
If you select just Arizona in the Select MLB Org tab, you can get a ranking of just our prospects. (Which I’ve conveniently linked here) Unfortunately our pitching prospects have taken the biggest hits ranking wise, with Jon Duplantier, Taylor Widener, and Corbin Martin all taking a hit in their rankings for very different reasons. More interesting is Liover Peguero, who has jumped in his ranking due to his power developing earlier than the expected, which bumps him up into the 45+ FV tier below Corbin Carroll, but ahead of Duplantier and Widener in the rankings. THE BOARD! is an interesting tool to play around with and compare prospects, and how our organization compares to others.
Saturday August 24th, 2019
Diamondback affiliates took five out nine games played on Saturday, with the losses coming from the upper level teams outside of Jackson.
With the score at 5-4, this was a close game until the 9th inning. The Bees scored six runs in the top of the ninth off Damien Magnifico (though 3B Wyatt Mathisen, making a non-pitcher pitching appearance, allowed the two inherited runners he had to score). The Aces scored three runs in the bottom of the inning, but ultimately were unable to make up the difference and tie the game back up.
Riley Smith got the start, and went four innings, allowing four runs (two unearned) off of seven hits, a walk, while striking out three. Two out of the four runs came via a two run homer in the fourth inning. Marc Rzepczynski pitched two thirds of an inning, and allowed a run on a hit and two walks, while striking out one. Joey Krehbiel pitched to one batter in the fifth, and struck him out. Connor Grey pitched two scoreless innings, with two hits and a walk allowed, while striking out four.
There were only three extra base hits for the Aces. Abraham Almonte was 3-5 with a pair of doubles. Carlos Asuaje 2-4 with triples. Jamie Westbrook was 3-5 with an outfield assist. Domingo Leyba was 2-5, and Caleb Joseph was 2-3 with a walk.
Three errors contributed to the loss, Domingo Leyba had a throwing error, while Blake Swihart and Andy Young had fielding errors.
Jackson Generals 8 Pensacola Blue Wahoos 4
Matt Peacock went four and a third innings, with four runs allowed on a wild pitch, five hits and four walks, while striking out six. Half of the runs allowed came via a two-run home run in the third inning. Kevin McCanna pitched an inning and two thirds scoreless, with a hit, a walk allowed, and a strike out. Cole Stapler pitched three scoreless innings, with just a walk allowed.
Five out of the eight runs came via the long ball, with Galli Cribbs Jr. hitting a three run homer in the sixth, Pavin Smith hitting a solo homer in the seventh, and Jeffrey Baez hitting a solo homer in the eighth. Pavin Smith was a triple short of the cycle, going 4-5 with a double and home run. Jeffrey Baez was 2-5 with a double and homer, Daulton Varsho went 1-4 with walk and a stolen base. Drew Ellis was hitless but had a pair of walks.
Modesto Nuts 9 Visalia Rawhide 3
Bryan Valdez went six innings with three runs allowed on seven hits and a walk, with five strikeouts. Valdez was better than his stat line suggests, considering he kept Modesto off the board until the sixth inning, all three runs coming via a home run there. Valdez settled down after that, and finished the inning. Visalia scored two runs in the bottom of the inning to somewhat even the score up at 3-2. Luis Castillo relieved Valdez and pitched an inning and a third. Castillo pitched a scoreless seventh inning, but allowed two runs in the top of eighth on four hits and a hit by pitch, while only getting one out. Castillo allowed the first run on a ground out force out, then allowed another single to load the bases. Castillo then plunked a batter with the bases loaded before being taken out for Ryan Fritze. Fritze pitched an inning and two thirds, getting out of the eighth without any further damage, but allowed four runs in the top of the ninth.
The Rawhide rallied in the bottom of the ninth, but Jose Herrera ground into a double play with only one run scoring.
Kane County Cougars 2 Quad Cities River Bandits 8
The Cougars got off to a good start, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the third thanks to a two run double by Zach Shannon to pull ahead 2-0, but Levi Kelly allowed two runs in the third, and Andy Toelken allowed five runs in the fourth. Kai Wei Lin added another run in the fifth, putting the game out of reach for the Cougars.
Missoula Osprey 7 Great Falls Voyagers 5
Dustin Lacaze went four innings and allowed five runs on eight hits and a hit by pitch, while walking none and striking out three. Denson Hull followed with four scoreless inning, with just two hits allowed, no walks, and five strikeouts. Jared Liebelt pitched a scoreless ninth inning, with a hit allowed (though it was a triple), and two strikeouts.
Francis Martinez got the Osprey on board in the second with a solo homer. Down 5-1, the Osprey added three more runs in the fifth. With runners on the corners, Can Coursey hit a sacrifice bunt. Thanks to a fielding error by the pitcher, the runner scored, Coursey reached safely, and runners were at first and second. A passed ball advanced the runners to second and third. Axel Andueza then singled, scoring the runner from third, and putting runners at the corners. Axel Andueza attempted to steal second, but was called out, though Cam Coursey managed to score on the play. The Osprey tied it up and pulled ahead in the seventh when Cesar Garcia hit a three run homer.
Hillsboro Hops 6 Spokane Indians 9
The Hops had a promising start, scoring a run in the top of the first and two in the third, and Ryne Nelson was solid in the first two innings. However that 3-0 lead quickly fell apart in the bottom of the third inning, with Nelson failing to get an out, leading to a four run third inning. Throw in the five run fifth inning by Wilfrey Cruz, and the Hops didn't stand a chance of coming back and winning this one, as much as they tried. The Osprey did score three runs in the top of the eight to make the score a little less lopsided, but that was all they could muster.
Junior Mieses got the start, going four innings and allowing one run on four hits and two walks, while striking out six. The lone run came via a solo homer to the lead off batter in the top of the first, but that was all the offense the Angels could put up the rest of the game. Jimmy Sherfy, making a rehab appearance, pitched a scoreless inning of relief, with a hit allowed and a pair of strikeouts. Jhosmer Alvarez pitched a 1-2-3 perfect inning, with a strikeout. Justin Martinez tossed three scoreless innings to finish the game out, with two hits, a hit batter and a walk allowed, to go with six strikeouts (!).
The Dbacks got on board with a run in the fourth to tie it up. Jeferson Espinal walked and stole second, followed by a walk to Ismael Jaime. Sandy Martinez then singled into left field, which deflected off of the third baseman. A missed catch error allowed Espinal to score, and the runners all advanced an additional base, though no other runners would score. They'd add a pair of runs the next inning, after Leodany Perez singled, advanced to third on a Jose Curpa single (who'd get thrown out trying to steal second), and score on a Neyfy Castillo single. Jeferson Espinal followed with a single, putting runners on first and second. Endy Estrada then lined out, but advanced Castillo to third. A wild pitch then followed, scoring Castillo from third, but Espinal would get thrown out at second.
The Dbacks had four runs cross the plate in the sixth, with Ismael Jaime hitting a leadoff solo homer to start things off. Sandy Martinez followed up with a strikeout, but reached base thanks thanks to a wild pitch. The next batter, Oscar Santos was hit by a pitch. A wild pitch advanced Santos and Martinez to second and third before Marshawn Taylor was also hit by a pitch. Leodany Perez hit a sac fly, scoring a run, and Jose Curpa flew out to follow, advancing Santos to third. Neyfy Castillo then hit a single, scoring both runners and advancing to third thanks to a fielding error.
Fredely De Dios got the start, went three innings, and allowed one run on two hits, two walks, and a wild pitch, while striking out three batters. Luis Arias relieved De Dios, and pitched three innings, allowing two runs on five hits and a wild pitch, while walking none and striking out three. Alexander Amador followed with a scoreless inning, allowing a wild pitch and a pair of hits, while walking none and striking out a pair of batters. Jeanpier Cova pitched a perfect 1-2-3 inning to follow, and struck out a pair of batters. Jose Garcia allowed a hit and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning.
The D-backs1 scored four runs in the bottom of the first thanks to back-to-back-to-back singles by Dairon Cuevas, Raykel Guillermes, and Angel Colina (with Cuevas scoring on Colina’s single), followed by double from Manuel Garcia that scored Guillermes. Colina would score on a ground out by Oscar Rodriguez, with Manuel Garcia advancing to third. Mario Mendez would follow up with another single, scoring Garcia, but would be thrown out trying to stretch the single into a double, ending the inning
The Dbacks1 added another run in the bottom of the fourth after Mario Mendez tripled and scored on a groundout. In the bottom of the fifth, Dairon Cuevas doubled and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Raykel Guillermes walked, and then Angel Colina hit a sac fly, advancing Guillermes and scoring Cuevas. Manuel Garcia was hit by a pitch putting runners on first and second, but Cristian Estrella flew out to center, and Oscar Rodriguez grounded into a force out to end the inning and the threat.
Raykel Guillermes was 1-2 with a walk and a hit by pitch, with a pair of stolen bases, and Asdrubal Martinez was hitless, but reached twice thanks to a walk and a hit by pitch, and stole a pair of bases as well. Dairon Cuevas was 2-4 with a double, Manuel Garcia was 2-3 with a double and a hit by pitch. Mario Mendez was 2-4 with a triple.
Luis Mendoza pitched three scoreless innings to start the game, allowing a pair of hits and three walks, while striking out two. Mendoza kept the ball on the ground, with a 4-0 groundout-to-flyout ratio. Bryam Pena pitched the fourth inning, and allowed a run on a hit, a walk, and a passed ball by catcher Ricardo Caldera, while striking out a batter. Carlos Meza followed with three scoreless innings, with just a walk allowed, and a pair of strikeouts. Meza also kept the ball on the ground with seven ground ball outs to just one fly out. Jose Alcantara pitched the eighth inning, and allowed a run on a hit by pitch and a double. though he walked none and got all three outs on strikeouts. Edinson Soto struck out a pair of batters in a 1-2-3 perfect ninth.
The Dbacks2 got on board with a run in the second, after Alexander Hernandez tripled and back to back walks to Ramses Malave and Juan Batista loaded the bases. Although the D-backs2 had no outs, and the bases loaded, only one run scored. Ricardo Caldera struck out, Deivis Vegas grounded into a force with Juan Batista out at second, but scoring Hernandez. Jose Marcano flew out to end the inning. The Dbacks2 scored two runs in the fourth; Juan Batista walked and stole second, Ricardo Caldera walked, and Deivis Vegas singled to loaded the bases once again. Jose Marcano then grounded into a force out, with Batista once again out, this time at home. Unlike the previous inning, Roman Ruiz did capitalize on the runners, hitting a double that scored Caldera and Vegas.
The Dbacks2 made up for the lost opportunities with a five run seventh inning. Carlos Goris singled and stole second, Alexander Hernandez doubled, scoring Goris. Ramses Malave then followed with a homer, scoring Hernandez. Juan Batista tripled, and this time actually scored, thanks to Ricardo Caldera hitting a single to follow. After a pitching change, Deivis Vegas singled, putting runners on first and second. A wild pitch advanced Caldera and Vegas to second and third, and a second wild pitch scored Caldera, and advanced Vegas to third. Despite no outs and a runner at third, the Dbacks2 were unable to score Vegas, with Jose Marcano striking out, Roman Ruiz grounding out to third, and Alvin Guzman flying out to center to end the inning.
Sunday August 25th, 2019
Diamondbacks affiliates took just three out of eight games played on Sunday. The Dominican Summer League teams had their regularly scheduled day off, while Missoula played a double header.
Salt Lake Bees 9 Reno Aces 10 F/10
Abraham Almonte had a great game going 3-6 with a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the first, and a three run homer as part of the five run sixth inning by the Aces. I don’t usually talk about opposing players, but Jared Walsh nearly single handedly beat the Aces, going 4-6 with three homers and a double. Justin Donatella started for Reno, going three innings of four-run ball, on five hits and a walk with one strikeout. Jon Duplantier had a pair of scoreless innings. This ended regulation tied at 7; Salt Lake got two in their half of the tenth, but three straight singles with two out in the bottom half gave Reno a walk-off win. Kevin Cron had the game-ending knock
Jackson Generals 4 Pensacola Blue Wahoos 1
Emilio Vargas threw seven innings of one-run ball to get the win here, improving to 5-3. He scattered five hits and two walks, striking out five. Sam Lewis and West Tunnell took things from there, each man working a scoreless frame; Tunnell picked up his fourth save. The Generals were held to six hits, but made them count, and took advantage of a Pensacola error to score a pair of unearned runs. LF Jeffrey Baez picked up two of those, driving in a run and also stealing a base.
Modesto Nuts 7 VIsalia Rawhide 0
The Rawhide were blanked on just three hits, Fairly uniquely, all three were by SS Geraldo Perdomo. They did draw five walks, two of them by LF Ryan Grotjohn. Justin Vernia took the loss, working five innings and allowing four runs on six hits and three walks with five strikeouts, dropping to 7-3. Cameron Gann and Alex King put up zeroes for Visalia, in a largely forgettable performance.
Kane County Cougars 8 Quad Cities River Bandits 2
The Cougars broke open a scoreless game to that point, with a six-run third inning. That was highlighted by RF Kristian Robinson’s third home-run of the season, a three-run bomb, as well as a two-run single from DH Zack Shannon. 2B Steven Leyton had a pair of hits, but again, Kane County were efficient, scoring eight runs on only six knocks. Adrian Del Moral had a good outing, giving up one run over five innings. He allowed four hits and a walk, with four strikeouts. Chester Pimentel was dominant in relief, closing out the game with two scoreless frames, recording six K’s. He has 106 strikeouts in 73.2 IP for the Cougars.
Great Falls Voyagers 4 Missoula Osprey 2 (Makeup of 8/18)
The first game of the double header started off poorly, with starter Josh McMinn allowing a two run home run, and an RBI double to put the Osprey down 3-0 to start the game. McMinn pitched 4.0 innings, with three runs allowed on six hits, a wild pitch, and a walk, with four strikeouts. Ezequiel De La Cruz walked none and struck out four in 3.0 innings, but allowed an unearned run on a fielding error by Carson Maxwell, catcher’s interference by Axel Andueza, and a lone hit in a very odd sixth inning.
The Osprey didn’t get on board until the bottom of the sixth, when Axel Andueza doubled and scored on a Spencer Brickhouse single. Brickhouse would advance to third on back-to-back singles from Cesar Garcia and Jose Reyes, then score on a Kevin Watson ground out force out. That’d be it as far as the scoring went for the Osprey. The Osprey had other opportunities throughout the game, but were 3-8 with runners in scoring position, and left 8 runners on base. In addition, Spencer Brickhouse, Axel Andueza, and Jose Reyes all hit into double plays, killing any momentum.
Missoula Osprey 1 Great Falls Voyagers 10
The second game of the double header got off to an even worse start, as Alex Valdez failed to get out of the first inning and recording only two outs. Valdez was a homer short of giving up the cycle in the inning, allowing four runs on a walk, a single, a double, two triples, in addition to giving up a stolen base and tossing three wild pitches. Valdez was relieved by Liu Fuenmayor, who got the final out of the inning. Fuenmayor pitched 3.1 innings, and allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits, a wild pitch, and a walk, though he did rack up five strikeouts. Landon Whitson pitched the fifth inning, and allowed just a hit that unfortunately was a solo home run. Jhonny Valdez pitched the seventh and allowed two runs on two hits, two walks, and a wild pitch. Both runs were unearned thanks to a fielding error by Francis Martinez.
The Osprey didn't even get on the board until the seventh, when Tristen Carranza lead the inning off with a solo homer. That was it for the offense as far as actually scoring goes.
Spokane Indians 7 Hillsboro Hops 4
3B Tristan English had a good game, going 3-for-4. driving in three of the Hops’ four runs. That included his 8th homer of the season, leading off the ninth inning. However, it was too little, too late, coming just after Spokane scored four in the eighth. Connor Grammeo got the start, and tossed three scoreless innings of one-hit ball, with a walk and three K’s. Marcos Timeo got the L, but all three runs given up in his three innings were unearned. He struck out seven, with four hits and two walks.
The D-backs did well to come back, after allowing the Reds to score 11 runs through two innings. Cristian Pacheco was tagged for seven runs in 1.2 innings, and Jesus Munoz then took five attempts to record the final out. The offense kept chipping away, with C Oscar Santos getting three hits, while LF Endy Estrada had a home-run, a single and a walk. The D-backs pulled to within one after seven innings, but were not able to get the tying run across. It was also a sloppy game, with the defense committing five errors.