Yankees MILB 7/26: 3 Hits for George Lombard Jr.
Notes:
In case you missed it, here is my article on the Ryan McMahon transaction.
As stated yesterday, Hudson Valley has lost a lot of pitching lately. Today, RHP Gage Ziehl was moved up from Tampa. He made his debut during the game. Earlier in the season, he made an emergency start for Somerset. Ziehl was their 4th-round pick in the 2024 draft out of Miami.
OF Spencer Jones was missing from the lineup again tonight (back spasms). OF Everson Pereira, who I think is a candidate to replace Aaron Judge for as long as he is on the injured list, was in the Scranton lineup, as was veteran outfielder Bryan De La Cruz. Duke Ellis, who swatted four hits (including three doubles) last night, was not in the lineup. I don’t think he would be the replacement for Judge, but anything is possible. It is a long trip from Rochester to the Bronx (over five hours), so asking Pereira to play and hop into a car for that journey would be weird. We’ll find out soon enough.
I saw Heyman’s note about the Yankees not dealing Jones unless someone like Paul Skenes (yeah, right) became available. I don’t trust Heyman, and smoke screens exist. However, I think the Yankees will hold onto Jones and add him to the 40-man roster this winter (if he isn’t called up to the MLB).
Scranton (58-39; 20-5 in second half) (Defeated Rochester, 6-2)
DH Jesus Rodriguez: 2-for-5, RBI, SB (15), K
Rodriguez extends his hitting streak to 14 (20-for-59 (.339).
CF Everson Pereira: 0-for-3, R, 2 BB, K
1B T.J. Rumfield: 2-for-5, 2B (27), RBI, R
Rumfield has ten multi-hit efforts this month (30-for-76 (.360) with ten doubles). Since the question was asked, I did a little research: I don’t believe Rumfield is eligible for minor league free agency this winter. He remains eligible for the Rule 5 if he isn’t added to the 40-man roster.
C Rafael Flores: 0-for-3, 2 BB
Flores had a 9.0% Double-A walk rate. So far for Scranton, he has nine walks in 36 plate appearances (25%). Small sample size noise? Likely.
3B Jeimer Candelario: 1-for-4, R, BB, K
RF Bryan De La Cruz: 1-for-5, RBI, 2 K
LF Jose Rojas: 1-for-4, 2B (25), RBI, R, SB (4), 2 K
2B Nicky Lopez: 2-for-4, RBI, R
Lopez is hitting .273 (15-for-55) since signing.
SS Andrew Velazquez: 2-for-4, 2B (14), RBI, R, K
RHP Carlos Carrasco: (W, 4-2) 7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, HR
Carrasco’s third straight 7-inning effort.
RHP Eric Reyzelman: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
3.92 ERA (39 IP, 25 H, 17 R, 17 ER, 5 HR, 39 BB, 41 K). Reyzelman won’t survive with that walk rate, but lowering his ERA under 4.00 shows his talent.
RHP Kervin Castro: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Somerset (51-44; 16-10 in second half) (Defeated Erie, 9-6)
CF Brendan Jones: 1-for-3, 3B (3), 3 R, 2 BB
After hitting .236/.349/.362 in 44 High-A games, he is at .232/.325/.430 in 40 Double-A games. He has turned it up in July (18-for-67; 3 doubles, 1 triple, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 14 R, 8-for-8 SB, 13 BB, 18 K).
SS George Lombard Jr.: 3-for-5, 2B (12), RBI, 2 R
Lombard Jr.’s first 3-hit game as a member of the Patriots. A solid stretch of games has improved his Double-A triple slash from .202/.335/.303 on July 5th to .215/.332/.342 now. It may not seem like much, but it is a 36-point jump in his OPS.
2B Roc Riggio: 3-for-5, HR (11), 2 RBI, R
Double-A is not slowing down Riggio, who has homered in back-to-back games (after doubling in back-to-back games). To be exact, he’s hitting better here than he did at any other level. He is at .273/.346/.573 in 159 PA (11 doubles, 11 HR, 28 RBI, 25 R, 7-for-10 SB, 7.5% BB, 22.6% K).
1B Dylan Jasso: 3-for-5, 3 RBI, R
Jasso owns a 5-game hitting streak (9-for-23). He is at .270/.338/.448 in 367 PA (13 doubles, 5 triples, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 51 R). He has 14 games at first base, 18 games at second base, and 49 games at third base. As you may guess, his time at second base has gone down since Riggio’s promotion.
PR Cam Eden: 0-for-0, R
1B Duncan Pastore: 0-for-0
RF Jace Avina: 1-for-5, RBI, K
Since promotion: .250/.386/.472 in 44 PA. After going 0-for-6 in his first two games (though he reached base in both games), he is now on an 8-game hitting streak.
C Omar Martinez: 0-for-5, 2 K
DH Tyler Hardman: 1-for-5, 3B (2), R, K
LF Jared Wegner: 1-for-3, SF, 2 RBI, K
3B Max Burt: 0-for-4
RHP Trent Sellers: 5.1 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR
A rare misstep for Sellers, who is typically solid in his relatively short outings (he has yet to complete six innings professionally). Season: 4.16 ERA (75.2 IP, 66 H, 38 R, 35 ER,8 HR, 37 BB, 87 K)
RHP Cole Ayers: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Mason Vinyard (W, 3-2): 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Hudson Valley (56-36; 19-10 second half) (Took down Rome, 5-1)
LF Jackson Castillo: 2-for-3, 2B (15), HR (5), 2 RBI, R, SB (19), BB, K
Castillo is hitting .247/.345/.348 in 368 PA (15 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 43 RBI, 43 R, 19-for-20 SB, 12.2% BB, 20.1% K). He is 22-for-69 (.319) with 11 walks over his last 20 games.
CF Dillon Lewis: 1-for-4, SB (7), 2 K
Like Castillo, Lewis has turned it up in July (17-for-57 (.298); 2 doubles, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 7 R, 5-for-5 SB, 7 BB, 11 K). Between Tampa and Hudson Valley, he has 16 home runs and 20 stolen bases in 21 attempts.
DH Coby Morales: 0-for-3, RBI, BB, K
SS Alexander Vargas: 0-for-4, K
2B Jose Colmenares: 1-for-3, 2B (16), BB, 2 K
Colmenares has two doubles and two homers in his last four games.
3B Josh Moylan: 1-for-4, SB (7), K
C Manuel Palencia: 1-for-4, R
1B Kiko Romero: 1-for-3, HR (2), 2 RBI, R, BB, K
RF Anthony Hall: 0-for-1, 2 R, SB (6), 3 BB
RHP Ben Hess: 4.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K
Hess tossed 71 pitches tonight. He owns a 3.65 ERA in 61.2 IP (40 H, 29 R, 25 ER, 2 HR, 32 BB, 89 K). Last four appearances: 16 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 HR, 4 BB, 23 K.
RHP Bryce Warrecker: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Warrecker was used as a bridge tonight.
RHP Gage Ziehl (W, 1-0): 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
Ziehl’s High-A debut goes well.
Tampa (45-46; 9-17 in the second half) (Lost to Clearwater, 5-3)
C Edgleen Perez: 1-for-4
Perez had a hot stretch before the All-Star Break but is in a 2-for-31 slide and has zero extra-base hits in 15 July games. Could it be fatigue? Certainly.
SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-4, RBI, K
DH Engelth Urena: 0-for-2, R, 2 BB
.205/.334/.326 in 371 PA. Urena is having a rough July (10-for-53; 2 doubles, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 8 BB, 17 K)
3B Juan Matheus: 0-for-3, R, HBP
CF Willy Montero: 2-for-4
Montero is 14-for-46 (.304) since coming back from his rehab stint.
RF Wilson Rodriguez: 0-for-2, SF, RBI, HBP
Since promotion: .227/.294/.341 in 13 games (2 doubles, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 4 BB, 7 K)
LF Marshall Toole: 0-for-4, K
A little 0-for-11 slump has dropped his triple slash to .300/.409/.479.
2B Owen Cobb: 1-for-3
1B Josue Gonzalez: 1-for-3, 2B (7), R, K
LHP Allen Facundo: (L, 0-1) 4 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
Since people love to hear about his velocity, he hit 97.8 MPH today. He throws both a hard 4-seamer and sinker, though his most-used pitch is his slider. The 6’0″ lefty has the raw talent. It’s all about putting it together. Season (including FCL time): 16.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 0 HR, 7 BB, 25 K.
RHP Cole Zaffiro: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 1 K
RHP Mariano Salomon: 3.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, HR
FCL (28-30)
Their season is over.
DSL Yankees (16-23) (Defeated the DSL Bombers, 6-5)
CF Francisco Vilorio: 3-for-5, 2B (6), RBI, R, SB (6), CS (3), K
There is zero doubt Vilorio is coming stateside in 2026. He is on a 6-game hitting streak (10-for-25).
DH Mani Cedeno: 0-for-3, SB (12), 2 BB, 3 K
I don’t want to get too deep with a 16-year-old, but yeah – the strikeout rate isn’t ideal (36.4%).
3B Richard Matic: 2-for-3, 3B (2), R, BB
Matic should join Vilorio stateside in 2026. He is hitting .358/.493/.575 in 140 PA (10 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HR, 25 RBI, 29 R, 5-for-10 SB, 20% BB, 22.9% K)
C Justin Capellan: 0-for-4, RBI, K
RF Estivenzon Montero: 2-for-4, RBI, R, SB (7)
.296/.384/.537 in 125 PA. Last season, he wasn’t overwhelmed at this level (.242/.361/.364 as a 17-year-old). Another prospect to watch for the FCL next season.
1B Edgar Jimenez: 1-for-3, R, SB (4), BB
LF Angel Ventura: 2-for-3, 2B (4), 2 R, SB (13), BB, K
In 59 career games, Ventura is 31-for-36 in the stolen base department.
2B Adrian Feliz: 1-for-3, RBI, SB (4), CS (3), BB, K
RHP Anthony Mena: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K
4.15 ERA (34.2 IP, 36 H, 29 R, 16 ER, 5 HR, 14 BB, 42 K). He has 22 strikeouts in 14 innings over his last three starts.
RHP Varis Villarreal (W, 3-2): 2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
DSL Bombers (21-18) (Lost to the DSL Yankees, 6-5)
SS Stiven Marinez: 0-for-4, 2 K
CF Ruben Castillo: 1-for-3, 2 R, SB (16), 2 CS (6), BB, K
LF Jose Castro: 1-for-4, R, SB (11), 2 K
C Carlos Villarroel: 0-for-3, RBI, R, BB, K
.237/.370/.454 in 119 PA. Last season, in his professional debut, he hit .299/.390/.410.
2B Juan Torres: 1-for-4, 2 RBI, R, SB (11)
The strong offense continues. He is hitting .340/.398/.510 and has 25 RBI and 24 runs in 32 games.
RHP Luis Burgos: 3.2 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
2.48 ERA (36.1 IP, 25 H, 15 R, 10 ER, 2 HR, 14 BB, 38 K)
RHP Diego Carrillo: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
3.75 ERA (24 IP, 21 H, 12 R, 10 ER, 3 HR, 10 BB, 20 K)