Yankees MILB 7/27: Jesus Rodriguez Hits Two 3-Run Homers
Notes:
In case you missed them, here is my article on the Ryan McMahon transaction and my analysis of the Amed Rosario transaction.
OF Spencer Jones missed his third straight game today (back spasms). With tomorrow’s off-day, he will have four days off going into Tuesday.
Scranton (59-39; 21-5 in second half) (Defeated Rochester, 8-7. Clayton Beeter had to do nothing more than switch dugouts. He appeared in this game, tossing a scoreless inning with a walk and strikeout).
DH Jesus Rodriguez: 2-for-4, 2 HR (5), 6 RBI, 2 R, SB (16), BB, K
You may as well extend your hitting streak to 15 in style. This is his third career 2-HR game (2023, 2024), and he sets a personal best for RBI in a game. He is hitting .320/.414/.437 since his promotion and .302/.394/.409 overall. As for his future with the organization, your guess is as good as mine. They valued him enough to protect him from the Rule 5 draft last winter, so there is something they like, perhaps as a trade chip.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 1-for-4, CS (2), BB, K
Rumfield has a 5-game hitting streak and has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games (including eight multi-hit efforts).
C Rafael Flores: 2-for-5, 3 K
Flores’ 30th multi-hit game this season (second with Scranton).
LF Jose Rojas: 0-for-5, 2 K
3B Jeimer Candelario: 0-for-3, R, HBP, BB, K
RF Bryan De La Cruz: 1-for-5, HR (10), 2 RBI, R, K
De La Cruz is what he is: 10 HR in 54 games since signing with the Yankees.
SS Braden Shewmake: 1-for-4
2B Nicky Lopez: 0-for-0
2B-SS Andrew Velazquez: 2-for-3, 2B (15), 2 R, BB
CF Duke Ellis: 2-for-4, 2 R, K
RHP Sean Boyle: 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
4.58 ERA (92.1 IP, 85 H, 54 R, 47 ER, 11 HR, 31 BB, 92 K)
RHP Leonardo Pestana: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, HR
RHP Bailey Dees: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
Since promotion: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
LHP Jayvien Sandridge: (W, 2-0) 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, HR
RHP Joel Kuhnel: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Since signing: 8.1 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 0 HR, 1 BB, 11 K
RHP Harrison Cohen: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Since promotion: 1.46 ERA (12.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 HR, 7 BB, 11 K)
RHP Baron Stuart (S, 1): 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
Stuart’s first career save.
Somerset (51-45; 16-11 in second half) (Lost to Erie, 7-0)
SS George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-4, 3 K
He’s been hitting better lately, so we’ll toss this.
CF Jace Avina: 0-for-4, 2 K
2B Roc Riggio: 0-for-4, K
Never easy to win when your top three go 0-for-12 with six strikeouts.
3B Dylan Jasso: 3-for-4, 3B (6)
Jasso has back-to-back 3-hit efforts and four multi-hit efforts during his 6-game hitting streak. It has increased his triple slash from .261/.334/.453 to .275/.342/.458. Jasso, a right-handed bat, is much better against RHP than he is LHP.
DH Omar Martinez: 2-for-4, 2B (5), 2 K
.220/.290/.390 since his promotion and .228/.325/.381 overall. His BB%, one of his strengths, is only 9.7% since his promotion. Pitchers tend to have better control and command when they get to Double-A.
1B Tyler Hardman: 0-for-3, K
RF Cole Gabrielson: 0-for-3
C Tomas Frick: 0-for-3, K
LF Jared Wegner: 0-for-3, 2 K
LHP Ben Shields: (L, 1-2) 5 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, HR
3.42 ERA (23.2 IP, 19 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 1 HR, 10 BB, 26 K). Overall, he is up to 35.2 innings since coming back from injury.
RHP Luis Pacheco: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Michael Arias: 1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
RHP Kelly Austin: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
3.23 ERA (30.2 IP, 26 H, 13 R, 11 ER, 1 HR, 16 BB, 29 K)
Hudson Valley (57-36; 20-10 second half) (Defeated Rome, 6-3)
CF Jackson Castillo: 0-for-3, R, BB
DH Dillon Lewis: 1-for-3, 2B (6), 2 RBI, R, CS (1), BB
Lewis is caught stealing for the second time in his career (23-for-25). He increases his hitting streak to nine straight (14-for-33).
1B Coby Morales: 2-for-4, RBI
2B Jose Colmenares: 2-for-4, 2B (17), RBI
Colmenares has three doubles and two homers in his last five games.
3B Josh Moylan: 1-for-3, R, BB, K
SS Alexander Vargas: 1-for-4, 3B (1), RBI, R, K
C John Cristino: 1-for-3, SF, RBI, K
LF Kiko Romero: 0-for-3, R, HBP, K
RF Anthony Hall: 0-for-2, R, CI
LHP Kyle Carr: 4.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
2.16 ERA (87.1 IP, 59 H, 30 R, 21 ER, 5 HR, 38 BB, 76 K). The walk rate isn’t ideal, and he doesn’t strike out a ton of hitters. However, he is tough to hit (hitters were hitting .192/.281/.269 with a 51.1% GB rate entering today).
RHP Chris Kean: (W, 5-2) 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Tyrone Yulie: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Tony Rossi: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
Tampa (45-47; 9-18 in the second half) (Lost to Clearwater, 4-2. Suffice to say, the playoffs aren’t looking likely)
DH Edgleen Perez: 1-for-4, HBP, K
I will say what I said when he struggled mightily at the beginning of the season: You have to keep throwing him out there. He’s up to 372 plate appearances.
SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-1, 4 BB, K
Arias also had a 4-walk effort on June 6th. It isn’t his personal best as he walked five times in a DSL game in 2022. Despite many offensive issues, the ability to take walks has always been there (14.9% rate in 2025). He needs better ball-to-bat skills. Whether he can develop that tough-to-master skill, I don’t know.
C Engelth Urena: 0-for-5, K
3B Juan Matheus: 1-for-4, R, BB, K
CF Willy Montero: 1-for-5, K
RF Wilson Rodriguez: 1-for-2, R, 2 BB, K
Rodriguez is 11-for-46 (.239/.327/.348) since his promotion.
2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 1-for-4, RBI
Tejeda with his first hit since coming back from his rehab stint (1-for-10).
LF Tyler Wilson: 1-for-3, BB
1B Hans Montero: 0-for-3, RBI, BB, 2 K
LHP Xavier Rivas (L, 2-3): 4 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
Since his 13-strikeout effort: 14.1 IP, 17 H, 17 R, 15 ER, 4 HR, 11 BB, 16 K.
RHP Carson Coleman: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Coleman started a rehab stint on May 20th, disappeared on June 5th, and reappeared today. It’s been a journey for the 27-year-old, who was once a top relief prospect before injuries took over his career. He was coveted enough for the Texas Rangers to take him in the Rule 5 draft, even though he was hurt. After spending the entire 2024 campaign on the injured list, they returned him to the Yankees before 2025. Anyway, despite the shoulder injury and the downtime, he was still hitting 95.8 MPH today with his sinker. Crazy.
RHP Jordarlin Mendoza: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Mendoza was promoted from the FCL (season over) today. Already 21, he spent five years in the rookie leagues (two in the DSL, three in the FCL) before getting this chance. Injuries were an issue as he tossed only 104.2 innings in those five years, compiling a 3.44 ERA and 146/59 K/BB. He maxed at 95.4 MPH during this appearance.
RHP Sean Hermann: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
2.05 ERA (44 IP, 28 H, 17 R, 10 ER, 0 HR, 29 BB, 33 K).
RHP Gus Hughes: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
4.09 ERA (33 IP, 29 H, 20 R, 15 ER, 4 HR, 13 BB, 34 K)
FCL (28-30)
Their season is over.
DSL Yankees (16-23)
Day off.
DSL Bombers (21-18)
Day off.
By the way, there is a new playoff format in the DSL. Sixteen squads (eight division winners and eight teams with the best records after the division winners are determined) make the tournament, which is called the “DSL Cup.”
The tournament is played World Cup style. The 16 teams are broken down into four pods of four teams each. They will do a round-robin where the team with the best record advances to the semifinals. Both the semifinals and the finals are best-of-three.
You might think 16 teams is a lot. The DSL is a 52-team league, as most franchises have two teams, and unlike other minor leagues, every MLB franchise plays in the same league.
“Wait! 30 x 2 = 60! Which MLB teams don’t have two squads?” The cheapskates are the Twins, Athletics, Nationals, Cardinals, Braves, Angels, Mariners, and White Sox. You are probably shocked by a few of those.
The Bombers currently rank 18th overall and are three games behind the Miami Marlins in their division.