Notes:
Minor League Baseball (other than the Rookie Leagues) is off Monday through Thursday. During this time, I will likely finish my midseason report and update my Top 30 list.
The Yankees selected a 2-way player on the second day of the draft. The coolest part is that the player is Luke Pettitte, son of Andy Pettitte. It’s a fun story as Luke was exclusively a pitcher before blowing out his elbow and requiring Tommy John surgery. Dallas Baptist allowed him to hit while he was recovering, and he did a fine job. I will recap the rest of their draft in a separate report.
Scranton (48-43) (Defeated Buffalo, 8-7, in ten innings)
C J.C. Escarra: 1-for-6, RBI
CF Spencer Jones: 1-for-5, 2B (10), RBI, K
2B Marco Luciano: 2-for-4, 2B (8), HR (6), RBI, 2 R, BB, K
Luciano hit well in Somerset but struggled initially upon promotion here. He has hit much better lately, however. Between here and Somerset, he has 17 doubles and 16 home runs.
RF Yanquiel Fernandez: 3-for-5, HR (18), 2 RBI, R, K
Fernandez’s home run travelled 426 feet at 106.3 MPH. He is 14-for-41 (.341) in July.
3B Oswaldo Cabrera: 2-for-5, 2B (12), K
DH Tyler Hardman: 1-for-5, R, K
Hardman has a 6-game hitting streak (12-for-24). His Triple-A batting average has jumped from .235 to .276.
1B Ernesto Martinez Jr.: 0-for-4, BB, K
PR Duke Ellis: 0-for-0, R, SB (37)
SS Jonathan Ornelas: 2-for-4, HR (9), 3 RBI, 2 R, BB, K
A big 2-run home run in the 10th for Ornelas, who has turned into a nice minor league signing.
LF Kenedy Corona: 0-for-2, SAC, BB
RHP Brendan Beck: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Beck continues to throw well in Triple-A. He owns a 3.09 ERA over 93.1 innings (68 H, 37 R, 32 ER, 9 HR, 29 BB, 93 K). Including his MLB time, he is up to 100 innings this year.
RHP Chris Kean: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Bradley Hanner: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Yovanny Cruz: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
While there wasn’t an “Injury Delay” displayed on the screen, it is odd that Cruz lasted only three batters and 17 pitches. Unless the goal today was to get as much work in as possible for relievers ahead of the break. Cruz reached 99.4 MPH.
RHP Danny Watson: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Rafael Montero : 0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
Montero has not pitched well at all.
RHP Zach Messinger: (W, 6-1) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Carson Coleman (S, 3): 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
Somerset (44-43) (Lost to Reading, 2-1, in 11 innings)
LF Jackson Castillo: 0-for-3, 2 BB
.258/.345/.397 in 307 PA (14 doubles, 1 triple, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 39 R, 8-for-9 SB, 11.1% BB, 19.9% K). Some players don’t want the ASB to come. Castillo does, as he is 6-for-41 this month.
CF Jace Avina: 1-for-5, 2B (18), R, 2 K
Avina has a 6-game hitting streak, but it’s a “bare minimum” streak (6-for-25). He is 8-for-41 in July.
RF DJ Gladney: 1-for-5, 2 K
3B Coby Morales: 2-for-4, RBI
A nice first half for Morales, who is hitting .273/.352/.490 in 341 PA (18 doubles, 1 triple, 15 HR, 63 RBI, 52 R, 12-for-20 SB, 11.1% BB, 26.98% K).
2B Connor McGinnis: 0-for-4
C Miguel Palma: 0-for-3, BB
1B Josh Moylan: 0-for-3, BB, 3 K
DH Manuel Palencia: 1-for-4, 2 K
SS Owen Cobb: 0-for-4
LHP Xavier Rivas: 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 10 K
4.20 ERA (64.1 IP, 42 H, 33 R, 30 ER, 12 HR, 32 BB, 94 K). You can work with any pitcher who has a 35.5% strikeout rate. Anyway, Rivas also had a hitless outing (5.2 innings) on June 17th, and this is his 6th career 10+ strikeout effort.
RHP Harrison Cohen: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Hayden Merda: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Merda faced seven batters and struck out two. Many pitchers would take a 28.6% K rate, but when your K rate is over 40%, it feels like a disappointment.
RHP Luis Velasquez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
RHP Trent Sellers: (L, 3-4) 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Hudson Valley (41-44) (Lost to Rome, 7-4)
3B Roderick Arias: 1-for-3, 2 SB (25), BB, K
Arias has a 5-game hitting streak that features six stolen bases (he hadn’t stolen a base in 12 games before this stretch).
SS Core Jackson: 0-for-4, K
.250/.358/.456 in 296 PA (14 doubles, 2 triples, 11 HR, 40 RBI, 44 R, 27-for-34 SB, 11.8% BB, 20.9% K). Jackson has been a pleasant surprise offensively, and a trip to Somerset sometime in the second half seems likely.
C Eric Genther: 0-for-2, SF, RBI, BB
1B Kyle West: 0-for-3, BB, K
LF Wilson Rodriguez: 0-for-3, R, BB, K
.261/.381/.430 in 353 PA (14 doubles, 5 triples, 8 HR, 43 RBI, 54 R, 20-for-25 SB, 16.1% BB, 19.8% K). He enters the All-Star Break on a 20-game on-base streak.
2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 0-for-3, R, BB, 2 K
Tejeda is hitting .226/.335/.355 in 183 PA since his promotion. He is only 8-for-40 in July.
DH Josue Gonzalez: 1-for-4, RBI, R, 3 K
RF Camden Troyer: 0-for-4, K
CF Luis Durango: 3-for-4, 2B (5), 2 RBI, R, 3 SB (15)
Durango loves A+ ball (.373/.417/.507 in 74 PA). He has 15 stolen bases in 23 games here and 33 stolen bases in 40 attempts in 50 games between here and Tampa.
LHP Franyer Herrera: 5 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
4.13 ERA (65.1 IP, 56 H, 36 R, 30 ER, 12 HR, 33 BB, 73 K). The young lefty (21) has held his own.
RHP Sean Paul Linan: (L, 1-8) 3.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
Acquired in the Jorbit Vivas transaction, Linan has struggled to get going (6.46 ERA in 54.1 innings with a 72/26 K/BB). As for Vivas, he makes a lot of contact, but it isn’t quality. He entered today hitting .242/.325/.337.
RHP Hansel Rincon: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Tampa (50-37) (Shut Down Clearwater, 3-0. They are 15-6 in the second half, opening up a 4-game lead on Dunedin.)
3B Jackson Lovich: 1-for-4, 2B (17), 2 RBI, R, 2 K
Lovich hit a 2-run double in the bottom of the 8th to break the scoreless tie. He reaches the All-Star Break hitting .289/.360/.532 over 322 PA (17 doubles, 2 triples, 16 HR, 56 RBI, 55 R, 21-for-27 SB, 9.9% BB, 27.95% K).
2B Hans Montero: 2-for-4, RBI, CS (4)
.242/.366/.426 in 336 PA (14 doubles, 5 triples, 9 HR, 43 RBI, 54 R, 25-for-29 SB, 15.5% BB, 24.7% K). That walk rate is nice, but this is his third year at this level.
C Luis Puello: 0-for-4, 3 K
1B David McCann: 1-for-3
McCann is 11-for-39 (.282; 2 doubles, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 5 R) in July.
SS Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek: 0-for-3, 2 K
.258/.374/.411 in 350 PA (15 doubles, 1 triple, 9 HR, 42 RBI, 59 R, 27-for-34 SB, 13.4% BB, 24% K). July hasn’t been kind to him, but the walks have allowed him to carry a .354 OBP.
RF Brando Mayea: 0-for-3, K
LF Willy Montero: 2-for-3, 2 SB (15), CS (3)
.265/.339/.447 in 289 PA (16 doubles, 2 triples, 9 HR, 42 RBI, 33 R, 15-for-18 SB, 9.7% BB, 25.95% K).
DH Ediel Rivera: 0-for-2, R, BB, K
CF Isael Arias: 0-for-2, R, BB, 2 K
RHP J.T. Etheridge: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K
5.15 ERA (43.2 IP, 41 H, 28 R, 25 ER, 2 HR, 21 BB, 62 K). Etheridge has split time between starting and long relieving, which often is the same thing in the minors. He also tossed four scoreless innings in his last appearance.
LHP Jose Ledesma: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
RHP Josh Tiedemann: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Jordarlin Mendoza (W, 3-3): 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Today, he reached 99.6 MPH (99.5 with his sinker). If everything clicks, they can have quite a weapon in a few years. “If everything clicks” is a high bar to reach, of course.
RHP Matthew Tippie (S, 4): 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
FCL Yankees (26-25)
Day off.
DSL Yankees (18-10)
Day off.
DSL Bombers (13-17)
Day off.