Tag: Ben Rice

Yankees MILB 6/5: Ben Rice Homers in Scranton Debut

News:

OF Jasson Dominguez surged into the Top 10 on Baseball America’s updated Top 100, but the Yankees took a hit overall. That was to be expected, as RHP Chase Hampton and LHP Henry Lalane haven’t pitched this season while Roderick Arias hasn’t played up to his hype. The Yankees system remains deep, which is important. If you have a deep system, the chances are good that Top 100 prospects will emerge. Plus, deep systems help in trade talks.

Anyway, there are plenty of games remaining. We’ll see how Arias and George Lombard Jr. adjust in the second half. We’ll see if Brando Mayea continues to play well in the FCL. Pitchers like Brock Selvidge, Trystan Vrieling, and Zach Messinger have pitched well enough in Somerset to give you hope that the pitching pipeline remains strong even if off-season trades and injuries depleted it.

C/1B Ben Rice was promoted to Scranton today. For Somerset, Rice hit .295/.392/.582 in 97 games (440 plate appearances). He hit 22 doubles, 28 home runs, and drove home 74. As a bonus, he went 15-for-18 in the stolen base department. Joining Rice is OF Elijah Dunham, taking Brandon Lockridge‘s spot. Dunham struggled in his first taste of Triple-A in 2023. The timing for him was bad as there was MLB playing time to claim.

As for the catching situation in Somerset, the Patriots activated Peter Serruto. “Who is that?” Good question. The 24-year-old was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2023. His career consists of one FCL game from last year, where he went 0-for-2. Essentially, the Yankees need another catcher in Double-A and don’t feel as if Jesus Rodriguez or Omar Martinez are ready for that climb.

Scranton (34-24) (Defeated Norfolk, 7-6)

DH Jasson Dominguez: 1-for-4, 2B (1), RS, 2 K
2B Jorbit Vivas: 0-for-3, RS, BB, K
Vivas is 6-for-31 with five walks at this level.
SS Oswald Peraza: 1-for-3, BB, 2 K
1B Ben Rice: 2-for-4, HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 RS, K
Well, this is a nice first impression (his HR was a game-winner in the 7th inning). Rice has 13 HR in 50 games this season and 33 homers in 123 games over the last two seasons.
C Carlos Narvaez: 2-for-4, 2 RS
Narvaez has a 9-game hitting streak (three 2-hit efforts during the streak). His average has jumped from .225 to .255 during the streak. 
RF Taylor Trammell: 2-for-4, 2B (5), 3 RBI, RS, K
Trammell hit a bases-clearing double in a 5-run first.
3B Jeter Downs: 1-for-4, RBI, SB (6)
CF Greg Allen: 1-for-3, RBI, BB
LF Elijah Dunham: 0-for-4, K

RHP Yoendrys Gomez: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
3.19 ERA (36.2 IP, 24 H, 14 R, 13 ER, 4 HR, 20 BB, 44 K). We’ll see him in the Bronx again this year.
RHP Cody Morris: 0.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: (W, 2-0) 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Ron Marinaccio: (S, 3) 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K
1.17 ERA (15.1 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 HR, 5 BB, 17 K). I would put him back in the MLB bullpen (I don’t know why Dennis Santana is there), but it is what it is.

Somerset (25-28) (Lost to Hartford, 9-3)

CF Spencer Jones: 0-for-4, SF, RBI, K
Jones’ on-base streak is snapped at 17. As I have stated, he wasn’t “hot” during that streak (though he had a few strong games). We have to keep hoping that something clicks over the next few weeks.
C Agustin Ramirez: 3-for-4, BB
Ramirez’s 12th multi-hit game, and he is hitting .274 with a .916 OPS. He hasn’t homered in a while (17 games) but he hasn’t stopped hitting/taking walks.
SS Ben Cowles: 3-for-5, 2B (19), K
19 doubles (26 extra-base hits) in 50 games. Last year, he hit 18 doubles (30 extra-base hits) in 109 games. On top of that, he had a 28.0% K rate in 2023. This season? 17.1%. One can’t help but to be intrigued.
1B J.C. Escarra: 0-for-5
RF Grant Richardson: 0-for-4, K
2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-4, 2 K
DH Jared Wegner: 2-for-4, 2B (4), 2 RS, K
3B Jordan Groshans: 2-for-4, RBI, RS
LF Aaron Palensky: 1-for-4, RBI

RHP Yorlin Calderon: (L, 0-1)  2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, HR
Calderon’s first start in 2024. Last season, he pitched out of the bullpen until August 10th. He finished the season making five straight starts. We’ll see if this is a permanent move or a one-off.
RHP Luis Velasquez: 2.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Kevin Stevens: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
2.79 ERA (19.1 IP, 16 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 9 BB, 29 K). I don’t claim to know much about the 26-year-old, but that is an impressive strikeout rate. This is only his 20th career appearance.
RHP Colby White: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, HR
LHP Ryan Anderson: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, HR
RHP Peter Serruto: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 1 K
I doubt he expected his Double-A debut to be on the hill. The Rutgers/Indiana product didn’t pitch in college and I haven’t read anything about the Yankees converting him to a pitcher. Hence, I assume he pitched because they ran out of pitchers.

Hudson Valley (26-24) (Defeated Wilmington, 4-2, in a rain-shortened game. This was Game 1 of a doubleheader. Game 2 was postponed. They will try to make that one up tomorrow)

CF Jace Avina: 0-for-4, 2 K
.303/.394/.500 in 180 PA (15 doubles, 5 HR, 26 RBI, 24 R, 4-for-4 SB, 11.1% BB, 26.1% K). Avina had a 29.6% K rate in 2023, so he has brought that down a tad. He turns 21 tomorrow.
SS Jared Serna: 3-for-4, 2B (12), 2 RBI, RS, CS (6)
Serna has six 3-hit games this season and is hitting .255/.366/.490 in 232 PA (12 doubles, 11 HR, 43 RBI, 38 R, 7-for-13 SB, 13.8% BB, 18.1% K).  He is first in the league in homers, second in RBI, and runs scored. As for the stolen base rate, it is hard to explain (he was 29-for-37 (78.4%) last year). Remember that the minors are for learning – part of that learning is the art of base stealing.
LF Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-3
.324/.411/.497 in 207 PA (12 doubles, 2 triples, 5 HR, 24 RBI, 33 R, 12.6% BB, 13.5% K). Since his promotion to this level last year, he is hitting .335/.429/.509 in 72 games. The Yankees promoted him after playing 84 games in Low-A if you want a barometer for a potential promotion to Somerset.
DH Rafael Flores: 1-for-3, 2B (15), 2 RBI, K
Flores has a 10-game hitting streak. He is hitting .303/.411/.485 in 158 PA (15 doubles, 3 HR, 27 RBI, 16 R, 15.2% BB, 22.2% K). Flores (23) never played in Low-A, so I don’t have a barometer for him. He has played 144 games at this level (.270/.363/.397). While Rodriguez has played many positions (including catcher), Flores is a C/1B.
1B Tyler Hardman: 0-for-3
C Omar Martinez: 1-for-3, K
.239/.384/.423 in 177 PA (6 doubles, 1 triple, 6 HR, 18 RBI, 18 R, 18.6% BB, 22.6% K). He is a 22-year-old switch-hitter who has prospect chops.
3B Kiko Romero: 2-for-3, K
.228/.377/.413 in 114 PA. 
RF Nelson Medina: 0-for-3, K
2B Beau Brewer: 2-for-2, 2 RS, BB
  PR Roc Riggio: 0-for-0, RS

RHP Baron Stuart: (W, 3-1) 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
Between here and Scranton: 3.70 ERA (41.1 IP, 35 H, 19 R, 17 ER, 1 HR, 21 BB, 26 K). 
RHP Cole Ayers: (S, 3)  1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
1.93 ERA (32.2 IP, 23 H, 10 R, 7 ER, 1 HR, 8 BB, 39 K). Ayers is 24 and has appeared in 30 games here dating back to last year. He should make his way up to Somerset soon enough.

Tampa (19-34) (Lost to Fort Myers, 9-3)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 1-for-4, 2B (6), RS, 2 K
.215/.358/.274 in 165 PA (16.97% BB, 23.0% K; 14-for-15 SB). There is something to work with here. The strikeout rate isn’t terrible and his walk rate is strong. 
2B Roderick Arias: 1-for-3, 3B (5), BB, 2 K
.205/.314/.323 in 229 PA (12.7% BB, 35.4% K). As of this writing, he is tied for the Florida State League lead with five triples.
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-3, RS, BB, K
LF Christopher Familia: 1-for-4, RBI, K
DH Max Burt: 0-for-3, BB
CF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-3, CS (3), BB
Castillo has a 5-game hitting streak.
3B Hans Montero: 1-for-4, RS, 2 K
RF Coby Morales: 1-for-4, RBI, 2 SB (11), K
Morales stole one base in 104 collegiate games.
C Tomas Frick: 0-for-3

RHP Josh Grosz: (L, 1-4)  5 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
RHP Cade Austin: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR
3.19 ERA (36.2 IP, 28 H, 16 R, 13 ER, 6 HR, 8 BB, 39 K)
RHP Montana Semmel: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Semmel reached 95 MPH today. He owns a 2.03 ERA in 26.2 IP (18 H, 10 R, 6 ER, 2 HR, 10 BB, 23 K)

FCL (13-10)

They had a scheduled day off. By the way, last night’s game (which I stopped writing about at 8-8) ended up as a 17-13 victory in 12 innings.

DSL Yankees (1-1) and DSL Bombers (0-1)

Scheduled day off.

Yankees MILB 6/4: Jackson Fristoe: 6 Scoreless Innings

News:

OF Brandon Lockridge was placed on the injured list for Scranton. Lockridge’s 21 stolen bases are second in the International League (teammate Caleb Durbin, also on the injured list, is tied for 3rd with 20).

OF Jasson Dominguez‘s rehab has moved to Scranton. Additionally, the stint has been extended by ten days. With the approval of MLB, teams are allowed to extend rehab stints three times at 10 days per pop. This is applicable if a player is rehabbing an elbow or shoulder injury. As you may suspect, this is most often used with pitchers rehabbing from Tommy John.

IF Enmanuel Tejeda has begun a rehab stint in the FCL. The 19-year-old hit .330/.374/.402 in 108 plate appearances for Tampa before his injury on May 2nd. Tejeda compiled back-to-back 4-hit games when the injury hit.

Scranton (34-24) (Lost to Toledo, 4-2)

CF Jasson Dominguez: 0-for-3
Sometimes, it is hard to remember that Dominguez has played only ten Triple-A games.
   CF Greg Allen: 0-for-1
SS Oswald Peraza: 0-for-4, K
Peraza is hitting .137 (7-for-51) for Scranton (1-for-27 slide). You figure that the bat will start clicking, but this is an ugly stretch.
2B Jorbit Vivas: 1-for-4, K
C Carlos Narvaez: 1-for-3, RS, BB
Narvaez has an 8-game hitting streak (10-for-28; 5 walks)
1B T.J. Rumfield: 1-for-4, 2B (9)
.278/.339/.397 in 168 PA since his promotion. 
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 2-for-4, RBI, K
.305/.359/.484 in 103 PA. 
LF Taylor Trammell: 0-for-4, K
3B Kevin Smith: 1-for-3, HR (2), RBI, RS
DH Josh VanMeter: 0-for-3, K

LHP Tanner Tully: (L, 1-4) 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
RHP Art Warren: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR
LHP Clayton Andrews: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
RHP Duane Underwood Jr.: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
1.80 ERA (20 IP, 11 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 10 BB, 22 K)
RHP Phil Bickford: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
3.38 ERA (21.1 IP, 19 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 2 HR, 9 BB, 28 K). Both Underwood and Bickford are somewhere on the depth chart. You hope you don’t need to use them, but nowadays, a bullpen is “all hands on deck.”

Somerset (25-27) (Lost to Hartford, 5-4)

CF Spencer Jones: 1-for-5, 2 K
Jones increases his on-base streak to 17. 
1B Agustin Ramirez: 0-for-5, K
.263/.364/.537. 
C Ben Rice: 2-for-4, 2B (9), RS, BB
Rice is hitting .261/.382/.511 and is 5-for-11 to start June with three doubles and two walks. 
SS Ben Cowles: 1-for-4, 2B (18), K
Cowles hit 18 doubles in 2022 and 2023 (many more games!)
DH J.C. Escarra: 2-for-4, 2B (10), RS, SB (1), K
3B Jordan Groshans: 1-for-4, K
RF Grant Richardson: 1-for-3, 2 RBI, BB, K
LF Jared Wegner: 1-for-3, CS (3), BB, K
2B Anthony Seigler: 1-for-3, HR (4), RBI, RS, SB (8), BB, 2 K
Seigler has homered four times in his last four games. 

RHP Gerrit Cole: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K
Cole’s durability is known – this was his first minor league game since July 10, 2016. Supposedly, everything looked fine. Now we wait to see how he feels tomorrow.
RHP Zach Messinger: (L, 2-3)  4.2 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, HR
3.58 ERA (60.1 IP, 49 H, 35 R, 24 ER, 5 HR, 19 BB, 69 K).
RHP Jesus Liranzo: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K

Hudson Valley (25-24) (Crushed Wilmington, 10-2)

2B Roc Riggio: 1-for-4, HBP
SS Jared Serna: 1-for-5, HR (11), RBI, 2 RS
Serna hit zero HR in his first 28 High-A games and two in his first 47 games. He has 9 in his last 28 games.  
CF Jace Avina: 1-for-5, RS, 3 K
Avina owns an 8-game hitting streak (11-for-31).
C Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-3, 3B (2), RBI, 3 RS, 2 BB
Rodriguez has three multi-walk games in his last five games. He drew 16 walks in May after drawing 6 in April. He is hitting .324/.412/.500 in 204 PA (12 doubles, 2 triples, 5 HR, 24 RBI, 33 R, 6-for-9 SB, 12.7% BB, 13.7% K). He just doesn’t stop producing.
DH Tyler Hardman: 2-for-5, 2B (2), HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 RS
As his stroke comes back, he should dominate this level. 
1B Rafael Flores: 2-for-4, HR (3), 4 RBI, RS, BB, K
Flores has four 2-hit games in his last five games played. He tied his career-best for RBI in a game and is hitting .308 with a .894 OPS (14 doubles, 3 HR, 25 RBI). 
LF Garrett Martin: 1-for-4, HR (2), 2 RBI, RS
Martin has homered twice in his last four games.
3B Josh Moylan: 1-for-4
Moylan is the proud owner of a 7-game hitting streak.
RF Cole Gabrielson: 0-for-3, BB, K

RHP Jackson Fristoe: (W, 1-2)  6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Fristoe’s longest career outing (previous: 4.1 innings). He owns a 3.72 ERA (29 IP, 20 H, 13 R, 12 ER, 1 HR, 21 BB, 31 K). It doesn’t take a baseball savant to recognize where his biggest issue lies. It is encouraging to see that he issued none of those tonight.
RHP Trent Sellers: (S, 1) 3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
Sellers’ first career save. 

Tampa (19-33) (Lost to Fort Myers, 4-2)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 1-for-4, SB (14), K
14-for-15 stealing bases. Lombard turned 19 on June 2nd. As stated before, the power has yet to show itself but that isn’t concerning. 
2B Roderick Arias: 0-for-4, 2 K
.203/.311/.313 in 225 PA. I would advise waiting to see what he does in the second half of the season. Can he adjust or will the struggles continue? 
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-4
LF Christopher Familia: 2-for-4, HR (1), RBI, RS, K
His rehab was moved here from the FCL. Your reminder that he hit 16 home runs in 57 games at this level between 2022-2023.
3B Max Burt: 0-for-2, K
Burt, a 27-year-old utility player, is here on a rehab stint. In 2022 and 2023, he reached double digits in homers and stolen bases.
  3B Brenny Escanio: 0-for-2, K
CF Jackson Castillo: 2-for-4, HR (4), RBI, RS, K
.259/.386/.457 in 145 PA. His triple slash went as low as .156/.283/.267 (May 5th) but he has taken off since then.
DH Hans Montero: 0-for-4, 2 K
RF Willy Montero: 1-for-3, 2B (8), K
C Edinson Duran: 0-for-3

RHP Caleb Smith:(L, 2-4)  7 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, HR
2.96 ERA (48.2 IP, 34 H, 22 R, 16 ER, 2 HR, 22 BB, 57 K). Smith has gone seven innings twice this season (6+ innings four times)
RHP Kris Bow: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
3.13 ERA (23 IP, 18 H, 12 R, 8 ER, 1 HR, 15 BB, 27 K)

FCL (12-10) (They are tied with the Blue Jays, 8-8, in the 7th. I am not going to wait this one out – heck, it may even be over already, knowing how slow GameCast sometimes is at this level!)

CF Brando Mayea: 2-for-3, 2 RS, 2 SB (7), BB
Mayea’s power hasn’t shown itself but he is hitting .341 with a .828 OPS and is 7-for-7 stealing bases.
DH Edgleen Perez: 1-for-3, RS, BB, 2 K
2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 0-for-3, K
  2B Gabriel Terrero: 0-for-0, SF, RBI
DH Engelth Urena: 1-for-4, HR (2, grand slam), 4 RBI, RS, K
SS Juan Matheus: 0-for-2, RS, SB (3), BB
LF Brian Sanchez: 1-for-3, 2 RS, SB (7), K

RHP McKinley Moore: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Eric Reyzelman: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
It is only a matter of time before he shows up in Low-A Tampa.

DSL Yankees (1-1) and DSL Bombers (0-1)

The Bombers lost, 12-3, today.  17-year-old Francisco Vilorio had a pair of hits and RBI.

The Yankees won, 19-7. They had 8 hits and 20 (TWENTY) walks. This league isn’t real.
They scored 11 runs in the first inning, highlighted by a Luis Puello grand slam. The 18-year-old catcher drove home 6, doubling his previous best. SS Dexters Peralta (16 years old) went 2-for-3 with 4 runs scored and a pair of walks, RBI, and stolen bases. The Yankees have another Montero in the organization as Estivenzon Montero joins Willy, Hans, and Fidel (there could be more, for all I know). He is a 17-year-old outfielder who debuted today (1-for-4, RBI, SB).

The DSL doesn’t do much for me. I’ll highlight what I can, but getting a read on these players is impossible. A $10,000 kid could emerge while a $800,000 kid dies on the vine (then, the prospect community acts as if they knew the $10,000 kid was a sleeper all along)

Yankees MILB 6/1: Jasson Dominguez Homers Again

News:

Nothing new.

Scranton (34-22) (Lost to Toledo, 3-2)

CF Brandon Lockridge: 2-for-4, RBI, 2 SB (20), BB, K
Lockridge is 60-for-67 stealing bases over the past two seasons. 
3B Jorbit Vivas: 0-for-3, RS, CI, K
2B Oswald Peraza: 0-for-3, BB, K
C Carlos Narvaez: 1-for-4, RBI, K
Narvaez has 31 RBI (44 games). His best is 44, set last year (100 games).
1B T.J. Rumfield: 0-for-4, K
DH Oscar Gonzalez: 0-for-4
LF Taylor Trammell: 0-for-4, K
SS Kevin Smith: 3-for-4, 2 2B (7), RS, K
RF Greg Allen: 1-for-4, 2B (4)

RHP Will Warren: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
Warren was pitching well into the 5th, where he ran into trouble. Still, this is encouraging after a less-than-ideal May.
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Matt Sauer: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Sauer’s first appearance after being returned from the Royals. I assume (never smart) that he will start soon enough. The Royals were using him in the bullpen, so it could take time to build him back up.
RHP Ron Marinaccio: (L, 0-2) 1.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

Somerset (25-25) (Defeated Bowie, 6-2)

CF Spencer Jones: 2-for-4, 3B (2), 4 RBI, SB (13), K
Jones has a 15-game on-base streak. The last two games have been the most encouraging. He is at .227/.318/.344 in 176 PA (2 days ago, he was at .205/.299/.295). 
DH Jasson Dominguez: 1-for-3, HR (4), RBI, 2 RS, BB
Dominguez has homered in back-to-back games and is making Double-A look silly during his 7-game hitting streak (12-for-28, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 7 R). I don’t know when the Yankees will use him in MLB this season, but he will be ready.
C Ben Rice: 3-for-4, 2 2B (8), RBI, SB (8)
.260/.380/.514 in 209 PA. On May 19th, his SLG slipped to .444. He has 4 doubles and 4 HR in 11 games since. I don’t think a prospect needs to spend much time in Triple-A, but there is a benefit in facing pitchers with MLB experience. Triple-A is abundant in those types.
3B Ben Cowles: 1-for-4, 2 K
.317/.399/.527 in 198 PA. Position breakdown: 2B: 5 games (5 starts); 3B: 11 games (9 starts); SS: 35 games (33 starts).
LF Elijah Dunham: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
RF Jared Wegner: 1-for-3, 2 RS, HBP, K
2B Anthony Seigler: 1-for-4, RS, 2 K
SS Alexander Vargas: 0-for-3, HBP, 2 K

RHP Blane Abeyta: (W, 3-5) 6 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, HR
RHP Danny Watson: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Watson’s first appearance since April 11th. Like Jack Neely, he is a tall (6’7″) reliever with MLB potential. Before his injury, I would have said either could get to MLB in 2024. Watson is behind now, but continue to watch him closely.
RHP Colby White: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Kevin Stevens: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Hudson Valley (24-23) (Lost to Aberdeen, 3-1)

2B Roc Riggio: 0-for-3, 2 BB, 2 K
Riggio has an 18-game on-base streak (15-for-72 (.208); 13 walks). 
SS Jared Serna: 0-for-5, K
RF Jace Avina: 1-for-1, RS, HBP, 2 BB
.315/.409/.524 in 171 PA (15 doubles, 5 HR, 26 RBI, 23 R, 4-for-4 SB). While some element of luck is involved (.404 BABIP), his performance is likely exceeding the Yankees’ expectations. 
C Jesus Rodriguez: 0-for-2, SB (6), 2 BB
He left the game after an awkward dive in LF last night. This afternoon? He starts behind the plate. This kid is tough! Season: .321/.407/.494 in 194 PA (12 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 23 RBI, 29 R, 12.4% BB, 14.4% K).
DH Tyler Hardman: 1-for-4, RBI, 2 K
1B Rafael Flores: 1-for-3, SB (2), BB, K
LF Garrett Martin: 0-for-3, K
CF Nelson Medina: 0-for-4, 2 K
3B Beau Brewer: 0-for-4, K

LHP Ben Shields (L, 1-2): 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
Shields’ emergency start for Scranton didn’t go well. I am happy it didn’t impact his performance in his first start back here.
RHP Mason Vinyard: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
3.00 ERA (12 IP, 9 H, 9 R, 4 ER, 1 HR, 5 BB, 18 K)
RHP Cole Ayers: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
1.99 ERA (31.2 IP, 22 H, 10 R, 7 ER, 1 HR, 8 BB, 37 K). 

Tampa (19-31) (Defeated Palm Beach, 5-3, in 10 innings)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-4, BB, K
.213/.368/.270 in 152 PA (12-for-13 SB). I am intrigued to see how Lombard Jr. adjusts in the second half of the season.
2B Roderick Arias: 2-for-5, 3 RBI, SB (13), K
Arias is 13-for-19 stealing bases but has been successful in his last six attempts. Let’s see if this is the start of a big June…
1B Dylan Jasso: 0-for-5, 2 K
CF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-4, 2 K
DH Hans Montero: 0-for-4, K
RF Willy Montero: 0-for-4
3B Brenny Escanio: 2-for-4, 2 RS, SB (4), K
A decent .270/.329/.378 line in 82 PA for Escanio, who they acquired from the Brewers in 2019 for J.P. Feyereisen.
LF Daury Arias: 2-for-4, 2B (5), RBI, 2 RS, SB (4), 2 K
C Edinson Duran: 2-for-4, RBI, RS, SB (1)

RHP Gabriel Barbosa: 7.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 HR, 1 BB, 4 K
4.81 ERA (48.2 IP, 51 H, 26 R, 26 ER, 3 HR, 10 BB, 49 K). The Rule 5 draftee (minor league phase) has pitched fairly well.
RHP Cade Austin: (W, 1-2)  1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Montana Semmel (S, 3): 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
1.44 ERA (25 IP, 16 H, 8 R, 4 ER, 2 HR, 9 BB, 21 K)

FCL (12-9) (Lost to the Phillies, 3-1)

CF Brando Mayea: 0-for-4, K
LF Christopher Familia: 2-for-3, 2 2B (3)
A predictable 10-for-16 during his rehab stint.
C Josue Gonzalez: 2-for-3
.233/.410/.483 in 78 PA.
1B Luis Ogando: 1-for-3, RS, SB (4)
SS Santiago Gomez: 1-for-2, RBI, SB (6), BB, K
.346/.485/.346 in 33 PA (6-for-8 SB)

RHP McKinley Moore: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
For Moore, results don’t matter – he can strike out FCL hitters without much effort. It is about harnessing the stuff.
RHP Eric Reyzelman: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
One has to imagine that Reyzelman will get to Tampa rather quickly, as long as he is healthy.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 5/31: Spencer Jones Breaks Out

News:

The Mets, in their neverending quest to buy a championship, acquired C Luis Torrens from the Yankees for $100,000. This move hurts the Yankees’ catching depth, but Torrens was #4 on the depth chart behind Jose Trevino, Austin Wells, and Carlos Narvaez. They aren’t hurting in this department. The Yankees weren’t stopping a veteran toiling in the minors from an MLB opportunity. As for the minor league depth, Scranton has Narvaez and Josh Breaux. The Yankees could assign Ben Rice or Agustin Ramirez to the level and maneuver others around to fill in rosters.

As a correction to my report yesterday: RHP Cody Poteet is not starting for Scranton on Saturday. He’s heading to San Francisco to pitch for the Yankees instead. His injury was a blister, often problematic for pitchers but better than most potential ailments.

Scranton (34-21) (Lost to Toledo, 1-0)

CF Brandon Lockridge: 1-for-3, BB
3B Oswald Peraza: 1-for-4, SB (4), K
For Scranton: 7-for-41 with 9 walks and 12 strikeouts.
1B Jose Rojas: 0-for-3, SB (2), HBP, K
C Carlos Narvaez: 1-for-3, 2B (11), BB, K
With Torrens gone, Narvaez is the no-doubt #3 catcher. 
DH Oscar Gonzalez: 1-for-4, K
LF Taylor Trammell: 0-for-4, K
SS Jeter Downs: 1-for-4, 2B (8), 2 K
.242/.350/.470 in 161 PA.
2B Kevin Smith: 0-for-3
RF Greg Allen: 0-for-3, 2 K

LHP Josh Maciejewski: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K
Maciejewski was promoted to Scranton today.
RHP Art Warren: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Duane Underwood Jr.: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
LHP Clayton Andrews (L, 0-3): 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

Somerset (24-25) (Crushed Bowie, 13-5)

CF-RF Spencer Jones: 3-for-4, HR (3), RBI, 4 RS, SB (12), BB, K
Jones’ first HR since April 23 as he extends his on-base streak to 14 (his triple slash has gone down during this stretch!) But maybe, just maybe, tonight is the start of something bigger as we head into June. He is hitting .220/.314/.327 with 12 stolen bases in 15 attempts. 
DH-CF Jasson Dominguez: 3-for-5, HR (3), 3 RBI, 2 RS, SB (1)
For Somerset: 11-for-33 (.333) with 3 HR, 7 RBI, and 6 runs scored.  He is on a 6-game hitting streak (11-for-25).
1B Ben Rice: 3-for-4, 2B (6), RBI, RS, BB, K
.249/.373/.497 in 205 PA. In his last 10 games, he is 11-for-36 with 2 doubles, 4 home runs, and 9 RBI.
C Agustin Ramirez: 2-for-4, 2B (9), RBI, 2 RS, BB
Ramirez’s 11th multi-hit game. This season, he is hitting .271/.376/.554 in 197 PA. 9 of his 12 home runs came in April, but 8 of his 9 doubles came in May. His BABIP, so low to start the season, now sits at .273.
SS Ben Cowles: 2-for-5, 2B (17), 3B (3), 2 RBI, RS, K
.319/.402/.534 in 194 PA. With all the big shots here, who would have thought that Cowles would be outshining them in OPS?  He is one double away from his season best (he hit 18 in 2022 and 2023).
RF-LF Grant Richardson: 0-for-4, SF, RBI, 3 K
3B Jordan Groshans: 1-for-4, CS (1), BB
LF Aaron Palensky: 0-for-4, 3 K
  P Jesus Liranzo: 0-for-0
2B Anthony Seigler: 3-for-4, 2 HR (3), 2 RBI, 3 RS, SB (7)
Seigler has 3 HR in his last 2 games. This is his first multi-HR game since July 27th, 2021.

RHP Trystan Vrieling: (W, 3-4) 5.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, HR
He left with two runners on and two outs, and both scored. Such is life. Season: 4.79 ERA (56.1 IP, 52 H, 32 R, 30 ER, 3 HR, 17 BB, 56 K).
RHP Jesus Liranzo (S, 1): 3.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K

Hudson Valley (24-22) (Mauled Aberdeen, 10-3)

2B Roc Riggio: 1-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 RS, BB
.211/.364/.358 in 154 PA. April and May were similar: .213/.356/.383 in April; .211/.368/.342 in May.
SS Jared Serna: 3-for-4, HR (10), SF, 3 RBI, RS, BB, K
.253/.371/.489 in 213 PA (11 doubles, 10 HR, 40 RBI, 34 R). After hitting .211/.344/.352 with 2 HR and 11 RBI in April, he hit .282/.390/.583 with 8 HR and 29 RBI in May. It isn’t easy to drive home 29 runs in one month (he played in 25 May games)
CF Jace Avina: 1-for-3, SF, RBI, RS, 2 BB
.310/.395/.521 in 167 PA. It wasn’t quite Serna, but Avina drove home 21 runs in May.
LF Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-2
After an awkward play in the field, Rodriguez left the game.
   PH-RF Cole Gabrielson: 1-for-4, 2B (8), 2 RS
DH Omar Martinez: 2-for-3, HR (6), 2 RBI, RS, 2 BB
.244/.391/.437 in 169 PA. He hit .242/.367/.424 in April and .246/.411/.449 in May.
C Rafael Flores: 2-for-4, RBI, RS, BB, K
Flores thrived in May (.361/.474/.508; 9 doubles; current 6-game hitting streak). He hit .211/.308/.404 in April. 
3B Josh Moylan: 1-for-3, RS, BB, HBP, 2 K
1B Kiko Romero: 0-for-5, 3 K
RF Kyle Battle: 1-for-3, RS, 2 BB, 2 K

LHP Kyle Carr: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
Like with Vrieling, Carr left with two runners on, and both scored.
RHP Luis Arejula (W, 3-3): 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 1 K
LHP Joel Valdez: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

Tampa (18-31) (Lost to Palm Beach, 4-3. They loaded the bases in the top of the 9th, but couldn’t score. Oh well)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 1-for-4, 2B (5), RS, BB
.220/.374/.280 in 147 PA.  A .237/.438/.271 April was followed up with a .203/.299/.288 May. There was an injury mixed in between the two months.
2B Roderick Arias: 1-for-4, RBI
.201/.316/.318 in 212 PA (.214/.327/.381 in April; .189/.307/.263 in May). I keep saying it because it is true: We must be patient. And that patience comes without knowing whether or not he will develop. That’s life when you track prospects.
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-4, BB, K
.263/.358/.446 in 204 PA. Jasso drove in 20 runs in May (8 in April).
CF Jackson Castillo: 2-for-5, 2B (9), RBI, RS
April: .200/.273/.333. May: .267/.420/.480 with 7 of his 9 doubles. Lombard Jr. and Arias are teenagers. Castillo isn’t old, but he is 21. That can make all the difference.
RF Willy Montero: 1-for-4, 2B (7), RBI, BB, K
.187/.255/.247 in 184 PA. He was better in May, but still needs to find his groove. 
DH Coby Morales: 0-for-5, 3 K
C Tomas Frick: 1-for-4, K
3B Brenny Escanio: 1-for-4, K
LF Daury Arias: 1-for-2, RS, 2 BB

RHP Ryan Harvey: (L, 2-3) 2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
RHP Kris Bow: 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Bow wasn’t throwing a high-90s sinker tonight (peaked at 95.2). That said, he did not issue any walks, either. Season: 3.00 ERA (21 IP, 16 H, 11 R, 7 ER, 1 HR, 14 BB, 25 K).
RHP Osiel Rodriguez: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
1.50 ERA (24 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 13 BB, 26 K). Even in these short outings, he will use his 5-pitch mix. I don’t know if the Yankees still think he can start (he’s never started a professional game…), but they haven’t asked him to focus on 2-3 pitches.
RHP Steven Fulgencio: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

FCL (12-8) (Lost to the Tigers, 4-1. Do they get tired of playing the Blue Jays, Phillies, and Tigers all the time?)

CF Brando Mayea: 1-for-3, SB (5), BB, 2 K
.333/.436/.394 in 39 PA (5-for-5 SB). Mayea has an 8-game hitting streak.
DH Christopher Familia: 2-for-4
C Edgleen Perez: 1-for-3, K
LF Brian Sanchez: 1-for-3, HR (2), RBI, RS, K
19-for-55 (.345/.446/.636; 6 doubles, 2 triples, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 13 R, 6-for-7 SB)

RHP Chris Kean (L, 0-1): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
6.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 10 K. He should get to Tampa soon enough.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 5/28: Jasson Dominguez Homers

News:

Nothing

Scranton (32-19) (Lost to Toledo, 10-0)

2B Jorbit Vivas: 1-for-3, 3B (1), BB, K
Vivas’ rehab assignment is over and he was (predictably) assigned to Scranton.
SS Oswald Peraza: 0-for-3, BB, K
1B T.J. Rumfield: 0-for-4, K
Rumfield is in a minor 2-for-21 slump. More importantly, he has an extra-base hit slump that has reached 16 games.
C Carlos Narvaez: 1-for-2, 2 BB
Narvaez owns a 17.1% BB rate. A backup catcher who flashes an offensive tool or two is valuable in MLB (Narvaez also has some pop in his bat).
DH Jose Rojas: 0-for-4, K
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 0-for-4, K
LF Taylor Trammell: 2-for-4, 2B (4), K
Trammell is 11-for-47 (.234) since joining Scranton.
3B Jeter Downs: 0-for-2, BB, HBP, 2 K
CF Greg Allen: 0-for-3, SAC, 2 K

LHP Edgar Barclay: (L, 3-3): 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
A much-needed solid evening for Barclay, who has struggled recently.
LHP Clayton Andrews: 1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, HR
RHP Art Warren: 0.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 3 HR
RHP Yerry De Los Santos: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Somerset (22-24) (Lost to Bowie, 10-2)

1B Ben Rice: 1-for-4, HR (12), RBI, RS
Last 7 games: 7-for-24 (1 double, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 7 R, 5 BB, 4 K). On the season, he is hitting .242/.368/.503 in 191 PA (14.7% BB, 21.5% K). The Yankees continue to give him a lot of time behind the plate (great for value!), but he should be considered a candidate for the 2024 first base job if Anthony Rizzo is not retained.  
DH Jasson Dominguez: 1-for-4, HR (2), RBI, RS, 2 K
Dominguez has homered in two of his last three games. Last 4 games: 7-for-18. The bat has predictably heated up.
C Agustin Ramirez: 1-for-4
Ramirez had a big head start in the Eastern League (and organizational) home run race, but Rice has caught him. Anyway, he is hitting .275/.383/.569 in 183 PA, so I won’t worry about a random 11-game homerless streak.
CF Spencer Jones: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
It may be surprising to hear Jones is on an 11-game on-base streak. It hasn’t been the prettiest of streaks (6-for-41, 8 walks, 21 K), so take it for what it is worth.
SS Ben Cowles: 1-for-3, 2B (16), BB, K
.320/.408/.529 in 184 PA (16 doubles, 2 triples, 4 HR, 29 RBI, 29 R, 7-for-7 SB)
3B J.C. Escarra: 0-for-4
LF Grant Richardson: 2-for-4
.295/.360/.484 in 136 PA. Back-to-back multi-hit efforts and seven 2-hit games in his last 13 games played (0 hits in the other 6 games).
RF Elijah Dunham: 0-for-3, BB
2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-3, BB

LHP Brock Selvidge: (L, 4-3) 3.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
Selvidge cruised through 3 innings but ran into a string of tough luck in the 4th that knocked him out of the game. Season: 3.40 ERA (47.2 IP, 36 H, 24 R, 18 ER, 3 HR, 23 BB, 49 K). After reducing his walk rate considerably in 2023, it has spiked thus far in 2024. 
RHP Ryan Anderson: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
RHP Yorlin Calderon: 1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
RHP Jesus Liranzo: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Carlos Gomez: 1 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR

Hudson Valley (21-22)

They played on Memorial Day, so they had today off.

Tampa (18-27) (Their game against Palm Beach was suspended, tied 5-5, in the 5th inning. They will conclude this game tomorrow, followed by the regularly scheduled game)

2B George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-3
SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-3, RS, SB (12), 3 K
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-3, RBI, RS, 2 K
LF Jackson Castillo: 0-for-3, RS
3B Hans Montero: 1-for-2, RS, BB, K
CF Willy Montero: 0-for-2, 2 K
RF Coby Morales: 1-for-2, 2 RBI, RS
C Manuel Palencia: 1-for-2, K
  C Edinson Duran: 0-for-0
DH Tomas Frick: 1-for-2, RBI

RHP Luis Serna: 4 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
4.75 ERA (36 IP, 28 H, 19 R, 19 ER, 1 HR, 12 BB, 42 K). May: 24.2 IP, 14 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 0 HR, 5 BB, 26 K. Serna has allowed 3 home runs in 136.2 career innings. 
RHP Ocean Gabonia: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

FCL (11-7) (Defeated the Blue Jays, 10-4, in a 9-inning game)

CF Brando Mayea: 2-for-4, 3B (1), 2 RS, SB (3), 2 BB, K
.346/.433/.423 in 30 PA. He has a 6-game hitting streak.
LF Christopher Familia: 1-for-2, 2B (1), RS, BB, K
For Familia, the FCL must feel like Little League to a high schooler.
  LF Brian Sanchez: 1-for-2, 3B (2), 2 RBI, RS, BB, K
7-game hitting streak. Imagine a world where the Yankees received two interesting prospects for Jake Bauers. By the way, Bauers is hitting .217/.308/.426 for the Brewers entering Tuesday’s action.
DH Edgleen Perez: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, RS, BB, K
6-game hitting streak and .350/.536/.500 in 56 PA overall.
C Josue Gonzalez: 0-for-5, 3 K
While his teammates are heating up, Gonzalez has cooled off. That’s how it goes.  He is hitting .204/.418/.510 in 67 PA.
2B Abrahan Ramirez: 2-for-3, RBI, RS, 2 BB, K
.318/.455/.477 in 56 PA. He plays mostly 2B/3B though he did get time in LF in 2023.
3B Luis Ogando: 1-for-4, HR (2; grand slam), 4 RBI, 2 RS, SB (3), 2 K
.226/.306/.452 in 36 PA.
SS Santiago Gomez: 2-for-3, RS, 3 SB (5), CS (2), 2 HBP, K
47-for-57 (82.5%) stealing bases in his career.
RF Fidel Montero: 1-for-4, SB (6), BB, 3 K

RHP Eric Reyzelman: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
The 5th-round pick in the 2022 draft is here on a rehab assignment. He is known for his elite fastball (reaches 100 MPH).
RHP Angel Benitez: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
LHP Rafelin Nivar (W, 1-0): 3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, HR
RHP Alejandro Gomez: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
LHP Michael Peres: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Juan Sanchez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 5/22: Caleb Durbin Walks it Off

News:

There is no news that is fit for print.

Scranton (30-16) (Walked it off against Syracuse, 12-10. They came back from 6-1 and 10-6 deficits. Triple-A is insane. No lead should ever be considered safe)

2B Caleb Durbin: 4-for-5, 2B (16), HR (3), 4 RBI, 3 RS, SAC
Durbin walked it off with a 2-run HR with two outs in the 9th. It’s his second 4-hit game and third 4-RBI game this season. He is hitting .301/.413/.457 in 210 PA (16 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR, 36 RBI, 33 R, 14.3% BB, 10% K, 20-for-22 SB). As of this writing, he is tied for first in doubles and stolen bases in the International League. 
DH Oswald Peraza: 1-for-5, RBI
Peraza is 2-for-13 since joining Scranton.
1B Carlos Narvaez: 0-for-3, SF, RBI, BB, 3 K
.230/.377/.397 in 162 PA (17.3% BB, 27.8% K)
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 1-for-5, 2B (5), RBI, 2 K
SS Jeter Downs: 2-for-4, 2B (7), HR (6), RBI, RS, SB (5), CS (3), BB, K
A little bit of everything. Downs got the 9th-inning rally started with a solo home run.
C Luis Torrens: 2-for-5, 2B (6), HR (3), RBI, 2 RS
.272/.340/.435 in 103 PA. When the Yankees need someone in the short term, it will be Narvaez, as he doesn’t require a 40-man move. If a long-term need occurred (let’s hope not), I don’t know who they would choose between Narvaez and Torrens. 
CF Greg Allen: 2-for-3, 2B (3), RBI, 2 RS, 2 SB (7), 2 BB
.241/.413/.397 in 76 PA. He is 11-for-34 (.324) in May. If the Yankees moved on from Trent Grisham, Allen could at least be a temporary fill-in. The organization (obviously) likes him, as he keeps coming back.
3B Kevin Smith: 1-for-4, RS, SB (7), BB, 2 K
LF Brandon Lockridge: 2-for-3, 2B (7), RBI, RS, SB (16)
I am not sure why Lockridge left the game.
  LF Taylor Trammell: 0-for-1, 2 RS, BB
Trammell reached on an error with two outs in the 9th. It scored Allen to tie the game, followed by Durbin’s heroics.

LHP Edgar Barclay: 4 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 5 BB, 3 K, 2 HR
6.59 ERA (41 IP, 44 H, 33 R, 30 ER, 9 HR, 27 BB, 40 K).  Simply put, it will be hard for Barclay to succeed with that many walks. He doesn’t have the overpowering stuff to compensate.
RHP Cody Morris: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
Morris’ ERA spikes to 2.95.
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
LHP Oddanier Mosqueda (W, 4-0): 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
Durbin is the headline hero, but Misiewicz and Mosqueda deserve credit too. 

Somerset (20-20) (Revenged yesterday’s 10-2 loss with a 11-2 win over New Hampshire)

CF Spencer Jones: 1-for-4, RS, SB (10), BB, 2 K
It is hardly a “breakout” but he has hit safely in his last three games. We have to look for the small things right now.
DH Jasson Dominguez: 0-for-5, K
Patience will be required as he gets his stroke back.
C Agustin Ramirez: 0-for-3, 3 RS, SB (9), BB, HBP, K
That’s a lot of activity for an 0-for-3 afternoon. Season: .265/.391/.576 in 161 PA (5 doubles, 12 HR, 29 RBI, 32 R, 16.1% BB, 18.6% K, 9-for-9 SB). In his last 6 games, he is 3-for-19 with four walks and six runs. A good hitter can contribute even when the hits aren’t falling in.
1B Ben Rice: 2-for-2, 2 HR (10), 4 RBI, 4 RS, 2 SB (7), HBP, 2 BB
Wow. This insane day increases his triple slash to .245/.373/.496 in 170 PA (14.7% BB, 22.4% K). He isn’t a big base stealer in volume, but he is efficient: 7-for-7 this season and 23-for-27 (85.2%) in his career.  This is his third multi-HR game in the last two years, all with Somerset (86 games played). Most importantly, it appears Rice is breaking out of his malaise.
SS Ben Cowles: 2-for-5, 2B (15), 2 RBI, 2 RS
Cowles hasn’t stopped hitting, as his triple slash is now .326/.410/.533 in 161 PA.  He has 12 multi-hit games and is 2nd in the Eastern League in doubles, 4th in runs (Ramirez and Rice are 1st and 3rd) and RBI (Ramirez is 2nd). 
LF Grant Richardson: 2-for-4, 2B (12), 2 RBI, RS, BB, K
.296/.364/.509 in 121 Double-A plate appearances this year and .311/.385/.553 in 182 Double-A plate appearances over the last two years.
3B Jordan Groshans: 1-for-4, 2B (2), 3 RBI, BB
2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-5
RF Aaron Palensky: 0-for-3, BB

LHP Brock Selvidge: (W, 4-2) 5 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 5 BB, 6 K
3.07 ERA (44 IP, 32 H, 20 R, 15 ER, 3 HR, 21 BB, 47 K). His control has betrayed him in his last two starts (9 BB in 14 IP), but he limited the damage today (both runs allowed were scored after he left the game). With injuries and ineffectiveness at the upper levels, Selvidge could find himself somewhere on the MLB depth chart – I wouldn’t get your hopes up on a 2024 debut, but the Yankees have a depth issue right now.
RHP Jesus Liranzo: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Jack Neely: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K
Both walks came at the end of his outing – may have been tiring. Season: 1.29 ERA (21 IP, 12 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 HR, 8 BB, 32 K). 
LHP Ryan Anderson: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
Neely seemingly ran out of gas late. Anderson did a nice job saving the inherited runners.

Hudson Valley (19-19) (Lost to Brooklyn, 3-1. The offense has only two runs in the first two games of the series)

2B Roc Riggio: 1-for-3, SB (7), HBP, K
.211/.346/.358 in 133 PA (15.8% BB, 17.3% K; 7-for-9 SB).
SS Jared Serna: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
Serna extended his on-base streak to 20 in his last plate appearance of the day.
3B-C Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-4, RS
.312/.384/.496 in 159 PA (9 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 20 RBI, 25 R, 10.06% BB, 14.5% K). 
DH Tyler Hardman: 0-for-3, BB, K
RF Jace Avina: 1-for-4, RBI, K
12 doubles, 4 HR, 19 RBI, 17 runs, and 4 stolen bases in 28 games.
C Rafael Flores: 0-for-1
Flores left the game due to an apparent injury.
  3B Kiko Romero: 1-for-3, 2B (3), K
RF Garrett Martin: 0-for-2, K
His first game since April 25th.
   RF Cole Gabrielson: 0-for-2
1B Josh Moylan: 0-for-3, K
CF Nelson Medina: 0-for-2, SB (7), BB, 2 K

RHP Jackson Fristoe: (L, 0-2)  3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 5 K
5.40 ERA (20 IP, 18 H, 13 R, 12 ER, 1 HR, 18 BB, 24 K). The Yankees haven’t yet asked him to stretch out much. While you can’t prove it caused any issues, Fristoe walked three straight batters after Flores left the game.
RHP Cole Ayers: 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K
2.52 ERA (25 IP, 20 H, 10 R, 7 ER, 1 HR, 7 BB, 33 K). Ayers pitched in 11 games at this level in 2023, with similar dominant results. We should see him in Somerset soon enough. He turns 25 in August.
RHP Luis Arejula: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

Tampa (14-27) (Lost to Jupiter, 5-1)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-4, K
2B Roderick Arias: 1-for-4, 2B (7), RS, K
In his last four games, Arias has three extra-base hits (2 doubles, 1 triple). He is hitting .215 with a .697 OPS (7 doubles, 4 triples, 2 home runs, 17 RBI, 22 R, 15.1% BB, 35.2% K)
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-4, 2B (14), RBI
Jasso has four doubles in his last four games and has 17 RBI in May. He has 25 starts at 1B and 13 at 3B. 
CF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-3, BB
Castillo increases his on-base streak to 14. 
3B Hans Montero: 1-for-4, K
Montero is hitting .309 with a .914 OPS in 62 plate appearances. One has to love how he has taken advantage of his opportunity.
LF Coby Morales: 1-for-4, 2 K
DH Manuel Palencia: 0-for-3
C Tomas Frick: 0-for-3
RF Daury Arias: 0-for-3

RHP Luis Serna: (L, 2-3) 5.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K
Pitch distribution: 41% changeups (9 whiffs), 31% sinkers (91.4 MPH average); 23% sliders, 5% curve. Season: 4.78 ERA (32 IP, 25 H, 17 R, 17 ER, 1 HR, 9 BB, 38 K). The 19-year-old had a 10.32 ERA in 11.1 April innings. It is 1.74 in May.
RHP Aaron Nixon: 1.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
3.57 ERA (22.2 IP, 17 H, 13 R, 9 ER, 0 HR, 19 BB, 23 K). Walks were also an issue in college.  The Yankees are hoping to clean that up.
RHP Osiel Rodriguez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
1.86 ERA (19.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 10 BB, 20 K). He has pitched well, though he isn’t dominating. 

FCL (7-6)

Scheduled day off.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 5/11: Brock Selvidge’s CG Effort Leads Somerset

News:

The Yankees released OF Luis Gonzalez from his minor league contract, finally getting their revenge for that game-winning hit in the 2001 World Series. Sorry, Luis, you are guilty by association even if you don’t have any association.

Gonzalez hit .282/.374/.397 in 91 plate appearances for Scranton.

Expect a report delay on Sunday due to Mother’s Day.

Scranton (26-11) (Split a doubleheader with Rochester)

Game 1 (Lost a close one, 15-3)

3B Caleb Durbin: 0-for-2, RBI, 2 BB, K
CF Everson Pereira: 1-for-4, RBI, 3 K
.248/.333/.519 in 150 PA. The 35.3% K is concerning.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 0-for-4, K
C Carlos Narvaez: 2-for-4, 2 2B (7), RS, 2 K
LF Taylor Trammell: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
Trammell cleared waivers and was outrighted to Scranton, where the Yankees will try to tap into some of what once made him a top prospect.
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 0-for-1, RS, 2 BB, K
DH-P Jose Rojas: 0-for-2, RS, BB
SS Kevin Smith: 0-for-1, SF, RBI, BB
2B Josh VanMeter: 0-for-2, BB

LHP Edgar Barclay: (L, 3-2) 4 IP, 6 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 3 HR
This is a “toss it out” outing. Season: 4.86 ERA (33.1 IP, 30 H, 21 R, 18 ER, 5 HR, 19 BB, 34 K). 
RHP Cody Morris: 1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
LHP Clayton Andrews: 1 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, HR
RHP Jose Rojas: 1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, HR

Game 2 (Won, 5-3 – proving that one game rarely builds momentum to the next)

CF Greg Allen: 1-for-3, K
3B Caleb Durbin: 0-for-2, BB
.290/.414/.442 in 170 PA. He owns a 15-game on-base streak.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 1-for-2, 2 RBI, BB
.310/.372/.476 with 18 RBI in 94 PA since his promotion. 
DH Taylor Trammell: 0-for-3, K
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 1-for-3, HR (2), RBI, RS
LF Jose Rojas: 1-for-3, HR (7), RBI, RS, K
Pitches in Game 1, homers in Game 2 – is there anything Jose Rojas can’t do?
  LF Brandon Lockridge: 0-for-0
C Luis Torrens: 1-for-3, RS, 2 K
SS Jeter Downs: 1-for-1, 2B (5), 2 RS, 2 BB
.267/.358/.533 in 107 PA. This is Downs’ 4th season in Triple-A, and he didn’t do much in the first three years. 
2B Josh VanMeter: 1-for-3, 2B (6), RBI, K

RHP Cody Poteet (W, 3-0): 5 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, HR
3.68 ERA (29.1 IP, 21 H, 13 R, 12 ER, 4 HR, 7 BB, 34 K). One thing the Yankees don’t lack is adequate pitching depth.
LHP Anthony Misiewicz (S, 3): 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K

Somerset (15-15) (Defeated Altoona, 7-3, in a 7-inning game. This was supposed to be a doubleheader, but Game 1 was delayed, so they postponed Game 2. They will try to play two tomorrow)

CF Spencer Jones: 2-for-3, 3 RBI, SB (6), BB, K
His recent slump is documented, so this is nice to see. 
SS Oswald Peraza: 0-for-4, 3 K
  2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-0
C Ben Rice: 2-for-4, HR (8), RBI, 2 RS, 2 K
Rice’s first HR since April 30. He is hitting .264/.386/.509 in 133 PA.
1B Agustin Ramirez: 2-for-4, RS, K
HR >>>>> Singles. However, I like the fact he compiled a couple of singles today. Maybe this is the start of non-HR falling in more often. He is hitting .248/.387/.564 in 124 PA.
2B-SS Ben Cowles: 1-for-3, 2B (11), 2 RS, BB
.333/.416/.556 in 125 PA (11 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HR, 18 RBI, 18 R, 11.2% BB, 16% K). He is on pace to match last year’s HR total (10) while eclipsing last year’s doubles pace (18 in 453 PA).
DH Grant Richardson: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 K
.299/.361/.483 in 97 PA. When do we take his Double-A performance (which goes back to the second half of 2023) seriously?
3B J.C. Escarra: 3-for-4, 2 RS
Escarra was in a 1-for-17 slump entering today.
RF Elijah Dunham: 0-for-2, RBI, BB
LF Jared Wegner: 0-for-3, 2 K

LHP Brock Selvidge: (W, 3-1): 7 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, HR
The rare minor league complete game. Selvidge needed 93 pitches to get through this one. Season: 2.18 ERA (33 IP, 26 H, 13 R, 8 ER, 1 HR, 12 BB, 33 K). Selvidge won’t be 22 until late August. I think he belongs on midseason Top 100 lists, but when you get towards the bottom of those lists, there are a lot of prospects for the “experts” to choose from.

Hudson Valley (14-15) (Lost to Aberdeen, 6-5, in extra innings. This game started extremely late due to rain)

2B Roc Riggio: 1-for-5, K
SS Jared Serna: 0-for-4, RS, BB, 2 K
Serna’s 9-game hitting streak is snapped.
RF Jace Avina: 1-for-4, RS, BB, 2 K
C-3B Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-3, 2B (6), 2 RBI, RS, K
Rodriguez is hitting .321 with a .919 OPS (6 doubles, 1 triple, 5 HR, 17 RBI, 16 R). 
3B Beau Brewer: 1-for-3, RS, BB, K
  PR-LF Kyle Battle: 0-for-0, RS
1B Rafael Flores: 2-for-3, 2 2B (7), RBI, BB, K
DH Kiko Romero: 0-for-1, 3 BB, K
CF Nelson Medina: 0-for-2, 2 BB, K
LF Cole Gabrielson: 0-for-4, K
  C Juan Crisp: 0-for-0

LHP Kyle Carr: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 7 K
Carr sets a new personal best for strikeouts (only his 6th start). He owns a 5.64 ERA in 22.1 IP (26 H, 21 R, 14 ER, 1 HR, 20 BB, 19 K).
RHP Matt Keating: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
4.00 ERA (18 IP, 10 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 2 HR, 8 BB, 23 K)
RHP Cole Ayers: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
RHP Steven Fulgencio: (L, 1-1) 0.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K

Tampa (10-22) (Lost to Clearwater, 9-4. By the way, I love it when affiliates play well and win titles. However, do I worry about a 10-22 Low-A team? No)

SS George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-3, 3 K
Not the return he wanted, but at least he is back. He is hitting .226/.422/.258 in 83 PA.
  2B Brenny Escanio: 2-for-2
13-for-43 (.302) in limited action. 
2B-SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-4, RBI, BB, K
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-4, RS, 2 K
7-game hitting streak (13-for-29)
CF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-4, 2B (5), BB, K
RF Willy Montero: 1-for-4, RBI, RS
3B Hans Montero: 2-for-4, SB (1)
Montero’s third straight multi-hit effort jumps his average to .300 (9-for-30). When Enmanuel Tejeda returns from injury, there will be an infield crunch to sort through. Will Montero head to the FCL?
LF Coby Morales: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
DH Tomas Frick: 2-for-4, 2B (6), RS
Frick is hitting .373 with a 1.033 OPS (6 doubles, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 9 R, 8 BB, 11 K). He has reached base safely in all 15 of his games.
C Manuel Palencia: 2-for-4, RS

RHP Tommy Kahnle: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
It’s only a matter of time before he is activated.
RHP Josh Grosz: 4 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 2 HR
6.66 ERA (25.2 IP, 33 H, 28 R, 19 ER, 7 HR, 12 BB, 40 K). The K rate is solid and the HR rate needs to come down (his HR/FB was 27.8% entering today, which will likely go up. Is that unlucky? Let me say this: 13% is considered “awful”)  He is 21 and in his first professional season – he deserves a load of patience.
RHP Cade Austin: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, HR
RHP Montana Semmel: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Kris Bow: 0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, HR

FCL (4-2) (Defeated the Blue Jays, 9-3, in a 7-inning game)

(Remember, I do not list out the entire lineup for the FCL/DSL games)

C Edgleen Perez: 1-for-3, RBI, 2 RS, 2 BB, K
Perez went 0-for-2 with a HBP in the season opener. Since: 5-for-10, 2 doubles, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 5 R, 5 BB, 1 K
1B Josue Gonzalez: 1-for-2, RBI, RS, 3 BB, K
7-for-15 (2 doubles, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 4 R, 7 BB, 4 K). When Perez is 17, Gonzalez is 20. Since the FCL starts earlier and ends earlier now, some of these kids will trickle up to Low-A once this season ends. Gonzalez already looks like a good candidate.
DH Engelth Urena: 1-for-4, SF, RBI, 2 K
Season debut for the 19-year-old who hadn’t played since 2022. Oh, in case you are wondering, he too is listed as a catcher. I would love to be in the room when the Yankees discuss all their catching prospects.
SS Juan Matheus: 1-for-2, HR (1), 3 RBI, RS, 2 BB
Two good signs for Matheus: They are playing him extensively at shortstop and batting him in the middle of the order. That indicates some level of trust.
3B Luis Ogando: 2-for-3, HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 RS, HBP
Ogando hit 6 HR in 70 DSL games.

RHP Omar Gonzalez: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Alejandro Gomez: 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Jose Guzman (W, 1-0): 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
LHP Rafelin Nivar: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 5/3: Ben Rice Reaches Base 4 Times

News:

C Josh Breaux has been added to the Development List. Essentially, the Development List is…what you think it is. A place where organizations place players for help in their development. Breaux is no longer a young prospect, so you can wonder what they are trying to develop (could be as simple as first base reps outside of doing it during a game). Breaux can do everything he typically does and continues to get paid. However, he cannot play in games.

Players on the Development List do not count towards Scranton’s roster. They do count against the organization’s overall roster.  An organization is “only” allowed to have 180 players in their minor league systems (this does not include the Dominican Summer League (DSL)). Breaux still counts against that while not counting against Scranton’s roster limit.

There will be a quiz on this topic next week.

IF Enmanuel Tejeda, hitting .330 after back-to-back 4-hit nights, was placed on the 7-day injured list for Tampa. They replaced him on the roster with IF Hans Montero, a $1.7 million bonus baby signed in 2021. At ages 17-18. Montero struggled in the DSL. At 19, he had a good year in the FCL, hitting .257/.419/.404 (127 wRC+) in 234 plate appearances with 5 HR, 23 RBI, 41 runs, and 17 stolen bases.

Scranton (21-9) (Defeated Jacksonville, 7-2)

SS Caleb Durbin: 1-for-4, 2B (12), 2 RS, HBP
Durbin is on a 9-game hitting streak (12-for-37; .324) and is up to .287/.411/.461 in 142 PA (12 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HR, 22 RBI, 22 R, 22 BB (15.5%), 14 K (9.9%), 13-for-14 SB (92.9%).
DH Everson Pereira: 0-for-5, 4 K
.257/.331/.523 in 121 PA (6 doubles, 1 triple, 7 HR, 19 RBI, 20 R, 9 BB, 46 K (38.0%), 3-for-5 SB). He owned a 27.8% K rate for Scranton in 2023. A 10.2% increase is not what anyone wants to see, including trade partners.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 2-for-5, 2B (6), HR (2), RBI, RS, K
Rumfield is at .300/.338/.500 in 65 PA since his promotion (6 doubles, 2 HR, 12 RBI).
C Carlos Narvaez: 2-for-4, 2B (5), 3 RBI, BB, K
Narvaez got a taste of MLB life (and now has their health insurance plan).
3B Jose Rojas: 1-for-4, HR (4), RBI, RS
2B Josh VanMeter: 1-for-3, 2B (5), RS, BB, K
LF Greg Allen: 0-for-3, RS, SB (4), BB, 2 K
RF Luis Gonzalez: 1-for-3, RBI, RS, SB (3), BB
CF Brandon Lockridge: 1-for-4, RBI, RS, K

LHP Edgar Barclay (W, 3-1): 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K
Barclay allowed a pair of runs in the first inning but settled in from there. Season: 3.07 ERA (29.1 IP, 24 H, 13 R, 10 ER, 2 HR, 16 BB, 32 K)
LHP Clayton Andrews: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

Somerset (11-14) (Defeated New Hampshire, 4-3)

CF Spencer Jones: 0-for-5, 4 K
Jones’ strikeout rate has ticked above 30% (31.4) thanks to ten strikeouts in his last 19 plate appearances. He will have swing-and-miss in his game – it’s just the nature of the beast. This also shows you to calm down a bit – there’s still development time needed. He is hitting .266/.329/.438 in 70 plate appearances.
1B Ben Rice: 2-for-3, RBI, RS, SB (3), 2 BB
Rice’s hitting streak reaches 7 (10-for-27; 2 doubles, 2 HR, 8 walks). He is hitting .286/.414/.549 and does not belong here. 
C Agustin Ramirez: 1-for-2, SB (5), 2 BB, K
Ramirez has five walks in his last two games and 19 walks in 23 games. He is hitting .233/.377/.558 in 106 PA.
SS Ben Cowles: 1-for-4, RBI
.337/.417/.596 in 103 PA (10 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HR, 17 RBI, 15 R, 12 BB, 17 K, 3-for-3 SB). He hasn’t run much this season but he was 23-for-27 in that category in 2023.
3B Jordan Groshans: 1-for-3, RS, BB
DH J.C. Escarra: 0-for-2, RS, 2 BB
LF Grant Richardson: 1-for-3, BB, K
Richardson is up to .296/.363/.453 in 80 PA (8 doubles, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 10 R, 6 BB, 18 K, 5-for-6 SB). He has ability – whether it becomes MLB viable is the question.
RF Elijah Dunham: 0-for-1, RBI, RS, SB (2), 2 BB, HBP
2B Alexander Vargas: 1-for-1, RBI
Vargas left the game due to injury after his RBI single (he was thrown out trying to go to second)
   2B Anthony Seigler: 1-for-3, K

LHP Brock Selvidge: (W, 2-1) 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
This game was a slog for Selvidge (including his error), but he used the power of the ground ball to fight through it. Season: 1.73 ERA (26 IP, 21 H, 10 R, 5 ER, 0 HR, 9 BB, 28 K).  Selvidge has allowed seven homers in 200 career innings. He should be a contender for the 2025 rotation, though we have seen Brian Cashman flip plenty of upper-level pitchers over the last few years.
RHP Carlos Gomez: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
0.73 ERA (12.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 HR, 8 BB, 9 K). Throughout his career, walks have been the problem.
RHP Luis Velasquez: (S, 1) 2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

Hudson Valley (14-10) (Lost to Wilmington, 13-8. GameCast had issues with this game. I know that Juan Crisp came into this game to pitch in the 9th, for example – GameCast doesn’t yet show it. UPDATE: GameCast is fixed)

RF Jace Avina: 1-for-6, 2 RBI, RS, 2 K
SS Jared Serna: 2-for-4, 2B (5), 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
Serna has 12 hits in his last five games. He has turned around his season quickly and is up to .244 with a .835 OPS. 
C Omar Martinez: 1-for-4, BB, 2 K
3B Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-3, 2 RS, SB (3), 2 BB
Rodriguez is hitting .310 with a .864 OPS. 
1B Josh Moylan: 1-for-4, 2B (2), RS, BB
DH Kiko Romero: 1-for-5, RS, 3 K
CF Nelson Medina: 3-for-5, 3 RBI, RS, SB (3), K
LF Cole Gabrielson: 1-for-3, RS, 2 BB, K
2B Beau Brewer: 2-for-4, RS, BB

LHP Kyle Carr: (L, 0-2)  4 IP, 9 H, 9 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
This is one of those starts you toss into the wastebasket.
RHP Luis Arejula: 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
RHP Cole Ayers: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
1.80 ERA (15 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 HR, 6 BB, 20 K)
RHP Steven Fulgencio: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K
RHP Juan Crisp: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Crisp was activated today – he isn’t a pitcher, however. He is a catcher who was sitting on the Development List. He replaced C Ramon Flores on the roster, who was placed on the injured list today.

Tampa (7-18) (Lost to Dunedin, 5-2)

DH Coby Morales: 2-for-3, RBI, RS, SB (6), BB, K
Morales was the offense tonight and is now hitting .225/.355/.258 thanks to a solid start to May (5-for-12)
SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-4, 3 K
Arias is in a 0-for-14 slump that includes eight strikeouts. I have a feeling that this is going to be a streaky season, which is fine as long as he is showing progress.
1B Dylan Jasso: 0-for-4, 2 K
CF Willy Montero: 0-for-4, K
3B Hans Montero: 0-for-4, K
RF Daury Arias: 0-for-4, 2 K
C Edinson Duran: 0-for-2, HBP
LF Tayler Aguilar: 0-for-2, RS, BB, 2 K
2B Dayro Perez: 0-for-2, BB, K

LHP Allen Facundo: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K, HR
He maxed out at 96.4 MPH (averaged 93.9) and threw mainly sliders (54%) and 4-seamers (34%) with some sinkers and change-ups mixed in. Season: 2.76 ERA (16.1 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 1 HR, 9 BB, 15 K). Before tonight, Facundo hadn’t allowed a home run in 90.1 career innings. In his debut season (2021), Facundo struck out 84 hitters in 48.2 IP (40.6% K rate) in the DSL. He missed all of 2022 before tossing 30.1 innings in 2023.
RHP Yoljeldriz Diaz: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Kris Bow: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
3.97 ERA (11.1 IP, 6 H, 8 R, 5 ER, 0 HR, 8 BB, 12 K)
RHP Ocean Gabonia: (L, 0-1) 1 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

FCL (0-0)

The season starts on 5/4.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 4/30: Jared Serna is Heating Up

News:

The Yankees sent IF Keiner Delgado to the Pirates to complete the trade that landed the Yankees JT Brubaker and $500,000 of International bonus pool money.

Ranked 22nd on my Yankees’ Top 30 prospects list, Delgado hit .293/.414/.485 in 49 FCL games in 2023. He scored 54 runs, drove in 31, and went 36-for-43 in the stolen base department. As I stated in his blurb, video game numbers.  Whether that performance will translate into a full-season league, we don’t know. The Yankees did not move him to Low-A Tampa to begin 2024.

There is a logjam of middle infield prospects in the system. Delgado was blocked by the Roderick Arias, George Lombard Jr., Enmanuel Tejeda trio to begin this season. I have Arias and Lombard ranked ahead of him and Tejeda one spot underneath him.

In case you forgot, Brubaker is out following Tommy John surgery last April. He could eat some innings for the Yankees in the second half of the season. The $500,000 shouldn’t be ignored, as the Yankees tend to be good in the international market. An example of that is Delgado, who signed for $100,000.

RHP Leonardo Pestana was promoted to Somerset from Hudson Valley. The 25-year-old Pestana pitched to a 1.86 ERA in 9.2 innings with a 15/5 K/BB for Hudson Valley. Typically a starter in his career, it appears he was moved to the bullpen for 2024.

OF Oscar Gonzalez is done with his rehab stint and has been assigned to Scranton.

Scranton (18-9) (Defeated Jacksonville, 7-6)

3B Caleb Durbin: 1-for-4, 2B (10), RBI, RS, BB
Durbin finishes April with a .294 average and .896 OPS (10 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HR, 22 RBI, 20 R, 17.3% BB, 11.0% K, 12-for-13 SB). Games by position: 2B: 10; SS: 3; 3B: 4; LF: 5 (4 starts); CF: 1; DH: 2.  One has to be intrigued.
DH Everson Pereira: 2-for-4, RBI, RS, HBP, K
Pereira hits .263 with a .914 OPS in April. He finishes the month on a 5-game hitting streak that featured three multi-hit efforts.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 2-for-5, HR (1), 2 RBI, RS, 2 K
Rumfield is hitting .292 with a .785 OPS since his promotion. He has three multi-hit games in his last four games played.
LF Oscar Gonzalez: 1-for-5, 2 K
RF Jose Rojas: 0-for-5, RBI
C Luis Torrens: 2-for-5, RS, K
CF Greg Allen: 0-for-4, BB, 2 K
SS Jeter Downs: 2-for-4, 2B (3), 2 RS, SB (4), K
Downs impresses in his first month in the organization, hitting .294 with a .916 OPS.  He has a 6-game hitting streak going (9-for-22)
2B Josh VanMeter: 1-for-3, HR (3), 2 RBI, RS, K
  PH-2B Kevin Smith: 0-for-0, BB

RHP Will Warren: 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, HR
If you told me that Warren would get his ERA under 4.00 after allowing five ER in 0.1 innings in his 2024 debut, I would have called you crazy. Yet, here we are: 3.95 ERA (27.1 IP, 20 H, 13 R, 12 ER, 6 HR, 9 BB, 33 K)
RHP Yerry De Los Santos: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, HR
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: (W, 1-0)  1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Phil Bickford (S, 1): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

Somerset (10-12) (Defeated New Hampshire, 3-2)

DH Ben Rice: 1-for-3, HR (7), RBI, RS, BB, K
Rice has homered in back-to-back games and has 23 home runs in 319 Double-A plate appearances.
3B Jon Berti: 0-for-2, SB (1), 2 BB
Berti didn’t miss much time with his injury, so you have to assume he will be back in MLB soon.
   SS Alexander Vargas: 0-for-0
CF Spencer Jones: 0-for-4, 3 K
.320/.382/.540 in 55 PA.
C Agustin Ramirez: 0-for-4, K
.247/.370/.610 in 92 PA. As great as he has been, he is being brought down by a .200 BABIP.
SS-3B Ben Cowles: 1-for-4
Cowles extends his hitting streak to 8. He ends April at .351/.433/.623 in 90 PA (8 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 14 R, 12.2% BB, 16.7% K, 3-for-3 SB). He has 11 starts at SS, 7 starts at 3B (9 games total), and 3 starts at 2B. What more can you ask for?
1B J.C. Escarra: 0-for-2, RS, BB
LF Elijah Dunham: 1-for-3, 2B (3), RS, 2 K
.226/.317/.472 in 60 PA (3 doubles, 2 triples, 2 homers)
RF Jared Wegner: 1-for-3, 2 RBI
Wegner picked the perfect time to extend his hitting streak to 13: A 2-run single in the 7th that gave Somerset the lead they wouldn’t give up. He hit .270/.352/.508 in April. He is 24 years old and this is his first taste of Double-A.
2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-3, 2 K

RHP Bailey Dees: 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 3 K
Last four starts: 3.10 ERA (20.1 IP, 18 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 10 BB, 24 K). I will remind you that he is converting to starting, so that line is promising.
LHP Ryan Anderson: (W, 1-1)  2.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
4.82 ERA (9.1 IP, 14 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 0 HR, 2 BB, 11 K). His BABIP is .467.
RHP Carlos Gomez (S, 2): 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 0 K
0.87 ERA (10.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 HR, 7 BB, 8 K)

Hudson Valley (13-8) (Mauled Wilmington (thanks to a 9-run 7th), 12-2)

2B Roc Riggio: 3-for-5, 2B (3), RBI, 2 RS, SB (2)
A nice return for Riggio (first game since 4/21), who compiled two hits in the 9-run 7th inning. This is his first career 3-hit game.
  2B Beau Brewer: 1-for-1
SS Jared Serna: 3-for-6, 2B (4), 2 RBI, 2 RS
Serna, who also had two hits in the 7th inning, has back-to-back 3-hit efforts. These two games have jumped his triple slash from .148/.304/.279 to .211/.344/.352. 
LF Jace Avina: 3-for-6, 2 2B (3), 2 RBI, RS, K
Avina’s second 3-hit effort this season (11 games). The 20-year-old is hitting .333/.447/.564 in 47 PA (3 doubles, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 R). A strong start to his Yankees’ career.
C Jesus Rodriguez: 1-for-6, HR (2), 2 RBI, RS, K
If you are going to have only one hit, make it count. He ends April at .293/.354/.440 in 82 PA while playing several positions.
DH Omar Martinez: 0-for-5, K
There is always someone not invited to the party. Martinez, who has prospect buzz, hit .242/.367/.424 in 79 April plate appearances.
3B Josh Moylan: 3-for-5, 3B (1), 2 RS
Moylan hit .231/.359/.327 in 64 April plate appearances. The power has yet to show up in his brief professional career, but he is only 21 and has shown some plate discipline (15.8% BB)
1B Rafael Flores: 2-for-5, HR (2), 2 RBI, RS, K
.211/.308/.404 in 65 PA. 
CF Nelson Medina: 2-for-5, 2B (1), 2 RS, 2 K
RF Cole Gabrielson: 1-for-3, 2B (3), RBI, RS, CS (1), 2 HBP

RHP Baron Stuart: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
4.61 ERA (13.2 IP, 13 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 0 HR, 8 BB, 9 K). He is a ground ball pitcher.
RHP Luis Arejula: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
LHP Ben Shields: (W, 1-0)  2..2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
0.54 ERA (16.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 20 K). Anyone who has read my stuff in the past knows that I am not patient with college pitchers – when they show a level isn’t challenging them, you move them. Perhaps it’s still a tad early for Shields, but they have to start thinking about it.
RHP Cole Ayers: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
1.38 ERA (13 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 HR, 5 BB, 17 K). He pitched to a 2.50 ERA and 22/6 K/BB in 18 IP at this level last year.

Tampa (5-17) (Lost to Dunedin, 2-0)

2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 0-for-4, 3 K
A slump to close out April has him down to .276/.330/.310 in 98 PA. Given his style of play, he will need to bring down that 24.5% K rate.
RF Coby Morales: 0-for-4, 3 K
SS Roderick Arias: 0-for-4, K
.214/.327/.381 in 98 PA. His statistical profile in April shows his raw ability: Eight of his 18 hits went for extra bases. He stole four bases but was caught three times. He owned a 50% K rate at one point, so it is impressive that he dropped that to 36.7%. Overall, it’s encouraging. You have to be willing to accept some warts as he progresses.
1B Dylan Jasso: 0-for-4, 2 K
CF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-3, K
LF Willy Montero: 0-for-3, K
.162/.213/.203 in 80 PA. Baseball is a game of constant adjustments. We’ll see how he adjust.
C Tomas Frick: 1-for-3, K
Frick is hitting .367/.500/.433 in 38 PA with six walks and six strikeouts. He has reached base safely in all nine games (at least one hit in eight of them)
DH Manuel Palencia: 0-for-3, K
3B Brenny Escanio: 1-for-2, 2B (4), BB

RHP Gabriel Barbosa:(L, 0-3)  6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K
Barbosa ties his personal best for strikeouts in a game. Last two starts: 12 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 17 K. He is not a major prospect as a minor league Rule 5 draftee, but you never know if/when something will click. Something had to impress the Yankees to lead them to draft him in the first place.
RHP Osiel Rodriguez: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
2.45 ERA (11 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 HR, 6 BB, 12 K). If it wasn’t for those pesky home runs…

FCL (0-0)

The season starts on 5/4.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!

Yankees MILB 4/28: Cam Schlittler: 6 IP, 2 R, 7 K

News:

As expected, RHP McKinley Moore cleared waivers and was outrighted to Scranton. The arm is tempting, but it is hard for organizations to carry it on a 40-man roster.

This is why the outright rule exists. A player can only be outrighted once in their career. After that, they can refuse the outright and become a free agent. This is different from player options. An “outright” happens when you are removed from the 40-man roster and sent through waivers. If you have less than three years of service time, a team can send you to the minors without your permission. However, they can only do that once, regardless of your service time.

Scranton (17-9) (Lost to Durham, 6-2)

CF Greg Allen: 0-for-3, BB
Allen’s first game since April 6th.
  CF Brandon Lockridge: 0-for-0
2B Caleb Durbin: 1-for-3, BB, K
.296/.426/.469 in 122 PA (9 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 19 R, 17.2% BB, 11.5% K, 12-for-13 SB). As of this writing, he is tied for 6th in the International League in RBI and second in stolen bases.
DH T.J. Rumfield: 0-for-4, 3 K
At this level: .279/.319/.395 in 47 PA. Overall: .296/.370/.380 in 81 PA (6 doubles, 11 RBI, 11 R, 11.1% BB, 23.5% K)
1B Carlos Narvaez: 1-for-4, 2B (4), RS, 2 K
.211/.376/.342 in 101 PA. 
3B Jeter Downs: 1-for-4, 2B (2), RS
.281/.365/.531 in 75 PA. As long as he keeps hitting, he will get playing time. He is on a 5-game hitting streak (7-for-18 with a double and two homers)
RF Jose Rojas: 0-for-2, SF, RBI, K
SS Kevin Smith: 0-for-2, SF, RBI, K
C Josh Breaux: 0-for-3, 2 K
LF Josh VanMeter: 0-for-2, BB, K

RHP Yoendrys Gomez: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 HR
4.60 ERA (15.2 IP, 15 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 3 HR, 7 BB, 20 K). He has thrown 15.2 innings in five starts. The Yankees are probably building him up as a multi-inning relief type over a true starter (but if true, why is he on a starter’s schedule rather than coming out of the bullpen every 3-4 days?). Yes, I find his development plan for 2024 (his final option year) a little strange.
LHP Oddanier Mosqueda: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 1 K
RHP Duane Underwood Jr.: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
2.03 ERA (13.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 5 BB, 16 K). The three runs allowed are all solo homers. 
RHP Alex Mauricio: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
2.79 ERA at this level (9.2 IP, 10 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 HR, 1 BB, 14 K)
LHP Clayton Andrews: 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K

Somerset (9-12) (Lost to Reading, 6-3)

C Ben Rice: 1-for-4, HR (6), RBI, RS, 2 K
Rice led off the game with a homer. His 25.8% K rate is a tad high (it was 18.9% at this level last year) but the production has been high as well (22 HR, 57 RBI in 68 games)
3B Jon Berti: 0-for-3, 2 K
Berti began his rehab stint today.
  SS Alexander Vargas: 0-for-1, K
DH Agustin Ramirez: 1-for-4, 2 K
He is hitting .260 with a 1.030 OPS (15.9% BB; 19.3% K)
SS-3B Ben Cowles: 1-for-4, HR (3), RBI, RS, K
Cowles has homered in back-to-back games and has three in his last four games. He is on a 7-game hitting streak (11-for-29, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR, 7 RBI). He is hitting .356 with a 1.086 OPS.  As of this writing, he leads the Eastern League in average and OBP. He is third (just ahead of Ramirez) in OPS. 
1B J.C. Escarra: 1-for-4, K
RF Jared Wegner: 1-for-3, HR (3), RBI, RS, BB, K
Wegner is on a 12-game hitting streak (14-for-45 (.311), 2 doubles, 1 triple, 3 HR)
CF Grant Richardson: 0-for-4, K
2B Anthony Seigler: 1-for-4, 2 K
LF Aaron Palensky: 0-for-2, 2 SB (4), HBP

RHP Zach Messinger: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
5.14 ERA (28 IP, 25 H, 22 R, 16 ER, 4 HR, 10 BB, 30 K)
RHP Luis Velasquez: (L, 1-1) 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, HR
RHP Jack Neely: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
0.82 ERA (11 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 HR, 5 BB, 17 K). A 2024 debut is not out of the question, but there can be a logjam if Tommy Kahnle, Scott Effross, and Lou Trivino return. It would be a nice problem to have.

Hudson Valley (12-8) (Doubled up Bowling Green, 6-3)

CF Jace Avina: 0-for-4, BB, 2 K
.303/.439/.424 in 41 PA. I suspect they will keep the 20-year-old here all season, but a player can always force the issue.
SS Jared Serna: 3-for-4, 2B (3), RBI
Serna’s first 3-hit game of the season. He had 11 3+ hit games in 2023 (including four 4-hit games)
C Omar Martinez: 0-for-3, 2 BB
.262/.392/.459 in 74 PA. 
2B Jesus Rodriguez: 2-for-4, 2B (3), RS, 2 SB (2), K
Rodriguez was 21-for-25 stealing bases in 2023, so it isn’t a foreign concept to him. He is hitting .304/.368/.420 in 76 PA and is at .314/.402/.464 in 911 career plate appearances. Rodriguez is only 22 (won’t be 23 until next April)
DH Josh Moylan: 0-for-4, RBI
1B Rafael Flores: 0-for-3, BB
3B Kiko Romero: 0-for-2, RS, HBP, BB, K
RF Cole Gabrielson: 2-for-4, 2B (2), 2 RS, K
LF Kyle Battle: 2-for-2, HR (1), SF, 3 RBI, 2 RS, BB
Battle’s 7th career HR (99 games)

RHP Cam Schlittler: (W, 3-0) 6 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 2 HR
Schlittler allowed solo homers in the first and second, and that was it. Season: 1.29 ERA (21 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 3 ER, 3 HR, 9 BB, 26 K). He has struck out seven batters four times in his brief career, his personal best.
RHP Huey Morrill: 2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
LHP Joel Valdez (S, 1): 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K

Tampa (5-16) (Lost to Lakeland, 9-3)

DH Enmanuel Tejeda: 0-for-4, 2 K
.289/.344/.325 in 94 PA (3 doubles, 10 RBI, 10 R, 7.4% BB, 22.3% K, 7-for-9 SB). He hit 8 home runs in 96 DSL/FCL games, but home run power is not likely to be a part of his game. Versatility, contact, and speed will be his route to MLB if he makes it.
1B Oscar Gonzalez: 1-for-4, HR (2), RBI, RS
Gonzalez is 6-for-20 with a triple and two homers during his rehab stint.
SS Roderick Arias: 1-for-4
Arias has reached base safely in nine straight games. The single was hit at 107.5 MPH, his hardest-hit ball of the season. He is at .225/.340/.400 in 94 PA (4 doubles, 2 triples, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 10 R, 13.8% BB, 37.2% K, 4-for-7 SB). The strikeout rate continues to fall.
3B Dylan Jasso: 2-for-3, HR (1), RBI, 2 RS, BB
Jasso’s second career HR (he hit a homer and drove home 20 runs in 17 FCL games in 2023). He is hitting .254/.400/.418 in 85 PA with 6 doubles, 1 triple, 1 HR, 17.6% BB, and 25.9% K.
LF Coby Morales: 0-for-2, BB, HBP
CF Tayler Aguilar: 0-for-4, K
C Edinson Duran: 0-for-2, BB,HBP,  K
RF Daury Arias: 1-for-3, RBI, BB
2B Brenny Escanio: 0-for-4, K

RHP Ryan Harvey: (L, 0-1)  1.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
Toss it out and move on to the next.
RHP Steven Fulgencio: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
4.00 ERA (9 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 4 ER, 0 HR, 5 BB, 10 K). 
LHP Brady Rose: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HR
RHP Aaron Nixon: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
3.00 ERA (12 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 0 HR, 12 BB, 14 K). Many Yankees’ farmhands are sinker/slider-curve/change types – Nixon is your old-fashioned 4-seamer/slider type. He maxed out at 95 MPH today.
RHP Cade Austin: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K

FCL (0-0)

The season starts on 5/4.

DSL (0-0)

It will be a while before their season starts!