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Scranton (28-12) (Squeaked past Worcester, 1-0)
3B Caleb Durbin: 0-for-4, SB (18), BB, K
Durbin is second in the International League in SB (Steward Berroa (Buffalo) has 20)
LF Everson Pereira: 0-for-4, BB, K
.259/.339/.524 (8.5% BB; 33.9% K) in 165 PA. It’s an interesting profile that shows off his power (7 doubles, 10 HR) and swing-and-miss.
1B T.J. Rumfield: 1-for-5, SB (2)
Rumfield has hit safely in 8 of his last 9 games (13-for-34; .382).
DH Taylor Trammell: 1-for-3, 2B (1), BB, K
Trammell is 4-for-16 with a double since joining the Railriders.
RF Oscar Gonzalez: 0-for-3, HBP, 2 K
C Luis Torrens: 0-for-3, BB, K
2B Josh VanMeter: 0-for-3, SB (2), BB, K
SS Kevin Smith: 2-for-4, 2 2B (4), RS, K
CF Brandon Lockridge: 1-for-2, RBI, CS (2), 2 BB
.229/.373/.325 in 102 PA (6 doubles, 1 triple, 0 HR, 12 RBI, 15-for-17 SB). Lockridge hit 39 HR between 2019-2022 (there wasn’t a season in 2020) but has only three in 2023-2024. I still think he can carve out an MLB career.
RHP Clayton Beeter: 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 5 BB, 3 K
2.53 ERA (32 IP, 17 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 1 HR, 21 BB, 44 K). Is the wildness what makes him tough to hit? Or would he still be tough to hit if he curtailed the wildness?
RHP Cody Morris: (W, 2-0) 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
1.40 ERA (19.1 IP, 12 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 HR, 11 BB, 26 K)
LHP Anthony Misiewicz: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
RHP Phil Bickford (S, 4): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
2.40 ERA (15 IP, 13 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 HR, 4 BB, 18 K). In MLB, Bickford has been a “meh” reliever with a high K rate (26.6%). This is mostly due to walks and fly balls. Whether the Yankees can find a way to work with this remains to be seen – but if you are a pitcher looking to find new ways to be effective, signing with the Yankees should be near the top of your list.
Somerset (17-17) (Win a pitching duel over Portland, 1-0. This follows a 11-10 loss last night. Baseball!)
CF Spencer Jones: 0-for-4, 4 K
.237/.306/.361 in 108 PA. There was a point early last year where people were wondering about Jasson Dominguez. We all know how that story ended up. So, we’ll see if Jones can build a similar story in 2024 (not that I expect him to march up to MLB regardless)
DH Oswald Peraza: 1-for-4, HR (2), RBI, RS, K
His home run in the 4th held up.
C Ben Rice: 0-for-3, 3 K
.246/.374/.467 in 148 PA (14.9% BB; 24.3% K). He is 9-for-41 (.220) in May (1 HR, 8 BB, 8 K).
1B Agustin Ramirez: 1-for-3, 2B (5), SB (8), K
.284/.403/.638 (15.8% BB; 18.7% K) in 139 PA. His BABIP, which I referenced last night, has normalized (.269). You can disparage “advanced” (not that BABIP is all that advanced) metrics all day – the data showed that a correction was coming for Ramirez and here it is. The Yankees need to decide whether his projected bat is too good to worry about catcher development, even if that development increases trade value.
SS Ben Cowles: 1-for-2, SB (5)
Cowles left the game after the stolen base.
PR-3B J.C. Escarra: 0-for-1, K
3B-SS Jordan Groshans: 0-for-3
LF Jared Wegner: 0-for-3
2B Anthony Seigler: 0-for-2, SB (4), BB, K
RF Aaron Palensky: 0-for-2, SB (5), BB, 2 K
RHP Blane Abeyta: (W,2-3) 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
4.86 ERA (37 IP, 45 H, 29 R, 20 ER, 4 HR, 8 BB, 28 K)
RHP Yorlin Calderon: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Between Scranton/Somerset/Hudson Valley: 2.18 ERA (20.2 IP, 12 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 1 HR, 8 BB, 19 K)
RHP Kevin Stevens (S, 2): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Hudson Valley (17-15) (Defeated Jersey Shore, 9-3)
2B Roc Riggio: 1-for-5, 2B (5), SB (6), K
.213/.343/.382 in 108 PA. Riggio is hitting .204 in his first 45 professional games, which is something to monitor. He makes a lot of contact and it is nice to see some extra-base hits in 2024.
SS Jared Serna: 0-for-1, 3 RS, 4 BB
Serna’s first career 4 BB game (not that it should be common). He is hitting .250/.375/.448 (15.97% BB; 13.9% K) in 144 PA. Going back to 4/28, he is 20-for-55 (.364) with 9 walks and 10 strikeouts. Interestingly, the only three homers he has during this streak were hit on the same day (5/1). Baseball!
CF Jace Avina: 1-for-3, 2B (9), RS, 2 BB, K
Avina now owns a 10-game hitting streak and is hitting .293/.404/.476 in 99 PA. This is the 20-year-old’s first taste of High-A, and he is holding his own. Last year, in A ball for the Brewers’ organization, he hit .233/.373/.442. Avina’s .440 BABIP will come down, so we’ll have to see where he settles in.
C Jesus Rodriguez: 0-for-3, 3 RS, 2 BB
.322/.386/.517 (9.1% BB; 14.4% K) in 132 PA. He is second in the Sally League in average and 6th in slugging percentage. It is easy to see him in Somerset this season. Last year, the Yankees played him in 84 Low-A games before promoting him here. He is at 55 games at this level (his triple slash is a ridiculous .337/.422/.524).
DH Rafael Flores: 2-for-4, 2B (8), 3 RBI, RS, BB, K
Flores has three multi-hit games in his last four games played.
1B Josh Moylan: 2-for-5, 3 RBI, RS, K
There’s a hot streak in Moylan somewhere…it hasn’t come out yet.
LF Nelson Medina: 1-for-4, 2B (2), 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
3B Beau Brewer: 0-for-4, K
RF Cole Gabrielson: 1-for-3, BB, K
RHP Baron Stuart: (W, 1-1) 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
4.13 ERA (24 IP, 23 H, 12 R, 11 ER, 1 HR, 11 BB, 16 K)
RHP Matt Keating: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
3.60 ERA (20 IP, 12 H, 9 R, 8 ER, 2 HR, 8 BB, 24 K). Keating (23) struck out 93 in 65.1 IP for Low-A Tampa last year.
RHP Luis Arejula: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
Tampa (11-24) (Defeated Bradenton, 5-0)
SS George Lombard Jr.: 0-for-4, K
DH Tyler Hardman: 0-for-4, K
Hardman started his rehab here, went to the FCL for one game, and is now back. It makes sense to somebody, and that is all that matters.
3B Roderick Arias: 1-for-3, 2B (5), 2 RS, 2 SB (9), BB, K
I am asked what my honest assessment of Arias is. The answer? I don’t have one. We have to see how he progresses as the season goes along. Earlier in 2024, he was generating some power without the walks. Now, he is walking more but the power has drifted away (only two extra-base hits in May after compiling eight in April). It’s all a part of a process that will take a while to play out.
1B Dylan Jasso: 1-for-4, RBI, RS, 2 K
Jasso has 16 RBI in 13 May games.
LF Jackson Castillo: 0-for-2, RS, 2 BB
Castillo is 10-for-36 with 14 walks in May. As is the case with Jasso, he was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2023.
CF Willy Montero: 1-for-2, RBI, RS, 2 BB, K
Montero has hit safely in eight of his last nine games.
2B Hans Montero: 2-for-3, 2B (2), 2 RBI, BB, K
13-for-37 (.351). Last 6 games: 9-for-19. He has four multi-hit games in his last five starts.
C Manuel Palencia: 1-for-4, K
RF Daury Arias: 0-for-3
RHP Luis Serna: (W, 2-2) 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K
Brilliance. Season: 5.40 ERA (26.2 IP, 23 H, 16 R, 16 ER, 1 HR, 8 BB, 31 K). Three May starts: 15.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 15 K. Don’t forget that Serna is only 19 years old.
RHP Jordy Luciano: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 2 K
RHP Aaron Nixon: (S, 2) 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
2.33 ERA (19.1 IP, 10 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 0 HR, 16 BB, 21 K)
FCL (4-4)
Scheduled day off.
DSL (0-0)
It will be a while before their season starts!