photo: Kyle Leahy (Allison Rhoades/Peoria Chiefs)
It was a 3-5 Monday for the St. Louis Cardinals farm system with wins from Springfield, State College, and Johnson City. Losses were charged to Palm Beach, Peoria, and the three lowest rookie ball affiliates, including a landmark anti-achievement for the DSL Red team, which had 27 baserunners in nine innings but nevertheless somehow lost by 10 runs. Memphis took the day off. Player of the Day Kyle Leahy pitched six dominant innings, but the Peoria bullpen failed in the ninth.
Results for games played Monday, July 22nd.
Memphis OFF
Memphis (41-60) was not scheduled on Monday. The Redbirds are in fourth/last place in the American Northern Division of the Pacific Coast League, 15 games behind the first-place Iowa Cubs.
Tuesday’s game: vs. New Orleans, Mike Hauschild (0-2, 9.49) 6:35 CT.
Springfield 6 at Corpus Christi 2
Springfield improved to 17-14 for the second half, drubbing Corpus Christi 6-2 on the road Monday evening. Righty Johan Oviedo was the starter and winner, permitting two runs on just two hits over five innings (97 pitches). The strapping 21-year-old issued four walks and plunked a pair while fanning five Hooks. Sturdy relief work was provided by Bryan Dobzanski (three shutout innings, two hits) and Connor Jones, who threw a perfect ninth with two strikeouts.
The balanced S-Cards attack was led by third baseman Yariel Gonzalez with two singles and a double. Center fielder Justin Toerner singled twice for the club’s other multi-hit effort, while Lars Nootbaar and Rayder Ascanio each scored twice, and Scott Hurst and Alberto Triunfel each doubled and drove in a pair apiece. Top prospect Dylan Carlson went 1-for-5, dropping his wRC+ slightly to 137. (The only younger player in any organization and any Double-A league with a higher wRC+ is uber-prospect Jo Adell.)
Tuesday’s game: OFF
Palm Beach fell 5-1 at home on Monday, dropping to 10-23 with their third consecutive loss. Nolan Gorman had his team’s only RBI and only multi-hit game with a pair of singles, lifting his Beach Birds average to .267, and his wRC+ to 120. (There is no younger hitter in any of the three High-A leagues with a higher wRC+ than Gorman.) On the downside, the teen fanned twice and failed to draw a base on balls for the 12th game in a row, and 19 of 20. Center fielder Nick Plummer doubled and walked twice, and Juan Yepez singled and stole a base.
Righty Perry DellaValle pitched well but it wasn’t enough, as he was saddled with the loss despite tossing 6 2/3 innings and allowing just four hits and two runs. Zach Prendergast relieved and was rocked for four hits of his own, three for extra bases, in the remaining 2 1/3 frames. The lefty conceded three runs, all earned.
Tuesday’s game: vs. St. Lucie, Diego Cordero (1-2, 2.25) 11:00 a.m. CT.
Peoria led 1-0 the whole way, until coughing it up in the ninth in a 2-1 walkoff loss to Lake County on Monday, leaving their nightmare second half at 6-24. Player of the Day Kyle Leahy started and was terrific, twirling a half dozen scoreless stanzas. The 22-year-old righty allowed four hits, all singles, and whiffed six Captains while walking one. Sebastian Tabata and Freddy Pacheco each contributed a scoreless inning from the pen, before lefty Evan Sisk took the loss by yielding two ninth-inning tallies and retiring just one man.
Leandro Cedeno and Edwin Figuera combined for eight of their team’s 13 total bases, as each singled once, while Cedeno doubled one time and Figuera twice. First baseman Brady Whalen was the only other Chief to reach twice, as he singled and drew a walk. Cleanup hitter and top prospect Ivan Herrera went 1-for-4, dropping his OPS to .794 and wRC+ to 132. (The only younger batters in either Low-A league with a higher wRC+ are uber-prospects Wander Franco and Julio Rodriguez.)
Tuesday’s game: OFF
State College 9, Williamsport 3
State College lifted its ledger to 19-18 with a 9-3 home rout of the Williamsport Crosscutters Monday night. Right fielder and cleanup man Andrew Warner homered and plated three, while second sacker Martin Figueroa tripled and drove in the same. Center fielder Terry Fuller (two singles, two walks) reached safely four times, stole a base, and recorded an outfield assist. The 20-year-old has certainly made the most of his promotion from the Appalachian League, slashing .409/.500/.727 in his six games with State College.
Righty Adrian Mardueno was the starter and winner, going five innings and permitting one run. The 21-year-old fanned four and walked none in lowering his ERA to 2.49. The save, his first as a professioal, went to 23-year-old righty Eric Lex. The recent 27th-round pick from Santa Clara worked two scoreless frames and allowed just a meaningless single while striking out a pair.
Tuesday’s game: at Mahoning Valley, Junior Gonzalez (2-1, 7.65) 6:05 CT.
Johnson City climbed back to .500 on the season with a 7-4 home victory over Danville on Monday evening. The J-Cards (16-16) were led on offense by third baseman Malcom Nunez who singled twice and doubled, snapping an 0-for-13 skid with six whiffs. Left fielder Victor Garcia had the team’s other multi-hit game, doubling and singling, and Zach Jackson homered from the designated hitter slot.
Righty Jose Moreno had his best start of 2019, fanning eight men over five innings and surrendering two runs, both earned. The 18-year-old Venezuelan permitted four hits and four bases on balls. The final four innings were covered by Wilfredo Pereira, who allowed a pair of solo longballs and nothing else. The Panamanian righty fanned four and walked two.
Tuesday’s game: at Kingsport, Michael YaSenka (0-1, 0.47), 10:00 a.m. CT.
GCL Astros 6 at GCL Cardinals 4
The Gulf Coast League Cardinals slid to 11-13 on Monday morning, mustering just four hits in losing 6-4 at home to the GCL Astros. The game was noteworthy for reasons other than the score, however, as it featured the stateside debut of DSL-destroying dynamo Diowill Burgos, and the first formal game anywhere in nearly two months for rehabbing third sacker Elehuris Montero. Unfortunately even those two additions couldn’t help the feeble Coast Cards assault. Burgos (left field) was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and Montero (at DH) went 0-for-3. There were no multi-hit games, no homers, and no steals for the Cards.
Inohan Paniagua was the starter and loser, coughing up all six runs on eight hits and four free passes over 5 2/3 frames. Stellar bullpen work was provided by righty Wilman Madera, who gave up just one harmless hit over the remaining 3 1/3 innings. The 20-year-old Colombian fanned two and walked one.
Tuesday’s game: at GCL Marlins, pitcher TBA, 11:00 a.m. CT.
DSL Twins 8, DSL Cardinals Blue 5
Despite scoring the game’s first three runs on Monday morning, the DSL Cardinals Blue squad fell 8-5 to the home DSL Twins, slipping to 24-14 on the year. Starter Reinys Portillo was solid, allowing two runs on just four hits and no walks across five innings. The 18-year-old righty has now held opponents to two runs or less in six of his eight starts, and has walked just six men in his last seven outings. Benjamin Arias took the loss after being hammered for five tallies in 2/3 of an inning. Cristoffer Zapata and Ronald Suarez were both fine from the pen, tossing a scoreless inning apiece and fanning four of seven batters.
Backstop Jose Zapata (2-for-4) had his team’s only multi-hit game and its only three RBI as the Blue went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring range. Zapata’s only meaningful help came in the persons of 17-year-old third baseman Brandon Hernandez (two walks and a single) and 17-year-old designated hitter Juan Sanchez (double, walk).
Tuesday’s game: vs. DSL Rockies, pitcher TBA, 9:30 a.m. CT.
DSL Brewers 19 at DSL Cardinals Red 9
The DSL Cardinals Red affiliate (17-25) allowed a run in every inning but one, falling 19-9 at home to the DSL Brewers on Monday morning. Edgar Manzo started and took some lumps (and the loss), yielding seven runs in four innings. But an even worse thumping was delivered to unfortunate 17-year-old righty Jesus Jaquez, who went one inning and permitted eight scores. This was a day when just-turned-18-year-old Miguel Maiz was the club’s best reliever by virtue of only allowing one run in two innings.
Center fielder and leadoff man Smith Vargas did his job, reaching safely five times in six trips (single, double, three walks). The 17-year-old Dominican has been on an absolute OBP tear over his last six games, going 12-for-22 with eight walks and two whiffs. Reaching four times on Monday were first baseman Luis Andujar (two singles, two walks) second baseman Albert Inoa (four walks) and designated hitter Endri Salas, who doubled, walked twice, and was hit by a pitch. Cleanup man Andujar plated five runs with twin two-run singles and a bases loaded walk.
Tuesday’s game: at DSL Brewers, pitcher TBA, 9:30 a.m. CT.
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