The Futures Game stole the top position players off the Springfield roster but Carlos Martinez didn’t seem to notice. As the major leagues enter the all-star break, the minor leagues cruise onward with a full slate of games. Not much offense to speak of but some good pitching performances, as the system goes 4-2.
- Adron Chambers was 3-4 with a triple. He’s now hitting .326 but devoid of power with only 10 extra base hits on the year.
- Cedric Hunter had the only other hit with a double and a walk.
- Scott Gorgen went 4.1 innings, giving up both runs on seven hits, striking out a pair.
- Sam Freeman went 1.2 scoreless innings.
- Eduardo Sanchez finished the game with a strikeout in a perfect ninth.
- In case you were wondering where Corey Patterson ended up, he’s on the Brewers AAA squad.
- Lots of stranded runners in this game, as Springfield accumulated 10 hits and 7 walks but scored their only runs with a single in the eighth and a solo shot in the 11th.
- Xavier Scruggs had the offensive performance of the day, going 3-5 with a double and the game winning home run.
- Greg Garcia and Chris Swauger were 2-5 with a walk.
- Jermaine Curtis had a hit and a couple walks.
- In the end, what will save Carlos Martinez from being relegated to the bullpen is not his outstanding velocity but his strong ground ball tendencies. Another strong outing here, going 6.0 IP, walking 2 and only striking out 3 but working efficiently with an 11:1 GO:FO.
- Keith Butler dominated in extra innings, striking out four in 2.0 IP.
- Tyler Rahmatulla was 0-4 with a walk. He hasn’t transitioned very well since being promoted to the pitcher friendliness of Palm Beach, hitting .158/.292/.193, his season OPS down to .817.
- James Ramsey was 1-3 with a walk.
- Geoffrey Klein had a double and a pair of walks.
- Jeremy Patton was 2-3 with a walk.
- Ronny Gil was 2-4.
- Scott Schneider‘s second start of the year went reasonably well, going six innings with only one strikeout but no runs on 3 hits and a walk.
- Anthony Garcia went 0-4, ending his 16 game hitting streak.
- David Medina was 2-4.
- Juan Castillo had a hit and a pair of walks.
- Stephen Piscotty has a fielding error, his fourth error of the season.
- Willy Paulino allowed at least a run in every one of his 4.0 IP but induced plenty of ground balls with an 11:0 GO:FO and walked no one.
- Jonathan Cornelius was much better in his 4.0 IP, striking out four and allowing no base runners.
- Alex Mejia was 2-4 with a double.
- Jacob Wilson was 2-2 with a pair of walks.
- Patrick Wisdom hit a double.
- 27th round pick Joe Cuda has put up four straight solid starts since turning pro, going 6.0 IP and striking out 5 to 2 walks without giving up a run. His ERA stands at 1.83.
Johnson City 6, Elizabethton 2
- CJ McElroy was 2-4 but had trouble on the basepaths, being picked off and caught stealing.
- 18th round first baseman Jeremy Schaffer has hit a home run in three straight games, going 3-4 with his fourth of the year.
- Ronard Castillo was 3-4.
- Second round pick Carson Kelly hit his second home run of the year, going 2-4.
- Victor de Leon had control issues walking 5 in his 5.0 IP, but giving up only two runs.
- Oscar Taveras was the only World team member who played the entire game. He was 1-3, having been robbed of an extra base hit by a leaping Anthony Gose. He also showed a strong arm from centerfield, albeit somewhat inaccurate.
- On the other side, Kolten Wong was 0-2 for team USA.
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FWIW Keith Law reported that Taveras had the most impressive batting practice out of all the prospects at the Futures game.
Was also reported that Wong impressed many people with his defensive skills at 2B. Is Wong the best defender at 2B in MiLb?
I seriously doubt Wong is a better defender at 2B than Pete Kozma.
Why?
Because Pete Kozma has a better arm and better range.
better arm is often negated at second. Its good to have, but does not separate 2nd basemen. For instance, Skip probably has the strongest arm of NL second baseman. Range at shortstop does not necessarily transition to second.
I agree that Kozma might have the better tools, but that doesn’t make him a better second baseman.
The reason I ask why because I was wondering Kozma was playing better, or has the ability to be better.
why?
Because If you are using Kozma as a measuring stick I want to know if it is legit.
Kozma could very well be playing better. But I would like to know if he is, or its just based on ability.
If Wong outhits Kozma by 100 points, I don’t care either way. Wong’s glove is good enough.
I doubt it. Seems like he’s made considerable improvements but he wasn’t regarded as a particularly good defender when drafted. That’s just a year ago.
He also wasn’t considered to be particularly athletic…then he comes out and starts doing back flips.
I think Wong got an unfair knock. Because he played in Hawaii, he wasn’t as exposed. And since he is built more like a running back than a prototypical second baseman, people judged on body type than ability.
I was at the Futures Game.
Wong did the back flip going onto the field. I was impressed with his speed; he reached base on an error and flew across the bases. He almost bobbled a grounder from Taveras.
Taveras looked better with the bat than in the field, but was caught stealing and the Gose catch was amazing. He started the game in right. There was a ball hit to him and he gunned it in; the problem was he threw it between the second baseman and shortstop (both attempting to cut it off). The ball went to the dugout and it allowed a couple of runs to score. Halfway through the game, he moved to center. There were 3-4 balls hit over his head that went to the wall. I’d say he looked much better in right.
Did you see Taveras’ BP? It got rave reviews from every prospect guru.
No, the World team didn’t have BP for the public.
On the video, it looked like the cutoff men didn’t handle that throw very well. The E9 was as much a matter of poor effort on the receiving end as poor throw. Did you have that impression in real time as well?
No. I only noticed the throw was off. It was a bullet, just between the cut off men.
Looks like Carson Kelly is starting to make adjustments and it’s starting to pay off after hitting HR on back to back days like to see that power potential of his. He’s also on a streaky 8 game hitting streak.
Yeah, its great that a guy as young as Kelly will get a half year of experience as a 17/18 year old professional. With the old deadline, there is little chance this would have happened. It sounds like he is in over his head with regard to defense and plate discipline, but he is so young it speaks volumes to how the Cardinals feel about him to put him in a tough tough place.
Agreed. It’s nice to see the Cards start him off at JC rather than putting him in the GCL. And after a horrendous start, he’s getting his share of hits now.
Good to see Martinez with another good start looks like he is polishing up some at Springfield owns a 57.6 GB% in 5 starts. The little change in his mechanics is paying off in his last couple of starts.
Butler continues to be effective out of the pen for Springfield putting away batters with that slider. He’s averaging 9.36 K/9 and a solid 1.16 WHIP.
Minor Note: Jacob Wilson was not 2-2, though I wish he had been.
Anybody else intrigued by this Cuda kid? He put up some crazy numbers in college and has pitched well so far. I know its a sss but I’m interested to see what he does going forward.
Joe Cuda is only 5-foot-9 but is putting up good numbers so far for Batavia small sample of 4 starts though. 1.83 ERA 19 2/3 innings 4BB/14K 6.41 K/9 1.83 BB/9 remember it’s only 4 starts.
I thought when I heard that OT had a violent swing it was more a figure of speech. Such is not the case…Vlad 2.0?