Horsehide Harry (08-13-2019), Jaw (08-14-2019)
Cool to see Ball not slowing down a bit a Rome, and young Harris holding his own.
With those two plus Shewmake, Dean, Langaliers, and Cullen, Rome suddenly has a really interesting team.
Last edited by jpx7; 08-13-2019 at 11:51 PM.
"For all his tattooings he was on the whole a clean, comely looking cannibal."
Jaw (08-14-2019)
With the draft class this year focusing on position players, combined with the recent trades and this year's graduations, it appears our farm system's depth is now position players. In my opinion, more than half of our top 10 and more than half of our Top 20 are now position players. It's at least a 60/40 lean and may be more.
Carp (08-14-2019)
Go get him!
Founding member of the Whiny Little Bitches and Pricks Club
Results from the night games:
Gwinnett 3-2 winner over Columbus thanks to an 8th-inning two-run HR by Florimon. Florimon drove in all 3 Gwinnett runs. Wild night for Wright. 5 IP, 5 K, 5 BB, 2 H, 2 ER. Bullpen combines for 4 scoreless from Walker (2 IP, 3 K), Weigel (Win, 1 IP, 1 K) and Minter (Save, 1 IP, 1 H, 1 K).
Mississippi goes down 8-1 to Birmingham. Only 5 hits for the M-Braves. Johnstone (5-3) takes the loss. Lane Adams sighting as he returns after six-weeks of involuntary vacation. He pinch-hit for Trey Harris late in the game. Harris, by the way, continues to hit and now sports a .311 BA and .806 OPS at Mississippi. Big difference for Harris is his walk rate has become the size of an amoeba with only 1 BB in 80 PAs.
Florida sweeps! 6-0 win in Game 1 behind Brooks Wilson. I wrote this one up earlier in the thread. Fire Frogs win Game 2 2-1. Game was scoreless through regulation. Bradenton scores 1 in the top half of the 8th, but the Frogs leap past them with two in the bottom half. Andy Wilkins (who started the season in Mississippi before getting injured) drives in the winning run. Good pitching performances from Withrow (2.2 IP, 3 H, 6 K, 1 BB), Young (3 IP, 0 H, 3 K), and Dirks (2.1 IP, 3 H, 1 UER, 3 K). Delgado goes 3/4.
Rome hangs up two yuge innings with 7 in the second and 6 in the sixth to cruise to a 13-8 win over Asheville. Hitting stars galore as Rome racks up 13 hits. Dean, Shewmake, Ball, Rodriguez, and Langeliers all with 2 hits apiece. 3 RBIs for Cullen and Shewmake. Cullen is an interesting guy. College player from the 2018 draft they have kept in Rome all season, he now has an .815 OPS. Walks a ton, but also Ks a bit for a guy who doesn't project to have much power. Looks to be a guy who only plays second base, so that probably limits his ceiling as much as anything. As said by someone up the thread, Ball continues to hit after the promotion. 3 doubles in 2 games since joining the R-Braves. Olague gets the win (10-6) giving up 4 runs in 6 IP. Vodnik gets a 3-inning save (1), but has a somewhat rocky outing, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks over the stint. He did K four hitters.
Danville loses 3-1 to Kingsport. Solid start for Mitch Stallings, going 5 innings, giving up only 2 hits while striking out 7 and not walking anyone. Alger Hodgson takes the loss, giving up 3 runs on 6 hits in his 3 IP. Did strike out 5 guys. Hodgson was out with an injury all of 2018. Connor Blair with 2 hits for the D-Braves, who are languishing in the cellar of the Appalachian League's Eastern Division.
Last edited by 50PoundHead; 08-14-2019 at 07:35 AM.
Nice recap 50. Doing Rico and the board a proud service!
50PoundHead (08-14-2019), JohnAdcox (08-14-2019), jpx7 (08-14-2019), Tapate50 (08-14-2019)
I neglected to mention that Greg Cullen was the NCAA D-1 batting champ in 2018, with a .458 batting average while playing for the Niagra Purple Eagles and was a semi-finalist for the Dick Howser Trophy.
Carp (08-14-2019)
Langelier's slow start is a bit disappointing. I'm hoping it's just a result of him being worn down at the end of a long season (college starts early) playing the most physically demanding position on the diamond. Still, you'd like to see a top 10 pick and college bat come out and handle low-A ball better than he has.
Shewmake should probably be promoted to Florida. He's hitting .326 with an OBP near .400. The BABIP is a bit high but not ridiculous so he's definitely showing the hit tool that got him drafted. The thing I like the best is the 12.9% K rate.
Shewmake's versatility and hit tool make him a good candidate to be a quick riser so I have no problem with them be aggressive with him.
Langeliers' start means nothing regardless of draft spot.
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Like I said, I'm hoping it's just fatigue from catching for way longer of a season than he ever has before. It's still disappointing as I would have loved to see our top 10 college bat tear low A apart but it's not something to get upset about or draw conclusions from. If it's 6 weeks into next season and he's still struggling to hit, then maybe we can look at what he's doing now with more concern but we're a long way from that.
Thanks for the updates! How are Waters and Pache doing in AAA so far?
The K rate is impressive. I think with the way the game is now, players with a low K rate have a chance to show more power once they hit the majors. The combination of a low K rate and 15-20 home runs is what gives you a player like Jeff McNeil of the Mets.
Obviously not all players with the profile will turn into a Jeff McNeil. Heck even Jeff McNeil is due for some regression. But it is a profile that I think is worth looking for in some of the guys in the farm system.
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jpx7 (08-14-2019)
DSL Braves (as opposed to the Wi-Fi Braves or Fiber Optic Braves) claw back from a 4-run deficit to down the DSL Astros 7-6. Nelson Vladimir Celesten is the hitting star, going 2/3--including a triple--with 3 RBI. 1 BB, 1 K. Deivi Estrada goes 2/4 with 1 BB and 1 K. Pitching stars were Jordano Perez and Ronaldo Alesandro. Perez allowed 1 baserunner (HBP) while striking out 5 in 4 IP. Did allow two inherited runners to score in the 4th, one with a steal of home. Alesandro gets the win, pitching perfect 8th and 9th innings, striking out 4.
4 Mississippi Braves' pitchers combine for a 2-hit shutout of the Birmingham Barons. Jasseel De La Cruz goes five innings, giving up one hit and walking one to earn the win. He struck out 4. Kurt Hoekstra, Bradley Roney, and Thomas Burrows go the last four. William Contreras with a solo HR and Trey Harris goes 2/4. Lane Adams appears as a pinch-runner/defensive replacement and steals a base. Jonathan Morales also goes 2/3 with a BB.