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General Discussion => The Bus Ride Discussion Forum => Topic started by: Duman on April 01, 2018, 06:00:28 am
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Preliminary roster released by the Astros (Link in FRESNO 2018 Thread)
PITCHERS
Adam Bleday*
J.B. Bukauskas
Robert Corniel
Tyler Ivey
Cristian Javier
Colin McKee
Parker Mushinski*
Yohan Ramirez
Cesar Rosado
Carlos Sanabria
Patrick Sandoval*
Peter Solomon
Cole Watts*
CATCHERS
Gabriel Bracamonte
Michael Papierski#
INFIELDERS
Jake Adams
Marcos Almonte
Jonathan Arauz*
Cody Bohanek
Roman Garcia
Adrian Tovalin
OUTFIELDERS
Bryan De La Cruz
Corey Julks
J.J. Matijevic*
Jake Meyers
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I thought Gilberto Celestino would start here with Matijevic at BC. Ever the optimist I guess.
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Is Bukauskas healthy? They basically rested him post-college last year, and I have yet to see him in a box (I realize it's early). Is it one of those Midwest cold things where they wait to let it warm up before he revs it up?
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Is Bukauskas healthy? They basically rested him post-college last year, and I have yet to see him in a box (I realize it's early). Is it one of those Midwest cold things where they wait to let it warm up before he revs it up?
They’ve played just 2 games.
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That's why qualified my question with "I realize it's early."
Actual knowledge of his status is what I was hoping to hear. Any reports from spring training?
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That's why qualified my question with "I realize it's early."
Actual knowledge of his status is what I was hoping to hear. Any reports from spring training?
I have heard nothing to indicate he isn't.
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That's why qualified my question with "I realize it's early."
Actual knowledge of his status is what I was hoping to hear. Any reports from spring training?
Very often organizations don't have their top pitchers at the front of the rotation. There are lots of reasons for it.
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Is Bukauskas healthy? They basically rested him post-college last year, and I have yet to see him in a box (I realize it's early). Is it one of those Midwest cold things where they wait to let it warm up before he revs it up?
Bukauskas is scheduled to start April 11th, but with the 2 cancellations, I don't know if that is still accurate.
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I can stop worrying. He threw tonight: 3.2, 2ER, 4 BB, 6 K
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Bandits score 7 today and lose by 3 touchdowns.
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Anyone know why Bukauskas is now on the Tri Cities roster?
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Anyone know why Bukauskas is now on the Tri Cities roster?
They are carrying more than the normal complement in Quad Cities and shuttling them on and off the Tri Cities roster as a since their season has not yet started. It is probably just inactive awaiting his next start.
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They are carrying more than the normal complement in Quad Cities and shuttling them on and off the Tri Cities roster as a since their season has not yet started. It is probably just inactive awaiting his next start.
See this more complete explanation (https://whattheheckbobby.blogspot.com/2018/04/astros-farm-report-423.html) from WTHB (emphasis mine):
... Some of these moves to and from the GCL and Tri-City are likely moves on paper only for the purposes of roster management. In addition, several Quad Cities pitchers were moved to give the team enough fresh arms for two double-headers over the weekend.
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See this more complete explanation (https://whattheheckbobby.blogspot.com/2018/04/astros-farm-report-423.html) from WTHB (emphasis mine):
The weather has seriously screwed up MWL schedules.
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The weather has seriously screwed up MWL schedules.
Yes. And JB started today - 3 runs on 7 hits in 2 innings. Still a little rough.
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Bukausas, after 2 poor starts, is on the DL. I have not been able to find out why.
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Bukausas, after 2 poor starts, is on the DL. I have not been able to find out why.
Uh-oh. Healthy, he's possibly their top "touchable" trade chip.
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Jonathan Lacroix to join the River Bandits per team tweet.
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Also, per team tweet, Marcos Almonte, Gabe Bracamonte & Cole Watts have been released. Replaced on the roster by Miguelangelo Sierra and Ruben Castro along with the return of Dariel Aquino who had seen some action earlier.
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Bukauskas, after 2 poor starts, is on the DL. I have not been able to find out why.
Going on 4 weeks now. Has anyone been able to find out what the story is?
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Quad Cities' Cristian Javier Saturday night: 6IP, 1H/0ER, 9K:0BB. Javier's 2018 season: 39IP, 24H/8ER, 65K:19BB. His last four starts: 19IP, 8H/2ER, 35K:6BB.
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I have been unable to see any actual games this season, but I do follow stats and playing time ... thought I would summarize May here in case anyone is interested.
The River Bandits were 20-11 in May with several double-headers following a rainy 10-12 April. Details ...
Catcher: Michael Papierski continues to get most of the playing time, and is still drawing more walks than strikeouts, though with a sub-Mendoza batting average. Ruben Castro has replaced the released Gabriel Bracamonte.
Middle Infield: Jonathan Arauz continues to get more playing time at both SS and 2B than anyone else, and also leads the team in plate appearances while generating a .310/.392/.513 slash line in May. Cody Bohanek saw equal time at 2B, 3B & SS before spending half the month or so filling in at Fresno. He has not been impressive at the plate from a stat perspective, but did not appear to be any more overmatched at AAA. Miguelangel Sierra joined the team in early May and was a regular at 2B & SS switching off with Arauz. He has a respectable .306/.330/.506 slash line, but 32 K in 88 PA seems excessive.
Corner Infield: Jake Adams heated up as the regular at 1B in May with 8 doubles, a triple and 5 HR to go with a team-leading 19 RBIs and a .287/.350/.519 slash line. He has cut his K-rate to "only" 25% (from 33% in April and 35% last year at Tri-City). Adrian Tovalin was the regular at 3B in April and early May before going on the DL, and has started pretty slowly (.220/.315/.376 overall in 124 PA). Colton Shaver filled in while he was gone, slashing .267/.316/.547 with a team-leading 6 May HR. Roman Garcia came off the DL but has played sparingly.
Outfield: Jake Meyers continues to be the offensive leader (.319/.367/.555 with 12 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers and 18 RBI in May) while patrolling CF. Bryan De la Cruz is the regular in RF, but saw his May batting average drop by over 100 points from April to .222. By contrast, Corey Julks (LF and some RF) saw his average jump by 99 points to .297 for the month and stole a team-high 8 bases. Jonathan Lacroix has also seen time in LF with unremarkable offensive numbers.
Rotation: With all the double headers, 10 different pitcher had at least one start in May, and 5 posted sub-2.00 ERAs: Patrick Sandoval (3-0, 1.86, 34:6 K:BB, 0.931 WHIP), Yohan Ramirez (3-1; 1.69, 1.088 WHIP), Parker Mushinski (2-0, 1.93, 1.371 WHIP), Cristian Javier (1-1, 1.96, 40:7 K:BB, 0.913 WHIP) and Leovanny Rodriguez (2-0, 0.64 with 17K in 14 IP after joining from EST and a 0.714 WHIP). The "other guys" did pretty well too: Tyler Ivey (1-1, 2.63, 0.958 WHIP) earned a promotion at the end of the month to Buies Creek, while Peter Solomon (2-0, 2.19, 1.095) and Cesar Rosado (1-1, 2.45, 1.247) also had solid performances.
Bullpen Carlos Sanabria led the team in appearances and games finished, posting a 2.84 ERA,a 1.105 WHIPand a 17:1 K:BB ration in 12.2 IP. Tanner Duncan (1.93, 0.643) and Robert Corniel both earned promotions to Buies Creek during the month, and Adam Bleday (1.38, 1.154) joined them this week. That leaves Enoli Paredes (whose 2.04 ERA and 22 K in 17.2 relief IP are "balanced" by 12 BB) along with relative newcomers Juan Robles and Jairo Solis. Dariel Aquino also saw some action before hitting the DL and Cole Watts was released after a miserable April.
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Great work VB.
Arauz is the guy to watch from the position player side. He's about 2 years younger than league average and has more than held his own. Sierra seems to have been around forever, but he's only 20 and should still be kept an eye on. Meyers is a little intriguing because of the offensive success. But he's older than league average so you'd like to see the Astros push him up to Buies Creek soon. None of the other regulars are major stand outs at this point.
The pitcher to watch right now is Mushinski. If the Astros start to move him up the ladder quickly I'd expect them to be eyeing a bullpen spot for him in the next year or two. Beyond him Solomon and Sandoval are guys to watch for promotion. You'd think Javier would be too but soft tossing righties don't typically make a big splash at the upper levels. We'll see though.
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Hate to bring it up, but what is the injury with Bukauskas? I applied my lame sleuthing skills a week or two ago, but info on him seemed elusive.
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Hate to bring it up, but what is the injury with Bukauskas? I applied my lame sleuthing skills a week or two ago, but info on him seemed elusive.
"Elusive" is correct. I expect there are medical privacy regulations in play. I assume someone will post here eventually if there is news.
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Great work VB.
Arauz is the guy to watch from the position player side. He's about 2 years younger than league average and has more than held his own. Sierra seems to have been around forever, but he's only 20 and should still be kept an eye on. Meyers is a little intriguing because of the offensive success. But he's older than league average so you'd like to see the Astros push him up to Buies Creek soon. None of the other regulars are major stand outs at this point.
The pitcher to watch right now is Mushinski. If the Astros start to move him up the ladder quickly I'd expect them to be eyeing a bullpen spot for him in the next year or two. Beyond him Solomon and Sandoval are guys to watch for promotion. You'd think Javier would be too but soft tossing righties don't typically make a big splash at the upper levels. We'll see though.
Thanks for adding context. FWIW, I agree with your position player assessments 100%. I saw Papierski at LSU and would like to be more positive about him than I am.
I should have noted the age issue - I think stats are a bit suspect at this level (and even through AA) but the combination of age, level and playing time is pretty significant.
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Great stuff, thanks VB and Jacksonian.
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Patrick Sandoval over his last 4 appearances--22 Ks vs just 2 BBs in 18 IP with no ERs.
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RHP Yohan Ramirez and OF Bryan De La Cruz added to MWL West Division All-Star squad joining previously announced LHP Patrick Sandoval, LHP Parker Mushinski and RHP Peter Solomon.
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Logan Ratick @Logan_Ratick 9h ago
The @QCRiverBandits pitching staff led the Midwest League in ERA (2.94) and strikeouts (744) during the first half of the regular season. They averaged 10.63 strikeouts per game.
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Logan Ratick @Logan_Ratick 9h ago
The @QCRiverBandits pitching staff led the Midwest League in ERA (2.94) and strikeouts (744) during the first half of the regular season. They averaged 10.63 strikeouts per game.
Holy shit.
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Holy shit.
The 3 other full season clubs lead their respective leagues in K's as well.
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The 3 other full season clubs lead their respective leagues in K's as well.
Putting that bubble gum to good use.
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Patrick Sandoval over his last 5 appearances--27 Ks vs just 3 BBs in 25 IP with no ERs. 20 hits allowed.
101 pitches thrown tonight was his career high.
21-year old lefty should be BC bound shortly.
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Patrick Sandoval over his last 5 appearances--27 Ks vs just 3 BBs in 25 IP with no ERs. 20 hits allowed.
101 pitches thrown tonight was his career high.
21-year old lefty should be BC bound shortly.
Was going to suggest the same. Making room for Donato?
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OF Bryan De La Cruz bumped to BC.
Marty Costes takes his place up from TRC. 5th member of 2018 draft class to join QC.
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Beer and Donato promoted from Tri-City.
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Beer and Donato promoted from Tri-City.
Beer hops a level.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Beer hops a level.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Kid's clearly got a good head on his shoulders.
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Certainly don't want to keep him bottled up.
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Patrick Sandoval over his last 5 appearances--27 Ks vs just 3 BBs in 25 IP with no ERs. 20 hits allowed.
101 pitches thrown tonight was his career high.
21-year old lefty should be BC bound shortly.
Bingo--among the raft of roster moves today. 16th rounder (2017) INF Adrian Tovalin was released while pitcher Peter Solomon goes to inactive list. RHP Humberto Castellanos also up from TRC.
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Certainly don't want to keep him bottled up.
He's having a good saison so far.
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I hope he continues to barrel up on the ball.
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Beer Man with 2 singles in QC debut.
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Bukauskas made a rehab start today in the GCL.
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Bukauskas made a rehab start today in the GCL.
A second rehab start with the V-Cats tonight goes smoother--2 scoreless frames.
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Mark Singelais @MarkSingelais 2h ago
J.B. Bukauskas said he could have one or two more starts with @ValleyCats as he rehabs from a bulging disc in his back.
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Mostly recaps what we already knew about him but still a nice QC times profile of Tanner Duncan.
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/duncan-forges-his-own-path-to-bandits-roster/article_b4b1f919-4cb2-5115-9bbe-e4dcc6c7e096.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
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RHP Tommy DeJuneas (acquired today in the Hoyt trade) has been assigned here.
BA scouting report:
"The Indians drafted DeJuneas in the 26th round out of North Carolina State last year. A standout closer for the Wolfpack, DuJuneas showed a fastball up to 96 mph but has had to back off his velocity to throw strikes. After struggling with walks in college and in his pro debut last year, he cut his walk rate in half this year and went 2-2, 3.38 with 39 strikeouts and eight walks in 29.1 innings at low Class A Kane County. DuJuneas also has a changeup and slider that flash above-average in addition to his fastball. He has the stuff to keep rising as a righthanded reliever, and whether he can harness his fast arm and throw strikes will be key."
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RHP Tommy DeJuneas (acquired today in the Hoyt trade) has been assigned here.
Or has he? First there was a twitter report that said he was being assigned to BC. But then the Milb transactions page said River Bandits (and still does). But now there's again a twitter report saying he was at BC.
I should just go and ask MM.
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Seth Beer played 11 games with Tri-City before his promotion, hitting 4 HR. Sorry far he has zero HR in 11 games with the River Bandits, but is batting a nice .447 with a 1.069 OPS. That brings his overall slash line to .367/.485/.595 in pro ball.
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Best outing of 22-year old Leovanny Rodriguez's career. Now with 62 Ks vs 15 BBs in 47 IP this year with a .210 BAA.
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Mark Singelais @MarkSingelais 2h ago
J.B. Bukauskas said he could have one or two more starts with @ValleyCats as he rehabs from a bulging disc in his back.
Encouraging outing this morning for JB in Troy: 3 IP / 1 H / 0 R / 1 BB / 6 K.
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The mystery is finally solved. Hope he can be healthy enough to move forward this year.
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More on his back problem:
"The 21-year-old was involved in a car accident during Spring Training. The effects from the crash lingered, and he was eventually diagnosed with a slipped disk in his thoracic spine, he said, with nerve discomfort. The pain led him to believe it was initially an oblique issue. When an MRI dispelled that, it was off to rehab."
https://www.milb.com/milb/news/houston-astros-prospect-jb-bukauskas-fans-six-in-rehab-start/c-284990814?tcid=tw_article_284990814
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"...every River Bandits infielder and outfielder hops with every pitch with objectives of increased focus on the ball as it leaves the bat and being in the best possible position to field the ball when it comes a player’s way. “The idea in part is to have the defender to be ready to move and not be flat footed when the ball is coming off the bat,’’ Quad-Cities manager Mickey Storey said. “We want our defensive guys to be ready when the ball is coming their way to make a play.’’ Storey said players at the minor-league level in the Astros organization experimented with the hop during spring training and players have been encouraged to use it since. That encouragement appeared to turn into a requirement for the River Bandits during their recent Midwest League homestand when synchronized hops preceded every pitch at Modern Woodmen Park. The team approach to hop appears to be part of an organizational endeavor that is taking place not only with the River Bandits but to some degree within Houston affiliates beyond the Midwest League."
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/hop-to-it-bandits-take-a-new-defensive-approach/article_80f598a6-06ee-5a43-96cb-bd0860cf3b5f.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
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I hope that’s not as silly as it sounds. I know many infielders will do a sort of hop as the pitch is delivered, basically shifting their feet from the standing position into a crouch. And as a kid I was taught to crouch in a ready position, with my weight up on the balls of my feet. Is this all that different?
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Here is the first I heard about the hop a few years ago. It is a video with the soft ball coach and a bio-mechanics professor talking about why it works. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRWzHz0Fhjs)
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I hope that’s not as silly as it sounds. I know many infielders will do a sort of hop as the pitch is delivered, basically shifting their feet from the standing position into a crouch. And as a kid I was taught to crouch in a ready position, with my weight up on the balls of my feet. Is this all that different?
Look at the pic on the website, dudes are jumping 2 feet in the air.
It's an interesting read, there is some science behind it.
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Look at the pic on the website, dudes are jumping 2 feet in the air.
Dude in center thinks it's bullshit.
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It’s like having the Panda field every position.
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So far he has zero HR in 11 games with the River Bandits...
The Beer Man delivered tonight.
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The Beer Man delivered tonight.
He’s a Beer batter.
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“The idea in part is to have the defender to be ready to move and not be flat footed when the ball is coming off the bat,’’ Quad-Cities manager Mickey Storey said.
Is this the same Mickey Storey that was briefly a reliever with Houston and Toronto?
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Is this the same Mickey Storey that was briefly a reliever with Houston and Toronto?
Yep. I had completely forgotten about him pitching with the Stros.
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21-year old RHP Carlos Sanabria, who has made the most of transitioning to reliever this year with 55 Ks in 37 innings versus just 11 walks, gets the deserved promotion to BC.
RHP Daniel Aquino was released.
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20-year old Dominican righty Willy Collado had 9 punchouts in 3.1 IP last night and has 27 Ks in 18 frames since being added to the River Bandits out of EST.
Oz @OcampoBaseball 45m ago
Devastating SL when on, one of the best in our system. Plus with solid CH now.
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Enoli Paredes is 3rd in the MWL in K/9 at 11.3 (min 50 innings). He hasn't allowed a HR this season in his 52.2 innings of work.
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JB Bukauskas has completed his rehab at TRC and is back with the River Bandits.
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Not particularly informative but a QC Times profile of recent draftee Marty Costes:
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/costes-finds-his-focus-connects-for-bandits/article_5c1cc5bb-ab7e-54da-9a84-c7e5bbfe3c53.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
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Bukauskas did well: 5 IP, 2H, 1 BB, 7K. K’d Kody Clemens twice.
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Bukauskas did well: 5 IP, 2H, 1 BB, 7K. K’d Kody Clemens twice.
Started out 93-95 on his FB and then bumped that up to 96-97 in the 3rd inning, according to Jayne.
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Bryan Abreu (7 punchouts in 4 innings tonite) completed the shutout. The Dominican pitcher has 5 years in the system but only recently turned 21. Just 12 hits allowed in 24.2 IP this year with 37 Ks. Control has been a problem in the past with a whopping 97 BBs in 142 IP entering this year but 2018 has been a different story (knock on wood) as he's given up just 8 free passes.
River Bandit pitching staff is 2nd in the 16-team MWL in WHIP and is #1 in shutouts, ERA and fewest HRs allowed (and of course KKKKKKKKKKKKs).
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Bryan Abreu (7 punchouts in 4 innings tonite) completed the shutout. The Dominican pitcher has 5 years in the system but only recently turned 21. Just 12 hits allowed in 24.2 IP this year with 37 Ks. Control has been a problem in the past with a whopping 97 BBs in 142 IP entering this year but 2018 has been a different story (knock on wood) as he's given up just 8 free passes.
Oz @OcampoBaseball 3h ago
Great to see DR RHP Bryan Abreu coming into his own. Projection guy we signed who threw 84 mph with 12-to-6 CB calling card. Now 93/97 MPH with 4-pitch mix (FB/CB/SL/CH), maybe the best CB in the system. Great kid, another #AstrosSleeper
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Oz @OcampoBaseball 3h ago
Great to see DR RHP Bryan Abreu coming into his own. Projection guy we signed who threw 84 mph with 12-to-6 CB calling card. Now 93/97 MPH with 4-pitch mix (FB/CB/SL/CH), maybe the best CB in the system. Great kid, another #AstrosSleeper
Looking at his career stats, walks were a HUGE problem before this year. Had decent K numbers before, so I wonder if the velocity jumped a few years ago but it took him a while to harness it, or what.
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Beer Man with the 12-gamer. Hitting .383 (18-47) during the streak with 9 walks vs just 5 strikeouts.
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Beer Man with the 12-gamer. Hitting .383 (18-47) during the streak with 9 walks vs just 5 strikeouts.
15 games after single in the 1st inning today.
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RHP Hansel Paulino called up from the V-Cats.
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What’s up with Beer, or no Beer? Two games in a row he’s not in the lineup.
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Never fucking mind. Looks like he moved up without me noticing.
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Nice little article on Tanner Duncan. (https://www.milb.com/milb/news/midwest-league-notes-astros-duncan/c-288398550)
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Nice little article on Tanner Duncan. (https://www.milb.com/milb/news/midwest-league-notes-astros-duncan/c-288398550)
If you don't decide to click thru, closest thing to a scouting report from the article:
"Tanner has a very playable fastball, especially for the velocity that it has [it's low 90s]," Quad Cities pitching coach Graham Johnson said. "He locates it well. He knows how to use it. Obviously, he's an extremely hard worker, and his slider has come a long way in the last month. He also has a very usable changeup and a very usable curveball to go along with those two pitches."
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20-year old SS Miguelangel Sierra showing a bit 'o life at the plate, batting .356 (16-45) over his last 12 games. Even so, he's also whiffed 16 times during that stretch.
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Confirming Oz Ocampo's earlier report on how hard Bryan Abreu is throwing:
QC River Bandits @QCRiverBandits 1h ago
Abreu comes out touching the upper 90s with his fastball and retires the side in order in the top of the 7th.
Silly numbers after tonight's outing: 32 Ks in 16.2 IP with just 8 hits and 4 walks allowed.
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Some adjustments to pro ball are tougher than others: 9th rounder Scott Schreiber has a K rate of 39% to go along with his .474 OPS thru his first 32 games.
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Timely profile on Abreu in the QC Times:
"It’s been fun watching him develop since he got here," Quad-Cities manager Mickey Storey said. "Opposing coaches, umpires, they’ve all been raving about his stuff, and it’s been with good reason – he’s got really good stuff."
Abreu blends a fastball clocked at the mid-90s on a regular basis with an arsenal of breaking pitches that includes a change-up that is hitting the strike zone at 90 miles per hour.
Also noted his season ended prematurely last year due to an elbow "problem".
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/it-begins-with-trust-for-bandits-abreu/article_3080ae0e-b980-5fb0-b6d4-d067ffbe95d2.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
Tossed 4 more scoreless innings tonight.
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Abreu doesn't look like a very big guy.
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Tusculum's finest LHP Tim Hardy escapes SS hell and gets promoted to the River Bandits.
18 year old righty (and 10th-ranked prospect) Jairo Solis to the DL.
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20-year old Dominican righty Willy Collado had 9 punchouts in 3.1 IP last night and has 27 Ks in 18 frames since being added to the River Bandits out of EST.
Oz @OcampoBaseball 45m ago
Devastating SL when on, one of the best in our system. Plus with solid CH now.
Hasn't allowed an ER over his last 17.1 IP. K'd 26 while walking just 3 during that stretch and allowing just 9 hits.
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C Ruben Castro over his last 22 games (since June 16): .333/.421/.407 with 11 walks vs 14 strikeouts in 95 PAs.
He's also on a 10-game hitting streak.
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10th rounder OF Chandler Taylor over his last 25 games: .294/.434/.518 despite a 30% K rate.
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The 6 shutout IP / 11 Ks he threw up today is arguably the best outing of Edgardo Sandoval's now 5-year career in the organization. Counting his work at TRC, in his last 6 games (24 IP) he's K'd 35 and walked just 6 while allowing only 19 hits.
Not bad for a guy working his way back from TJS.
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OF Marty Costes is already 3rd in the MWL on reaching on HBPs with 12 despite having played just 36 games.
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Not particularly informative but a QC Times profile of recent draftee Marty Costes:
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/costes-finds-his-focus-connects-for-bandits/article_5c1cc5bb-ab7e-54da-9a84-c7e5bbfe3c53.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
“He has shown an ability to make the most of his at-bats,’’ Storey said. “He gets on base, one way or another, and that’s a good trait for a young player to have.’’
I guess the HBP is what he was talking about.
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With 1,266 Ks thru the first 120 games, the RB pitching staff is on pace for 1,500+ strikeouts with 23 games left to play which would easily shatter the record for most whiffs in the 70-year old history of the MWL. That record was set last year by the Fort Wayne staff with 1,307 Ks.
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The Abreu train rolls on...
- 6 scoreless innings w/10 strikeouts tonight
- Just 1 ER allowed in last 30.2 IP
- 47/7 strikeouts to walks in 26.2 innings for QC
- 69/13 strikeouts to walks in 42.2 innings if you include his TRC work
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Make it 3 straight shutouts for Bandits hurlers and 30 consecutive scoreless innings.
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C Ruben Castro over his last 22 games (since June 16): .333/.421/.407 with 11 walks vs 14 strikeouts in 95 PAs.
He's also on a 10-game hitting streak.
Well, shit. Just got put on the DL.
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Make it 3 straight shutouts for Bandits hurlers and 30 consecutive scoreless innings.
Streak busted tonight at 34 IP.
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OF Alex McKenna promoted from TRC. He'll become the 8th member of the 2018 draft class to have played at QC this season.
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OF Alex McKenna promoted from TRC. He'll become the 8th member of the 2018 draft class to have played at QC this season.
The philosophy of drafting more college players is creating more movement faster. I personally like the way they are challenging players earlier.
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The philosophy of drafting more college players is creating more movement faster. I personally like the way they are challenging players earlier.
Those players first had to perform. And they did. I believe part of the drafting philosophy had to do with the reduction of the two rookie ball teams. The GCL team was going to be loaded with young international players. There wasn't a need or place for many high school draftees.
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Those players first had to perform. And they did. I believe part of the drafting philosophy had to do with the reduction of the two rookie ball teams. The GCL team was going to be loaded with young international players. There wasn't a need or place for many high school draftees.
This. And further, I wonder whether the elimination of Greeneville was the driver for the change, or whether it was the result of all the work they are doing internationally. There may have been a deliberate decision to reduce the emphasis on lower round, "high ceiling" (?!) high-schoolers, allow a lot of these talented latin players to compete in the GCL, and draft more older players who start at Tri-City.
Also, I have tracked month-by-month playing time for Astro minor-leaguers since the AA team came to Round Rock. This year has (by far) more pitchers on individual team rosters than ever before. Some of that is a huge increase in releases (driven by higher quality in the org top to bottom) but a lot of it is driven by promotions (filling the roster spots of the released players?). There is similar upward mobility among position players, but not as pronounced a departure from the past. It seems like the message these days is "move it on up" ... produce here and there will be room at the next level.
Another thing I have noticed more of this year is the "fill in" promotion that skips levels ... Cody Bohanek, Alfredo Angarita, Luis Encarnacion all spring to mind, but there have been others. And in Bohanek's case, he ended up earning a "normal" promotion after he came back down to QC.
My point (if there is one) is that the "brain trust" seems to be deliberately changing the way they direct the whole organization in ways that are discernible, but not transparent. They seem to be playing chess instead of darts, and I see that as a good thing.
Edited to remove unwanted emoticons. (As if there were any other kind.)
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He'll become the 8th member of the 2018 draft class to have played at QC this season.
Make it nine with the addition of 14th rounder JP France from the V-Cats. Had whiffed 14 in 8 IP for TRC w/o allowing a run.
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With 1,266 Ks thru the first 120 games, the RB pitching staff is on pace for 1,500+ strikeouts with 23 games left to play which would easily shatter the record for most whiffs in the 70-year old history of the MWL. That record was set last year by the Fort Wayne staff with 1,307 Ks.
Record broken tonight with the season total now standing at 1,316.
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I’ve been catching up on a lot of my Bus Ride reading recently, including some of the linked articles. So I just want to give another shoutout to say how much I appreciate all the contributions- from VB, juliogotay, Duman, Jacksonian, and especially Nate.
Thanks, folks. I find all of it interesting.
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I’ve been catching up on a lot of my Bus Ride reading recently, including some of the linked articles. So I just want to give another shoutout to say how much I appreciate all the contributions- from VB, juliogotay, Duman, Jacksonian, and especially Nate.
Thanks, folks. I find all of it interesting.
You’re welcome.
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The "Donuts for Donato" campaign rolls on. Career-high 11 strikeouts tonight (also the longest outing of his career). Working on 14 straight shutout innings. And over his last 5 games: 29 IP, 14 H, 7 BB, 29 K, 0.93 ERA.
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The "Donuts for Donato" campaign rolls on. Career-high 11 strikeouts tonight (also the longest outing of his career). Working on 14 straight shutout innings. And over his last 5 games: 29 IP, 14 H, 7 BB, 29 K, 0.93 ERA.
From the QC Times game report:
Donato increased his arsenal of pitches against the Chiefs, debuting an effective slider he has been working on during bullpen sessions in recent weeks. “I was able to get a couple of guys out on it. It’s something I’ve been working hard at the past month in the ‘pen and to be able to pick that up and carry it over to a game, that’s big for me,’’ Donato said.
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/donato-deals-as-bandits-shut-out-chiefs/article_a827f4a3-e0cb-52cb-b578-874c3d1e14f9.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
Donato was also just named MWL Pitcher of the Week.
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10th member of 2018 draft class joins the RBs as 15th-rounder SS Trey Dawson gets the promotion from TRC.
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Well, shit. Just got put on the DL.
Castro has a knee infection, reports Steve Batterson.
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/with-castro-out-bandits-cope-with-two-catchers/article_5439e623-ff45-5741-af40-079b25077a23.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
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Walks are still very problematic but ex-7th rounder LHP Parker Mushinski since July 1: 32 IP / 18 H / 17 BB / 44 K / 0.84 ERA.
SSS obviously but vs lefties on the season: 32/11 K to W in 24.1 innings with a .193 BAA.
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Some adjustments to pro ball are tougher than others: 9th rounder Scott Schreiber has a K rate of 39% to go along with his .474 OPS thru his first 32 games.
Over his last 15 games: .333/.418/.583. Even during that stretch, his K rate still remains high though at 31%.
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Team strikeout update:
"The River Bandits entered Wednesday’s game at Wisconsin with 1,370 strikeouts on the season — 235 more than any other team in the league — and are on pace to catch the minor-league record of 1,421 strikeouts recorded last season by the Durham Bulls."
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/bandits-johnson-enjoying-life-on-the-farm/article_3e225122-d906-5534-ad27-aeb31745f1cf.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
The K total after last night's game is now 1,378.
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By the pitchers, not the batters, right?
I live in Durham, didn’t realize last year’s Bulls set a record.
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Bandits' hurlers on track to set the all-time minor league strikeout record tomorrow after Chad Donato and company whiffed 15 tonight to bring the season total to 1,413. Bryan Abreu, he of the 14.3 K/9 this season, is listed as Sunday's starter.
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I live in Durham, didn’t realize last year’s Bulls set a record.
From milb.com on 10/13/17:
"The Bulls pitching staff ended the regular season with 1,421 strikeouts for the year. The impressive K total easily broke the Bulls' own International League record of 1,287 from 2016, and also set a new all-time record for Minor League Baseball after surpassing the 2015 San Jose Giants' 1,383. If that weren't impressive enough the Durham staff also entered some truly historic territory with their strikeout total placing them eighth all-time in all of professional baseball, falling just behind the 2013 Detroit Tigers and the 2015 Chicago Cubs despite playing in 20 fewer games than the teams in front of them."
https://www.milb.com/durham/news/2017-durham-bulls-season-in-review/c-258458074
From the Official Durham Bulls blog on 12/26/17:
"The Bulls set an MiLB record by striking out 1,421 batters this season. Perhaps more impressive though is that it ranks 15th in professional baseball history (trailing 14 Major League clubs), considering each team ahead of the Bulls has 20 more games on their schedule."
https://medium.com/hit-bull-win-blog/durham-bulls-top-10-moments-of-2017-8e7270dd3b1
Minor league record, yes. But either claim for "in all of professional baseball" (both MLB and minors) looks incorrect. Appears to me the 1,421 strikeouts ranks 16th all-time. See this--
https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=pit&lg=all&qual=0&type=0&season=2017&month=0&season1=1900&ind=1&team=0,ts&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&sort=24,d
The Strikeout ERA--it's [a] gas.
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The "Donuts for Donato" campaign rolls on. Career-high 11 strikeouts tonight (also the longest outing of his career). Working on 14 straight shutout innings. And over his last 5 games: 29 IP, 14 H, 7 BB, 29 K, 0.93 ERA.
Shutout string ended at 17 innings tonite. Another double digit whiff performance though and now over his last 6 outings: 34.2 IP, 18 H, 8 BB, 39 K, 1.30 ERA.
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Bandits' hurlers on track to set the all-time minor league strikeout record tomorrow after Chad Donato and company whiffed 15 tonight to bring the season total to 1,413. Bryan Abreu, he of the 14.3 K/9 this season, is listed as Sunday's starter.
Blew past it with 16 Ks today. 1,429 and counting with 7 more games to go in the regular season.
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Tusculum's finest LHP Tim Hardy escapes SS hell and gets promoted to the River Bandits.
Best outing of the season with 3 scoreless innings and 8 Ks. 21 K / 5 BB in 10.2 innings since the callup.
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Jonathan Lacroix to join the River Bandits per team tweet.
7th multi-hit game in the last 8 contests for last year's 12th rounder. Batting .469 (15-32) over that stretch though only 3 of the hits (2 doubles, 1 triple) were of the XBH variety.
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21-year old Venezuelan RHP Luis Garcia over his last 5 games: 26 IP / 19 H / 7 BB / 25 K / 1.38 ERA.
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3rd game in a row with 15+ strikeouts by the pitching staff. Last night's 16 puts the season total at 1,445. That total ranks the club 11th all-time among all professional clubs (majors and minors), just behind the 2014 Indians.
With 6 games remaining, at it's current pace the RB staff would finish with 1,510 whiffs. That would tie them with the 2016 Dodgers staff for 6th all-time.
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20-year old Dominican righty Willy Collado had 9 punchouts in 3.1 IP last night and has 27 Ks in 18 frames since being added to the River Bandits out of EST.
Oz @OcampoBaseball 45m ago
Devastating SL when on, one of the best in our system. Plus with solid CH now.
Eye-popping numbers since July 5: 25 IP / 14 H / 4 BB / 37 K / 1.08 ERA. For the year, 52 K / 10 BB in 38 innings with an 0.99 WHIP.
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RHP Humberto Castellanos also up from TRC.
Another 20-year old, the Man from Jalisco since July 26: 19.1 IP / 14 H / 4 BB / 28 K / 0.93 ERA. For the season, 47 K /10 BB in 41 innings and hasn't given up a HR. 89/19 K/W in 89 IP over last 2 years w/82 hits allowed.
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7th multi-hit game in the last 8 contests for last year's 12th rounder. Batting .469 (15-32) over that stretch though only 3 of the hits (2 doubles, 1 triple) were of the XBH variety.
Make it 8 multis in 9 games for Jonathan Lacroix (though he had to come off the bench last night to do it). The Quebecois is hitting .500/.500/.794 in that stretch with 3 doubles, 2 triples and 1 homer.
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Steve Batterson on Jonathan Lacroix overcoming a rough start to his professional career:
Lacroix watched his rookie season go by from a spot on the disabled list, suffering a broken bone in his foot shortly before last year’s draft. He spent the offseason at home in Canada and arrived at spring training in late January, working to complete the rehab from his injury while preparing for his first professional assignment. He arrived in Quad-Cities on May 8...
And relationship with fellow Québécois Abe Toro:
“We’ve been friends forever growing up, same high school, same college, and now we’re playing for the same organization,’’ Lacroix said. “It’s pretty cool. We text each other back and forth quite a bit and when times have been tough, he’s helped me keep pushing ahead.’’
https://qctimes.com/sports/baseball/professional/minor/midwest-league/bandits-lacroix-eyes-strong-finish-to-season/article_d3e0c5d7-0da1-582d-af07-6f7a93a10e36.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
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Walks are still very problematic but ex-7th rounder LHP Parker Mushinski since July 1: 32 IP / 18 H / 17 BB / 44 K / 0.84 ERA.
SSS obviously but vs lefties on the season: 32/11 K to W in 24.1 innings with a .193 BAA.
Updating:
since July 1: 35 IP / 18 H / 17 BB / 50 K / 0.77 ERA.
SSS obviously but vs lefties on the season: 34/11 K to W in 25 innings with a .189 BAA.
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3rd game in a row with 15+ strikeouts by the pitching staff. Last night's 16 puts the season total at 1,445. That total ranks the club 11th all-time among all professional clubs (majors and minors), just behind the 2014 Indians.
Make it 4 games in a row as the 18 whiffs tonight ties a season high. At 1,463 they're now 7th all-time.
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Shutout string ended at 17 innings tonite. Another double digit whiff performance though and now over his last 6 outings: 34.2 IP, 18 H, 8 BB, 39 K, 1.30 ERA.
3rd straight game with 10+ strikeouts for Chad Donato as he pitches 6 scoreless tonight while giving up just a pair of hits. Updated (over final 7 outings of regular season): 40.2 IP, 20 H, 8 BB, 50 K, 1.11 ERA, 1.46 BAA. Only 3 of those 20 hits allowed were of the XBH variety.
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So who of these unheralded QC pitchers with the incredible numbers has earned a spot in org Top 10s? Or at least Top 20? Donato? Collado? Abreu?
It just seems like amazing depth right now, with “pop-up” prospects left and right.
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So who of these unheralded QC pitchers with the incredible numbers has earned a spot in org Top 10s? Or at least Top 20? Donato? Collado? Abreu?
Except for possibly Abreu, I'm not sure any of those guys get ranked that high simply because of the number of arms ahead of them in the system.
Other interesting names besides the three you noted: Leovanny Rodriguez (though he's not finishing the year on a strong note), Parker Mushinski (walks are a huge problem but maybe there's a LOOGY profile there), Edgardo Sandoval (I thought his numbers really quite decent for a guy just returning from TJS).
And that's just limiting the discussion to guys finishing the year at QC.
It just seems like amazing depth right now, with “pop-up” prospects left and right.
Absolutely (at least on the pitching side).
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Except for possibly Abreu, I'm not sure any of those guys get ranked that high simply because of the number of arms ahead of them in the system.
Other interesting names besides the three you noted: Leovanny Rodriguez (though he's not finishing the year on a strong note), Parker Mushinski (walks are a huge problem but maybe there's a LOOGY profile there), Edgardo Sandoval (I thought his numbers really quite decent for a guy just returning from TJS).
And that's just limiting the discussion to guys finishing the year at QC.
Absolutely (at least on the pitching side).
Thanks, Nate. And yes, I meant the arms. Position players, not too many surprises that I can think of.
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Parker Mushinski since being used in primarily a relief role beginning Aug. 3: 14.1 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 28 K.
He also ends the regular season not having given up an ER over his last 21.1 innings.
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River Bandits' pitchers finished with 1,514 strikeouts, 6th all-time among all professional teams (majors and minors) and just ahead of the 2016 Dodgers staff.
Adjusting for the shorter schedule, the equivalent number of strikeouts at the big league level is 1,759. Last year's Indians staff hold the MLB record at 1,614.
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Edgardo Sandoval K'd 7 in 4 innings but also gave up a 2-run HR to Oak Ridge HS and TCU-ex Luken Baker who drove in all 3 runs as Peoria took the MWL playoff opener 3-0 from the RBs.
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River Bandits become the first affiliate to exit the playoffs with the 7-2 loss tonight to Peoria. Chad Donato was superb out of the gate (5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K) but following pitcher Humberto Castellanos was not (4 runs on 5 hits in 1 inning of work).
The offense did a great job of stirring the air with a season-high 17 strikeouts.
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Tanner Duncan, when he wasn't walking people...
Jason Kempf @jkempradio 5h ago
In special year for @QCRiverBandits pitching, one of the most notable seasons belonged to @Duncanonyou. He set a new record for lowest opponents' batting average against a reliever by limiting the opposition to a .121 mark. That is 16 points lower than previous low set in 1991.