Some MiLB News.
The first half of the MiLB season has concluded, and none of the teams are in playoff position yet. Before I get to the results for these teams, there are some player transactions that need to be disclosed.
From Tulsa to OKC:
- C Diego Cartaya
- RHP Sauryn Lao
From Great Lakes to Tulsa:
- RHP Chris Campos
- RHP Lucas Wepf
From Rancho Cucamonga to Great Lakes:
- LHP Garrett McDaniels
- RHP Patrick Copen
- OF Josue De Paula
- RHP Carson Hobbs
- RHP Jesus Luna
From ACL to Rancho Cucamonga:
- SS Alexander Albertus (Was waiting on this. Now what about Joendry Vargas, and Eduardo Quintero)
- LHP Luke Fox
From DSL to ACL
Released:
- OF Yunior Garcia
- RHP Jonathan Edwards
Shockingly (sarcasm alert), the promotions seem to be pitching oriented. Diego Cartaya, Josue De Paula, and Alexander Albertus are the only position players moving up.
OKC Baseball Club: Finished 2nd in PCL East in 1st half with a 40-35 recordF
Surprise – Kody Hoese has risen from the ashes like a Phoenix. He does not have the slug that he was supposed to have when he was drafted, but he is hitting very well in his first year at AAA.
- .297/.360/.455/.815 – 6 HR, 15 DBL, 1 TPL, 20.6% K rate
- BA – .297 (#10 in PCL)
Team Leader – Andre Lipcius – Traded to Dodgers for cash after being DFA by Detroit
- .306/.377/.574/.951 – 18 HR, 18 DBL, 2 TPL, 21.2% K rate
- Hits – 87 (#1 in PCL)
- Runs – 54 (#5 in PCL)
- HR – 18 (#2 in PCL)
- Doubles – 18 (#8 in PCL)
- RBI – 58 (#6 in PCL)
- BA – .306 (#5 in PCL)’t
- SLG – .574 (#3 in PCL)
- OPS – .951 (#5 in PCL)
Team Slugger – Ryan Ward
- .278/.329/.659/.988, 20 HR, 14 DBL, 2 TPL, 27.5% K rate (Largest OKC K Rate)
- HR – 20 (#1 in PCL)
- RBI – 55 (#7 in PCL)
- SLG – .659 (#1 in PCL)
- OPS – .988 (#2 in PCL) (#1 is .991)
- Why isn’t Ryan being considered???
Overall – Drew Avans
- .297/.386/.459/.845, 5 HR, 16 DBL, 7 TPL, 25.5% K rate
- Runs – 63 (#1 in PCL)
- Doubles – 16 (#9 in PCL)
- Triples – 7 (#1 in PCL)
- Walks – 40 (#3 in PCL)
- Stolen Bases – 24 (#3 in PCL)
- BA – .297 (#9 in PCL)
Others of Note:
Hunter Feduccia (1 PA shy of Qualified)
- .292/.396/.491/.887, 5 HR, 13 DBL, 3 TPL, 19.3% K rate
Austin Gauthier – Early season promotion to OKC
- .262/.385/.359/.744, 1 HR, 7 DBL, 2 TPL, 23.6% K rate
Trey Sweeney – SS Closest to MLB
- .234/.319/.403/.722, 10 HR, 15 DBL, 2 TPL, 26.7% K rate
- RBI – 49 (#8 in PCL)
Chris Owings
- .273/.399/.417/.816, 6 HR, 7 DBL, 1 TPL, 23.7% K rate
- OBP – .399 (#6 in PCL)
Team:
- BA .272 (#4), OBP .363 (#4), SLG .467 (#3), OPS .830 (#3)
- HR – 101 (#3)
- Runs – 463 (#3)
- Hits – 706 (#4)
- Walks – 357 (#3)
- Strikeouts – 698 (2nd most in PCL)
Tulsa Drillers: Finished 4th in Texas League North, 3.0 games behind with a 34-35 record
Surprise for me – Taylor Young
- .251/.349/.374/.723, 4 HR, 15 DBL, 1 TPL, 26.4% K rate
- Doubles – 15 (#7 in Texas League)
- Stolen Bases – 25 (#1 in Texas League)
Best Overall Player – Alex Freeland
- .272/.408/.475/.883, 7 HR, 9 DBL, 1 TPL, 18.9% K rate
- OBP – .408 (#2 in Texas League)
- SLG – .475 (#4 in Texas League)
- OPS – .883 (#3 in Texas League)
LAD Prospect #1 – Dalton Rushing
- .258/.374/.468/.842, 9 HR, 11 DBL, 1 TPL, 21.1% K rate
- HR – 9 (#9 in Texas League)
- RBI – 39 (#5 in Texas League)
- More catching with Cartaya at AAA – How much longer as a LAD MiLB Player?
There is still hope for – Austin Beck (Does not qualify for slash line leaders)
- .248/.319/.509/.828, 11 HR, 8 DBL, 1 TPL, 34.6% K rate
- HR – 11 (#5 in Texas League)
- RBI – 39 (#5 in Texas League)
Now at AAA – Diego Cartaya
- .236/.354/.379/.733, 5 HR, 8 DBL, 29.2% K rate
Star fading – José Ramos
- .202/.282/.365/.647, 10 HR, 8 DBL, 37.4% K rate
- HR – 10 (#6)
Star not as fading, but…- Brandon Lewis
- .228/.302/.424/.726, 8 HR, 5 DBL, 1 TPL, 32.4% K rate
- HR – 8 (#10 in Texas League)
Team:
- BA .241 (#5), OBP .340 (#2), SLG .401 (#1), OPS .741 (#1)
- HR – 77 (#1)
- Runs – 375 (#1)
- Hits – 551 (#5)
- Walks – 295 (#2)
- Strikeouts – 663 (2nd most in Texas League)
Great Lakes Loons: Finished tied for 2nd in Midwest League East with a 34-32 record
True Three Outcome Approach but Deserves a Promotion – Chris Newell
- .229/.368/.530/.898, 19 HR, 12 DBL, 1 TPL, 32.2% K rate
- HR – 19 (#1)
- Runs – 48 (#3)
- RBI – 51 (#1)
- BB – 48 (#1)
- K – 94 (#2 most)
- SLG – .530 (#3)
- OPS – .898 (#4)
Dylan Campbell – .277/.357/.388/.745, 3 HR, 11 DBL, 1 TPL, 21.2% K rate
Thayron Liranzo – .230/.354/.382/.736, 6 HR, 13 DBL, 26.3% K rate
- Stolen Bases – 22 (#7)
- Doubles – 14 (#8)
Noah Miller – .249/.326/.351/.677, 6 HR, 11 DBL, 14.6% K rate
- Runs – 46 (#4)
- Hits – 71 (#6)
Kyle Nevin – .244/.319/.372/.691, 5 HR, 11 DBL, 4 TPL, 31.5% K rate
Team:
- BA .230 (#6), OBP .332 (#5), SLG .364 (#8), OPS .696 (#6)
- HR – 60 (#4)
- Runs – 351 (#3)
- Hits – 531 (#6)
- Walks – 326 (#1)
- Strikeouts – 670 (2nd most in Midwest League)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes – Finished 2nd in California League South with a 30-34 record
Bayou SS moved up to GL – Jordan Thompson
- .264/.376/.491/.867, 8 HR, 12 DBL, 25.9% K rate
- HR – 8 (#5)
- SLG – .491 (#6)
- OPS – .867 (#6)
Teenager moved up to GL – Josue De Paula
- .279/.388/.447/.835, 6 HR, 11 DBL, 3 TPL, 22.7% K rate
- OPS – .835 (#10)
- Just out of the top 10 in a few others
Teenager with Slug – Jeral Perez
- .273/.393/.436/.829, 8 HR, 12 DBL, 22.6% K rate
- OBP – .394 (#8)
- BB – 40 (#8)
Top 10 Prospect with no Slug – Kendall George
- .279/.379/.315/.694, 3 DBL, 2 TPL, 19.0% K rate
- SB – 20 (#4)
- Runs – 43 (#8)
Juan Alonso
- .259/.376/.406/.782, 4 HR, 11 DBL,3 TPL, 30.6% K rate
Wilman Diaz
- .232/.325/.343/.668, 3 HR, 7 DBL, 2 TPL
Samuel Munoz
- .218/.301/.366/.667, 2 HR, 7 DBL, 4 TPL, 25.3% K rate
- Triples – 4 (#3)
Team
- BA .249 (#3), OBP .364 (#2), SLG .385 (#3), OPS .749 (#2)
- HR – 50 (#2)
- Runs – 392 (#2)
- Hits – 568 (#4)
- Walks – 361 (#3)
- Strikeouts – 712 (Most in California League)
There were only a handful of qualified pitchers in the LAD affiliates. I will report on them later in the week.
- OKC – None
- Tulsa – Justin Wrobleski, Orlando Ortiz-Mayr, Kendall Williams
- Great Lakes – Jackson Ferris
- Rancho Cucamonga – Patrick Copen
MiLB Game Box Scores
OKC Baseball Club 6 – Reno Aces (Arizona) 3
Box Score
Amarillo Sod Poodles (Arizona) 7 – Tulsa Drillers 4
Box Score
Lake County Captains (Cleveland) 8 – Great Lakes Loons 3
Box Score
Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego) 3 – Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 1
Box Score
ACL Dodgers 5 – ACL Athletics 0
Box Score
Very informative review at the midway point. It’s interesting to see how the prospects are sorting themselves out, which seems especially important as the trade season approaches.
I agree that Alex Freeland looks like the best overall prospect, and could compete for the SS or UT jobs in another year or two. Jerel Perez seems to have a lot of promise too. His numbers (and age) are remarkably similar to De Paula’s.
And yes… .when will we see Lipcius?
I am rooting for some of these guys to get traded.
If the Dodgers won’t give Ward or Avans a shot in LA, just add them to the offer for Tanner Scott or Luis Rengifo. Let them be bigger fish in a smaller pond.
With 81 games played and 81 to go, Shohei is on a pace for…
–a 1.032 OPS
–a .398 OBP
–a .320 BA
–48 HRs
–126 runs scored
–120 RBI
–198 hits
–42 doubles
–32 stolen bases (and 4 caught)
With Mookie injured, it looks like the MVP battle could be between Shohei and Bryce Harper, whose numbers are nearly as good while playing a quality 1B.
does Kody Hoese have any shot of being called up? Isn’t he a rule 5 guy this offseason that we’d need to put on the 40 man roster or waive ?
“Missing Bats, a special series this week in The Athletic, explores how baseball’s profound metamorphosis over the last two decades traces back to one simple idea — maximizing strikeouts at all costs — that became an industry-wide obsession”
The Athletic is running a series on the development of pitching labs and all things tech, Well worth the read and an in depth look at the interworking between players, coaches and pencil-necks in improving pitching. It was a hard sell for some but not anymore.
Great information Jeff. I really do not follow the minors as much as I should. For those wondering about the Dodgers getting a player from the Angels, Rengifo, or the Rockies, McMahon, the Dodgers have not gotten a position player in trade from the Angels since Kendrick was traded for Heaney in the 2014 winter meetings. The Rockies have never traded a position player to LA. The only trade they have made sent Nicasio to LA in 2015.
Padres have won 5 of their last 6 games, and lost 1/2 game in the standings. Tatis is out, and they score 7 then 9 runs. They seem to play better without him.
You read some of the fan’s comments on other blogs and you would think the Dodgers were 31-50 instead of the other way around and leading the division by 8.5 games.
The chatter around Luis Robert Jr. to LAD seems to be waning. And I think it should. There is no reason to expect teams to pay what CWS wants and there is no reason for CWS to take a hit and sell low because Robert Jr. is having a rough year with injuries (again).
But there is a name that seems to be gaining momentum to some “insiders”. Randy Arozarena. Tampa Bay is 40-40 and is only 3.0 games behind the WC. But realistically they do not have the pitching to go far even if they sneak into the WC.
Arozarena got off to a horrific start. On May 1, he was slashing .139/.220/.235/.455 with 2 doubles, 3 HR, 11 BB, 36 K. Remarkably Tampa Bay stuck with him. Maybe Outman would like Tampa Bay, or Miguel Vargas.
For the month of June, in 83 PA, Arozarena is batting .292/.434/.462/.895, 11 BB and 16 K. In his last 10 games and 43 PA, Arozarena is batting .333/.465/.606/1.071, 5 BB and 11 K. Heating up at the right time for Tampa Bay to move him.
More importantly, for the playoffs, in 128 PA, Arozarena is batting .336/.414/.690/1.104 with 11 HR, 13 BB and 33 K.
Now Bluto, while no guarantee that the Dodgers get past the NLDS with Arozarena, but I like their chances a whole lot more with him than without him. This is how you can plan to improve for the playoffs rather than just sit, cross your fingers, and hope.
Arozarena is making $8.1MM and has 2 more years of arbitration, thus 2 more years of control. $8.1MM is a little stiff for Tampa Bay with 2 more years of arb ahead.
And for those that say this is not AF’s MO, neither is signing a DH/RHP to a 10 year $700MM deal or a 25 year old RHP a $325MM 12 year deal. This is not the year that we should expect AF to just do what he is known to do. So if he chooses trade for a player who is not a rental, do not be surprised.
I hope the rumors about LAD and Arozarena getting together on or before July 30 are true.
A Garrett Crochet and Randy Arozarena addition to LAD improves their chances in October.
Then again, maybe Tampa Bay is not happy that they got fleeced in the Glasnow trade.
There were a couple of interesting trade ideas on the trade simulator.
1. Trey Sweeney for Paul DeJong
2. Jackson Ferris, Dalton Rushing, and Zyhir Hope for Nico Hoerner and Mike Tauchman. This would be like Michael Busch, Yency Almonte, and Dalton Rushing for Nico Hoerner and Mike Tauchman.
3. Jake Gelof for Kevin Pillar
And then a couple for STB who has brought up Brendon Donovan:
4. Michael Grove and Gavin Lux for Brendon Donovan
5. Dalton Rushing for Brendon Donovan
While the values may be there, St. Louis will not do either because they have a chance to get into the playoffs this year and they have a better chance with Donovan than with the others. That is not to say that they wouldn’t want Dalton Rushing, but he is not going to help this year.
Grayson Rodriguez made his 37th Major League start (reg+post) today.
He’s started EVERY SINGLE ONE with a four seam fastball
I still haven’t moved from my 2024 position- trade anyone who is not a top of the line pitching prospect for anyone who can fill a need and who has proven their talent and are not a three month rental.