Monday’s News & Notes
| Team | Yesterday | Today | Probable Pitchers |
| Syracuse | Won, 3-0 | vs. Rochester, 7:05 p.m. |
Bleier (5-1, 2.36) vs. Darnell (3-1, 3.54) |
| Harrisburg | Lost, 9-0 | @ Richmond, 7:05 p.m. |
Simms (2-2, 3.73) vs. Biagini (9-6, 2.59) |
| Potomac | Lost, 2-0 | vs. Frederick, 7:05 p.m. |
Mapes (4-2, 2.51) vs. Hess (8-4, 2.78) |
| Hagerstown | Won, 7-4 | OFF DAY | N/A |
| Auburn | Lost, 9-8 | vs. Mahoning Valley, 7:05 p.m. |
J. Rodriguez (2-5, 4.99) vs. Shane (2-3, 2.95) |
Syracuse 3 Buffalo 0
• Espino (W, 6-6) 7IP, 1H, 0R, 2BB, 3K
• Grace (H, 10) 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 0K
• Martin (SV, 11) 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 0K
• den Dekker 3-4, R, HR, 2RBI, BB
• Ramsey 3-4, R, 2B, 3B
Three Syracuse pitchers combined on a two-hit shutout to take the game, 3-0, and the series, 2-1. Paolo Espino one-hit the Bisons for seven innings, walking two and fanning three for his sixth win. Matt Grace gave up the other safety in the 8th to earn his 10th hold while Rafael Martin tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for his 11th save. Matt den Dekker and Caleb Ramsey completed the cycle in combination with den Dekker smacking a solo shot in the 8th and Ramsey doubling and tripling. Both batters went 3-for-4 with a run scored as the Chiefs registered nine hits total.
Portland 9 Harrisburg 0
• Rauh (L, 1-4) 3⅔ IP, 7H, 6R, 6ER, 0BB, 2K
• Harper 1IP, 0H, 0R, BB, K
• A. Sanchez 1-3
• Difo 1-4
Turnabout is fair play as Portland returned the favor from Saturday night with an eight-run 4th on Sunday afternoon en route to 9-0 shutout of Harrisburg on Sunday. Brian Rauh took the brunt of the Sea Dogs’ mauling with six runs charged on seven hits over three and 2/3rds innings. He walked none and struck out two. Offensively, the Senators were in recess with just three singles and two walks total.
Lynchburg 2 Potomac 0
• Howell (L, 0-1) 6IP, 5H, 2R, 2ER, 4BB, 3K
• Johansen 2IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 3K
• Keller 2-4
• Bautista 1-3, 2B, BB
The Hillcats got two early and shut out the P-Nats to take the game, 2-0, and the series, 2-1. Jeff Howell took the loss despite turning in a quality start in his Carolina League debut. He gave up both Lynchburg runs on five hits and four walks and struck out three. Alec Keller singled twice while Rafael Bautista doubled and walked as Potomac managed just five hits and two walks total.
Hagerstown 7 Lexington 4
• Reyes (W, 6-7) 6IP, 2H, 1R, 0ER, BB, 4K
• Brinley (SV, 1) 1⅓ IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 0K
• Mejia 3-4, 2-2B, 2RBI
• Read 2-3, 3R, 2B, BB, RBI
• Stevenson 2-4, R
Hagerstown put up four in the 3rd and held off a late charge from Lexington to take the game, 7-4, and split the four-game series. Luis Reyes spun six innings of one one-run ball on two hits and a walk while striking out four to get the “W,” his sixth. Ryan Brinley got the last four outs to earn his first professional save. Bryan Mejia singled once and doubled twice and drove in two to lead the Suns attack.
Williamsport 9 Auburn 8
• Hearn (L, 1-5) 2⅓ IP, 9H, 5R, 5ER, BB, K, WP
• Rivera 2IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 2K
• Gutierrez 3-3, 2B, 3B, 2RBI
• Tillero 3-5, 2R, 2B, HR, 3RBI, SB
• Schrock 2-5, 2R, 3B
A five-run 1st and a four-run 5th were too much for the Doubledays to overcome as they fell short of catching the Crosscutters, 9-8. Taylor Hearn lost for the fifth time with five runs let in on nine hits and a walk over two and a 1/3rd innings. Maximo Valerio stranded three when he took over in the 3rd and struck out seven without issuing a walk over three and 2/3rds innings but was lit up for the other four runs on eight hits. Kelvin Gutierrez and Jorge Tillero combined for six hits, including two doubles, a triple (Gutierrez), a homer (Tillero), and five RBI as Auburn pounded out 15 hits on the night.
At Syracuse, ‘Beer League’ Martin continues to be unhittable.
Ramsey continues to intrigue. He’s 26 and almost hits enough to be a prospect.
Stevenson continues to impress. Can’t wait to see what happens after they get him down to instructional league and get the rest of the aluminum out of his swing.
After 100+ ab’s at Auburn, Victor Robles is still raking with a .905 OPS.
Caleb Ramsey’s .342 SLG begs to differ.
denDekker is looking like the player they traded for. He will be the plyer they hoped to sign in McLouth in 2016.
As for the others, I think Robles will pass Stevenson on the depth chart by the end of next year. Nothing against Stevenson, but Robles is a superstar talent and the Nats will have Harper and Taylor starting in 2018 with room for one more. He’d fit in nicely.
Agreed–Ramsey’s lack of power makes him a AAAA player at best. I also am happy that “Upper” Dekker is bouncing back. How great would it be if he delivered a key September pinch hit to beat the Mutts?
The one thing that concerned me on the Baseball Prospectus scouting report on Robles from a couple of weeks ago was the downgrading of his power potential. Their scout had him only at 40 for power, with the capability to develop into a 10-12 HR guy in the majors. Others have described him as a “five-tool” guy, though, so we’ll see. He just turned 18, so he’s well ahead of the curve where he is.
As I have noted, I wasn’t a fan of the Stevenson draft pick, simply because the system desperately needs an infusion of power, but his progress in the system has been impressive thus far. I don’t think he’ll get “passed” by Robles, even though Robles may have a higher ceiling long term. Considering how few true MLB-level OF prospects the Nats have in the upper minors, the path is wide open for both to advance rapidly. The Werth contract is up after 2017, and he may not be able to stay healthy full time for that long, so there will be OF playing time available.
With den Dekker, he seemed to find his stroke while up with the big club and has been a different player once back in Syracuse, really proving that he’s better than the DL. He’ll definitely be back in DC in Sept.
With all the swing-and-miss types on the Nats, someone like Stevenson, who has a high OBP, runs well and plays strong D, would be a good fit in the lineup. He was considered teh best defensive OF in college baseball last year – combine that with Taylor’s range and Harper’s arm and you have a chance for the best outfield, defensively, in baseball.
Plus, and this is big, Stevenson hits left-handed.
So, yeah, the lack of power is a legit detraction. But he does everything else well. A left-handed hitter with a high OBP. pace and good defense isn’t something that will be ignored and given that he’s three years older than Robles, odds are he’ll be ready for the majors before Victor is.
I have to say I’m still baffled by Bryan Mejia. 1 BB in 223 plate appearances this season. And somehow against all odds, pitchers keep offering him something to swing at, and Mejia is continuing to destroy the ball. He’s now hitting .351/.366/.559 in Hagerstown.
I’d love to get a scouting report on him, because he’s a total enigma to me.
Any Suns fans here have any insight?
Manny Sanguien made a good career of hitting balls out of the strike zone. So did Vlad.
He’s 18. And lithe. I think no one expected Taylor, thin as he was, to show the power he has. But he’s filled out. Robles will, too. He’s not done growing, either.
Nothing against Stevenson. I just expect Robles to get to the ML faster.
We’ll know next year, but he may be on a Harper-like track moving up.
Nor can I supplant Rafael Bautista in my organizational thinking, as it relates to Stevenson. Bautista’s stolen base capabilities are elite and he is a very able outfielder. I am partial to impact speed players, those capable of 70SB plus, because they change the way the game is pitched and played. Of course, elite speed requires the right manager.
The organization’s competition between those two will lead to a trade of the loser, just as Souza was expendable and Taylor was not. The same will happen between Severino and others, assuming Kieboom comes back from injury.