Thursday’s News & Notes
| Team | Yesterday | Today | Probable Pitchers |
| Syracuse | Lost, 7-0 | vs. Pawtucket, 6:35 p.m. |
McGowin (0-1, 4.50) vs. Walden (0-2, 2.76) |
| Harrisburg | Lost, 6-0 | vs. Hartford, 7:00 p.m. |
Simms (1-2, 2.91) vs. French (1-2, 4.43) |
| Potomac | Won, 1-0 | vs. Lynchburg, 7:05 p.m. |
Baez (0-3, 8.27) vs. Chiang (3-1, 1.71) |
| Hagerstown | Won, 8-3 | vs. Rome, 7:05 p.m. |
Bourque (0-1, 2.63) vs. Lawlor (2-0, 2.25) |
Pawtucket 7 Syracuse 0
• Hill (L, 1-3) 5IP, 9H, 6R, 6ER, BB, K, 4HR
• Nathan 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Sanchez 1-3, BB, 2K
• Skole 1-5, 2B, 2K
The Chiefs drew 10 walks yet could not push across a single run while Taylor Hill threw in-game BP again in a 7-0 loss to the PawSox. Hill gave up six runs, four (4) solo HRs, and nine hits total during his five innings on the mound. He walked one and struck out one while losing his third game. Matt Skole doubled while Brandon Snyder and Adrian Sanchez both singled as Syracuse went 0-for-13 with RISP without hitting into a double play to leave on 14 baserunners.
Trenton 6 Harrisburg 0
• Blackmar (L, 3-2) 4IP, 6H, 6R, 6ER, 4BB, 0K
• Johansen 2IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Collier 2-4, 2K
• Perez 1-2, BB
Trenton struck for all six runs in the 4th in a 6-0 shutout of Harrisburg. Mark Blackmar wore the “L” with six runs allowed on six hits and four walks with nary a whiff over four innings. Jake Johansen (2IP), Derek Self, and R.C. Orlan combined for four scoreless but the Senator offense was mostly in recess. Zach Collier singled twice while Stephen Perez and Yadiel Hernandez singled once for the four Harrisburg hits. The Sens struck out 11 times and were 0-for-6 with RISP.
Potomac 1 Down East 0
• Rodrigruez 8IP, 1H, 0R, 2BB, 8K, HBP
• Mendez (S, 2) 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Robles 1-3, R, HR, RBI, 2BB, SB
• Sagdal 1-4, 2B
Jefry Rodriguez no-hit the Wood Ducks for seven while Victor Robles homered to power a 1-0 shutout win for the P-Nats. Rodriguez gave up a leadoff double in the 8th but finished the frame for the longest outing of his career, as he allowed two walks, hit a batter, and fanned eight. Gilberto Mendez also gave up a leadoff double in the 9th but settled down with three straight outs to get the save, his second. Robles also walked twice and stole a base but only Ian Sagdal avoided the K’s from the Down East pitchers who piled up 13 of them.
Hagerstown 8 Rome 3
• M. Mills (W, 4-1) 5IP, 6H, 2R, 1ER, 2BB, 7K, HR
• Simonds (SV, 1) 2IP, 0H, 0R, 1BB, 0K
• Johnson 3-4, R, 2B
• Noll 3-4, 2R, RBI
• C. Kieboom 2-4, R, 2B, RBI
Hagerstown rallied for five in the 4th to erase an early 2-0 deficit and cruised to an 8-3 win over Rome. McKenzie Mills picked up his fourth win with five innings of two-run ball on six hits and two walks while setting down seven on strikes. Hayden Howard was dinged for the third run but earned the hold while Kyle Simonds threw two scoreless to garner the save. Daniel Johnson and Jake Noll both went 3-for-4 to lead the Suns’ 14-hit parade.
McKenzie Mills, come on down, . . . to Potomac, that is. He may not have been high on the “prospect” lists before this season, but attention must be paid now: 2.10 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, .181 Avg against, and an awesome 35 Ks in 25.2 IP (12.5 K/9).
The improvement in Mills command is remarkable. In 2015, Mills walked more than he struck out. Last year, Mills averaged about 1.5Ks per walk. This year, Mills has 35Ks and only 7 walks (5 to 1 ration). Wow.
Mills WHIP by year:
2014: 2.13
2015: 1.99
2016: 1.33
2017: 0.94
Also, despite being drafted in 2014, he is still younger than Sally League average.
Taylor Hearn who?
Hearn has actually been pitching pretty well, but he’s more than a year older than Mills, and two years older than Watson. I think the cache of young arms at Auburn last year played into the decision to be willing to part with Hearn.
Thanks, I had not noticed such a consistent improvement before this.
He doesn’t even turn 23 until November. At 6’4. 205 can you say rail-thin.
Rodriguez is 6’5″, 185. He makes Mills look like a power forward!
Rodriguez got off to a slow start but his last 3 games he has been pretty impressive – 21 IP, 3 ER, 13 hits, 3 BB, 21Ks.
He was once a highly-regarded prospect but struggled with consistency the past couple of seasons. If he can show said consistency in Potomac, I imagine AA beckons.
We should be silent like a dugout
Treating the teammate hurling with
A no hitter late in the game
Allow these surprise guys to carry
Consistency through July and a promotion
Just saying ….