AFL Update: Oct. 11, 2023
Scottsdale came to bat down 5-0 in the bottom of the 1st and it did not not get much better as Surprise unleashed a 17-5 can of whoop-ass last night.
The game featured five errors, 13 walks, two Robles, and four wild pitches.
Only one National appeared in the game, Holden Powell (pictured) gave his teammates a beer to hold with eight batters faced, two retired, and six runs let in on three hits, three walks, and a wild pitch.
The loss extends the Scorpions’ slide to four games and drops them below .500 at 3-4-1.
Scottsdale remains home this afternoon to host Mesa (3-5).
Odds and Ends
A few things I’ve bookmarked to pass along in case of a rainout or a shutout. I had not considered a blowout…
● MiLB Attendance Up 4% – While still below pre-pandemic levels, minor-league attendance is up year-over-year, with Nationals affiliates seeing gains of 4.0% (Rochester), 5.1% (Fredericksburg), 14.7% (Harrisburg), and 31.7% (Wilmington).
● MiLB Park Factors – There aren’t many surprises here. All four full-season ballparks are average (98 or 99 out of 100) for runs scored. The upper 3/4ths are slightly below average for BABIP (96 or 97). The upper 1/2 is above average for HRs – 103 for Rochester, 113 for Harrisburg – and the lower 1/2 is below average: 70 for Wilmington and 89 for Fredericksburg.
● Free Agents – RHP Victor Arano and UT Travis Blankenhorn were both outrighted last week and both elected free agency.
I get why Blankenhorn opted for free agency, but he’d be half insane to not eventually re-sign. I hadn’t realized this, but before last season, Blankenhorn played the vast majority of his time at 2B and 3B, and this past season mostly in left, but with occasional RF starts and at 1B. He’s basically Jake Alu. I doubt there’s any other team right now that is as shallow in depth at all 5 of these positions (3B, 2B, 1B, RF and LF). You’ve got Thomas nailed down in RF, but after that there’s absolutely no one locked down at any of these positions. His best chance to play in the majors is with the Nats.
I bet Travis does a boomerang U turn back to a AAA pact so he can mentor Hassell for a few weeks .