Tuesday’s News & Notes
| Team | Yesterday | Today | Pitching Probables |
| Rochester | OFF DAY | @ Lehigh Valley, 11 a.m. | Ward (1-2, 7.36) and Gsellman (0-1, 6.84) vs. Phillips (4-2, 4.93) and Mercado (0-0, 0.35) |
| Harrisburg | OFF DAY | vs. Akron, 11 a.m. | Lord (3-1, 2.27) vs. Webb (1-2, 3.25) |
| Wilmington | OFF DAY | @ Rome, 7 p.m. | Cornelio (3-4, 5.16) vs. J. Lara (0-0, 1.17) |
| Fredericksburg | OFF DAY | vs. Lynchburg, 7:05 p.m. | B. Sanchez (0-0, 7.41) vs. Y. Gomez (3-1, 2.68) |
| FCL Nationals | Won, 6-4 | OFF DAY |
Rochester Red Wings, 21-20, 4th place I.L. East, 6½ GB
The Red Wings bounced back against the Bisons to take four of six and and move up to 4th place and over .500. This week it’s seven in Lehigh Valley, starting with a matinee two-fer today.
Harrisburg Senators, 23-16, 3rd place E.L. Southwest, 2GB
Harrisburg cooled slightly, taking four of seven from Erie, but still has an outside chance of winning 20 games in May. The Senators’ homestand continues this week with six against the RubberDucks.
Wilmington Blue Rocks, 19-18, 4th place Sally Lg. North, 3GB
The Blue Rocks found their smoke and mirrors to take four of six from the IronBirds and dig out of the North Division cellar. This week they embark on a 12-game road trip to the hinterlands of the Sally Lg., starting with six in Rome, Ga. then six next week in Bowling Green, Ky.
Fredericksburg Nationals, 25-14, 1st place C.L. North, 1GA
Fredericksburg returns home after a 7-5 roadtrip though South Carolina and in 1st place, thanks to Carolina’s four-game tailspin. This week, the Hillcats come to town for the first time for five night games and a day game on Sunday.
FCL Nationals 6 FCL Astros 4
• Cavalli 2⅔ IP, 1H, 0R, 1BB, 5K
• Shuman(W, 1-0) IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 5K
• Rombach 2-4, 2B, SB
• Rivero 1-3, R, 2B, SF, RBI
• Batista 0-1, 2BB, 2SB
It was good day for the Nats emerging from witness protection, with Cade Cavalli retiring eight of 10 batters faced while Seth Shuman tossed two scoreless innings to get the “W” in a 6-4 FCL Nationals win over the FCL Astros. It was the first regular-season appearance since 2022 for both pitchers. Nate Rombach led the F-Nats hit column with a single and a double while Kelvin Diaz added a double and Carlos Batista drew two walks and stole two bases. Roster moves: RHP Cade Cavalli assigned from Washington for MLB Rehab; RHP Seth Shuman assigned from Wilmington for MiLB Rehab.
Congratulations to Andrew Pinckney, who was named the Eastern League player of the week.
Yes brunch and baseball even if on the phone
An extremely impressive week (or month rather) from Pinckney. He hit .429/.478/.905 this past week, but has a 10 game hit streak, and is hitting .301/.320/.493 in May. Problematically, he hasn’t walked a single time in 75 plate appearances in May, which is quite a change from his poor April, when he walked 7 times and his 10 BB% last season. I suppose he’s taking the approach to swing as much as possible while he’s making good contact.
Another name to add to the generally pretty good Harrisburg prospect bill. All of Hassell, House, Crews and Pinckney are hitting well, and even Morales has improved lately, hitting a respectable .274/.328/.419 in May.
Morales is now on the 7 day IL. He appeared to severly hurt his left thumb/hand/wrist trying to score on a wild pitch.
another returnee from injury, Cronin off to a good start with only 1BB in 5 innings. maybe Hanrahan found him something to use for better command. they’ve kept his usage to every 4-5 days and he’s only in A+ so does he go straight to Rochester or do they take a more cautious approach.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but Cronin, as a 2019 draftee, can elect free agency after this season, his 6th season in the minors.
If this is correct, then I’m not sure the cautious approach is most prudent for the Nats.
he has already been added to the 40 man and DFA’d once. I suspect the plan is to get another look at him in the show this year, not sure if it passes through City Isle or not.
Does that restart his period of team control? Or does it just render the 6 years of control moot because he’ll be a free agent this winter anyway?
I think he’ll be a free agent, hence the motivation to see what he can do at the MLB level
Nats need a LHP in the pen.
Brady House goes deep in the second!
Lord goes six again with one run allowed on City Isle. if there has been a more consistent performer in the system I can’t name him