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Monday’s News & Notes

Team Yesterday Today Pitching Probables
Rochester Lost, 9-7
(10 inn.)		 OFF DAY N/A
Harrisburg Won, 8-3 OFF DAY N/A
Wilmington Lost, 18-5 OFF DAY N/A
Fredericksburg Lost, 14-13 OFF DAY N/A
FCL Nationals OFF DAY vs. FCL Astros, 12 p.m.
DSL Nationals OFF DAY @/vs. DSL Cardinals 10 a.m.
(Comp. DH)

Lehigh Valley 9 Rochester 7 (10 inn.)
• T. Romero 3⅓ IP, 5H, 2R, 2ER, 2BB, 0K, HR
• Cessa (BS, 1) 1⅓ IP, 4H, 5R, 5ER, 1BB, 3K, HR
• Troop (L, 0-1) 1IP, 1H, 2R, 1ER, 1BB, 1K
• Martin 2-3, BB, 2B, SF, RBI
• Kieboom 2-4, 3R, BB, RBI
• Millas 2-5

The Red Wings lost a 5-2 lead with a five-run 7th but forced extras with a two-run 8th. Alex Troop came on in relief and got three outs but gave up the deciding runs for his second loss of the series as the Iron Pigs prevailed, 9-7 in 10 innings won the series, 4-2. Tommy Romero started but didn’t make it out of the 4th, with two runs let in on five hits (one HR) and two walks. He struck out as many as you did. Richie Martin singled, doubled, and drove in the tying run on a sac fly while Carter Kieboom reached base three times on two singles and a walk and scored three runs, driving in one. Travis Blankenhorn homered for the 21st time with an Earl Weaver special to highlight Rochester’s four-run 5th inning.

Harrisburg 8 Akron 3
• Parker (W, 9-4) 5IP, 2H, 0R, 2BB, 8K, 84-53 PIT-K
• Ruotolo 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Lipscomb 3-5, R, 2-2B
• Hassell 2-5, R, 2B, RBI
• Arruda 2-4, R, 2B, 2RBI

Harrisburg put this one on ice early, scoring four in the 1st and three in the 3rd as they took the game, 8-3, and the series, 5-1 from Akron. Mitchell Parker labored through five innings but shut out the RubberDucks on two hits and two walks while striking out eight to pick up his eighth win. Trey Lipscomb led the Sens’ 12-hit parade with two doubles and a single, followed by J.T. Arruda, Robert Hassell, and Jacob Young with and a single, double, and a run apiece. James Wood kept pace with Travis Blankenhorn for the organizational HR lead with his 21st HR.

Bowling Green 18 Wilmington 5
• Lord (L, 1-4) 3⅓ IP, 7H, 6R, 5ER, 3BB, 2K
• Da. Díaz 2⅔ IP, 0H, 0R, 1BB, 3K, 1-0 IR
• Antuna 2-3, BB, 2B, 2RBI, CS
• Farmer 2-4, 2B, RBI
• Frizzell 2-4, R

The Hot Rods took the series finale handily, lapping the Blue Rocks with an eight-run 8th to win 18-5 and secure a 5-1 series mark. Brad Lord lost for the second time in the series and fourth time at High-A. He was charged with six runs (five earned) on seven hits and three walks over three and a 1/3rd innings. Yasel Antuna led the Wilmington offense with a single, walk, and double and drove in two while Caleb Farmer drove in one while going 2-for-4 with an RBI double.

Lynchburg 14 Fredericksburg 13
• Cornelio 3⅔ IP, 10H, 9R, 9ER, 3BB, 2K, HR, HBP
• Grissom (L, 3-2) ⅔ IP, 3H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 0K
• Crews 5-5, 4R, BB, 2HR, 6RBI
• Dugas 2-5
• Brown 2-6, 3RBI
• Pinckney 2-6, 3R, HR, 2RBI

Fredericksburg’s bullpen woes led to the FredNats’ fourth straight loss as they faltered in the late innings to lose the game, 14-13 and drop the series, 4-2. Riley Cornelio threw the first three and 2/3rds innings, gouged for nine runs on ten hits (one HR) and three walks. The loss went to Marquis Grissom Jr., who failed to register a clean outing for the fourth time in five appearances as he gave up the final run on three hits in the 9th. Dylan Crews reached base six times on three singles, two homers, and a walk drawn in the 9th as he scored the final Fredericksburg run and his fourth of the game. The Nats #1 prospect drove in six. Roster moves: RHP Orlando Ribalta rehab assignment transferred from the FCL.



FCL Nationals, 21-22, 5th place FCL East, 5½ GB
The F-Nats went 4-1 last week and picked up two games in the standings, but their tragic number fell to four with seven games left to play. It’s a full week this week with six games between today and Saturday, thanks to the rainouts.

DSL Nationals, 10-34, 9th place DSL South, 27 GB
The DSL Nationals only played three games last week… and lost all three to fall back into the DSL South cellar. Like the F-Nats, the D-Nats play every day this week, trying to make up the multiple rained out games – starting with a completion doubleheader today.

19 Commments

  1. Has Hassell finally figured things out? He’s batting .256/.352/.474 over his past 20 games. The most impressive part is that in this mini-streak he’s hitting with more power than he’s displayed previously. His .218 ISO is well above his MILB career mark of .140. Small sample size warnings, but it looks like his hand might finally be feeling good again. Still, the Ks are a worry (29% during this period).

    I don’t know what more our 2023 draft class has to prove in low A. Crews, Pinckney, Morales, Brown and Dugas are all posting numbers quite similar to (or better than) their college stats. Yes, it’s great that they’re starting their professional careers so positively, but I wonder if they could be challenged a bit more. Just look at how well Lipscomb handled his aggressive promotion path. Wilmington could sure use the offensive help.

    1. My jaw just hit the floor looking at Nick Pivetta season numbers . Plus he’s pitching in Fenway
      Amazing

  2. I know the Nats want to throw the FredNats a bone and keep Dylan Crews in Fredericksburg for this homestand but he, Yoyo Morales, and Andrew Pinckney have long since graduated from Low A.

    Trey Lipscomb has a .861 OPS at Harrisburg. He’s crushing it.

  3. It is time for the top-performing guys to be promoted to the next level. Crews might even go up to AA. These guys should be challenged to perform at the next level, to determine where they will be placed after ST 2024.

    1. Christian Vaquero four walks today
      The kid has a good eye doesn’t he or the Astros pitchers couldn’t see the strike zone today ? Lol

  4. So who dropped the pass for Fredericksburg’s two-point conversion try? We’re back to seeing the same football scores with the FredNats as we were earlier in the season when House was in the house. And yes, it seems to accomplish nothing keeping the top draft picks there. If the front office has such a concern about Wilmington, then it’s time to find a new affiliate. (Easier said than done, I know.)

    Another great start by Parker. He seems to be great or bad, with no in between. If he has his control, he’s hard to hit.

    One would think that the big club will want to get Kieboom up for another look as soon as he’s healthy. Interesting that he’s playing 3B. My hopes that he can actually turn into anything are quite diminished. He will turn 26 next month, which is hard to believe.

    1. It’s funny. High A baseball is cursed with the Nats. Just as we freed ourselves from the quagmire that was the Pfitz’s field (remember how the Nats refused to let Harper play there?) we get saddled with Wilmington’s cavernous dimensions.

  5. Lipscomb’s hits are not cheapies. They are hard hit balls. He also hustles after foul pop ups and has made some great catches. Also, the HR by Wood “only” hit halfway up the video board this time.

    1. Good scoop on Lipscomb and Wood. I know the prospect gurus aren’t high on Lipscomb, but he sure seems to be putting himself into conversation for the 2B job with the big club at some point next season. With Garcia currently struggling at .237 at AAA, there’s nothing decided at 2B.

      Wood is still striking out almost a third of his plate appearances . . . but mashing the ball when he does connect. One would think that the Nats are going to want to see improvement on the strikeout front before they start thinking seriously about bringing him up, though.

    2. Lipscomb takes me back to Enos Cabell where a guy can grab a glove and play both sides of the infield and provide a nice RH stick in lineup
      You know the Expos never really had several switch hitting types in their farm all at once as in
      White , Peoples and Vasquero not to mention the random middle infielders

  6. Was Wilmington the first choice or a consolation prize because another ORG snagged a cooler affiliate location with stadium before Nats .
    A pitchers season is like a symphony . You have to go through the ups and downs of the whole production
    Case in point M Parker .
    Interesting that there is a college in Tennessee named Lipscomb .
    Now the weird thing about Wilmington is is if you can hit and drive the ball into the alley then we’d see higher numbers of doubles and triples and better BAs.
    Yet again . Maybe it’s just psychological with some of the kids . Maybe it’s in the eyes as we discussed with Crews , Tony Gwynn and Ted Williams

    1. Not sure we could even call it a “consolation”, because that would infer there was a preferred choice. We’ve been picking up the leftovers for years now, and Wilmington was indeed a leftover. It was affiliated to the Royals for almost 15 years, but with the re-organization, the Royals got much closer Quad Cities (Davenport, IA) to be their A+ team. Many of us had been hoping the Nats would have courted the Richmond Flying Squirrels, who are/were an awkward fit in the AA Eastern League to be the Nats new A+ team, in part to extend the Nats’ reach into southern VA, but there never appeared to be any interest from the club.

      1. I think folks are forgetting that there was no affiliate dance as in years past. Therefore, there was no negotiation with the owners of the minor-league teams. It was sign this PDL and we’ll assign you to where we (MLB) think is best.

        From the Nats POV, Wilmington is ideal — it’s close to both the level above it and not that much farther than it was from High-A to AA in the Before Times. And let’s face it: having shed themselves of not one but two shitholes (the Pfitz and the Muni) it **totally** makes sense that the Nats would rather steer clear of another badly outdated facility.

        1. Was the Pfitz ever actually IN date? LOL. It certainly wasn’t while it as a Nats’ affiliate.

          The dimensions in Wilmington aren’t that big, in fact just 325 down the lines, 400 in CF. The problem is that the stadium is built in a riverbed and the ball won’t carry at all . . . unless hit by someone like House or Wood. But the park has made it difficult to judge mere mortals. Lipscomb didn’t hit particularly well there but is rockin’ it in Harrisburg. Guys thought to be prospects like de la Rosa, Lile (SSS), White, and McKenzie have really struggled there.

        2. Yes Luke time warps and dimensia hit some of us with baseball history details coupled with deadlines and commitments as Bob Segar sang
          Lol

  7. We’ve been told for years that college baseball, especially in the power conferences, has gotten so much better and it’s obvious with how the Nats kids from SEC, ACC and Big Ten programs have hit the ground in rookie and A-Ball.

    It’s one thing for Crews, a generational talent, to be doing, but another altogether for underslots like Pinckney and Brown.

    So allow me to join the chorus of those calling for those 4 to get on the escalator today.

    With only a week left in the FCL season, will we see a Travis Sykora debut? Will the Nats promote Vaquero, Coop, Mota etc… to Fredericksburg or just shut them down? When will Elijah Green move back to A-ball?

    Further up the chain, move Andrew Alvarez up!

  8. Raising this question ahead of time .
    Will Alvarez crack the Top 30 in the next 6-8 months ??

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