Charlotte Knights
POST-GAME: RHP Michael Kopech talked to #KnightsTV after tonight's game. pic.twitter.com/i7WcnywOib
— Charlotte Knights (@KnightsBaseball) July 1, 2018
Eloy Jimenez: .286 BA, 1 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K
Seby Zavala: .182 BA, 2 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 6 K
Michael Kopech: 12 IP, 2.23 FIP, 12.75 K/9, 4.50 BB/9 ***MVP of the Week***
Jordan Stephens: 5 IP, 5.32 FIP, 10.80 K/9, 3.60 BB/9
Carson Fulmer: 5 2⁄3 IP, 10.55 FIP, 9.53 K/9, 14.29 BB/9
Spencer Adams: 7 IP, 4.46 FIP, 5.14 K/9, 4.00 BB/9
Jordan Guerrero: 5 IP, 3.52 FIP, 7.20 K/9, 5.40 BB/9 — promoted from Birmingham
Thyago Vieira: 3 IP, 2.81 FIP, 9.00 K/9, 4.50 BB/9, 1 save
Aaron Bummer: 3 2⁄3 IP, .86 FIP, 14.73 K/9, 2.45 BB/9
Ian Hamilton: 3 1⁄3 IP, .92 FIP, 10.80 K/9, 0.00 BB/9, 2 saves
Since Eloy Jimenez and Ian Hamilton were promoted at the AA All-Star Break, they have been able to to continue their success at the next level in Charlotte. Unfortunately, Seby Zavala has not had the same success in the batter’s box. To preface this, Zavala has gotten rave reviews behind the plate as a catcher. He receives pitches much more smoothly compared to last season, and White Sox director of player development Chris Getz raved about how much he has progressed in just a year as a catcher. But, back to hitting: Zavala is slashing .147/.211/.206 in 38 plate appearances in Charlotte, for a wRC+ of 13 — not so good. Now there is not much to worry about here, Zavala’s BABIP is at .208 compared to .339 in AA, where he had a .271 batting average. He still is striking out at the same rate, but his walks are down. Usually, when hitters are in a slump, they start pressing. It seems Zavala is doing that, becaue his walk rate is down 4%. Now, Zavala is not getting great contact so far. His ground ball rate is up, along with a decrease in fly ball rate. His pull percentage is also down to 37.5%, and his oppo percentage is up a couple ticks. Zavala doesn’t have his timing right yet, but he should turn things around in time for a September promotion.
Birmingham Barons
.@DylanCease strikes out two in the first inning of his Double-A debut, but the Barons trail 1-0 after 1 in Montgomery. pic.twitter.com/nA3MJkJOFt
— Birmingham Barons (@BhamBarons) June 25, 2018
Joel Booker: .200 BA, 3 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 9 K
Luis Basabe: .192 BA, 5 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 8 K, 1 SB
Alex Call: .385 BA, 1 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K ***MVP of the Week***
Jameson Fisher: .333 BA, 1 R, 1 RBI, 4 BB, 4 K
Zack Collins .211 BA, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 9 K
Alec Hansen: 3 2⁄3 IP, 5.39 FIP, 9.82 K/9, 12.27 BB/9
Jimmy Lambert: 6 IP, 2.64 FIP, 10.50 K/9, 4.50 BB/9 — promoted from Winston-Salem
Dylan Cease: 11 2⁄3 IP, 4.33 FIP, 10.80 K/9, 3.09 BB/9
Bernardo Flores: 7 IP, 3.62 FIP, 5.14 K/9, 13.86 BB/9
Matt Foster: 3 1⁄3 IP IP, 8.88 FIP, 5.40 K/9, 8.10 BB/9
Alex Call gets left behind in much of the talk on outfield prospects, even though he was a third round pick only two years ago. So far this season, he is walking at a higher rate than ever, but he is not hitting as well. His strikeouts have increased each year, but it seems like he is trying to sell out for more power: In 2018, Call already has a career high in homers, triples, and is closing in on his career high in doubles. Right now in Birmingham, Call has a .214 ISO, which is already an increase on his career-high ISO of .164 in Winston-Salem, which he put together in the first half this year. He is also pulling the ball at a career-high rate between A+ and AA this year. That does mean Call is getting better contact, but also indicates he’s making a conscious effort to drive the ball further. Call probably was promoted to give more at-bats to younger outfielders in Winston-Salem, but he is still a prospect to keep an eye on.
Winston-Salem Dash
.@cleansheets24 blasts his second home run of the night!
— Winston-Salem Dash (@WSDashBaseball) June 29, 2018
It’s a no-doubter down the right-field line and the Dash have a 7-4 lead over the Keys. pic.twitter.com/gjxKUFLw2A
Luis Gonzalez: .400 BA, 7 R, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 SB
Laz Rivera: .367 BA, 1 HR, 10 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 2 SB
Luis Robert: .313 BA, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 5 K - On the 7-Day DL for a thumb injury
Micker Adolfo: .421 BA, 1 HR, 6 R, 6 RBI, 5 BB, 4 K
Gavin Sheets: .485 BA, 2 HR, 7 R, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K ***MVP of the Week***
Blake Rutherford: .259 BA, 3 R, 7 RBI, 0 BB, 8 K
John Parke: 6 IP, 4.24 FIP, 6.00 K/9, 0.00 BB/9,
Blake Battenfield: 14 IP, 3.26 FIP, 7.71 K/9, 1.93 BB/9
Tyler Johnson: 3 IP, 4.40 FIP, 15.00 K/9, 0.00 BB/9
Lincoln Henzman: 2 IP, 6.40 FIP, 0.00 K/9, 9.00 BB/9
Take a minute, and look at those batting averages from Winston-Salem’s prospects, and of course Gavin Sheets stands out. Sheets is in the middle of a 15-game hitting streak. Before the streak, Sheets was batting .244, and the streak has pushed him up to .287. He is starting to show his 70 raw power again, with seven extra-base hits over that stretch. He is not walking as much, but Sheets seems to be choosing to swing more often while still proving he is a patient hitter. He has only struck out eight times over his last 68 plate appearances. Overall in the past two weeks, Sheets is slashing .400/.412/.569 for a 175 wRC+. A promotion should be awarded to Sheets in the coming weeks, as the 2018 draft picks gain more professional experience and start to move up.
Kannapolis Intimidators
rise & shine ☀️ pic.twitter.com/yyvAKZSBcJ
— Kannapolis Intimidators (@Intimidators) June 28, 2018
Craig Dedelow: .304 BA, 1 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 5 K
Evan Skoug: .063 BA, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 8 K
Tate Blackman: .095 BA, 3 R, 3 RBI, 3 BB, 12 K
Luis Curbelo: .320 BA, 4 R, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K ***MVP of the Week***
Justin Yurchak: .154 BA, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Evan Skoug, might not be the hitter he was supposed to be out of TCU. Besides four games in Arizona, Skoug has been a massive disappointment on the hitting side. This season, he is slashing .212/.294/.349 for a wRC+ of 85, so he is about 15% below average in Low-A ball, where he is also older than the average age at that level. Scouts raved about his power, with their main concern being strikeouts. Oddly enough, Skoug has improved his K-rate with an almost 8% decrease, but it is still more than 30%. Meanwhile, Skoug’s power is not what it was made out to be, with only a .138 ISO so far this year. Even though Skoug is struggling, he should get a promotion once Gunnar Troutwine is called up from Great Falls. But Skoug has regressed enough that he may be out of the White Sox Top 30 prospects by next year.
Great Falls Voyagers
The @gfvoyagers start a new home series against Helena tonight with a doubleheader at 6 p.m. Gates open at 5. JOIN US! pic.twitter.com/YszeSh1C9p
— Great Falls Voyagers (@gfvoyagers) June 30, 2018
Lenyn Sosa: .281 BA, 5 R, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 4 K
Logan Sowers: .320 BA, 1 HR, 5 R, 4 RBI, 4 BB, 9 K
Gunnar Troutwine: .200 BA, 1 R, 2 BB, 2 K
Romy Gonzalez: .250 BA, 1 HR. 5 R, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 8 K
Ramon Beltre: .250 BA, 1 HR, 5 R, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 7 K
Bennett Sousa: 5 IP, 1.50 FIP, 10.80 K/9, 0.00 BB/9, 2 saves ***MVP of the Week***
Andrew Perez: 1 IP, -.10 FIP, 18.00 FIP, 0.00 BB/9
Jason Bilous: 3 IP, 3.24 FIP, 12.00 K/9, 6.00 BB/9
Jonathan Stiever: 6 IP, 6.07 FIP, 16.50 K/9, 4.50 BB/9
Codi Heuer: 3 IP, 3.24 FIP, 3.00 K/9, 0.00 BB/9
AZL White Sox
Camilo Quinteiro: .118 BA, 3 R, 4 BB, 6 K, 1 SB
Luis Mieses: .143 BA, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K
Cabera Weaver: .250 BA, 1 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 6 K, 1 SB
Kleyder Sanchez: .000 BA, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Ty Greene: .250 BA, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Anderson Comas: .333 BA, 6 RBI, 0 BB, 3 K
Nelson Acosta: 2 IP, 3.55 FIP, 4.50 K/9, 0.00 BB/9
Brayan Herrera: 5 IP, 2.95 FIP, 7.20 K/9, 0.00 BB/9
Hector Acosta: 1 IP, 4.55 FIP, 0.00 K/9, 0.00 BB/9 — promoted from the DSL White Sox
Hunter Kiel: 1 IP, 3.55 FIP, 18.00 K/9, 9.00 BB/9
Rigo Fernandez: 5 IP, 4.55 FIP, 10.80 K/9, 5.40 BB/9
DSL White Sox
Jefferson Mendoza: .333 BA, 1 R, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 1 K
Jose Rodriguez: .087 BA, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K
Francisco Benitez: 2 2⁄3 IP, 5.87 FIP, 20.25 K/9, 16.87 BB/9
Luis Rodriguez: 4 2⁄3 IP, 2.55 FIP, 19.29 K/9, 5.79 BB/9 ***MVP of the Week***