White Sox Minor League Update: July 14, 2019

Gwinnett Stripers 5, Charlotte Knights 4

Hector Santiago (SP): 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 5 K, 4.14 ERA

Luis Robert (CF): 1-for-3, 2 HBP, SB, .438 AVG, 1.438 OPS

Danny Mendick (2B): 1-for-4, .276 AVG, .801 OPS

Welington Castillo (C): 1-for-5, HR, 3 RBI, .286 AVG, .786 OPS *MVP*

Adam Engel (LF): 1-for-3, BB, .278 AVG, .838 OPS

Daniel Palka (RF): 2-for-4, BB, RBI, .268 AVG, .896 OPS

Yermin Mercedes (DH): 0-for-4, .310 AVG, .997 OPS

The Knights found themselves in an early hole after starter Hector Santiago allowed a two-run homer in the first inning. That blast came off the bat of Adam Duvall, his 28th of the season. After a fourth inning home run by old friend Ryan LaMarre, the Knights trailed 4-0.

In the bottom of the fourth, however, the Knights made a large cut into the Stripers’ lead. Welington Castillo only had one hit in the game, but it was a big one, as his home run drove in three.

Unfortunately, the Knights would not score again until the bottom of the ninth. Daniel Palka drove in the other Knights’ run with an RBI single to make the score 5-4, but Castillo grounded out to end the rally.

Some guy named Luis Robert went 1-for-3 and was hit by pitch twice. In four games in Triple-A, Robert has been hit by three pitches. Robert also stole a base, his first in Triple-A and his 30th of the season across all levels. He is now 30-for-38 (79%) in that category.

The Knights fell to 50-43, while the Stripers improved to 54-39. The Knights will open a seven-game road trip tomorrow at 6:05 CST. Their first opponent of the road trip will be the Buffalo Bisons.

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Birmingham Barons

The Barons were supposed to have a double-header today, but the weather did not cooperate, as they were unable to play either game. They will come back home for a nine-game homestand, and their first opponent of the homestand will be the Tennessee Smokies. The first of those games will start at 7:05 CST on Thursday.

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Down East Wood Ducks 3, Winston-Salem Dash 2

Jonathan Stiever (SP): 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R (3 ER), 2 BB, 9 K, 2.53 ERA

Yeyson Yrizarri (3B): 2-for-4, HR, 2B, .221 AVG, .552 OPS *MVP*

Steele Walker (CF): 1-for-4, .264 AVG, .758 OPS

Jameson Fisher (1B): 0-for-3, BB, .232 AVG, .700 OPS

Mitch Roman (DH): 1-for-4, .279 AVG, .685 OPS

Zach Remillard (SS): 1-for-4, .291 AVG, .748 OPS

Starting pitcher Jonathan Stiever got off to a rough start, allowing home runs in the first and third innings. As a result, the Wood Ducks got off to an early 3-0 lead. However, Stiever settled in and made a nice recovery after the early struggles. He finished with a quality start, as he made it through six innings and struck out nine. Outside of two mistakes, Stiever pitched very well today.

Most Dash hitters had quiet days, but third baseman Yeyson Yrizarri was an exception. Out of the five Dash hits, Yrizarri had two of them. He also was responsible for both of Winston-Salem’s two extra-base hits, as he doubled and homered. His fifth inning double got the Dash on the board. Yrizarri hit his second home run of the season in the eighth to cut the deficit in half. Unfortunately, that was the last run the Dash could push across, as they fell 3-2.

The Dash (48-41) will wrap up this series against Down East (66-29) tomorrow, and that game will start at 6:00 CST tomorrow.

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Rome Braves 9, Kannapolis Intimidators 3

Kevin Folman (SP): 4 ²⁄₃ IP, 6 H, 5 R (5 ER), 1 BB, 4 K, 3.81 ERA

Andrew Vaughn (1B): 1-for-3, BB, .353 AVG, .952 OPS

Ramon Beltré (LF): 2-for-5, 2B, RBI, .228 AVG, .599 OPS

Johan Cruz (SS): 1-for-5, .279 AVG, .824 OPS

Amado Nuñez (2B): 2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, .218 AVG, .605 OPS *MVP*

Camilo Quinteiro (3B): 2-for-4, .429 AVG, 1.071 OPS

The Intimidators struck first in this one, as Ramon Beltré drove in Gunnar Troutwine with a double in the second inning. However, that was as good as the Intimidators’ situation would get, as the Braves made a huge rally.

In the fourth and fifth innings, the Braves scored eight combined runs to take an 8-1 lead. In those innings, they hit a total of four home runs, two by first baseman Griffin Benson. It started off as a good day for pitcher Kevin Folman, but it did not end up that way. Folman was responsible for five of those runs, and he did not make it through the fifth.

On the bright side, Amado Nuñez hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, his fifth blast of the season. Nuñez had two hits on the day, and he was joined by Beltré and Camilo Quinteiro in the multi-hit club. Andrew Vaughn also had a productive day, as he went 1-for-3 with a walk. He also signed an autograph for our Tiffany Wintz.

The Intimidators fell to 41-51, while the Braves improved to 43-50. The Intimidators will open a three-game road series against Hickory tomorrow, and that game will start at 6:00 CST.

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Great Falls Voyagers 9, Rocky Mountain Vibes 4

Sean Thompson (SP): 5 IP, 7 H, 4 R (4 ER), 1 BB, 4 K, 7.55 ERA

Kelvin Maldonado (2B): 2-for-2, .253 AVG, .600 OPS

Luis Curbelo (3B): 2-for-5, RBI, .279 AVG, .825 OPS

Sam Abbott (1B): 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, HBP, .275 AVG, .911 OPS

Cameron Simmons (LF): 3-for-4, 2 2B, BB, RBI, .343 AVG, .911 OPS *MVP*

Luis Mieses (CF): 2-for-5, 2B, RBI, .291 AVG, .714 OPS

Starter Sean Thompson had a mediocre day on the mound. He held the Vibes scoreless in four of his five innings of work, but a big inning spoiled his outing. In the second inning, the Vibes got four runs on three hits and two walks.

However, things would turn around for the Voyagers in the seventh, as they had a big inning of their own. Trailing 4-2, the Voyagers scored six times that inning. During that rally, the Voyagers got six hits and were hit by pitch twice. Oddly enough, Jakob Goldfarb was on the receiving end of both seventh inning HBPs. The six-run rally was capped off by first baseman Sam Abbott, who is having a strong season so far. Cameron Simmons reached base in four of his five plate appearances, and two of his three hits were doubles. That performance was enough for him to be today’s MVP.

The Voyagers improved to 12-14, while the Vibes fell to 11-17. Great Falls will take on Rocky Mountain again tomorrow, and that game will start at 7:40 CST.

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AZL Giants Black 13, AZL White Sox 10

Hector Acosta (SP): 3 ²⁄₃ IP, 6 H, 6 R (2 ER), 3 BB, 2 K, 6.17 ERA

Harold Diaz (2B): 2-for-4, BB, RBI, .296 AVG, .968 OPS

DJ Gladney (DH): 1-for-5, .287 AVG, .862 OPS

Bryan Ramos (3B): 3-for-5, RBI, .347 AVG, .971 OPS

Tyler Osik (1B): 2-for-4, BB, .290 AVG, .735 OPS

Jonathan Allen (LF): 3-for-4, 2 2B, BB, RBI, .230 AVG, .670 OPS *MVP*

The AZL White Sox got on the board early, as they took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Harold Diaz led off with a double, and he came around to score on an error. Bryan Ramos followed with a single, and the AZL White Sox were in an excellent position to add to their lead. They had runners on the corners, one run in, and still no outs. However, they could not tack on any more runs that inning, and that proved to be costly.

The AZL Giants Black answered with one in their half of the first, two in the third, and three in the fourth. Starter Hector Acosta allowed all of those players to reach base, though only two of those six runs were earned. It was a rough night defensively, as the AZL White Sox made four errors.

There were some positives from tonight. Quite a few players had good nights offensively. Jonathan Allen earned the MVP trophy with his three hits, two of which were doubles. Harold Diaz, Bryan Ramos, and Tyler Osik joined Allen in the multi-hit club. They also put together a nice rally in the ninth inning to pull within three. Still, this was a sloppy game overall. In total, the AZL White Sox allowed seven unearned runs to score. On to the next one.

The AZL White Sox fell to 8-13 on the season, and they will face the AZL Mariners tomorrow. That game is scheduled to start at 7:00 CST.

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DSL White Sox

The Dominican Summer League does not play on Sundays, so the DSL White Sox had the day off. They will return to play tomorrow morning against the DSL Orioles 1, and that game will start at 9:30 CST.