White Sox Minor League Update: August 7, 2019

Charlotte Knights 12, Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders 2

Nick Madrigal: 2-for-6, 1 R, 0 BB, 0 K (.190 BA, .440 OPS)
Luis Robert: 0-for-5, 0 BB, 3 K (.317 BA, 1.009 OPS)
Yermin Mercedes: 2-for-4, 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K (.288 BA, .963 OPS)
Danny Mendick: 2-for-3, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 0 K (.281 BA, .825 OPS)
Seby Zavala: 2-for-3, 1 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 BB, 1 K (.224 BA, .780 OPS) **MVP**
Donn Roach: 5 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (7.98 ERA, 1.99 WHIP)

The Knights got out to a lead in the third inning. After the first run scored off of a wild pitch, Ramon Torres drove in two more for a 3-0 lead after two. From that point forward, the Knights would never trail, and the offense was certainly not done. They would go on to score 10 more runs in the 12-2 win. The middle of the lineup brought the lumber, and most of that run production. Mercedes, Mendick, and Zavala each had two hits and runs scored. Zavala had the biggest blows of the bunch: He hit a two-run homer in the eight inning, his 17th home run of the season. Nick Madrigal added two hits of his own, as he still adjusts to Triple-A pitching, and Luis Robert didn’t reach base. The pitching was pretty good, especially the bullpen: The combination of Zach Thompson, Hunter Schryver, and Thyago Vieira threw four no-hit innings to end the game. All three have not had stellar years this season, so this fantastic mop-up work was welcome.

Montgomery Biscuits 13, Birmingham Barons 1

Luis Gonzalez: 0-for-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 0 K (.246 BA, .700 OPS)
Luis Basabe: 1-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K (.249 BA, .662 OPS)
Blake Rutherford: 1-for-4, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K (.251 BA, .646 OPS) **MVP**
Gavin Sheets: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 1 K (.270 BA, .758 OPS)
Ti’Quan Forbes: 1-for-3, 1 BB, 0 K (.244 BA, .674 OPS)
Lincoln Henzman: 5 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 4 BB, 5 K (6.47 ERA,
Kodi Medeiros: 2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 1 K (5.40 ERA,

Ew, a Stephen A. Smith tweet, Barons? Well, it makes sense somewhat, because it was not a pretty day for the Barons in Birmingham. Lincoln Henzman was on the mound, and his start did not go well. He allowed 14 runners on base in just five innings. Eight of those runners came around to score, and seven of those runs were earned. Henzman has not been doing well since his promotion to Double-A, with a 6.47 ERA and a WHIP north of 1.50. Kodi Medeiros relieved, and could not stop the bleeding. Before this game, as a reliever, Medeiros’ peripherals were not kind, and that trend caught up in this game. He allowed two runs in his two innings, but the game was already over by then. Birmingham’s offense could only muster one run, which came in the eighth inning when Blake Rutherford singled home Luis González. That was it, really; The Barons only reached base safely seven times, which is not nearly enough to compete with 13 runs.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans 5, Winston-Salem Dash 2

Steele Walker: 2-for-4, 1 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 SB (.285 BA, .811 OPS)
Andrew Vaughn: 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (.273 BA, .834 OPS) **MVP**
Jordan Cavanerio: 5 ²⁄₃ IP, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (3.17 ERA, 1.16 WHIP)
Bennett Sousa: 2 ¹⁄₃ IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (2.45 ERA, 0.82 WHIP)

A pitching duel for the first half of the game turned into a tough loss for the Dash. Jorgan Cavanerio had a fantastic first five innings, shutting Myrtle Beach out and only allowing three baserunners. However, the Pelicans were also blanking the Dash, so it was tied 0-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth. At that point, Cavanerio broke: He allowed four runs while just getting two outs in the sixth, and that was that. Though the Dash would finally add a run the next inning, they really never got back in it. Andrew Vaughn and Steele Walker did combine for a run when Vaughn drove in Walker in the eighth with a double; a nice highlight for the future, but not one that helped the Dash win.

AZL Cleveland 9. AZL White Sox 4

Jose Rodriguez: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K (.286 BA, .827 OPS)
Micker Adolfo: 0-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K (.000 BA, .250 OPS)
DJ Gladney: 0-for-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 0 K (.277 BA, .798 OPS)
Jakob Goldfarb: 1-for-3, 1 GS, 1 BB, 1 K (.300 BA, 1.264 OPS) **MVP**
Hector Acosta: 5 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (5.68 ERA, 1.95 WHIP)
Caleb Frare: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP)

Another tough game for a White Sox affiliate, but there was at least some promise in Arizona tonight. First the hitting: For the first eight innings, the AZL Sox only had two hits on the night, one from Samil Polanco and the other from Daniel Millwee. However, even if that, there was some good news; Micker Adolfo is back. He got one base once (a walk in the ninth), but he was in the lineup taking swings, and that is a big deal. AZ’s offense finally arrived in the ninth, when Goldfarb his a grand slam, but the game was out of reach by then due to some poor pitching. But another good thing: Caleb Frare pitched. He got through one inning and looked good, with two strikeouts. Scott Merkin also had some news regarding two draft picks, as Matthew Thompson and Andrew Dalquist “could make their professional debuts” in the not-so-distant future.

DSL Orioles 8, DSL White Sox 0

Anthony Espinoza: 1-for-4, 0 BB, 0 K (.257 BA, .659 OPS)
Johnabiell Laureano: 1-for-4, 0 BB, 0 K (.374 BA, 1.011 OPS)
Elijah Tatís: 0-for-3, 0 BB, 1 K (.170 BA, .481 OPS)
Manuel Veloz: 2 ¹⁄₃ IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K (1.03 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) **MVP**

Not a good one at all for the DSL Sox, from all angles. First, the offense was shut out, only able to tab five hits, all singles. Though they had good contact with only four strikeouts, one walk and five hits is just not enough to get anything going. Maybe it was because Benyamin Bailey and Yolbert Sánchez did not play.

On the pitching end, it wasn’t much better, at least until Manuel Veloz relieved. The first two pitchers for the DSL Sox allowed the eight runs, nine hits, and all five team walks. Veloz came in to stabilize the pitching debacle and he did just that, though the game was out of reach. The 18-year-old has been great in the DSL this season, with a 1.03 ERA in 26 ¹⁄₃ innings, and he was great again today in the loss.