White Sox Minor League Update: August 8, 2019

Charlotte Knights 7, Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders 4

Nick Madrigal: 1-for-5, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (.192 BA, .433 OPS)
Luis Robert: 1-for-5, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K (.311 BA, 1.010 OPS)
Zack Collins: 0-for-3, 1 BB, 0 K (.269 BA, .886 OPS)
Danny Mendick: 0-for-2, 2 BB, 0 K (.279 BA, .824 OPS)
Seby Zavala: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 0 K (.220 BA, .768 OPS)
Ramon Torres: 4-for-4, 1 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 0 k (.692 BA, 2.000 OPS) **MVP**
Kelvin Herrera: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K (12.00 ERA, 1.82 WHIP)

Down 4-0, the Knights battled back late for a three-run win. Starter Justin Nicolino was not sharp early, allowing three runs in the first inning and one more in the second. After that, it was smooth sailing for the Knights pitching staff. Nicolino had control issues in those first two innings, but was almost unhittable over his last four innings. Meanwhile, the Knights added two runs in the third thanks to Ramon Torres’ second home run in Triple-A. He and the Knights were not done, though. Luis Robert, who was hitless his last nine at-bats, clocked his eighth home run of the year to tie the game in the eighth. In the next inning, Torres gave the Knights the lead with a double, and Nick Madrigal drove in two insurance runs with a single. The Knights bullpen was perfect, and really only needed a one-run lead. Kelvin Herrera, who is still on rehab, fired a perfect seventh and Connor Walsh threw two perfect innings to win the game.

Birmingham Barons 5, Montgomery Biscuits 1

Luis Gonzalez: 2-for-5, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 K (.248 BA, .673 OPS)
Blake Rutherford: 2-for-4, 1 R, 0 BB, 0 K (.253 BA, .650 OPS)
Gavin Sheets: 0-for-3, 0 BB, 0 K (.268 BA, .754 OPS)
Joel Booker: 3-for-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (.258 BA, .638 OPS) **MVP**
Bernardo Flores: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (3.09 ERA, 1.05 WHIP)
Tyler Johnson: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K (2.25 ERA, 1.00 WHIP)
Codi Heuer: 1 ¹⁄₃ IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (2.25 ERA, 1.18 WHIP)

A complete win for the prospect-heavy Barons. The pitching was simply fantastic. Bernardo Flores, on his first game back from his rehab assignment, looked great, like usual. He went five innings and allowed the lone run of the game. The bullpen was even better. Tyler Johnson went two perfect innings and struck out three. He is returning to form very quickly, which gives him an outside chance to be a September call-up. Codi Heuer got the four-out save and lowered his ERA to 2.25. The offense was good enough as well, even if they went 1-for-9 with RISP. Joel Booker and Zach Remillard had the big hits today, as both hit their second home runs of their Double-A season in the 5-1 win.

Winston-Salem Dash 8, Myrtle Beach Pelicans 7

Steele Walker: 0-for-5, 0 BB, 1 K (.280 BA, .799 OPS)
Andrew Vaughn: 2-for-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K (.296 BA, .901 OPS)
Tate Blackman: 2-for-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (.194 BA, .599 OPS) **MVP**
Kade McClure: 4 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 4 BB, 4 K (3.39 ERA, 1.22 WHIP)
Jacob Lindgren: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K (1.00 ERA, 0.90 WHIP)

Kade McClure did not have his best stuff, but the bullpen and some early offense ensured the Dash win. McClure went just four innings and allowed all seven runs, including three home runs. After he was pulled, the bullpen fired five shutout innings. Andrew Perez and Jacob Lindgren both went two innings and had seven strikeouts in those four innings. Will Kincanon came in for his sixth save of the season, shutting down the Pelicans and lowering his ERA to 1.91, but the offense had a bit to do before all that. The Dash totaled 12 hits, seven of which were for extra bases, so the power was there. The lone home run for Winston-Salem came in the third inning, when Tate Blackman went deep for a three-run homer that gave the Dash a lead they would not relinquish.

Kannapolis Intimidators 2, Delmarva Shorebirds 1

Ian Dawkins: 3-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 0 K (.314 BA, .796 OPS) **MVP**
Lenyn Sosa: 2-for-4, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K (.241 BA, .639 OPS)
Sam Long: 5 ¹⁄₃ IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K (3.53 ERA, 1.11 WHIP)

A boring one, but a good win for Kannapolis. Sam Long got the start and though a run scored over his time on the mound, it was unearned. He and the rest of the bullpen were fantastic. After Long, Devon Perez threw 2 ²⁄₃ shutout innings with five strikeouts. Austin Conway took over for him and recorded his eighth save of the season. Since the Shorebirds only scored that lone unearned run, all the I’s needed was two. Those two runs came in the very first inning. The first run of the game was off of a wild pitch that scored Ian Dawkins. The second, a more conventional run scored, was off of a single from Romy Gonzalez. Thankfully, Kanny didn’t need anything more.

Grand Junction Rockies 8, Great Falls Voyagers 3

Caberea Weaver: 0-for-3, 1 BB, 1 K (.237 BA, .627 OPS)
Luis Mieses: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K (.260 BA, .687 OPS)
Lency Delgado: 1-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K (.291 BA, .769 OPS)
Sam Abbott: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K (.244 BA, .844 OPS) **MVP**
Sean Thompson: 2 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (7.17 ERA, 1.46 WHIP)

For the Voyagers, the game got out of hand quickly. Sean Thompson saw eight runs cross the plate in his two innings of work. He allowed eight hits in the first two innings, and Grand Junction took full advantage. After the 8-0 lead, Great Falls never came back. Sam Abbott was involved in two of GFV’s runs. He drove himself in first with a solo home run in the second. In the fifth inning after a walk, he scored on a Kelvin Maldonado triple, but it was not nearly enough to make it a game. The bullpen did all they could, with seven shutout innings, but the damage was already done in the 8-3 loss.

AZL White Sox 3, AZL Dodgers 2

Jose Rodriguez: 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K (.292 BA, .832 OPS)
Micker Adolfo: 3-for-4, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K (.429 BA, 1.500 OPS) **MVP**
DJ Gladney: 1-for-4, 0 BB, 1 K (.276 BA, .792 OPS)
Caleb Freeman: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K (2.63 ERA, 1.10 WHIP)

The only rookie league win for the White Sox organization came here in Arizona. Luis Rodriguez started that game and was OK. He lasted four innings and did allow the only two runs of the game, but he did not have his command (three walks). Meanwhile, the offense also had its struggles, but AZL Sox hitters were able to get enough production to win. Though they had 11 hits, the AZL Sox could only muster three runs. That was mainly because runners were not getting to second often. Of the 11 hits, eight of them were singles and not many of those runners advanced into scoring position. Micker Adolfo’s run production came from one of the few extra-base hits, with his first home run of his rehab assignment, a solo home run in the fourth. While the Sox took the lead at 3-2, the bullpen was amazing. They went five shutout innings, including the last two from Caleb Freeman, who is another interesting arm from the 2019 draft.

DSL Orioles 6, DSL White Sox 5

Benyamin Bailey: 0-for-2, 3 BB, 0 K (.346 BA, .983 OPS)
Jefferson Mendoza: 1-for-4, 1 R, 0 BB, 0 K (.351 BA, 1.011 OPS)
Lazaro Leal: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K (.211 BA, .664 OPS) **MVP**
Homer Cruz: 4 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K (4.50 ERA, 1.48 WHIP)

The good early lead from the DSL Sox quickly evaporated in a 6-5 loss. In the second inning, the Sox put up three runs to take the early 3-0 lead. Lazaro Leal was credited with two of those runs when he hit his second homer of the season. Unfortunately, over the next two innings, that lead would disappear. Homer Cruz struggled in this one, as he saw four runs cross the plate in his four innings and blew a three-run lead. The Sox would tie the game 4-4 in the seventh after both pitching staffs settled down for a few innings. On the Sox side, Frander Veras replaced Cruz and threw 2 ²⁄₃ shutout innings before Roberth Gutierrez tied the game at four. The game would come down to who scored more in the ninth inning, but it wasn’t the Sox. The Orioles added two in the top of the ninth and the Sox could not make up the deficit.