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White Sox Minor League Update: April 20, 2022

A 21-hit performance by the Dash highlights a 2-2 day on the farm.

By Joe Resis
/ new
Nearly automatic: Luis Mieses went 4-for-5 in Winston-Salem’s 9-4 victory.
Tiffany Wintz (@TiffW96)/South Side Sox

The Knights fell behind early, and the offense struggled to put together rallies that could make a serious dent in the deficit. As a result, the Sounds rolled to an easy win.

The Sounds got started in the bottom of the first, when Garrett Whitley led off with a double and advanced to third on a productive out. Then, after a walk and a sacrifice fly by Jon Singleton, the Sounds had a 1-0 lead, and they led the rest of the way.

Despite the rough first inning, it turned out to be a solid start for Johan Dominguez, who only allowed one run in three innings. However, the Sounds broke through with five runs in the fourth inning against Kyle Kubat. The biggest hit of that inning was a bases-clearing triple by Corey Ray that made the score 4-0.

The Knights scored their only run in the fifth, when Nick Ciuffo drove in Blake Rutherford with a single. The Knights ended up with only four hits, and they lacked scoring opportunities, finishing 1-for-3 with runners in scoring position.

Poll

Who was the Knights MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 69%
    Blake Rutherford: 2-for-4
    (30 votes)
  • 2%
    Nick Cuiffo: 1-for-3, RBI
    (1 vote)
  • 23%
    Johan Dominguez: 3 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 4 K
    (10 votes)
  • 4%
    Yacksel Ríos: 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 2 K
    (2 votes)
43 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Knights Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 94%
    Kyle Kubat: 1 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 K
    (35 votes)
  • 0%
    Ryder Jones: 0-for-4, 2 K
    (0 votes)
  • 5%
    Seby Zavala: 0-for-4, 2 K
    (2 votes)
37 votes total Vote Now

This game was chaotic early on, with both teams trading runs. In the end, the Barons prevailed thanks to an outstanding effort by the bullpen and a sixth inning rally that put them over the top.

Barons starter Scott Blewett got off to a rough start, allowing two runs in the top of the first. A single, a double, and a walk to the Shuckers loaded the bases, and with two outs, Brent Diaz opened the scoring with a two-run single.

The Barons had a quick answer in the bottom of the first, as they scored a pair of their own. Yolbert Sánchez and Lenyn Sosa hit back-to-back singles to open the inning. That put runners on the corners with no outs. Though Tyler Neslony grounded into a double play, the Barons scored their first run of the game on the play. Then, Yoelqui Céspedes kept the inning alive with a single, and he stole second. That set up José Rodríguez with an RBI opportunity, and he came through with an RBI single.

With the game still tied at two in the bottom of the second, the first four Barons reached base safely. Raudy Read drew a leadoff walk, Jagger Rusconi doubled, and Luis Curbelo put the Barons ahead with an RBI single. Sánchez padded the lead with another RBI single, and that made the score 4-2.

The Shuckers did not stay behind long, though, as they opened the top of the third with three consecutive singles. Thomas Dillard hit the third of those singles, which drove in a run to make the score 4-3. Then, a sacrifice fly by Felix Valerio tied the game at four.

The score remained 4-4 until the bottom of the sixth, when the Barons benefited from some timely hitting and good fortune. Read and Rusconi hit back-to-back singles, and that put runners on first and second with one out. They advanced to second and third on a wild pitch, and with two outs, Sánchez came through with a go-ahead, two-run single.

The bullpen was phenomenal for the Barons, combining for six and two-thirds excellent innings. The Shuckers only managed three hits against the Birmingham bullpen. Biloxi made one final comeback attempt in the ninth, and they were nearly successful. With the bases loaded and one out, Wiemer hit a single off reliever Declan Cronin. One run easily scored, and the Shuckers tried to tie it. But, an outfield assist by Céspedes denied the potential tying run at the plate.

Poll

Who was the Barons MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 6%
    Félix Paulino: 2 1⁄3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 6 K
    (3 votes)
  • 4%
    Garrett Davila: 2 2⁄3 IP, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
    (2 votes)
  • 43%
    Yolbert Sánchez: 3-for-5, 3 RBI
    (20 votes)
  • 0%
    Raudy Read: 2-for-3, 2B, BB
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Jagger Rusconi: 2-for-3, 2B, BB
    (0 votes)
  • 45%
    Yoelqui Céspedes: 2-for-4, 2B, crucial outfield assist
    (21 votes)
46 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Barons Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 63%
    Scott Blewett: 2 1⁄3 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 1 K
    (23 votes)
  • 36%
    Craig Dedelow: 0-for-4, 4 K
    (13 votes)
36 votes total Vote Now

The Dash jumped out to an early lead and never looked back against the Drive.

By the end of the third inning, the Dash already had 10 hits, and they had a 4-0 lead to show for it. How did they get there? They got started in the top of the first, when they put a streak of four consecutive one-out hits together. Moises Castillo doubled, Bryan Ramos singled, and Luis Mieses followed by driving in the first run of the game with a single. Then, Adam Hackenberg doubled Winston-Salem’s lead with another RBI single.

The second inning also went well for the Dash offense. Duke Ellis got things started with a leadoff double. Ellis promptly stole third, not that he needed to, as Jason Matthews followed with an RBI double. With two outs, Ramos added another insurance run with a timely single to drive in Matthews.

Meanwhile, Dash starter Sean Burke had a great day on the mound. The 22-year-old righthander missed a lot of bats, ending up with six strikeouts. The first four innings went smoothly for Burke, who finally ran into some trouble in the fifth. A home run by Nicholas Northcut finally got the Drive on the board. Then, after a two-out double, a wild pitch, and a walk, Ty Madrigal took over on the mound. The second Drive run scored when Madrigal balked in the runner on third, but Madrigal got stranded the other runner he inherited.

The Dash added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth, when Shawn Goosenberg started a rally with a one-out single. Then, Ellis drove in Goosenberg with a double, and Matthews drove in Ellis with a single.

The Drive got back within striking distance in the eighth, when Ceddanne Rafaela launched a two-run homer to cut Winston-Salem’s lead in half. But, that was as close as the Drive got, as the Dash added three runs on four hits in the ninth. As a result, the Dash held on for a 9-4 victory. The Dash finished with 21 hits, and three different players (Mieses, Ellis, and Matthews) had four hits.

Poll

Who was the Dash MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 23%
    Luis Mieses: 4-for-5, 2B, RBI
    (10 votes)
  • 9%
    Duke Ellis: 4-for-5, 2 2B, RBI
    (4 votes)
  • 66%
    Jason Matthews: 4-for-5, 2B, 4 RBI
    (28 votes)
42 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Dash Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 96%
    Wilber Pérez: 2⁄3 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K
    (31 votes)
  • 3%
    Oscar Colás: 1-for-5, BB
    (1 vote)
32 votes total Vote Now

The Cannon Ballers got off to a strong start, but the wheels fell off in the latter portion of this game. As a result, the Nationals cruised to a one-sided win.

With the game tied at zero in the bottom of the second, the Cannon Ballers used three consecutive hits to open the inning, and they eventually scored a pair. Wes Kath led off with a single, Colby Smelley singled, and Misael González got Kannapolis on the board with an RBI double. Then, a sacrifice fly by Wilber Sánchez made it 2-0.

The bad news is that the Cannon Ballers failed to score the rest of the game, and two was not nearly enough to get the win. Starter Kohl Simas had a solid performance, only allowing two runs in five innings. He also struck out nine while only issuing one walk. The streak of three straight baserunners Simas allowed in the third inning was the largest blemish on his performance, but he put the Cannon Ballers in a good position to bring home the win.

Unfortunately, it was a game to forget for the bullpen. In the seventh, with the game tied at two, Garrett Schoenle walked in the go-ahead run. That was also Schoenle’s third walk of the inning, and it prompted a pitching change. Chase Plymell entered the game in relief of Schoenle, and he stranded all three runners he inherited. However, the eighth inning was a major struggle for Plymell and the Cannon Ballers. After a double, two walks, and a grand slam by Leandro Emiliani, it was a 7-2 game, and the Nationals were only 40% done with its scoring that inning. By the end of the nightmare, it was 13-2, and the game was completely out of reach.

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 21%
    Colby Smelley: 2-for-4
    (8 votes)
  • 0%
    James Beard: 1-for-3, BB, SB
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Misael González: 1-for-3, 2B, RBI
    (0 votes)
  • 2%
    Wes Kath: 1-for-3, BB
    (1 vote)
  • 76%
    Kohl Simas: 5 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 9 K
    (29 votes)
38 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 3%
    Colson Montgomery: 0-for-4
    (1 vote)
  • 3%
    DJ Gladney: 0-for-4, K
    (1 vote)
  • 16%
    Chase Plymell: 1⁄3 IP, 5 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 1 K
    (5 votes)
  • 77%
    Adisyn Coffey: 0 IP, 5 R (4 ER), 3 H, 3 BB, 0 K
    (24 votes)
31 votes total Vote Now

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