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White Sox Minor League Update: July 26

A big day for the “other guys,” with five good innings from Kyle Kubat, a four-hit night for Raudy Read, another homer for Ben Norman, and three more hits for Colby Smelley

By Darren Black
/ new
Kyle Kubat turned in five innings and just one earned run, which should have led to a win for Charlotte.
Laura Wolff/Charlotte Knights

A good start from Kyle Kubat gets squandered, as the bullpen gives up the lead he held and the offense could not convert 11 runners on base into more than two runs. Quite a few batters reached multiple times today: Mark Payton (who had the only extra-base hit), Lenyn Sosa, Tyler Neslony, and Xavier Fernández. Sosa will need more of these to match his highs as a Baron, he is hitting just .262 and his OPS keeps falling (although not today), as it sits at .625. Tyler Neslony had a pretty good Double-A campaign, too, but has struggled even more than Sosa in Charlotte; his two hits put him up to a measly .332 OPS.

Again, Kubat was really good his five innings, but Hunter Schryver and Kade McClure gave up four runs the next two innings to sink Charlotte. Schryver should eventually see MLB, but he struggled with command today (three walks). McClure gave up a two-run homer in his effort.

Poll

Who was the Knights MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 16%
    Mark Payton: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 SB
    (8 votes)
  • 84%
    Kyle Kubat: 5 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 6 K
    (42 votes)
50 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Knights Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 90%
    Hunter Schryver: 1 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 1 K
    (39 votes)
  • 4%
    Kade McClure: 1 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 1 K
    (2 votes)
  • 4%
    Carlos Pérez: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 1 K
    (2 votes)
43 votes total Vote Now

They had a lead and even more opportunities, but the Barons still come up short. They did not have the lead for a long time, just for a brief stretch in the fifth inning. However, a 3-for-17 clip with runners in scoring position certainly means Birmingham should have scored more than six runs, but 13 strikeouts will help extinguish those opps. If you are looking to vote for anybody to win the MVP, Raudy Read is your guy: He had a four-hit night that had three extra-base hits and one homer.

All of that came out to four RBIs on the day. His fellow masher, Craig Dedelow, had a homer as well. On the top prospect front, Oscar Colás finally went hitless in a Double-A game. José Rodríguez did not get a hit today, but he still reached base twice with walks, which are just as good as singles, sometimes. Off of one of those walks, Popeye stole his 32nd base of the season for the Barons. Yoelqui Céspedes stole a base, too, while going 1-for-4 on the day. If you are putting Evan Skoug on your prospects to watch list, he had three passed balls in this one, to double his season total in just one day.

On the pitching front, Emilio Vargas had three good innings and two bad ones, basically. His two bad ones came in the third and fifth, where he allowed two runs in both. He at least left with the lead. but that quickly went away with Fraser Ellard allowing the tying run and Vince Vannelle putting up two runs to put the game out of reach.

Poll

Who was the Barons MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 89%
    Raudy Read: 4-for-5, 1 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K
    (42 votes)
  • 10%
    Vote for Raudy
    (5 votes)
47 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Barons Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 25%
    Vince Vannelle: 1 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 0 K
    (8 votes)
  • 34%
    DJ Burt: 0-for-5, 0 BB, 1 K
    (11 votes)
  • 40%
    Evan Skoug: 0-for-2, 2 BB, 0 K, 3 Passed Balls
    (13 votes)
32 votes total Vote Now

The Dash had the lead, gave it up, had one again, and lost in extras on a walk-off, three-run homer — an exciting but un-fun day for Winston-Salem. Even though the staff allowed eight runs, they were not really that terrible. Three runs were unearned, and Chase Solesky allowed the most with three in five innings, which is not bad. They were just not very timely runs to give up, and of course the final three were the nail in the coffin.

The offense was effective for what they produced, eight hits and four walks. It is kind of amazing that Winston-Salem got six runs while going 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. I guess two homers will help that. Ben Norman and Alsander Womack both hit homers in the second inning, to give the Dash their first lead. They also had two hits, along with Tyler Osik and Luis Mieses. In what is becoming a regular occurrence, Mieses hit his 31st double of the year, and in another pretty normal event, Colson Montgomery reached base. It was just the one time, a walk, but Montgomery still got on. Something similar happened with Duke Ellis: No, he did not record a hit or a walk, but he still got on base and proceeded to steal second, his 39th of the year.

Poll

Who was the Dash MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 48%
    Ben Norman: 2-for-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K
    (16 votes)
  • 51%
    Alsander Womack: 2-for-3, 1 HR, 1 BB, 0 K
    (17 votes)
33 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Dash Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 71%
    Ty Madrigal: 1⁄3 IP, 2 ER (3 R), 1 H, 1 BB, 0 K
    (23 votes)
  • 18%
    Bryan Ramos: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 Error
    (6 votes)
  • 9%
    Duke Ellis: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 3 K, 1 SB
    (3 votes)
32 votes total Vote Now

Another win for Kannapolis, as the top two second-half teams in the division battled today, and the Cannon Ballers come out on top to keep the division lead. It was all about the top third of the lineup for them, with the three hitters combining to get on base eight times. Yes, half of the action came from just three spots. Colby Smelley reached base with three singles, while Wes Kath had two hits and a walk. One of those hits was a double to help push his OPS over .700. On the diamond though, he was tabbed for his 20th error of the year. Smelley is a few ticks away from an .800 OPS on the year but for this game, he was responsible for the first RBI.

Samil Polanco had himself a game too, he just was lower in the lineup. One of his two hits was a bases-clearing triple later in the first inning.

For the most part, the pitching was very good. Jerry Burke started the game and was great. He went four innings, with no walks and just one run allowed. His replacement, Jesus Valles, was the only sore spot. He let up three runs in the seventh inning to make it a one-run game, though the rest of the pen kept it there to hold on for the win.

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 22%
    Jerry Burke: 4 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K
    (10 votes)
  • 36%
    Samil Polanco: 2-for-4, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K
    (16 votes)
  • 34%
    Colby Smelley: 3-for-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K
    (15 votes)
  • 6%
    Wes Kath: 2-for-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
    (3 votes)
44 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 11%
    Wilfred Veras: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K
    (4 votes)
  • 88%
    Jesus Valles: 1 2⁄3 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 1 K
    (31 votes)
35 votes total Vote Now

Great performances all around earned the Complex Sox an 8-0 win. The worst good game probably goes to Dylan Burns and his shutout 4 2⁄3 innings. Why was it bad, well, nine runners allowed on base, with five of them via walk; timely double plays and four strikeouts helped keep runs off of the scoreboard. The rest of the bullpen had much better command. That includes Anderson Comas, who is having a stellar first stint as a pitcher right now, lowering his ERA to 2.25.

On offense, two big hits led to five of the eight runs. Jhoneiker Betancourt had a two-run shot, his first homer in the ACL, to give the Sox their first two runs of the game. He added a couple more RBIs on a double later in the game. Alvaro Aguero did do Betancourt one better with a three-run homer, though the rest of his at-bats ended in strikeouts. So far, no draftees have appeared in games yet, as they all flood to Birmingham once they sign.

Poll

Who was the ACL Sox MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 89%
    Jhoneiker Betancourt: 2-for-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K
    (25 votes)
  • 3%
    Jayson Gonzalez: 2-for-3, 3 R, 1 BB, 1 K
    (1 vote)
  • 7%
    Dylan Burns: 4 2⁄3 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 5 BB, 4 K
    (2 votes)
28 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the ACL Sox Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 100%
    Victor Quezada: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 2 K
    (24 votes)
  • 0%
    Manuel Guariman: 0-for-3, 0 BB, 1 K
    (0 votes)
24 votes total Vote Now

The first two arms from the staff today were just not good enough, but the offense kept pace, and they won it with a walk-off bomb from Ronny Hernandez with two outs in the ninth inning. He had the only homer for the Sox, and it came at the best time, but Jose Mendoza and Ronny Robles struggled in their six 6 1⁄3 innings, to put the team in a walk-off position. Mendoza allowed two runs in the first two innings, and then Robles got tagged for three of his own, all in the seventh inning. Those three tied the game until the ninth.

Pretty much the entire lineup had a good day, as only one batter, Ricardo Aguilar, did not have a hit. Multiple players had two, including the player of the game, Ronny Hernandez. Erick Hernández, the top prospect in the game, came away with a single in five tries. His struggles continue, after having a good start to his DSL campaign.

Poll

Who was the DSL Sox MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 8%
    Daniel Gonzalez: 2 2⁄3 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K
    (2 votes)
  • 92%
    Ronny Hernandez: 2-for-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 0 K
    (23 votes)
25 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the DSL Sox Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 43%
    Ronny Robles: 3 1⁄3 IP, 3 ER, 2 H, 3 BB, 2 K
    (10 votes)
  • 56%
    Ricardo Aguilar: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 3 K
    (13 votes)
23 votes total Vote Now

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