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Yoelqui Céspedes made an impact right away, homering in his first career Triple-A game.
Laura Wolff/Charlotte Knights

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White Sox Minor League Update: September 10, 2023

Yoelqui Céspedes homers in his first Triple-A game, and the Dash and Cannon Ballers lose in their season finales

By Darren Black
/ new

The first of two games where a White Sox affiliate outhit its opponent but still lost. And in both cases, the loss was due to issuing a lot of walks. The Knights put more runners on base via walk than hit today, which is pretty hard in a game with 15 runners on base. Luke Farrell was the only pitcher to avoid a free pass, and he was the last arm of the game. Brent Honeywell and Caleb Freeman bore the brunt of the walks, combining for six. Honeywell struggled the most all-around, though, by starting the game, only getting through three innings, and giving up two homers. So, lack of command and getting hit hard; not a great combination.

On the good side, where all the warm feelings are, is the offense. Every Knight had a hit today, as the team came up with 11. Nate Mondou and Yoelqui Céspedes were the two with multiple hits to get to that 11 mark. For Céspedes, it was his first Triple-A game after a bad season in Birmingham. He had, clearly, a good day for Charlotte, and it was capped by a two-run homer in the sixth.

Poll

Who was the Knights MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 0%
    Nate Mondou: 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K
    (0 votes)
  • 100%
    Yoelqui Céspedes: 2-for-4, 1 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K
    (36 votes)
36 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Knights Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 90%
    Brent Honeywell: 3 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
    (27 votes)
  • 10%
    Yohan Ramirez: 1 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
    (3 votes)
30 votes total Vote Now

[Poe Dameron voice] Somehow, the Barons outhit Biloxi and lost this game, 8-3. Now, it isn’t as surprising as Emperor Palpatine randomly returning. Barons pitching walked nine batters to go along with the eight hits. Matt Thompson had the worst go of it in his 3 2⁄3 innings: He walked five batters, gave up three hits, and allowed four runs, all highs for the pitching staff. He should have one more start this season — and maybe one more start in his White Sox career. Jared Kelley took over for him, another failed pitching prospect, and had awful command as well. He three more balls (17) than strikes (15), as he could not get to an inning pitched.

The good here is Garrett Crochet. Not sure when he will be back in the majors, but he has had a rough go of it during his rehab in Double-A. Today was a good one, though, with three batters faced and three punchouts.

The offense was led by a perfect day from Moisés Castillo. He went 4-for-4 with both Barons extra-base hits. He also accounted for two of the three runs Bham had, a run scored and an RBI. Tim Elko had a decent day as well, two singles. He is hit-or-miss (pun intended) at this point in his Double-A stint; he just strikes out too much and doesn’t walk enough to really keep a consistent line. On the Colson Montgomery watch, he had no hits as his batting average dropped to .217, but he did walk and score.

Poll

Who was the Barons MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 61%
    Moisés Castillo: 4-for-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K
    (22 votes)
  • 38%
    Garrett Crochet: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
    (14 votes)
36 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Barons Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 48%
    Matt Thompson: 3 2⁄3 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 6 K
    (14 votes)
  • 37%
    Jared Kelley: 2⁄3 IP, 1 H, 2 R (1 ER), 3 BB, 0 K
    (11 votes)
  • 13%
    Terrell Tatum: 0-for-3, 0 BB, 2 K
    (4 votes)
29 votes total Vote Now

It was the final game of the year for the Dash, and for the pitching, this game could not have started or ended much worse than it did. Norge Vera got the start and gave up five of the seven runs of the opening frame. He only recorded one out during that time, and walked five — just an awful game for a prospect in free-fall. To end it, Frander Veras had a similar outing, with just two outs recorded against five runs allowed in the eighth.

In between all of that, Tyler Schweitzer actually had a good outing. He went four strong and his only hit given up was also the only run, a solo homer. He struck out five, so he had the breaking ball going well, it seems. Schweitzer could be a guy that gets a game or two with Birmingham as their season continues.

The offense actually did really well, putting up six runs. However, with 20 runners on base, it really should have converted more. The Dash just got unlucky, with two homers coming when nobody was on base. Brooks Baldwin hit his fifth High-A home run and Mario Camilletti his first. They both had three hits to lead the team, too. Bryce Willits reached base the most, with two singles and two walks. Don’t worry, Jacob Burke (of course) reached base today. He had the third and final extra-base hit, a double, among his three times on. He’ll be heading to the Arizona Fall League next month.

Poll

Who was the Dash MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 75%
    Brooks Baldwin: 3-for-5, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K
    (22 votes)
  • 10%
    Mario Camilletti: 3-for-5, 1 HR, 2 R, 0 BB, 0 K
    (3 votes)
  • 13%
    Tyler Schweitzer: 4 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
    (4 votes)
29 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Dash Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 15%
    Frander Veras: 2⁄3 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
    (5 votes)
  • 84%
    Norge Vera: 1⁄3 IP, 0 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, 0 K
    (28 votes)
33 votes total Vote Now

The season finale for the Cannon Ballers is a walk-off loser after Connery Peters gives up two runs in the ninth. He was one of the two pitchers to give up runs today, the other was Mark McLaughlin, who relieved Keener. This was a good Keener start, as the 2023 third rounder showed good command in what should be his last outing this season. No walks and just 11 pitches out of the zone in 38 pitches. McLaughlin on the other hand, who ends the year with a 14.11 Low-A ERA, and really struggled with command. He walked four while giving up two runs.

The offense clearly didn’t do its job as a lineup, just three runs with seven hits. Calvin Harris had a nice day, though, and came up with all three RBIs. He went 2-for-4 with a double to get those three runs in. Jacob González didn’t get one of those seven hits, but he did walk twice at least. The only other bat to join the multihit party was first baseman Ryan Galanie.

Poll

Who was the Kannapolis MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 0%
    Ryan Galanie: 2-for-4, 0 BB, 0 K
    (0 votes)
  • 53%
    Calvin Harris: 2-for-4, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K
    (17 votes)
  • 46%
    Seth Keener: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
    (15 votes)
32 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Kannapolis MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 7%
    Mark McLaughlin: 3 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 1 K
    (2 votes)
  • 81%
    Connery Peters: 2⁄3 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
    (22 votes)
  • 11%
    Jordan Sprinkle: 0-for-4, 0 BB, 1 K
    (3 votes)
27 votes total Vote Now

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