Matt Appel (NO, he's not related to Mark), the Tri-City announcer, just noted on the broadcast that Ronnie Mitchell and Jon Kemmer have some serious raw power.
Conrad Gregor drives in the first TC run of the season. Scoring on the play was.... Tony Kemp, who doubled to lead off the TC half of the 1st. Fitting.
Oh. Did I mention that Jon Kemmer's got some big-time power? Solo shot in the 2nd gives TC a 2-0 lead.
Jon Kemmer. 4-4 in his debut. Kevin Comer absolutely nasty tonight as TC knocks off Vermont 9-3. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Liked what I saw from Astros' Tri-City club's opener. Kevin Comer dominant (one infield hit in 4 IP). Fans will really love Tony Kemp.</p>— Zachary Levine (@zacharylevine) <a href="https://twitter.com/zacharylevine/statuses/346809032562077696">June 18, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Monday Stories Happy Short-Season Opening Day! Well, Tri-City put on a show. Uh... I really don't want to recap the OKC game. But I guess I have to, so... Recap Round Rock 12, Oklahoma City 2 The first 3 pitchers for the Redhawks were just manhandled. Brett Oberholtzer only got 1 out and allowed 4 runs (3 earned) on 2 hits and walked 4. Alex Sogard was the first man out and he allowed 6 on 6 hits, walked 2, and struck out 3 in 2 2/3. Rhiner Cruz came on for 2 and gave up 2 runs (1 earned) on 4 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2. The other 2 pitchers and a CF moonlighting as one combined to throw 4 scoreless, though. Jason Stoffel had 2 perfect innings, while Kevin Chapman worked around 2 hits to retire the side in the 8th, striking out 1. Che-Hsuan Lin, in his 2nd pitching appearance of the season, threw a 1-2-3 9th, striking out 1. Fernando Martinez had an RBI groundout in the 7th and Jose Martinez hit an RBI single in the 9th. Marc Krauss and Jake Elmore had 2 hits apiece. Jonathan Singleton went 1-4. Well, that was a pretty crappy series. The Redhawks will now hit the road for 4 in New Orleans. Brad Peacock will get the start in the series opener, and his opponent will be Brian Flynn. First pitch is at 7:00. San Antonio 8, Corpus Christi 6 Well, the Hooks wrapped up the Texas League South's 1st-half championship, but they stumbled to end it. They couldn't take advantage of 5 Missions errors. The offense put up 2 in the 1st and 2nd, and 1 in the 3rd and 4th, and they had golden chances to put up more, but they ended up stranding 2 runners in the 6th and the 7th. George Springer went 2-4 with an RBI single in the 1st that put Corpus on the board first. In the 4th, he hit an RBI double. Later in the inning, Jonathan Meyer hit a sac fly. Jio Mier was 2-5 with a 2-run homer (5) in the 2nd. Enrique Hernandez added a solo shot of his own (5) in the 3rd. Zach Johnson was 2-4 with 2 runs scored. Bobby Doran went 3 innings and allowed 3 runs on 6 hits, walked 1, and struck otu 4. Nick Tropeano was smacked around for 4 runs in the 5th; those were all the runs he allowed. He also gave up 7 hits and fanned 4. Andrew Robinson finished it out, and he allowed a solo homer to Jake Blackwood in the 9th. He allowed one other hit and struck out 1. The 2nd half begins in game 3 of this series, as R.J. Alaniz and Jorge De Leon will team up to take on Matt Andriese at 7:05. Lancaster was off The California-Carolina League All-Star Game will be tomorrow night at 7:35 Pacific in San Jose. Quad Cities was off The Midwest League All-Star Game will be tomorrow at 6:00 Eastern in Dayton, Ohio. Tri-City 9, Vermont 3 The ValleyCats kicked off the New York-Penn League in spectacular fashion as they blitzed the Lake Monsters. Assuming starring roles on the offense were Tony Kemp, who went 3-4 with a double, a sac fly in the 3rd, and an RBI single in the 5th. Joining him was Jon Kemmer, who was 4-4 with a solo homer (1) in the 2nd and an RBI single in the 8th. Kemp's double came in the 1st and he would come around to score on Conrad Gregor's single. How appropriate. Everyone had at least 1 hit except for James Ramsay and Ronnie Mitchell, who both drove in a run. Ramsay's came on a force play in the 2nd, and Mitchell's was a fielder's choice in the 8th. Gregor finished 2-3 with a walk and a run scored, while the holdovers from last year's squad, Dan Gulbransen and Ryan Dineen, had 2 hits apiece. Dineen had a double and a run scored, and Gulbransen scored twice. Mitchell and Kemp both had steals (1). Evan Grills had a solid season debut, and a solo homer to Kelvin Rojas was the only ding he suffered in 4 innings. He allowed 2 other hits, walked 2, and struck out 2. Edison Frias allowed 2 runs on 3 hits and struck out 1 in the 5th. Kevin Comer was excellent in his 4 innings as the piggybacker, as he allowed a hit (infield single), walked 1, and struck out 5 for the win. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kevin Comer was around 90 MPH with his fastball tonight but curveball was spot on and most effective pitch</p>— Brooks Parker (@Subber10) <a href="https://twitter.com/Subber10/statuses/346826266781036544">June 18, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Game 2 of the series features Tanner Bushue and TBD against TBD. First pitch is at 7:00 Eastern. Greeneville begins its season Thursday, June 20 Against Bluefield at 7:05 Eastern. GCL Astros begin its season Friday, June 21 Against the Braves at noon Eastern. DSL Athletics 1, DSL Astros 0 in 12 innings Well, there's more than a few pitchers who want to make the jump to America next year. Harold Arauz gave up 4 hits and struck out 5 over 5 shutout innings. Javier Lozano followed that up by allowing a hit and fanning 6 over 3 scoreless as the first man out of the bullpen. Gerardo Juarez also threw 3 scoreless, allowing 2 hits and striking out 4. Victor Mesa, though.... he gave up a solo homer to Luis Barrera in the 12th, which ended up being the only run in the game. That was the only hit and run that Mesa allowed, and he also walked 1, and struck out 1. The offense was held to 4 hits, with Arturo Michelena going 2-4. The DSL Astros will now host the Mariners academy at their complex. First pitch is at 10:30 AM Atlantic. Three Stars 3. Harold Arauz, P, DSL Astros 5 IP, 4 H, 5 K Obviously a raw, raw pitcher. However, he's a guy that I'm predicting to have a really nice season. I think he'll be a fixture in the Academy's rotation this year. 2. Kevin Comer, P, Tri-City W(1-0), 4 IP, H, BB, 5 K Now, he wasn't overpowering, but if he gets that curveball working like he did tonight, then he's going to be a nightmare for NYPL hitters. 1. Tony Kemp, 2B, and Jon Kemmer, LF, Tri-City Kemp: 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI, R, SB (1) Kemmer: 4-4, HR(1), 2 RBI, 2 R, BB Kemp's lone out was when he swung at the first pitch and popped it up. This guy's going to be really fun to watch as he progresses through the system. Kemmer was a guy that was singled out for his BP shows (see post #1301). It didn't take very long for him to send one out in a game situation, though. He slugged .717 this season, which was good for 4th in NAIA Division I, and his 12 homers ranked 7th. He just might become my favorite Day 3 pick in the 2013 draft. Yes, I might like him even more than Devonte German. Honorable Mentions Evan Grills, P, Tri-City: Was overshadowed by Comer's brilliance, but he had a solid outing in his own right. I like seeing pitchers who finish games with more groundouts than flyouts (Grills tonight: 7 groundouts, 2 flyouts). Conrad Gregor, 1B, Tri-City: How fitting is it to drive in your college teammate and your good friend for your first professional RBI? Gregor also made a few really nice plays on defense, too. Jason Stoffel, P, Kevin Chapman, P, and Che-Hsuan Lin, CF, Oklahoma City: For being the only OKC pitchers to not give up runs. Javier Lozano, P, DSL Astros: Uh.... nice outing? I know nothing about him, except that he's from El Salvador. George Springer, CF, Corpus Christi: Not really digging the fact that he's got 3 multi-strikeout games in his last 4, but maybe a game like this is what he needs to get himself back on track, as he's been in a rut as of late. Jio Mier, SS, Corpus Christi: Ditto. Mier's looks like he's getting himself going, though, as his numbers have shown steady improvement as the season has progressed. Goat This was definitely a forgettable outing for Brett Oberholtzer. That's putting it rather nicely. Dishonorable mention goes to Domingo Santana for going 0-5 with a hat trick. He's now fanned 19 times in his last 10 games. 3 hat tricks in that span, too.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Starting pitchers for MWL All-Star Game are <a href="https://twitter.com/Silver_Hawks">@Silver_Hawks</a> LHP Daniel Watts for the East and <a href="https://twitter.com/QCRiverBandits">@QCRiverBandits</a> RHP Lance McCullers for the West</p>— Craig Wieczorkiewicz (@MWLtraveler) <a href="https://twitter.com/MWLtraveler/statuses/347070515942412289">June 18, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This appears most likely. Age 24 and sitting on the Mendoza line at a position with lots of younger depth? I think Burgess could get away with it in an organization that was just filling spots, but we need the time and experience to these younger guys with more promising potential.
Brian T. Smith (@ChronAstros): #Astros acquire RHP Charles Basford from #Yankees, send OF Fernando Martinez to New York. Basford will join Tri-City. #MLB Basford, 22, was a 37th-round pick of the Yankees out of Samford in 2012. With Staten Island in the NYPL last year, he went 2-3 with a 5.18 ERA in 18 relief appearances.
Correa went 2-3 with two singles in the All Star game McCullers went 1 IP 0 H and 2K's Jordan Jankowski gave up 4 runs (0ER)
Tuesday Stories All-Star Tuesday! I already like this Tri-City team. Recap Oklahoma City 3, New Orleans 1 Another solid outing from Brad Peacock, and the Redhawks took the opener with 3 in the top of the 7th. Peacock threw 6 1/3 shutout innings and allowed 6 hits, walked 1, and struck out 5. Science Guy walked and fanned 1 in 1 2/3 hitless and scoreless innings. Josh Zeid did allow an RBI single to Nick Green in the 9th and found himself in a 2nd-and-3rd situation with 2 outs, but he punched out Kyle Skipworth to end it. Brandon Laird scored on an error in the 7th to break a scoreless tie. Carlos Perez had attempted a sac bunt and Skipworth's throw was errant. One batter later, Che-Hsuan Lin hit an RBI single. That was the only RBI for OKC in the game. Perez then scored as Jose Martinez grounded into a double play. Lin and Jake Elmore both went 2-4. Game 2 of this series pits Philip Humber against Duane Below. First pitch is at 7:00. San Antonio 8, Corpus Christi 4 Well, that's a pretty killer hangover. The Hooks have now lost 4 straight after dropping the 2nd-half opener, and the first 3 to the Missions. George Springer went 3-4 with a double, a run scored, and 2 steals (21). Jonathan Meyer was 2-4 with an RBI double in the 6th and a 2-run homer (7) in the 8th. Domingo Santana hit an RBI double in the 8th. R.J. Alaniz went 4 innings and allowed 4 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits, walked 3, and struck out 2. Jorge De Leon allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on 7 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2 in 2 2/3. Gonzalo Sanudo finished it out, allowing a run (on a solo homer to Jeudy Valdez) on 3 hits and walking 1. The Hooks will look to avoid a sweep as they send out Mike Foltynewicz and David Martinez to take on Keyvius Sampson. First pitch is at 7:05. Carolina League 12, California League 2 Andrew Aplin was the starting CF and the leadoff man. He hit a double in the 3rd. Preston Tucker came on to replace Jabari Blash, and he was 1-2 with a double and scored on Matt Duffy's sac fly in the 7th. Duffy finished 1-3. Brady Rodgers pitched a 1-2-3 6th, striking out 1. Lancaster is off today; they kick off the 2nd half at home with a 4-game series against Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday. MWL East 6, MWL West 5 Lance McCullers got the start and he fired a 1-2-3 1st, striking out 2. Jordan Jankowski didn't fare too well, though. He got the last out of the 5th, but not before allowing 4 unearned runs on 4 hits. Carlos Correa went 2-3. Quad Cities will resume the 2nd half on Thursday, when they host Kane County in a 4-game series. Tri-City 9, Vermont 6 I don't know about you guys... but I think Tri-City should be fielding a very strong squad again this season. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>The <a href="https://twitter.com/ValleyCats">@ValleyCats</a> won't lose a game this season. You can take that to the bank.</p>— Astros County (@AstrosCounty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstrosCounty/statuses/347157742466764800">June 19, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Luis Alvarez was 2-3 with an RBI double in the 2nd that put TC on the board first. Then, Tony Kemp led off the 3rd with his first professional homer. That was his only hit of the night; he drew a walk and scored another run before getting lifted for Chan-Jong Moon, who singled in the 8th. Dan Gulbransen hit a 2-run homer (1) in the 5th. Jon Kemmer didn't homer, but he went 1-2 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored. Hilarity ensued in the 6th when D'Andre Toney came to bat with the bases loaded: An error resulted in them clearing. Kemmer singled in the 7th, and an error allowed him to advance to 3rd, and also allowed Alvarez to score. Kemmer would score himself as Ryan Dineen reached on an error. James Ramsay was 2-4 with a run scored. Tanner Bushue went 4 1/3 and allowed 2 runs on 4 hits, walked 1, and struck out 3. Albert Minnis got the final 2 outs of the 5th, working around a hit to do so. Adrian Houser pitched well in his first 2 innings, but the wheels fell off for him in the 8th, when he allowed 4. 3 of those were earned, 2 were inherited runners who scored. Houser also allowed 6 hits in his 2+ innings. Pat Christensen came on and immediately allowed a 2-run single, putting Houser on the hook for 2 more runs. That was the only hit that Christensen surrendered. He didn't allow any runs of his own, and he struck out 1. Chia-Jen Lo, making his season debut, struck out 2 in a 1-2-3 9th to get the save. So... we know of two tandems at Tri-City: Evan Grills/Kevin Comer, and Tanner Bushue/Adrian Houser. The ValleyCats will go for the sweep, and they'll send out Michael Feliz to get it for them. He will be opposed by Jerad Grundy and Matt Stalcup, and I suppose we'll find out who Feliz's partner is when he leaves the game. First pitch will be at 7:00 Eastern. Greeneville begins its season Thursday, June 20 Against Bluefield at 7:05 Eastern. GCL Astros begin its season Friday, June 21 Against the Braves at noon Eastern. DSL Astros 10, DSL Mariners 3 in 8 innings Game was called due to rain. Nice to see an offensive outburst from this largely moribund group. 7 runs in the 2nd appeared to do the trick. Luis Payano went 3-4 with an RBI triple in the inning and followed that up with RBI singles in the 6th and the 8th. Also in the 2nd, Brauly Mejia singled and would eventually score on an error on a sac bunt attempt from Marlon Avea. Jesus Bermejo then scored on a wild pitch. Jarico Reynoso got an RBI on a force play, and then Kristian Trompiz then hit an RBI single that scored Payano. Finally, Hector Roa capped it off with a 2-run homer (2). Bermejo finished 2-4 with an RBI coming on a force play in the 5th. Reynoso was also 2-4, tripling and scoring 2 runs. Arturo Michelena was 2-5 with a triple and scored twice. Geronimo Franzua picked up the win, going 5 innings and allowing 2 runs on 5 hits, walking 1, and fanning 8. Carlos Vasquez allowed a run on 2 hits, walked 1, and struck out 1 in 1 2/3 innings. Javier Saucedo allowed a hit to the only man he faced in the 7th, but Yonquelys Martinez ended the inning by striking out the only man he faced in the 7th. Robert Corniel worked around a hit to retire the side in the 8th. The DSLstros will head to the Mariners' academy first thing in the morning. First pitch is at 10:30 AM Atlantic.
Two things I like a lot at the top of our prospect chain 1. Singleton, after sitting out for a couple of months, has a combined ops so far of over 1.000, he really seems to have the looks of being the real deal. I hope we see him here by August 2. Springer, even with all of the strikeouts, he is keeping his average at .300 and on base over .400. I know a lot of people worry that his average will crash when he hits the big leagues because of the k's. The other way to look at it though, is that if he is able to cut down on his k's how good could the average get . . .i don't think anyone doubts the power/speed combo We currently have a few pretty good mlb hitters, but no one really truly special. I think Altuve and Castro can end up as well above average offensive players at their position, mix in two studs, which is what Singleton and Springer look more and more like, and you have the base for a great offensive team all of the sudden
