It's funny that the huge 17 inning outburst by Sugar Land was done against former astros great Pedro Baez who started that inning.
The insane thing about that inning was that it wasn't like they were doing it against complete nobodies or position players. 3 of the 4 pitchers have played in the majors, and the other one was a highly touted amateur who got a huge bonus. Incendently, he was the Alvarez the Dodgers would not part with for Josh Fields.
Diosmerky Taveras @ Aberdeen: 6 IP, 4 H, 6 K Taveras now has a 1.24 ERA in 10 starts (tonight was his 10th start). He has an 11.10 ERA in 9 relief appearances. Joey Loperfido has driven in all four Asheville runs tonight with a two-run single and a two-run triple. He's done nothing but hit at both A levels, so it wouldn't be too much of a shock if he started 2023 in Corpus.
Correction: Temple struck out 5 over four perfect innings. Logan VanWey allowed a hit, walked one, and struck out six in three scoreless to get his first win as a pro.
Scott Schreiber returns from his rehab assignment. Batting leadoff and playing first base for Corpus today.
You are probably right and I overestimated. I do think Mancini will get at least 3 years and at the higher AAV relative to his war projections. So maybe something closer to $40M/3yr. Fwiw I would love him back in Houston at that price.
Michael Brantley signed with the Astros as a FA on a two year deal, $16 large per. Mancini isn't quite the player Brantley was when the Astros first signed him. I would not be surprised if a two year deal is the market for Mancini this offseason ... unless Baltimore offers him more to return there.
I think Mancini is pretty comparable to Brantley; not as good of a hitter but more defensive value and younger. So an extra year at 20% lower AAV seems to make sense.
He threw 72 pitches, 49 strikes (68.06%). Pretty good. I am rooting so hard for him to finally put it all together.
The last outing wasn’t the disaster one- that was two outings ago. His last album was run of the mill bad (something like 3 runs, 3 hits, 4 walks 2 K’s in 3 innings.
I really want Forrest to get it together, I've been looking forward to him being that highly hyped pitcher that's finally able to work out and meet the expectations. Had so many back and forth with my co-worker about Forrest, I really don't want to be wrong.
2022 draft class update: Drew Gilbert is still injured, but I've mused about his raw power vs his in game power from this draft preview posted here a while back: One part came out at me: This after mentioning that Gilbert has 70 raw power but only 55 in game power thanks to poor weight transfers from his hips. I really hope the hitting coaches can unleash the full might of his 115 MPH exit velos, 55 to 70 is the difference between George Springer power and Jose Bautista power, who coincidentally was a guy with the exact opposite problem: amazing hips and weight transfer, but a really slow bat. Jacob Melton is tearing up Single-A right now. After looking lost in Florida, in 29 ABs in Fayetteville, he's rocking a .934 OPS with only 4 Ks and 4 BBs to match. For reference, Quincy Hamilton posted a .885 OPS in his time there this year, while being a full two years older. After the last Astros prep pick posted a .590 OPS in the FCL last year, Ryan Clifford in 32 ABs is tearing the place up, posting an .880 OPS. However, he's already struck out 13 times, but more impressively, he's walked 9 times. He's currently rocking a higher OBP (.442) than SLG% (.438). Collin Price is managing A-ball quite well too. He has 50 ABs, giving us a much better sample size compared to the three above. He's hitting .300 so far, and despite his 6'6" frame, only has 13 strikeouts on the year to pair with 6 walks. A 26% K rate is slightly above average for A-ball, which I'll take as encouraging with the sheer amount of strike zone he has to cover. Zach Cole Jr. is on the struggle bus right now, .522 OPS in 66 ABs. Has 10 SB on the season so far, yet to be caught. The other Zachary, Zach Dezenzo, is tearing the cover off the ball to a tune of 1.087 OPS. He's rocking a 33% K rate right now in 42 ABs. One of those numbers is unsustainable and will break downward soon. Jackson Loftin joins Cole Jr. on the struggle bus, .606 OPS with an OBP (.327) higher than his slugging% (.279) Tommy Sacco Jr. also riding the bus: .579 OPS in 40 PA. Another guy with an OBP (.304) higher than his slugging (.275) Tim Borden II is still in the FCL, and not inspiring much with a .679 OPS with 8 Ks in only 24 ABs. He joins the other three SS on the struggle bus. I'll go out on a limb and proclaim Garrett McGowan the driver of the struggle bus. 42 ABs, 16 Ks, a horrendous .115 BABIP all adds up to an OPS south of .300. John Garcia rides the back of the struggle bus in the FCL, in 18 ABs, he's yet to record a professional hit. None of the pitchers have made their debuts yet. Its important to remember that this is SSS theater for these guys so far, and K% might be more important than OPS this low in the minors. Anyone who I didn't mention about their K% has one around 25%. I'll put the Over/Under of Major Leaguers out of this bunch at 2.5. I still think Gilbert is a lock and a half and Melton looks really good in full time ball. Price and Clifford are the wild cards of the lot, but Clifford looks promising for an 18 year old.
People forget that he is 6'7. He is a big time propsect if he is pitching well. Good sign is that he is clearly working on pitches and still having success. Should be on the big club next year.
