In the Dominican on Wednesday night, Andrew Lambo went 0-for-4 with a strikeout, continuing his poor start to the winter. He’s now 3-for-38 in 11 games, and he’s on an 0-for-17 streak in his last five games. The fans in the Dominican are know to have a short leash when it comes to import players. Lambo will have to start hitting soon or his winter season will be over. Last year, Tony Sanchez was sent home after hitting .100 in his first ten games and the home crowd had a huge influence on that decision to let him go.
Alen Hanson was out of the starting lineup for the second night in a row and again he was used off the bench late in the game. He pinch-ran in the eighth inning during his team’s 2-0 win. In 13 games, he’s hitting .245/.275/.265, with one double, two walks and two stolen bases.
One note with Hanson’s Toros del Este team. They hired Stan Kyles as their pitching coach. He was the pitching coach for Altoona in 2013-14 and Indianapolis in 2015.
Mel Rojas Jr. went 0-for-4 with a strikeout. He had those two big games last week, where he hit a total of three homers, but he’s failed to pick up a hit in his last three games.
Pedro Florimon made his winter debut for Estrellas de Oriente and went 1-for-3 with a single. He started at shortstop. He played 24 games this season for the Pirates, though he had just 23 at-bats and a .334 OPS.
Josh Wall faced two batters, allowing a single and picking up a strikeout. One of the two runners he inherited scored on the single. He has a 2.16 ERA in 8.1 innings over eight appearances.
One last note out of the Dominican. Aramis Ramirez has announced his retirement, but he could play this December for Tigres del Licey. On Wednesday afternoon, he said he might play for his hometown fans so they can see him one last time.
In Venezuela, Jose Osuna went 3-for-5 to raise his average to .390 through 22 games. He has collected at least two hits in six of his last ten games. Osuna came into Wednesday with the third best average in Venezuela and the sixth best OPS.
A.J. Morris had a tough outing on Wednesday, giving up three runs over three innings. He allowed five hits, two walks and he struck out three batters. He has a 4.15 ER in 17.1 innings, with 12 walks. That’s a high number for Morris, who walked 22 batters in 84.2 innings with Indianapolis this season.
In Mexico, Carlos Munoz went 0-for-3 before being removed for a pinch-hitter.
