Termarr Johnson hit his sixth homer of the year for Greensboro on Wednesday night. The 2022 fourth overall pick put the Grasshoppers on the board with a two run shot in the third inning, giving them a 2-0 lead in an eventual 8-2 victory.
Johnson got off to a slow start this year in High-A, after spending the second half of last season at the level. He’s been hitting well over the last month, with a .270/.390/.500 line in 123 plate appearances since May 18th. He also has five of his six home runs during this span.
Drafted as one of the best pure hitters out of the high school ranks in 2022, Johnson hasn’t shown much of his pure hitting ability in the stat line. He batted under .250 at both A-ball levels in 2023, although he did have an on-base percentage north of .400, due to a high walk rate. He was showing more of a power approach last year, combining for 18 home runs.
Lately, Johnson is showing an approach that hits for average, gets on base, and adds power. He’s walking at a 13.8% rate over the last month, with a 19.5% strikeout rate. His isolated power is .230, and he’s getting on base 39% of the time. These are the results that made Johnson such a high draft pick two years ago.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 2-0
- RHP Braxton Ashcraft: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K
- SS Liover Peguero: 2-for-4, 2B
- 2B Andres Alvarez: 1-for-4, 2B
- 1B Seth Beer: 2-for-3, BB
- 3B-1B Malcom Nunez: 1-for-4
Braxton Ashcraft made his second start in Triple-A. He’s allowed one run in 10.1 innings, with eight strikeouts and three walks. Brady Feigl came on in relief and stranded the bases loaded with one out, preserving the shutout. Liover Peguero had two hits, including a double. Seth Beer made his Triple-A debut with the Pirates, picking up two hits.
STATCAST HEROES
Ashcraft had nine whiffs on 15 swings against his slider. He had two whiffs each on the fastball, changeup, and curveball. His fastball sat 95.2 MPH, touching 97.2. The hardest hit of the game was a 107.9 MPH single from Beer.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA won 6-4
- RF Sammy Siani: 3-for-5, HR, 2 RBI, SB
- 1B Joe Perez: 2-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI
- SS Tsung-Che Cheng: 2-for-5, 2B, SB
- RHP Enmanuel Chapman: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
- RHP Eddy Yean: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Sammy Siani hit his third homer at the Double-A level, a solo shot in the third inning to get Altoona on the board. Joe Perez and Tsung-Che Cheng both had doubles in their multi-hit games. Cheng stole his 13th base of the season. Drake Fellows got the start and was bounced in the first after giving up three runs. Altoona’s bullpen combined for one run in 8.1 innings, led by five shutout from Enmanuel Chapman and Eddy Yean.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 8-2, led by the home run from Termarr Johnson
- RHP Wilber Dotel: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K
- RF P.J. Hilson: 2-for-3, HR, 3 RBI, SB
- CF Lonnie White Jr.: 2-for-4, 2B, SB
- C Geovany Planchart: 2-for-4, RBI
- LF Hudson Head: 1-for-3, BB, SB
P.J. Hilson hit his seventh homer of the year, a three run shot in the eighth inning to close out the scoring. He also stole his sixth base of the season. Lonnie White Jr. had two hits, including his seventh double. Wilber Dotel struggled during the month of May, and into the month of June. He’s gotten back on track in his last two starts, combining for one earned run in 11.1 innings, with 11 strikeouts and five walks. Wednesday’s contest was one of his best control games since April, when he had a 1.17 ERA in four starts to open the season.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 10-2
- RHP Carlson Reed: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
- 1B Axiel Plaz: 1-for-3, HR, 2 RBI
- RF Esmerlyn Valdez: 2-for-4, 2B
- 2B Keiner Delgado: 2-for-4
- DH Eddy Rodriguez: 1-for-4, SB
Axiel Plaz hit his sixth homer of the year, giving the Marauders an early 2-0 lead in the second inning. Carlson Reed had one of his worst starts of the year, thugh it was mostly limited to one bad inning. He gave up three hits in the third inning to allow two of his runs. He also issued a walk in the sixth, then saw the runner score after a stolen base, a throwing error, and a wild pitch.
STATCAST HEROES
The hardest hit of the game was a 107 MPH double from Esmerlyn Valdez. The home run from Plaz traveled 410 feet at 105.7 MPH. He also had a 101.1 MPH lineout.
ROOKIE: FCL PIRATES
FCL PIRATES lost 13-5 in the completion of a 6/15 game
- SS Jhonny Severino: 1-for-4, 2B, BB, 3 RBI
- 2B Yerry De Los Santos: 2-for-2, RBI
- 2B John Lopez: 1-for-3, 2B
- 3B John Zorilla: 2-for-4, BB
- CF Eduardo Oviedo: 2-for-4, RBI
John Lopez was drafted in the 15th round last year out of the Puerto Rican Baseball Academy. He’s only played in four games this year, after getting three games at the end of last year. So far this season he’s 4-for-9 with two doubles, a walk, and four strikeouts.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK won 7-6
- CF Andres Villafane: 2-for-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI
- RF Yosmar Gimenez: 2-for-4
- 3B Kendrick Herrera: 1-for-4
Villafane hit two doubles, giving him three on the season. Gimenez picked up two hits. Both players are in their second pro seasons, after signing in January 2023. They’re both having better seasons this year than last year’s pro debuts.
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – RHP Jake Woodford (1-3, 5.01)
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:35 PM – TBD
- High-A: Greensboro, 6:30 PM – LHP Dominic Perachi (3-1, 2.34)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – RHP Hung-Leng Chang (2-4, 4.36)
- Rookie: FCL Pirates, 12:00 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 – TBD
