The Bradenton Marauders had a power display on Friday night. The offense combined for three home runs, which wasn’t the biggest power display they’ve had this season. It was a continuation of a consistent trend at the level.
Axiel Plaz hit his 12th homer of the year, which ties for the team lead. What’s impressive about Plaz is that he hasn’t been in Bradenton all year. The 18-year-old joined the Marauders on May 17th, hitting a homer in his first game. He’s never shown this type of power before, with four homers in 184 at-bats in rookie ball. Plaz has a .232/.310/.552 line, so he’s mostly hitting for power and not a lot else. That’s still a good outcome from a player so young.
Omar Alfonzo hit his sixth homer of the year. The 20-year-old Alfonzo is batting .261/.373/.386, and also has 13 doubles this year. He’s consistently hitting the ball hard, and has the highest on-base percentage on the team. He also has the highest average, showing some variation in production from just power.
Keiner Delgado hit his seventh homer of the year. The Pirates added the 20-year-old in the JT Brubaker trade this year. He’s batting .229/.301/.385 with 14 stolen bases to go with his power. Delgado hit eight homers and stole 36 bases in the FCL last year with the Yankees.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won game one 5-2.
- RHP Domingo German: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 1 HR
- CF Ji Hwan Bae: 2-for-3, BB, 2 RBI, SB
- 2B Liover Peguero: 1-for-3, BB, SB
- LF Matt Fraizer: 2-for-3, 2B, RBI
- RHP Ben Heller: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Domingo German has a 5.36 ERA in ten starts and 50.1 innings with Indianapolis. This was one of his best outings of the year, matching a start he had a month ago where he also allowed two runs in six innings. This was only the second time German has pitched six innings this year. He has yet to gain enough consistency to be used as an option in the majors. Ji Hwan Bae stole his tenth base, and Liover Peguero stole his ninth.
STATCAST HEROES
German had success working heavily off his curveball, which had six whiffs on 15 swings, along with nine more called strikes for a 48% CSW.
INDIANAPOLIS lost game two 8-2.
- DH Malcom Nunez: 3-for-3, 2B
- 1B Seth Beer: 2-for-3, RBI
- C Jason Delay: 1-for-2, BB
- LF Gilberto Celestino: 2-for-2, BB, RBI
- RHP Luis Cessa: 4.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 1 HR
Malcom Nunez picked up a hit in game one, and went 3-for-3 in game two, with his tenth double of the year. He went 4-for-6 on the day. Seth Beer added hits in both games.
STATCAST HEROES
The hardest batted ball was a 104.0 MPH single from Beer. Jake Lamb had the hardest hit in the first game, with a 104.3 MPH single.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 2-1
- LHP Jaden Woods: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
- LF Yoyner Fajardo: 2-for-4
- C Abrahan Gutierrez: 1-for-4, 2B
- RF Tres Gonzalez: 2-for-4, RBI
- 1B Joe Perez: 1-for-4, 3B
The Pirates drafted Jaden Woods in the seventh round out of Georgia last year. The left-hander put up a 2.13 ERA in 25.1 innings across 20 appearances in High-A Greensboro. He struck out 31 and walked 11 at the lower level. He was since promoted, and has a 4.50 ERA in 8 innings with Altoona. Woods struggled in his first two appearances, but hasn’t allowed an earned run in 6.1 innings over his last three games, with six strikeouts and one walk.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 8-0
- RHP Alessandro Ercolani: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K
- C Shawn Ross: 1-for-3, HR, BB, 2 RBI
- LF-3B Maikol Escotto: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
- CF P.J. Hilson: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI
- DH Hudson Head: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI
Shawn Ross hit his 17th homer of the year, putting him in a tie with Nick Cimillo for the system and Greensboro team lead. Maikol Escotto hit his sixth homer of the year. Alessandro Ercolani moved back to the rotation, after pitching mostly in relief since struggling as a starter in May. Ercolani threw four shutout innings, which followed two shutout frames in relief last week. The 20-year-old has an advanced pitch mix, and has shown the potential for putting up results on the mound this year.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 7-6, despite the power display.
- C Omar Alfonzo: 3-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
- SS Keiner Delgado: 1-for-4, HR, RBI
- 1B Axiel Plaz: 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
- LF Braylon Bishop: 2-for-4, 2 SB
- RHP Garrett McMillan: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR
Braylon Bishop stole two bases, giving him ten on the season. The 21-year-old is batting .294/.400/.412 this month. All of the offense from Bradenton came from the top four hitters in the lineup.
STATCAST HEROES
The home run from Alfonzo was hit 110.6 MPH, traveling 420 feet. Plaz hit his homer 424 feet at 103.6 MPH. Delgado’s homer traveled 364 feet at 94.3 MPH. Garrett McMillan had seven whiffs on 16 swings against his four-seam, along with seven more called strikes for a 42% CSW on the pitch. It averaged 91 MPH, and he paired the fastball with a changeup, slider, curveball, and sinker.
ROOKIE: FCL PIRATES
FCL PIRATES lost 7-4
- 3B Yerry De Los Santos: 2-for-4
- C Richard Ramirez: 1-for-3, 2B, RBI
- CF Jhonson Pena: 2-for-4, 2B
- 1B Luke Scherrer: 2-for-4, 2B
- SS Jhonny Severino: 1-for-4, BB, SB
Yerry De Los Santos has been one of the best hitters in rookie ball this year. He’s taken his game to a new level in the month of July, batting .462/.500/.846 in 26 at-bats. Richard Ramirez has gone the other direction, hitting well until this month. He does have two good hitting games in a row, so hopefully it’s a sign that the 19-year-old catcher is getting back to the offense in the first two months that saw him batting .300 with an OPS over .800.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK vs DSL PIRATES GOLD
DSL PIRATES GOLD won 3-2
- 1B Edward Florentino: 1-for-2, HR, 2 BB, RBI
- DH Jonathan Rivero: 3-for-4, 2 RBI
- LHP Nicolas Carreno: 3.0 IP, 0 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
The Gold team pitched a seven-inning no hitter, but still allowed two runs after a hit batter and a throwing error in the third. Edward Florentino hit his third homer of the year. He was signed this January, and has a .282 average and a .977 OPS.
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – RHP Braxton Ashcraft (1-0, 0.49)
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – TBD
- High-A: Greensboro, 6:30 PM – RHP Patrick Reilly (4-4, 3.50)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – RHP Carlos Jimenez (2-3, 4.85)
- Rookie: FCL Pirates, 10:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 10:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 10:00 AM – TBD
