Atlanta Braves Week 10 Farm Report: A Week Chock Full of Promotions

It was a busy week as the DSL Braves saw a full slate of games during Week 10. Also, Rome continues to struggle, giving the Atlanta Braves organization their first winless week.

Week 10 in the Atlanta Braves organization featured promotions for catchers William Contreras and Jonathan Morales; outfielders Greyson Jenista and Trey Harris; and reliever Matt Hartman.

Oh yeah, the Atlanta Braves also signed free agent Dallas Keuchel to a one-year, $13 million deal, which almost gave us witness to his first start this past weekend in Gwinnett. However, Mother Nature had other plans.

If you’re new to these thoroughly prepared minor league farm reports, here are the previous nine weeks of stats, recaps, and expertise provided by yours truly!

Week 1 ¦ Week 2

Week 3 ¦ Week 4

Week 5 ¦ Week 6

Week 7 ¦ Week 8

Week 9

Those of you that don’t already know, Keuchel will be making his first start for the organization on Monday, June 10 at 7:00 p.m. (EST) versus the Charleston RiverDogs — the NY Yankees’ Single-A affiliate.

https://twitter.com/TheRomeBraves/status/1137555503276613633?s=19

(35-27) Gwinnett Stripers (AAA)

Week 10 Record: 2-4

Players of the Week

(OF) Adam Duvall

6 games, 6-for-23 (.260 BA), 2B, 3 HR, 7 RBI

There were three players that really stood out in Week 10 for Gwinnett. Duvall provided the power and RBI, but second baseman Andres Blanco and shortstop Sean Kazmar Jr. also had outstanding weeks.

Blanco finished up the week 8-for-23 (.347 BA) with two doubles, a home run and three RBI. He’s also in the midst of an 8-game hitting streak, built off three multi-hit games in that span.

Kazmar Jr. was 8-for-21 (.380 BA) with a double and two RBI, recording his 1,500th minor league hit on Thursday. The veteran minor leaguer has played well in 2019, hitting .288 in 46 games and slugging eight home runs.

Duvall’s run on good hitting this past week was a welcoming development, as he had been quiet over the past few weeks. The failed experiment in Atlanta hasn’t hindered what is an excellent job of redeeming himself this season, now with a .971 OPS in 54 games with Gwinnett.

He has 18 home runs and 13 doubles, but most of all, he’s only striking out at a 20% clip, while walking in 12.1% of his at-bats. That’s pretty darn good for a guy with a career K-rate of 30%.

(SP) Kolby Allard

1 start, 1-0, 8 IP, 6 H, ER, 0 BB, 7 K

Gwinnett really only had two strong starts in Week 10, and they happened to be back-to-back outings by Bryse Wilson on Wednesday followed by Allard’s on Thursday. The two combined for:

14 IP, 12 hits, 4 runs, 1 walk, 14 strikeouts

Allard’s performance on Thursday was more impressive, in that he lasted 8 innings (career-high) and didn’t walk anyone. The last few weeks have been great for him, as his precision on the mound is starting to pay of again.

Allard is sporting a 4.15 ERA in 2019, due to some early struggles to begin the campaign; although, he has a 5-3 record — if you’re into that kind of stuff. In Allard’s 12 starts, his K/BB-rates are promising at 6.78 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9.

Week at a Glance

June 3 – June 9

(6/3) Monday: Won 7-5 vs. Charlotte Knights 

FULL RECAP

• (P) H. Ynoa: 4 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
• (LF) T. Demeritte: 1-5, HR, 4 RBI
• (DH) A. Duvall: 2-4, 2 HR, 2 RBI

Down 1-0 in the 3rd on Monday, the Stripers hit three consecutive singles, loading the bases. Rafael Ortega and Andres Blanco both squandered the RBI opportunity, as both of them struck out. With two outs and the bases jacked, right fielder Travis Demeritte commenced to do this to the baseball:

Feeling left out, Adam Duvall — the very next batter — went oppo, giving Gwinnett an early four-run lead.

In the 5th, Duvall hit another opposite-field shot, this time giving the Stripers 100 home runs for the season (tops in the IL).

https://twitter.com/GoStripers/status/1135706551304556545?s=19

The scoring came to a halt for both teams after the 5th inning, and Gwinnett succeeded in out-slugging Charlotte.

Three other Stripers batters came away with a multi-hit night: Ryan LaMarre (2-for-5), Sean Kazmar Jr. (3-for-4) and Pedro Florimon (2-for-4).

(6/4) Tuesday: Lost 7-6 vs. Charlotte Knights 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) K. Wright: 4 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
• (1B) S. Giardina: 2-4, HR, 2 RBI
• (CF) R. Ortega: 2-4, 2B, R, BB

The suffering continued for Braves prospect, Kyle Wright, as he had yet another bad outing in Tuesday’s loss. Now 3-3 this season, Wright has surrendered 28 runs over his last 34 innings-pitched (eight starts). His ERA is now north of seven, at 7.41.

Down 5-0 in the 3rd, Travis Demeritte plated Gwinnett’s first run with an RBI- ground out:

Demeritte kept his on-base streak going (now 36 games), dating back to April 24.

After holding Charlotte in their half of the 3rd, part-time catcher Sal Giardina belted his first home run of the 2019 season:

Sean Kazmar Jr., who finished 1-for-4, pushed Gwinnett within one run in the 7th, scoring Rafael Ortega on an RBI-single to left:

https://twitter.com/GoStripers/status/1136082407126446081?s=19

Jack Lopez knocked in the final two Gwinnett runs, an 2-run single in the 9th. That would be Lopez’s only hit of the night. Adam Duvall was the only hitless batter in the Stripers lineup, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts.

(6/5) Wednesday: Lost 6-5 vs. Charlotte Knights 

FULL RECAP 

• (P) B. Wilson: 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, BB, 7 K
• (2B) A. Blanco: 1-4, HR, 2 RBI
• (3B) P. Florimon: 1-3, 3B, RBI, 2 R

The Stripers wasted a solid outing by starter Bryse Wilson and lost a late-inning lead to Charlotte on Wednesday, the last game of their three-game series. It was Wilson’s second-straight quality-start.

With only seven total hits as a team, Travis Demeritte lost his on-base streak at 36 games when he finished 0-for-4 on Wednesday. He struck out three times.

Shortstop and No. 9 hitter, Luis Marte, ripped a home run to tie the game at one apiece in the 3rd inning:

Andres Blanco also went deep, again tying the game with a home run:

https://twitter.com/GoStripers/status/1136439079191683072?s=19

Rafael Ortega and Alex Jackson both finished with one hit each. Ortega also stole his eighth base of the season. Sean Kazmar Jr. picked up two hits on the evening, and played first base.

Chad Sobotka and A.J. Minter pitched the last two innings of the game, with Minter suffering the loss after giving up two costly home runs.

(6/6) Thursday: Won 6-1 vs. Durham Bulls 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) K. Allard: 8 IP, 6 H, ER, 0 BB, 7 K
• (DH) A. Duvall: 2-4, HR (GS), 4 RBI
• (C) J. Morales: 3-4, HR, RBI

As a corresponding move relating to William Contreras’ promotion to Mississippi on Wednesday, catcher Jonathan Morales was promoted from Mississippi to Gwinnett.

Morales had an outstanding debut for the Stipers:

But the first four runs scored for Gwinnett came from just one swing in the 5th inning, by Adam Duvall:

https://twitter.com/GoStripers/status/1136792568094531584?s=19

Also, Sean Kazmar Jr. did something pretty cool in Thursday’s game, recording his 1,500th minor league hit:

Left fielder Travis Demeritte hit his 16th double of 2019, and finished 1-for-3 with a run and a walk. Andres Blanco also doubled, going 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run-scored. Luis Marte finished with two stolen bases and a hit in his four at-bats.

All but third baseman Pedro Florimon picked up a hit in the win, as Gwinnett totaled 12 hits as a team.

Kolby Allard’s eight innings was the longest start by a Gwinnett starting pitcher this season, giving him three such starts in his career. Morales’ homer in the sixth inning was the 14th different Stripers batter to hit a home run this season.

(6/7) Friday: Lost 12-3 vs. Durham Bulls 

FULL RECAP

• (P) P. Weigel: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, K
• (C) A. Jackson: 1-4, HR, 2 RBI
• (RF) A. Duvall: 1-3, RBI, BB

Wow, a game that stayed competitive for the first five innings sure did get out of hand. The Bulls scored six runs between the 6th and 9th innings on Friday, routing Gwinnett.

While the game was still close, catcher Alex Jackson tied things up in the 2nd with a homer out to left:

The only other Gwinnett run came from Adam Duvall’s RBI force-out in the 6th inning. No Stripers batter finished with more than one hit, though all but Ryan LaMarre and Luis Marte finished with a knock.

Starter Patrick Weigel pitched decent Friday, given his normal workload. Weigel threw 59 pitches (33 strikes) .

Relievers Ben Rowen and Shane Carle were responsible for the breakout by Durham, allowing 10 runs combined:

• Ben Rowen: 1.1 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, K
• Shane Carle: IP, 6 H, 6 ER, BB, 0 K

(6/8) Saturday: CANCELLED (rain)

Our chance to see newly-signed starting pitcher, Dallas Keuchel, was ruined by rain on Saturday. However, Keuchel did talk to reporters for a bit:

(6/9) Sunday: Lost 10-2 vs. Durham Bulls 

FULL RECAP 

• (P) K. Wright: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, K
• (C) A. Jackson: 1-4, RBI, 3 K
• (2B) A. Blanco: 2-4, 2B, K

After Gwinnett’s game on Saturday was rained out, the Stripers/Bulls rubber match was delayed for 39-minutes due to rain, again on Sunday. Too bad the game wasn’t cancelled, as it wasn’t pretty for Gwinnett.

Sean Kazmar Jr. put the Stripers ahead in the 1st inning, with a sac-fly out to center, scoring Rafael Ortega:

Kazmar Jr. was hitless Saturday, but was the only other Gwinnett batter to knock in a run. Ortega went 1-for-3 with his run in the 1st, followed by a walk and a strikeout. Ryan LaMarre and Adam Duvall were the only other contributors on offense, both picking up a base-hit.

Starter Kyle Wright has been, quite frankly, terrible this season; though, his start Saturday wasn’t too bad. He’ll finish Week 10 with a 7.22 ERA in 9 starts. Just look at his numbers with the Stripers thus far:

3-4, 38.2 IP, 31 ER, 6 HR, 13 BB, 30 K

The real damage was done while reliever Jason Creasy was on the hill. Creasy gave up five runs from six hits, only getting two outs — the last out of the 5th inning and the first out in the 6th.

(27-32) Mississippi Braves (AA)

Week 10 Record: 2-3

Players of the Week

(OF) Drew Waters

5 games, 5-for-13 (.384 BA), 2 doubles, 3 triples, RBI, 2 SB

At the current trajectory Waters is on, he may find himself in Atlanta before top-prospect, Christian Pache. Over his last 10 games, Waters has three doubles and three triples; and through 58 games this season, Waters has been literally the best hitter in the Southern League of Double-A (remember, he only played 30 games in Florida last season).

Here are Waters’ ranks amongst his peers:

• .316 batting average (1st)
• .862 OPS (4th)
• 38 runs-scored (1st)
• 74 hits (1st) leads by 9
• 19 doubles (1st)
•  7 triples (1st)
• 116 total bases (1st) leads by 7

What’s amazing is he’s doing all of this with a 6.8 BB% and 31.6 K%. Just think if he was bit more selective at the plate?

Other Notables Batters 

(SS) Riley Unroe: .380 BA, 2 doubles, 4 RBI, SB

Unroe is hot! He has five multi-hit games in his last 10 contests, and has at least one RBI in four-straight games.

(OF) Christian Pache: .222 BA, 2 HR, 4 RBI, SB

Yeah his batting average is nothing to be excited about, but guess what? Pache walked more than he struck out in Week 10 (5 walks / 4 strikeouts). That’s good enough for me.

(SP) Ian Anderson

1 start, 1-0, 5.2 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 7 K

We should start by appreciating just how great the pitching has been for the M-Braves so far this season, despite several prospects not starting the year well. Frankly, if the M-Braves rotation would’ve started the season pitching to their potential, this would be a historic Double-A staff.

To illustrate how well the pitching has been performing — and to avoid going too deep into various numbers — out of the top-25 Southern League pitchers, based on WHIP, the M-Braves have five pitchers listed:

• Ian Anderson
• Jeremy Walker
• Tucker Davidson
• Kyle Muller
• Joey Wentz

Granted, each and every one of these pitchers have various strengths, as far as strikeouts and ‘stuff’; but overall every single one of them has done a great job of limiting walks and hits, which in the end usually depicts a excellent ability to prevent runs — the most important characteristic of pitching.

Now as far as Anderson, he’s getting in his groove, basically dominating every start over the last couple weeks. Anderson is now second on the strikeout leaderboard, with 77 strikeouts (only two behind the leader). He also has the 10th lowest ERA (3.12), right behind teammate Walker, who is sporting a rate of 2.59.

With K/BB rates of 11.52 K/9 and 4.94 BB/9, it may look as if he’s struggling with walks this year. That’s partly true, as he did struggle with free passes at the start of the season; but, over the last month or so he has been fine. Anderson is 3-4 in his first 12 starts, but don’t expect that record to stay under .500 very long.

Week at a Glance

June 3 – June 9

(6/3) Monday: Lost 3-0 vs. Biloxi Shuckers 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) T. Davidson: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
• (2B) A. Salazar: 2-4, K
• (C) J. Morales: 2-3, 2B

Before Monday’s game, there were awards and roster moves impacting Mississippi.

Pitcher Kyle Muller and outfielder Drew Waters received Players of the Week honors by Farm Bureau. Both players have won the award multiple times, with Muller winning it three times now and Waters twice.

The M-Braves gained a new bullpen arm in Jonathan Aro, from Gwinnett. Righty Conner Johnstone was transferred to Danville, as the D-Braves get ready to start play on June 19.

The game Monday wasn’t so positive. The M-Braves were blanked by Biloxi’s starter, Johan Belisario, who improved to 5-0 this season after pitching a three-hitter versus the Braves. Belisario struck out six and walked one.

Mississippi’s starter, Tucker Davidson, came into Monday’s start leading the league in ERA (1.49), but without any help from the offense — his outing resulted in a loss, though he still leads the team with a 1.82 ERA.

(6/4) Tuesday: Lost 4-3 vs. Biloxi Shuckers 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) De La Cruz: 6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, K
• (CF) C. Pache: 2-3, HR, RBI, BB
• (3B/SS) R. Unroe: 2-4, 2B, RBI, R

The M-Braves suffered a loss Tuesday night, but outfielder Christian Pache did two things we Braves fans love to see. He hit a home run (his 5th) and he drew a walk (his 16th in 204 AB). Walks are good, and with a walk-rate right under 8% (7.84), they’re especially welcoming coming from Pache.

Here’s Pache’s homer in the 5th inning, cutting the lead to 4-2, Biloxi:

Pache’s partner, Drew Waters, picked up a base-hit and a walk, also scoring the M-Braves last run of the game, a 5th inning RBI-double from Riley Unroe.

Mississippi’s starter Jasseel De La Cruz didn’t pitch bad, working to contact most of the night. However, his one punchout was by far the lowest strikeout total he’s had as a M-Braves starter.

(6/5) Wednesday: Won 5-1 vs. Biloxi Shuckers 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) I. Anderson: 5.2 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 7 K
• (1B) R. Casteel: 2-3, 2B, 3 RBI
• (LF) D. Waters: 3-3, 3B, 2B, 3 R, BB, SB

Before the game, the following roster moves were made:

For the second time in seven days, Drew Waters came a home run shy of hitting for the cycle, as the M-Braves won off the back of another excellent start from Ian Anderson.

Anderson still leads the Southern League in strikeouts, now with 77 punchouts in 12 starts. He improved to 3-4 with the win, and is sporting a 3.12 ERA.

The M-Braves struck first in the 3rd inning, thanks to two runs from a Ryan Casteel double. A third run was scored in the 5th, an RBI double by Ryan Casteel. Then in the 7th, Tyler Neslony plated a run of his own with an RBI single; and Casteel knocked in another run with a base-hit later in the inning.

Reliever Thomas Burrows got the hold and Jeremy Walker shut the door in the 8th and 9th innings, striking out four and giving up only two hits. Neither reliever surrendered a run.

(6/6) Thursday: Lost 7-6 vs. Biloxi Shuckers 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) K. Muller: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, 7 K
• (CF) C. Pache: 1-4, HR, 3 RBI
• (LF) D. Waters: 1-4, 2B, RBI, BB

Lots went on before Mississippi’s game Thursday: for the second consecutive day, a player from Florida was added to the team:

Also, with the 2019 Southern League All-Star game coming on June 18, these six M-Braves players were selected to represent the Braves organization:

(OF) Christian Pache
(OF) Drew Waters
(SP) Ian Anderson
(SP) Tucker Davidson
(SP) Kyle Muller
(RP) Jeremy Walker

As for the game, Ryan Casteel and Christian Pache homered Thursday, but starter Kyle Muller couldn’t control his pitches as the M-Braves fell to the Shuckers.

Casteel finished 1-for-5 with his 8th-inning longball being his only hit of the night. Catcher William Contreras picked up his first hit as member of the team, though he did commit an error.

Greyson Jenista’s first game with the M-Braves consisted of two strikeouts and an 0-for-4 night, while batting 6th in the lineup. Shortstop Riley Unroe hit 3rd in the Braves lineup, and went 2-for-5, knocking in a run in the 9th to put the M-Braves within one run.

The first four hitters in the lineup (Pache, Waters, Unroe, Casteel) combined to knock in six runs, slug two homers and a double, and go 5-for-18. Notably, Waters kept his streak alive:

(6/7) Friday: Won 7-6 vs. Jackson Generals 

 FULL RECAP 

• (P) J. Wentz: 3 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
• (LF) G. Jenista: 1-4, 2 RBI
• (RF) T. Neslony: 3-4, HR, RBI, 2 R, 2 SB

The M-Braves opened up a series with the Arizona Diamondbacks affiliate, the Jackson Generals, and faced 36-year-old pitcher and Marlins legend, Ricky Nolasco.

Drew Waters sat out most of the game, giving Greyson Jenista the start in left field; but in the 8th inning Waters came in to pinch-hit and was hit by a pitch, keeping his on-base streak alive (15 games).

Infielder Riley Unroe had a great game, going 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI, also scoring a run. Ryan Casteel, Carlos Martinez and Luis Valenzuela all had one hit apiece, with Valenzuela’s being a double.

Mississippi stole five bases Friday:

• Tyler Neslony: 2 (both 2nd base)
• Christian Pache: 1 (2nd base)
• Ray-Patrick Didder: 2 (2nd and 3rd base)

(6/8) Saturday: Leading 4-1 (SUSPENDED / 4th inning)  vs. Jackson Generals 

FULL RECAP

• (P) T. Davidson: 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, BB, 3 K
• (1B) R. Casteel: 2-2, HR, 4 RBI
• (LF) D. Waters: 2-2, 3B, R

Saturday’s matchup with Jackson was suspended in the bottom of the 4th inning, with Mississippi leading 4-1 from a three-run home run by Ryan Casteel in the 1st inning. Then in the 3rd, Casteel struck again with an RBI-single, scoring Christian Pache.

(6/9) Sunday: POSTPONED (rain)

More rain on Sunday forced the already-suspended game from Saturday to be postponed even longer. The game will be resumed on June 11.

(25-37) Florida Fire Frogs (A+)

Week 10 Record: 2-5

Players of the Week

(OF) Trey Harris

6 games, 9-for-22 (.409 BA), 2 2B, 2 RBI, SB

Well, this looks familiar, doesn’t it? No, this isn’t Rome’s Batter of the Week. This the Florida Fire Frogs version of Trey Harris. One that is very similar to the Rome Braves type.

Harris hit the ground running once promoted to High-A, and honestly, I think we all expected him to.

All he did was record two hits in each of his first three games with Florida, getting on base at a .480 clip. In Week 10, he only struck out three times, and they all came in one game on Friday.

We know how good he was in Rome. Hopefully, I did a good enough job reporting on his greatness while with the Single-A team.

But now that he has six games completed in Florida, let’s combine his High-A and Single-A stats for this season:

• 62 games
• .371/.441/.585
• 1.026 OPS
• 8 home runs
• 16 doubles
• 4 triples
• 46 RBI
• 5 stolen bases
• 9.8 BB%
• 15.6 K%

He’s on pace for roughly 15 home runs for a full season plus around 10 stolen bases. If he can keep up that batting average as well, his prospect ranking after this season will be much closer to the top-10 than the top-20.

(SP) Philip Pfeifer

1 start, 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 8 K

Whew! Not much to choose from in Week 10 in terms of pitching for the Fire Frogs. Pfeifer tossed a 3-hitter Friday, easily putting up the best pitching performance this past week. Too bad his outing resulted in a loss for Florida, 1-0.

I’m about 99.9% sure that this is Pfeifer’s first time winning my so-prestigious Pitcher of the Week award. He was actually pitching rather well at the beginning of May, but then had a three-start stint of 13 earned-runs in 16.1 innings-pitched coming into the month of June.

For the season, he’s about middle-of-the-road with a 4.00 ERA in six starts plus one appearance. Pfeifer actually started his 2019 season in Mississippi, but after seven appearances of a 4.91 ERA, he was quickly demoted.

In all, with Double-A and High-A stats combined, Pfeifer has a 4.21 ERA in six starts and 14 relief appearances. He has struck out 45 batters in 47 innings-pitched, a rate of 8.61 K/9. Not too bad, but not too great.

Week at a Glance

June 3 – June 9

(6/3) Monday: Lost 5-2 vs. Fort Myers Miracle 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) F. Tarnok: 4 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
• (LF) J. Ramos: 3-4, 2 3B, RBI
• (3B) K. Josephina: 1-4, 2B

Before Monday’s action between Florida and Fort Myers, the FSL’s Pitcher of the Week was announced:

In case you missed last week’s report, Kingham tossed his second complete game shut-out last week.

Now to the game: Freddy Tarnok‘s 11th start of 2019 was another poor outing, as the Atlanta Braves pitching-prospect has really struggled this season, sporting a plus-6.00 ERA overall.

Jefrey Ramos was at it again, plating one of two Florida runs, and Greyson Jenista provided the second with a sac-fly. Catcher William Contreras finished 1-for-4 and went down on strikes twice.

The #9 hitter on Monday, Brett Langhorne, picked up two base-hits in his three at-bats. The Fire Frogs were 0-for-3 with RISP in their loss.

(6/4) Tuesday: Won 8-2 vs. Fort Myers Miracle 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) H. Deal: 6 IP, 7 H, ER, BB, 3 K
• (SS) R. Delgado: 1-4, 3 RBI, BB
• (CF) S. Michel: 1-3, 2 RBI, R, 2 BB

Tuesday marked nine quality-starts for Florida starter Hayden Deal, and the Fire Frogs offense scored seven unanswered runs after trailing by a run for four consecutive innings. Oh, yeah… guess who finally got promoted?

https://twitter.com/FireFrogsBB/status/1136026344033259528?s=19

In his first taste of High-A baseball, Trey Harris showed out and went 2-for-3 with three runs. He scored two runs in Florida’s 5-run 7th inning. Harris hit seventh in the lineup in his debut for the Fire Frogs.

As a team, Florida only tallied six hits, all base-hits; and most of their knocked-in runs came from the top of the lineup: Shean Michel, Riley Delgado, and Jefrey Ramos combined to plate six runs, the numbers 1, 2 and 3 hitters respectively.

(6/5) Wednesday: Won 6-4 vs. Fort Myers Miracle 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) M. Withrow: 2.2 IP, H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
• (1B) D. Lubauer: 3-4, 2 2B, 3 RBI
• (RF) G. Jenista: 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI, R

In the sixth consecutive matchup between Florida and Fort Myers, the Fire Frogs flipped a 1-0 Miracle lead to a 6-4 win after scoring runs in three-straight innings.

Florida went with a pitching committee Wednesday, deploying four different hurlers on the mound. Reliever Brandon S. White notched the win (2.1 IP, H, 0 ER, 4 BB, K).

On offense, the FSL leader in hits kept his momentum going, as Riley Delgado finished 2-for-5 with a triple, an RBI and a run-scored. Recently promoted Trey Harris went 2-for-4, also scoring a run.

Number nine hitter, Jordan Rodgers, added a double in four at-bats, while scoring a run and striking out twice. Outfielder Jefrey Ramos also picked up a hit.

(6/6) Thursday: Lost 7-4 vs. Fort Myers Miracle 

FULL RECAP

• (P) N. Kingham: 4.1 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, K
• (LF) T. Harris: 2-4, 2 RBI
• (SS) R. Delgado: 2-5, 2B, RBI, R

The reigning FSL Pitcher of the Week took one on the chin Thursday night, facing 24 batters in just 4.1 innings-pitched. Kingham hadn’t given up nine hits since a start back on May 25th.

On offense, guess who led the way? Trey Harris delivered two hits Thursday, giving him a .500 batting average (6-for-12) over his first three games with Florida. He has two hits in each of those three contests.

Catcher Zack Soria — replacing recently promoted William Contreras — went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts, rounding out the Fire Frogs hitting.

(6/7) Friday: Lost 1-0 vs. Tampa Tarpons 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) P. Pfeifer: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 8 K
• (DH) R. Delgado: 1-4
• (SS) B. Langhorne: 1-3, K

A few notes before Florida’s game on Friday:

Riley Delgado enters MLB Pipeline’s Braves prospect rankings.

Also, a roster move was in order, sending reliever Matt Hartman to the Florida Fire Frogs:

Hartman had a 2.63 ERA across four appearances (13.2 innings-pitched) in Rome. Ryan Shetter had 6.75 ERA in three appearances (6.2 innings-pitched) for the Fire Frogs.

The game Friday night was way less exciting as the news before it, as the Fire Frogs were held to just two hits in their opening game of a series with the Tarpons. Riley Delgado and Brett Langhorne (listed above) were the only Florida batters in the lineup to record a hit.

On the bright side, Florida’s starter Philip Pfeifer only surrendered three hits himself, the lowest hit-total he’s given up since a start back on May 3 (also against Tampa).

There’s really not much to add regarding this snooze fest of a game. Tampa’s starter Miguel Yajure pitched six innings and struck out ten Fire Frogs, while walking one and giving up two hits. The Tarpons bullpen struck out five more Florida batters, walking none and obviously surrendering no hits.

(6/8) Saturday: Lost 7-3 vs. Tampa Tarpons 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) M. Hartman: 4 IP, 6 H, 7 ER, BB, 2 K
• (2B) B. Langhorne: 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI
• (SS) R. Delgado: 2-5, K

Righty Matt Hartman made his first start for Florida on Saturday, and it didn’t go so hot. Hartman gave up two home runs and seven runs total, swelling his ERA to 7.00 right off the bat.

The Fire Frogs showed some life in the 4th when Brett Langhorne slapped a 2-run single to right field, but Florida couldn’t manage another run the rest of the game.

The newest member of the lineup, outfielder Trey Harris, finished 1-for-2 with a run and two walks, upping his average to .389 in his six games of High-A competition. Saturday’s DH, Drew Lugbauer, went 2-for-4 with a double, a run and two strikeouts.

Reliever Brooks Wilson pitched the 5th through 7th innings, striking out four and walking none, while giving up two hits and no runs. Wilson has been lights-out this season, carrying a 0.96 ERA in eight appearances (only three walks).

(6/9) Sunday: Lost 5-0 vs. Tampa Tarpons 

FULL RECAP

• (P) H. Deal: IP, H, 2 ER, BB, 2 K
• (RF) T. Harris: 2-4, 2B, SB
• (DH) I. Wilson: 1-4, 3B

Starter Hunter Deal gave up a two-run home run in the 1st but was relieved of his duties shortly after, as a 32-minute rain delay in the 2nd inning ruined any chances for him on Sunday.

Trey Harris just keeps hitting, posting his fourth multi-hit finished in his first six games with Florida. This man is for real!

Third baseman Kevin Josephina, center fielder Shean Michel and shortstop Riley Delgado all finished with one hit apiece, as the Fire Frogs picked up six hits as a team, going 0-for-12 with RISP.

Reliever Daysbel Hernandez was the best pitcher for Florida on Sunday, working 3.1 innings and striking out two. Hernandez has been quite effective all year long, carrying a 1.61 ERA in his 17 appearances.

(26-36) Rome Braves (A)

Week 10 Record: 0-6 (ouch!)

Players of the Week

(OF) Jeremy Fernandez

5 games, 7-for-23 (.304 BA), 1 double

Rome’s hitting was just as bad as its pitching this past week, hence the 0-6 finish. Fernandez wins Batter of the Week from basically one excellent game — his 5-for-5 finish on Sunday.

That display of perfect hitting accounted for five of his seven total hits in Week 10, a great start for a player that hasn’t been in Rome very long.

Fernandez played in just two games for Florida, going 0-for-6 and ultimately earning a demotion back down to Single-A competition. He’s not new to success, though, as the soon-to-be 22-year-old hit .281 last year in 47 games with the DSL Braves.

Another player to recognize for his Week 10 performance, is catcher Logan Brown. The 22-year-old lefty-hitting catcher went 8-for-20 (.400 BA) with a double and an RBI.

Brown has been one of the better players for this light hitting Rome team, batting .308 with 10 doubles in 46 games.

(SP) Odalvi Javier

1 start, QS, 6.2 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 8 K

As you can see by their winless Week 10, the Rome Braves pitchers had it rough this past week, as well as this entire 2019 season, quite frankly. There’s just not a lot of talent in Single-A for the Braves organization.

However, starter Odalvi Javier has made some impressive strides since the middle of May. His 2019 season-stats aren’t very impressive — 4.13 ERA and 2-3 record in 12 starts — but his numbers since his May 12th start have been great.

Javier has made six starts, since his May 12 outing, and has a 2.73 ERA in that span, with 9.69 K/9 and 2.48 BB/9. Compare those stats to his season totals, and it’s easy to see that he’s turned things around.

His last start, this past Saturday, was a perfect example. Javier’s doing a better job on the mound, trading those early-season walks for strikeouts. This could be a solid starter, in a rather depleted Rome starting rotation.

Week at a Glance

June 3 – June 9

(6/3) Monday: Lost 5-2 vs. Columbia Fireflies 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) A. Rangel: 2.2 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
• (RF) T. Harris: 1-3, 2B, RBI,
• (C) L. Brown: 1-3, RBI, K

A four-run 3rd inning by Columbia all but sealed the deal for the Fireflies, as Rome only managed four hits Monday night. Starter Alan Rangel fell to 4-4 on the season, reeling from a 5.47 ERA.

Trey Harris and Logan Brown provided the runs for the Braves, with both players contributing in the 7th, giving Rome some hope at the end of the game.

Reliever Dilmer Mejia worked three innings, striking out two and giving up four hits; while Jake Higginbotham pitched the last two frames, pinching out two and giving up no hits.

(6/4) Tuesday: Lost 3-2 vs. Columbia Fireflies 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) G. Noguera: 4 IP, 5 H, ER, 3 BB, K
• (2B) G. Cullen: 1-4, 2B, RBI, R
• (LF) A. Moritz: 2-3, 2B

Before Rome’s game Tuesday, four players from the team were selected All-Stars in the South Atlantic League:

Of course, Harris was promoted to Florida (High-A) on Tuesday. The Northern and Southern teams will each have 26 players representing their respective divisions.

As for the game, Rome jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first frame, but Columbia answered with three runs in the 2nd inning. Neither team would score again for the remainder of the game.

Greg Cullen‘s RBI-double and Henry Quintero‘s sac-fly in the 1st provided the runs for Rome. Second baseman Derian Cruz stole a base and went 1-for-3 in the loss. Logan Brown also picked up a base-hit in his four at-bats.

After Gabriel Noguera‘s four innings of work, reliever Victor Vodnik pitched the remaining four frames, only giving up one hit and striking out three. That was only Vodnik’s third appearance in the past 11 games.

(6/5) Wednesday: CANCELLED 

Rain sucks.

(6/6) Thursday: Lost 8-7 (F/10) vs. Lexington Legends – FULL RECAP

• (P) J. Olague: 6 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
• (1B) G. Benson: 2-5, HR, RBI
• (C) L. Brown: 3-5, R

Down 4-1 in the 7th inning, a throwing error committed by Lexington on a ground ball hit by Greg Cullen allowed two runs to score, narrowing the lead at 4-3. Then in the 9th, a Lexington wild-pitch allowed Carlos Paraguate to score tying the game at 4 apiece.

However, it was all for not, as Lexington pushed four runs across in the 10th.

Every Rome batter, except for infielder Derian Cruz, picked up a hit Thursday. Trey Harris’ replacement, outfielder Jeremy Fernandez, finished 1-for-5 with a walk and a strikeout, batting leadoff.

Cullen went 1-for-5 with his RBI in the 7th, but committed his fourth error of the season, a fielding blunder. Outfielder Andrew Moritz, still batting 9th, finished 1-for-3 with an RBI, a run, a walk and a strikeout.

Reliever William Woods suffered the loss, pitching the 8th and 9th innings and surrendering 4 runs (three earned).

(6/7) Friday: Lost 7-2 vs. Lexington Legends 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) T. Riley: 4 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 3 K
• (C) L. Brown: 3-4, 2B, K
• (DH) D. Cruz: 1-4, 2B, R

Lexington pounced on Rome Friday, scoring six runs combined in the first two innings, thanks to a sac-fly, 2-run single, RBI forceout and two RBI singles. Six unanswered runs from no extra-base hits!

The R-Braves didn’t strike until the 4th inning, an RBI by Griffin Benson coming from a ground out back to the pitcher. The second and final run scored by Rome was an RBI single off the bat of Jose Bermudez, scoring Derian Cruz in the 9th. Bermudez finished 1-for-4 with his 9th-inning RBI and two strikeouts.

Both teams committed two errors, though none resulted in any unearned runs. Shortstop Darling Florentino recorded his ninth error of the season, a throwing error.

Florentino finished with a hit and two strikeouts in four at-bats, while Greg Cullen and Carlos Quintero both contributed with one hit apiece.

Trey Riley has had it rough in 2019, now with an ERA north of 6.00. Last year’s 5th round pick — and Fangraphs’ recently updated 23rd ranked prospect in the organization — has given up four or more runs in six out of his 11 starts this season.

(6/8) Saturday: Lost 5-1 vs. Lexington Legends 

 FULL RECAP

• (P) O. Javier: 6.2 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 8 K
• (1B) H. Owenby: 2-3, 2B, RBI
• (2B) G. Cullen: 1-4, 2B

Lexington clinched the series win on Saturday, but it wasn’t Rome starter, Odalvi Javier‘s, fault. Javier turned in a quality-start, tossing a four-hitter and forcing seven ground outs, out of nine batted-ball outs throughout his outing.

The blame fell on Rome’s offense, as only four batters in the lineup contributed with hits. Jose Bermudez, batting 9th, picked up a knock in three at-bats; while catcher Logan Brown finished with a base-hit and a run-scored.

Two Rome errors caused some heartache, with Hagen Owenby and reliever Dilmer Mejia’s fielding blunders allowing two runs to score. Altogether, Rome surrendered five unearned runs in Saturday’s loss.

(6/9) Sunday: Lost 7-5 (F/11) vs. Lexington Legends 

FULL RECAP

• (P) A. Rangel: 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
• (C/1B) H. Owenby: 1-5, HR, RBI, BB
• (CF) J. Fernandez: 5-5, 2 R, SB

Rome’s final game of their series with Lexington ended with a loss on Sunday, but it was a heck of game at least. Outfielder Jeremy Fernandez put up a 5-for-5 night, the first one all season by any player on any of Braves minor league team.

Fernandez’s five games with Rome have been great, as he’s 7-for-23 (.304 BA) so far with the team, after playing in two games with Florida.

Hagen Owenby continues to hit well with Rome, now up to a .362 average with the R-Braves.

Greg Cullen finished 0-for-6 Sunday, an unlikely performance for one of the best talents on the team. Cullen has been struggling over his last 10 games, hitting just .171 in that span, with 12 strikeouts compared to only 3 walks.

Outfielder Henry Quintero has been sharp as Rome’s leadoff hitter, and he was sharp Sunday, finishing 2-for-5 with a double, a walk and a strikeout. He’s only been up at Single-A for 17 games (played for DSL Braves and Danville in 2018), but is hitting .296 with a home run and three doubles.