Washington Nationals Minor League Report: April 18 and 19
From staff and wire reports:
Fresno (AAA Pacific Coast League)
Thursday: After scoring 33 runs in the past two contests, the Fresno Grizzlies (8-6) went quiet in the finale, falling to the Salt Lake Bees (4-9) 12-1 Thursday night. Brandon Snyder supplied the only Grizzly run, a towering clout to left field in the seventh inning. He has gone deep in back-to-back nights while Fresno has now homered in 14 straight games to start the season.
Salt Lake’s offense buzzed all evening, tallying 11 hits with three leaving the park. Luis Rengifo (solo), Jared Walsh (solo) and Cesar Puello (2-run) were the recipients of the dingers. Bo Way and Wilfredo Tovar both knocked in a pair of runs with extra baggers for the Bees.
Grizzlies starter Paolo Espino (1-1) suffered the loss while Salt Lake righty Griffin Canning (1-0) earned the victory. He dazzled for six scoreless frames, striking out six. Former Fresno reliever Matt Ramsey finished the ninth for the Bees.
Top Performers: Fresno Grizzlies (Washington Nationals)
• RF Brandon Snyder (2-4, HR, RBI, R; 1.0 IP, 3 K)
• RHP Tanner Rainey (2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K)
• CF Andrew Stevenson (2-4)
Top Performers: Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels)
• 2B Luis Rengifo (3-4, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R)
• LF Cesar Puello (3-4, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, BB)
• RHP Griffin Canning (6.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K)
ON THAT FRES-NOTE: With Brandon Snyder’s home run in the bottom of the seventh, the Grizzlies have now gone deep in every game this season (14). Infielder Jacob Wilson leads the club with seven longballs. The Seattle Mariners set an MLB record by recording a homer in 20 straight contests to start the 2019 season.
Friday: The Fresno Grizzlies (9-6) left the Las Vegas Aviators (13-3) grounded Friday night with a 3-1 victory. Las Vegas came into the evening with a four-game win streak, but the Fresno pitching staff made sure it didn’t get to five. Henderson Alvarez III tossed four strong innings before handing the ball to the bullpen. Dakota Bacus (2.0 IP, Win), Vidal Nuno III (2.0 IP) and Jimmy Cordero (1.0 IP, Save) continued the outstanding work, not allowing a hit or run while punching out five.
The staff was backed up by a Jacob Wilson first inning bomb and fifth inning sacrifice fly. Jake Nollalso added an insurance single to center in the eighth. Wilson’s homer was his PCL-leading eighth and continued the Grizzlies home run streak to 15 games.
Eric Campbell recorded the only RBI for the Aviators, a first inning RBI single. He finished with three hits on the evening. Tanner Anderson (1-1) suffered the loss despite six innings of two-run ball (one earned).
Top Performers: Fresno Grizzlies (Washington Nationals)
• Bullpen (5.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 5 K) (One side comment from the author, call these guys up Nats!)
• 3B Jacob Wilson (1-2, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, BB)
• LF Yadiel Hernandez (3-4, 2B)
Top Performers: Las Vegas Aviators (Oakland Athletics)
• 1B Eric Campbell (3-5, RBI)
• RHP Tanner Anderson (6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K)
ON THAT FRES-NOTE: With Jacob Wilson‘s home run in the bottom of the first, the Grizzlies have now homered in 15 straight games to start the season. Wilson leads the PCL with eight homers and 23 RBI. The Seattle Mariners set an MLB record by recording a homer in 20 straight contests to start the 2019 season.
Harrisburg (AA Eastern League):
Thursday: SThe Senators scored five runs on seven hits in the second inning and the pitching staff combined to retire 19 of the final 20 Reading Fightin Phils in the Sens 5-3 Thursday night. The win was the Senators fourth straight and improved their record to 13-2. Reading fell to 6-6 with the loss. Tyler Mapesearned the win going five innings and three relievers combined to shut down the Fightin Phils. Luis Garcia, Adrian Sanchez, Ian Sagdal and Rhett Wiseman all had run scoring hits in the second inning.
Turning Point
Trailing 1-0 entering the bottom of the second inning, the Senators had one on and one out when Tyler Mapes came to the plate. He lined a 1-0 pitch to left for a base hit and the flood gates opened. The Sens had six straight hits and then a two-out double by Rhett Wiseman to cap the five-run rally.
On Capitol Hill
Tyler Mapes earned the win going the first five innings. Mapes threw 83 pitches, 55 for strikes. He struck out five and walked one. Taylor Guilbeau followed with a perfect inning with two strikeouts. Jordan Mills pitched two innings and allowed a walk but then retired six straight batters. Aaron Barrett went 1-2-3 in the ninth for his third save.
With the Gavel
Luis Garcia, Adrian Sanchez, and Ian Sagdal all had two hits and at least one RBI. Tyler Goeddelalso had two hits. Drew Ward, Rhett Wiseman and Tyler Mapes all chipped in with a hit. The Senators seven hits in the second is second most in an inning this season.
Filibusters
Tres Barrera had his hitting streak snapped at nine games with going hitless Thursday night.
After 15 games, this is the best start in modern Sens history (since 1987).
Harrisburg is 4-0 against divisional opponents.
Friday: The Senators game scheduled against Reading was postponed due to weather. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader Sunday, May 26 at 4:30.
The doubleheader will consist of two seven-inning games with a 30-minute break between games.
The next Senators home game is today, Saturday, April 20 at 1:00 p.m. against Reading. The 13-2 Senators send LH Ben Braymer to the hill and he’s opposed by RH Ramon Rosso for the 6-6 Reading Fightin Phils.
Potomac (High-A Carolina League):
Thursday: Down 5-0 in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Potomac Nationals (6-9) scored three runs with two outs and had the winning run at the plate, but RHP Luis Ledo (SV, 2) got LF Telmito Agustin to fly out to right field, as the Winston-Salem Dash (7-8) picked up a 5-3 victory. Potomac had just three hits over the first eight innings, and then tallied four hits in a span of five batters in the ninth frame.
The Dash got off to a quick start, as DH Luis Robert hit the second pitch of the game over the centerfield wall for his league-leading sixth home run of the season. RHP Nick Raquet (L, 1-2) allowed at least a run in each of the four innings that he pitched, as the Dash plated one run on a two-out double from 2B Tate Blackman in the second inning, two runs on a double by CF Tyler Frost in the third inning, and the club’s final run of the night on an RBI double from 3B Yeyson Yrizarri in the fourth frame. Raquet allowed five runs on 10 hits over four innings in the loss.
LHP Kyle Kubat (W, 2-0) dominated Potomac throughout his six-inning outing. The left-handed starter surrendered just three hits over the quality start and saw just two Potomac baserunners reach scoring position. DH Cole Freeman was hit by a pitch in the first inning, but Potomac stranded him at third base, while Agustin walked to begin the sixth inning, but was erased on a line drive double play off the bat of CF Nick Banks .
Potomac got five innings of shutout relief out of the bullpen, as RHP Frankie Bartow allowed four hits and struck out three over three frames, while LHP Carson Teel allowed just one hit over two innings in his Carolina League debut.
Winston-Salem carried the five-run lead into the final frame and turned to LHP Kevin Escorcia after three-shutout innings from RHP Alec Hansen. Escorcia struck out the first man that he faced, but then walked Banks and gave up a single to 3B Anderson Franco. With men on second and third base and one out, RF Gage Canning took a called third strike, while SS David Masters got Potomac on the scoreboard with a two-out, two-run single. 2B Osvaldo Abreu followed with a double, which put the tying runs in scoring position and brought the potential tying run to the plate. The Dash went back to the bullpen and brought in Ledo, who quickly gave up an RBI single to Freeman. Freeman’s single pulled Potomac within two runs, but Agustin lined out to right field on the first pitch from Ledo, which ended the game.
Friday: Constant rain at Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium has postponed the Friday night matchup between the Potomac Nationals (6-9) and Winston-Salem Dash (7-8).
Friday night’s game vs. the Dash will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Saturday, April 20th at Northwest Federal Field, with first pitch of game one scheduled for 5:00pm.
Both games are scheduled for seven innings.
Hagerstown (Low-A South Atlantic League):
Thursday: In his second game in the South Atlantic League, infielder Trey Vickers finished a single shy of the cycle, leading the Hagerstown Suns to a 10-5 victory over the Kannapolis Intimidators at Intimidators Stadium Thursday night.
The 2018 30th round draft pick tripled in the second, doubled in the third and homered in the seventh to set up a dramatic at-bat in the ninth. On a 3-2 pitch, he was called out on strikes to end the hopes that he would hit Hagerstown’s (7-8) first cycle since John Kehoe did so May 18, 1996 at Hickory.
Hagerstown led-off their scoring spree in the first. After a Cody Wilson triple, Israel Pineda grounded into a double play that plated the centerfielder. In the next at-bat, Kannapolis (4-9) starter Davis Martin (L, 1-1) threw a wild pitch that allowed Jacob Rhinesmith to score and cap-off the inning with a Suns 2-0 lead.
The scoring was highlighted by a three-run homer from KJ Harrison to plateRhinesmithand Gilbert Lara. The Suns added one more from Vickers’ double to put them in front 8-0.
The scoring did not end there. Justin Connell doubled to bring home Jamori Blash and then Vickers’ triple plated Connell in the second to double the Suns’ lead.
The scoring overshadowed an incredible start from righty Francys Peguero (W, 1-1). He finished working five innings, fanning seven Intimidators and allowing just four hits without surrendering a run.
Jackson Stoeckinger added two scoreless innings from the pen before handing the ball to Leif Strom. Strom struggled a bit in the ninth, walking the bases loaded and allowing three to score, but the Suns held on to win, with Jhonatan German closing the door for the final two outs.
Friday: The Hagerstown offense utilized a six-run sixth to vault them over the Kannapolis Intimidators 13-4 at Intimidators Stadium Friday night.
With the game tied 4-4, the first five Suns (8-8) batters to come to the plate in the sixth reached base safely. Juan Pascal and Trey Vickers led things off with back to back singles before Cody Wilson reached on a throwing error from pitcher Johan Dominguez (L, 0-1) that plated Pascal and sent Vickers to third.
Justin Connell hit a base knock to score Vickers before Israel Pineda dribbled a double up the middle to score Wilson. After a Kannapolis (4-10) mound visit, Gilbert Lara kept the inning going with an RBI base hit followed by a KJ Harrison 2-run double to put the Suns in front 10-4 with just one out in the inning.
Connell made another splash for the Suns. With Cody Wilson on the base paths, the left fielder launched a homer, his first of the season to bring Hagerstown within one in the top of the third with one out. The left fielder finished the day three-for-six with a double and a homer. He drove in three of the Suns 13 runs on the night.
The Suns have scored double-digits for the second time this season already, following scoring 11 Sunday April, 14 and Monday, April 15. Prior to that, the last time the Suns had scored at least 10 in back-to-back ball games was May 6-7, 2017. Hagerstown also set a season-high in hits, with 17 on the evening.
Connell, Harrison and Lara all finished with multiple RBI on the night in the rout of the Intimidators.
The bullpen shut down any chance of a Kannapolis rally in this one. Chandler Day breezed through three innings, fanning four and allowing just one hit. Following that, Jared Brasher and Aaron Fletcher combined for a scoreless ninth to end the game.
Tomas Alastre(W, 2-1) earned the win, tossing five frames, while allowing all four Kannapolis runs.
