Mac Lyons & Luke Wortman | April 23, 2024
Welcome to our third MiLB recap of the young season as yet another week is complete across the Rockies MiLB affiliates. Many early storylines have started to solidify as we reach the point in the season where the sample is too small to make real judgements.
Three of the affiliates split their series 3-3, while the Grizzlies continued their California conquest, going 5-1 with several players really starting to shine through.
Albuquerque Isotopes
Series Record: 3-3 | Season Record: 6-15
It’s safe to say that the season hasn’t started out the way the Isotopes have wanted, but they have shown plenty of promise and this week’s series against El Paso was by far their best series to date. The team looked like they had improved from the previous weeks, and looked more confident overall. Regardless, work still needs to be done.
Notable Performers
Drew Romo: 16 PAs, .333/.375/.400 (.775 OPS), 5 H, 1 BB, 2 K
Aaron Schunk: 22 PAs, .450/.455/.600 (1.055 OPS), 9 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB
Grant Lavigne: 19 PAs, .277/.316/.444 (.760 OPS), 5 H, 1 HR, 1 BB, 5 K
Greg Jones: 24 PAs, .273/.333/.409 (.742 OPS), 6 H, 1 BB, 6 K, 4 SB
Hunter Goodman: 28 PAs, .269/.321/.885 (1.206 OPS), 7 H, 5 HR, 2 BB, 6 K
Josh Rogers: 5 IP, 3.60 ERA, 1.200 WHIP, 1 BB, 3 K
Riley Pint: 3.1 IP, 0.00 ERA 0.600 WHIP, 1 BB, 5 K
Recap:
Hunter Goodman had arguably the hottest bat in all of minor-league baseball last week. He tore apart the Chihuahua’s pitching staff, hitting 5 home runs and having a 1.206 OPS. He did all that, while catching several games. He has looked decent at catcher and he could stick there with the big league club, at least as a part-time catcher. That gives a major boost to his stock.
After starting the season a bit cold, Aaron Schunk also had a very hot bat. Schunk had 9 hits in 22 plate appearances while playing all over the infield. Fellow infielder Grant Lavigne had a strong week while starting the season somewhat slowly. Greg Jones, everyone’s favorite utility man, had a strong week doing a bit of everything. Jones is up to 12 steals on the season, while just being caught once.
Like most Albuquerque teams historically, the lineup is stacked with potential. The ‘Topes outfield was especially impressive this week as everyone made a solid impact. Sam Hilliard made multiple highlight-reel catches and Jimmy Herron had a solid hitting week. While he didn’t make the top performers list for the first time this season, Jordan Beck still managed to have a 4-hit game that included a home run.
The pitching still needs a lot of improvement, but it was much better than in previous weeks. Almost every game was close, and in half the games, the Chihuahuas were held to 5 runs or less. Veteran lefty Josh Rogers easily had the best starting pitching performance of the week, as he held El Paso to only 2 runs in 5 innings. Rogers has arguably been the most consistent starting pitcher for the team this season.
Riley Pint’s season has been a roller coaster, as he has been dominant one week and walk-prone the next. Luckily, he only dished one walk this week, striking out 5 in 3.1 innings. He has his flaws, but he could be a major help to the Rockies bullpen. Other relievers like Chance Adams and John Curtiss had solid weeks, albeit being a bit walk-prone.
This was the first week we saw promotions to the big league club as Sean Bouchard, Ty Blach, and Noah Davis each went to play with the Rockies. All three have big-league experience and can be solid contributors to the club. Davis was demoted back to the Isotopes on Monday after a 3-inning appearance against the Seattle Mariners.
To help restock the roster, relievers Dugan Darnell and Jake Sommers were called up. Darnell is one of the better relief pitching prospects in the system and was recently ranked as the 43rd best prospect in the system according to Fangraphs. The righty spent the second half of last season with the ‘Topes, pitching to mixed results. His promotion comes on the heels of a dominant 4-inning stretch with Hartford. He pitched 3 scoreless innings with 2 strikeouts this week. Sommers was one of the 4 players acquired for Nolan Arenado in 2021. Due to injuries, he has only pitched 6.2 innings since ‘21.
Call-Up Power Rankings:
As stated above, we saw Sean Bouchard, Noah Davis, and Ty Blach receive promotions this week. All three have been ranked on the power rankings this season. With Davis back with the ‘Topes, he slots in at the #1 spot.
- Noah Davis – RHP – 2024 Season Stats: 6.62 ERA | 17.2 IP | 21 K | 10 BB
- Hunter Goodman – C/1B – 2024 Season Stats: .269 AVG | 6 HR | 6 BB | 19 K
- Riley Pint – RHP – 2024 Season Stats: 3.27 ERA | 11 IP | 18 K | 11 BB
Looking Ahead:
This week the Isotopes will take on the Oklahoma City Baseball Club (Dodgers Affiliate) in Albuquerque. The Isotopes played them earlier this month and went 1-5. Oklahoma City is stacked with decent prospects and MLB veterans. 2-Time All-Star, Walker Buehler is expected to start on Wednesday.
Hartford Yard Goats
Series Record: 3-3 | Season Record: 8-5
The Yard Goats faced a difficult opponent in the Somerset Patriots who have several top 100 prospects. The Yard Goats performed very well, splitting the series. Despite the decent results, this was the most difficult week for the Goats so far this season. That’s more of a testament to the high standard they have set this season than anything else. However, it did seem that they struggled more with strikeouts than in previous weeks.
Notable Performers:
Zac Veen: 15 PAs, .308/.400/.462 (.862 OPS), 4 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 4 SB
Ryan Ritter: 24 PAs, .273/.333/.455 (.788 OPS), 6 H, 1 HR, 2 BB, 8 K, 1 SB
Zach Kokoska: 19 PAs,.368/.368/.789 (1.157 OPS), 7 H, 2 HR, 6 K, 2 SB
Evan Shawver: 2.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 0 BB, 3 K
Andrew Quezada: 10.0 IP, 1.80 ERA, 0.800 WHIP, 2 BB, 8 K
Carson Palmquist: 6.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.833 WHIP, 1 BB, 10 K
Austin Kitchen: 4.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.154 WHIP, 0 BB, 4 K
Recap:
As stated above, this week the Goats were bit by the strikeout bug. The offense was much colder than it was last week, but we still had some guys hit great. Zach Kokoska had a big week hitting .386 with 2 home runs. He was also able to steal 2 bases, which is a nice little boost to his production.
It’s clear that shortstop Ryan Ritter is a great defender, but it’s still up for debate on how good of a hitter he can be. After a slow start to the season, Ritter hit a solid .273 with 1 home run, as he looks to get on the right track offensively. The Kentucky alum will be in Albuquerque soon if he can continue to hit like he did this week. His overall approach does need refinement, as the strikeouts need to come down (8 strikeouts this week).
Zac Veen has arguably done the best job in the system at improving his stock. After an injury-riddled 2023, Veen has hit .342 and has impacted the game in several ways. He continued his early-season tirade by hitting .308 this week. While still early in the season, Veen is looking like a consensus top-100 prospect.
Speaking of top-100 prospects, the season has not started as well as Adael Amador and Rockies fans hoped. In just 10 games, Amador has hit .114. Amador has been dragged down by a .129 BABIP, showing he’s been hit with some bad luck and that the slow start isn’t worth concern yet.
Carson Palmquist and Andrew Quezada anchored the rotation this week. The 26-year-old Quezada started two games this week, allowing only 2 earned runs in 10 innings. Given his great start to the season and experience at Double-A, expect Quezada to be pitching in Albuquerque soon.
Speaking of deserved promotions, Palmquist has been dominant this season and still has not allowed a run through 16 innings. After walking a few more than he usually does last week, the Miami product only issued 1 walk in 6 innings. Palmquist’s dominant performance helped him to win the prestigious Blake Street Banter Player of the Week Award for the Yard Goats. The bullpen was anchored by lefties Evan Shawver and Austin Kitchen. Combined, they pitched 7 scoreless innings without walking a batter.
Call-Up Power Rankings
Last week, we saw righty reliever Dugan Darnell get called up to Triple-A! This was the first promotion from Hartford to Albuquerque this season.
- Andrew Quezada – RHP – 2024 Season Stats: 14 IP | 1.29 ERA | 12 K | 3 BB
- Carson Palmquist – LHP – 2024 Season Stats: 16 IP | 0.00 ERA | 25 K | 7 BB
- Austin Kitchen – LHP – 2024 Season Stats: 7.1 IP | 1.23 ERA | 6 K | 1 BB
Looking Ahead:
The Yard Goats will take on the Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox Affiliate) in Hartford this week. The Goats faced them earlier this month but only played 1 game due to weather. The Sea Dogs roster is one of MiLB’s best with a trio of top 100 prospects anchoring their lineup.
Spokane Indians
Series Record : 3-3 | Season Record: 11-4
Spokane returned to Avista Stadium for a six-game series against the Everett Aquasox, their cross-state rival and an opponent the Indians split the season series with during 2023 with a record of 15-15. The Indians dropped game one by a score of 5-3 on Tuesday night but returned to the win column Wednesday night with a dominant 9-3 victory before the Indians’ offense went cold with a 8-1 loss on Thursday. Spokane came out victorious in a walk-off game on Friday night, winning by a score of 5-4 and went back to the win column on Saturday with a 6-3 victory before the bats fell quiet once again on Sunday with a 5-3 loss.
Notable Performers:
Cole Carrigg: 24 PA, .350/.375/.650 (1.025 OPS), 7 H, 5 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB, 2 K, 3 SB
Dyan Jorge: 26 PA, .211/.423/.263 (.686 OPS), 4 H, 3 RBI, 2 R, 7 BB, 2 K, 3 SB
Kyle Karros: 26 PA, .333/.462/.429 (.890 OPS), 7 H, 2 2B, 5 BB, 3 K, 1 SB
Braiden Ward: 20 PA, .389/.450/.722 (1.172 OPS), 7 H, 3 RBI, 6 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 5 SB
Chase Dollander: 5.1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 12 K
Sean Sullivan: 4.2 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Zach Agnos: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
Series Recap:
Game one of Spokane’s series against Everett wasn’t great from the start. Cole Carrigg was ejected after arguing a called strike three in the first inning, and from there, the infield and outfield errors caused the AquaSox lead to grow to four runs. Robby Martin Jr. drove in two runs for the Indians, but the bats struggled against Everett’s pitching, striking out a team total eleven times on the evening.
Mason Green didn’t have nearly the same outing as he did against Tri-City in his first start, but then again Spokane’s entire pitching staff struggled with their command on Tuesday. Between Green, Braxton Hyde, Davison Palermo, and Felix Ramires, there were a combined eight walks.
Spokane clearly buried the memory of Tuesday’s game and returned to form on Wednesday, thanks to some familiar faces. Trevor Boone crushed his first home run of the season in the third inning, a three-run shot to right field. Boone would add one more RBI on the night and his four total were his first on the season.
Cole Carrigg and Dyan Jorge added some insurance runs later in the game, Jorge with a two-run double and Carrigg via a sac fly. Both players would also add a stolen bag on the night as well. Wednesday saw the lineup kick it in to gear, at least for the night. Alongside Trevor Boone, Bryant Betancourt, Juan Guerrero, Kyle Karros, and Braiden Ward all had multi-hit games.
Blake Adams allowed his first earned run of the season in his start on Wednesday, but one run wasn’t enough to stop Adams from earning his first win of the season. Through 5.0 IP, Adams allowed three hits, three walks, and struck out five batters. Although the sample size is small, through two starts in 2024, Adams has a 0.82 ERA over 11.0 IP with a 7.3 BB% and a 26.8 K% in his second stint with Spokane.
However, Thursday was another rough outing for Spo on both sides of the ball. Connor Staine wasn’t able to reproduce the six strikeouts he had in his first start of the season; he ended the night with only two punchouts and allowed his first earned run of the season on four hits and two walks. Tyler Ahearn had the roughest outing of the Indians bullpen pitchers when he gave up five runs on three hits and two walks. The performance raised Ahearn’s ERA to 11.57 on the season.
Cole Carrigg was the lone Spokane batter to have a hit on the evening, and he managed to get on base twice with a single and a double. Carrigg had a somewhat inconsistent series against Everett. After getting tossed in the first inning of the series opener, Carrigg had only managed three hits in 13 PAs going into Saturday’s game.
In a performance that is certainly not a surprise to many fans at this point, Chase Dollander was stellar in his third start of the season for Spokane on Friday, an outing that fueled Spokane’s late-inning comeback and eventual walkoff win. Although the righty did end the night with four earned runs on the scorecard, he struck out 12 of the 21 batters he faced and only allowed one walk. The runs scored against Dollander in the 5.1 IP were subject to question based on some less-than-adequate fielding from Spokane’s defense. Regardless, Dollander’s command was sharp while he hurled new career-highs for pitches thrown and strikeouts.
Spokane’s offense didn’t wake up till the seventh inning on Friday night. DH Jesus Bugarin played the role of hero when he brought the tying run home during the inning and doubled down in the bottom of the ninth when he laced a two-out single into right field, capping off a night where he went 4-5 with both of his RBI being as clutch as they come.
Remember the inconsistent series Cole Carrigg was having? The speedster turned things around Saturday night during the 6-3 win, a game in which plenty of Indians batters woke up out of the daze they’d been in. Carrigg finished the night 4-4 with three RBIs and was a 2B away from hitting for the cycle. It’s the highest number of hits in a game for Carrigg so far this season and most RBIs he’s had in a single game as well.
While there have been highs and lows for Carrigg at the plate so far this season, his baserunning has been his strong suit, as it has with many of Spokane’s best players. While Carrigg would follow up his career-high outing on Saturday with an 0-4 and one RBI game during Sunday’s 5-3 loss, it’s clear Carrigg’s talent may be settling in at the High-A level. After the productive series, Carrigg sits second in the Northwest League in both RBI (12) and SB (9). Clearly, he’s doing a lot of things right.
Sean Sullivan didn’t have nearly the same start on the mound as he’d had in his two previous starts, but ending the night with three earned runs, one walk, and four strikeouts over 4.2 IP isn’t anything fans should be worried about. Chase Dollander, at some point this year, will succumb to the woes of a night that just doesn’t go his way; Sullivan just got his out of the way sooner.
With all of that in mind, the inconsistencies for Spokane’s bats would once again fall dormant on Sunday afternoon. Braiden Ward and Juan Guerrero were the only Spokane hitters to finish the game with multiple hits, and the team total for hits on the day finished with six. Victor Juarez lasted six innings and allowed only two runs on four total hits during his time on the mound—two solo-shots in first and fourth inning—and only managed to strike out two, while walking two.
It was a tough series that Spokane ended up splitting 3-3 courtesy of some great nights on the mound from Chase Dollander and closer Zach Agnos, and some career-high outings from Cole Carrigg and Jesus Bugarin.
What’s Up Next Preview:
The Spokane Indians will go back on the road to our neighbors in the Great White North to face the Vancouver Canadians for their first trip over the border this season.
Fresno Grizzlies
Series Record : 5-1 | Season Record: 10-3
The Fresno Grizzlies returned for their second six-game series of the season, this time against the Stockton Ports. Fresno has a history of success against Stockton: they were 61-23 all-time against the Ports at the start of the series, and even better, were 30-6 all-time at Banner Island Ballpark as well. The Grizzlies jumped on the Ports Tuesday night and didn’t let up, winning by a final score of 9-2, but the Ports were able to get the best of Fresno on Wednesday, sneaking out a 6-5 victory. But the Grizzlies got their act back together on Thursday, and Friday, and Saturday, and Sunday as well when they tore through Stockton across the final four games of the series.
Notable Performers:
Andy Perez: 26 PA, .360/.385/.680 (1.065 OPS), 9 H, 11 RBI, 4 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 0 SB
Braylen Wimmer: 23 PA, .368/.478/.737 (1.215 OPS), 7 H, 6 RBI, 9 R, 4 BB, 3 K, 1 SB
Tevin Tucker: 19 PA, .333/.579/.417 (.996), 4 H, 7 R, 6 BB, 2 K, 2 SB
Jack Mahoney: 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Jace Kaminska: 7.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 12 K
Isaiah Coupet: 8.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 7 K
Collin Baumgartner: 3.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
Welinton Herrera: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Series Recap:
Andy Perez continued his dominant streak of play almost immediately in this series, hitting a grand slam to right center field in game one. It was Perez’s second HR of the season, already doubling the number of HRs he had last year in Fresno. He finished Tuesday night 2-5 with five RBI, added another RBI in Wednesday’s loss, tacked on one more Thursday night, and added another three Friday night before adding his final RBI in Sunday’s victory.
It was a series to remember for Perez where he finished with nine hits in 26 PAs with a staggering 11 RBIs. Andy Perez, along with Braylen Wimmer and Jake Snider, were a huge reason why Fresno found the success they did in their five victories over the Ports. Clearly, Tuesday’s five-RBI night was just the start for Perez.
Jace Kaminska had a quiet outing Tuesday, which isn’t always a bad thing for your starting pitcher, especially when your starting pitcher only allows two hits and fans four over 3.2 IP. He left the game rather quickly in the fourth after just 52 pitches with the reason for his early departure unknown. Kaminska totalled 7.2 IP this week allowing four hits, one walk, while striking out a dozen. Isaiah Coupet came in and secured the win for the Grizzlies, his first appearance out of the bullpen, but I would consider this an anomaly since Kaminska left the game early.
Fresno had a 5-3 lead going into the ninth inning Wednesday night, though miscues ultimately cost the Grizzlies the game. Sam Weatherly walked three of the five batters he faced and allowed three runs to score, tying the game before he was replaced by Bryson Hammer who would give up the winning run.
Braylen Wimmer and EJ Andrews Jr. both had notable performances in Wednesday’s loss. Wimmer and Andrews Jr. both had home runs—Wimmer’s was a two-run shot in the fifth and Andrew Jr.’s was a solo shot in the eighth—while Wimmer scored two runs and finished 2-4 from the plate. For Andrews Jr., it was about time he hit his first long ball of the season, something he did 13 times with Fresno in 2023.
Wimmer would go on to add another RBI in Thursday’s 8-4 victory. His first-inning double was his third RBI of the series, and it would only take until Friday night for Wimmer to drive in more when he sent another ball out of the park.
Austin Emener went only three innings in Thursday’s victory and there was cause for concern when the lefty had some struggles throughout his short stint on the mound. Through those three innings, Emener allowed two runs on two hits while walking four and striking out four. It definitely wasn’t the start that Emener wanted, though Caleb Franzen came in and cruised through another three innings before Welinton Herrera delivered two stellar innings, allowing only two hits while fanning four batters. Thursday’s successes carried over well into Friday, where the Grizzlies had a dominating, 9-0 victory, thanks to the triple threat of Wimmer, Snider, and Perez.
All three batters had three RBIs in Friday night’s victory. Perez and Wimmer both added two-run home runs, both in the fourth inning, while Snider would get the majority of his RBIs from a single in the second inning before adding a 2B when the rout was on in the fifth. Wimmer’s fourth home run of the season propelled him into the California League lead for HR.
Andy Perez’s 18 RBI is also good for first in the California League. Jake Snider’s 1.260 OPS is ranked first in the California League. The Fresno Triple Threat™️ have stepped up and proved pivotal to the Grizzlies’ early season success.
Jack Mahoney got the job done on the mound Friday. Through six shutout innings, Mahoney fanned five batters and only allowed one walk and two hits, earning his second win of the season. Mahoney, Coupet, and Kaminska have been better than advertised so far this season for a Fresno pitching staff that didn’t instill a ton of confidence coming into the season.
Saturday night was par for the course as far as Fresno’s dominance goes, but they also got some help from Stockton’s inconsistent pitching. The Grizzlies were walked a grand total of ten times on the evening, which is either a testament to how stricken with fear Stockton’s pitching staff is after being carved up by plenty of Grizzly batters, or if they fell victim to some unstable control.
Regardless, Isaiah Coupet picked up the win after throwing five innings in which he only allowed two runs on two hits while walking three and striking out four batters. Darius Perry crushed a three-run shot in the fourth inning for his first professional long ball. Perry hasn’t gotten much time at the plate this season as Fresno works a catching platoon but the UCLA product is now running a .469 OBP on the year.
The Grizzlies took care of business on Sunday and finished the series against Stockton with a 7-3 win. Jace Kaminska was incredible from the bump. He struck out eight of the 16 batters he faced and only allowed one run on two hits. Across three starts and 12.1 IP, Kaminska has 18 Ks. As stated above, he’s been one of multiple Fresno pitchers who have been incredibly impressive so far this year.
The Grizzlies got some run support on Sunday from one of the most consistent batters not named Snider, Perez, or Wimmer. Aidan Longwell had an RBI to go along with a 2-4 night. Longwell had a hit in every game he played in this series, totaling eight hits in 23 PAs with two walks and three RBIs as well. Consistency over production with an ability to get on base is Longwell’s game, and he’s learning well from his short stint he had in 2023 with Fresno.
Fresno continued their dominant start to the season with a 5-1 series record against Stockton, an opponent that has proved troublesome in the past.
What’s Up Next Preview:
The Grizzlies will see a familiar opponent again in the San Jose Giants for another six-game series. They’ll be back at home, in the friendly confines of Chukchansi Park this time around, so let’s hope for a little more success at home.
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