Spring Training Roundup: Giolito, Kaprielian Impress
Baseball is back and at Baseball America, that means it’s time again to track the progress of prospects. We’ll update you each day on how some of the game’s most prominent prospects fared at spring training.
Mets 4, Marlins (SS) 4
Marlins: Destin Hood, signed as a minor league free agent, offers the kind of righthanded power the Marlins covet and is fighting for a spot as a fourth outfielder. He had a .943 OPS against lefthanders in 2015 and did a better job against righties (.271/.306/.430 at Double-A). On Friday, he hit a two-run homer against righthander Logan Verrett. Lefthander Cody Ege, the former Louisville closer, struck out two in an inning of work but allowed a run.
Mets: 1B Dominic Smith, the Mets’ No. 3 prospect, went 0-for-2.
Blue Jays 4, Orioles 3
Orioles: RHP Oliver Drake, the team’s No. 21 prospect, threw a scoreless inning while Rule 5 pick Joey Rickard, jockeying for an outfield spot with Jimmy Paredes injured, singled in four trips.
Blue Jays: Big 1B Rowdy Tellez (No. 7 for the Jays) had a hit in two at-bats; Top prospect OF Anthony Alford—No. 25 overall on the Top 100—struck out in his only trip.
Marlins (SS) 5, Nationals 4
Nationals: No. 1 prospect RHP Lucas Giolito—No. 5 overall—made his much-anticipated spring debut and struck out three in two scoreless innings; No. 2 prospect SS Trea Turner—No. 9 overall—played second base and walked; No. 6 SS Wilmer Difo pinch hit in the fifth for Brendan Ryan and hit a three-run homer.
Marlins: Two RHPs competing for major league bullpen roles–Nick Wittgren and Brian Ellington—made appearances. Wittgren (No. 26 on Marlins’ Top 30) pitched a perfect inning, while Ellington (No. 25) gave up Difo’s homer.
Red Sox 7, Rays 2
Rays: No. 6 OF Mikie Mahtook, fighting an uphill battle for a spot in a crowded Rays outfield, singled in three at-bats. Versatile Taylor Motter played short and was 1-for-2 with a walk. No. 8 RHP Jacob Faria, so dominant across two levels in 2015, pitched a scoreless inning as he makes a push for the majors at just 21.
Red Sox: Diminutive 2B Sean Coyle (No. 28) replaced another small infielder in Dustin Pedroia and went 1-for-2; SS Deven Marrero (No. 8) slid in for Xander Bogaerts and had a hit and walk and scored twice.
Astros 6, Cardinals 3
Cardinals: Speedy CF Charlie Tilson (No. 13) pinch-ran–naturally—and stayed in the game, going 0-for-2. OF Anthony Garcia (No. 21), one of the Cardinals’ best power prospects, had two doubles and an RBI. Flame-throwing RHP Sam Tuivailala (No. 13) allowed two hits but struck out three in an inning of work.
Astros: Tyler White and Matt Duffy, part of a group jockeying for the first base job with A.J. Reed and Jon Singleton, combined to go 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. The hitterish Jon Kemmer, trying to force his way into the majors, was 0-for-2.
Tigers 3, Yankees 0
Yankees: RHP James Kaprielian, the Yanks’ No. 4 prospect, looked dominant in two innings, striking out two and hitting 96 mph. RHP Luis Cessa, acquired from the Tigers for Justin Wilson, also struck out two in two scoreless innings.
Tigers: RHP Joe Jimenez (No. 7), trying to make the case for the back end of the ‘pen, struck out two in his scoreless inning. 2014 first-rounder Derek Hill (No. 10) struck out in his only plate appearance.
Twins 2, Pirates 2
Twins: No. 3 prospect 1B Max Kepler—No. 30 overall—had a hit in three at-bats, while No. 99 SS Jorge Polanco played second base and had a hit in two trips.
Pirates: Bat-challenged No. 6 C Reese McGuire got a turn at DH and went 0-for-2; fast-rising OF Harold Ramirez (No. 5) rapped two singles.
Phillies 12, Braves 11
Braves: Cuban Hector Olivera (Braves No. 4, No. 55 overall) played left and singled in three trips; No. 1 Dansby Swanson (No. 17 overall) played second again and was 0-for-2. No. 6 SS Ozzie Albies played short and got a hit in two trips. No. 11 RHP Lucas Sims, who struggled with control a year ago, started and struggled (1.2 IP, 3 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 1 SO).
Phillies: No. 1 SS J.P. Crawford—No. 6 overall—pinch-ran for Maikel Franco and stayed in the game, getting a single and scoring a run. No. 2 OF Nick Williams was the DH and was 0-for-3, and Rule 5 pick Tyler Goeddel had a double and two RBIs.
Giants 4, Reds 3
Giants: No. 1 SS Christian Arroyo was 0-for-1; No. 9 OF Jarrett Parker had two hits and drove in a run, while RHP Kyle Crick, who slipped to 27th on the Giants’ list from No. 3 a year ago, pitched a spotless inning.
Reds: No. 4 SS Jose Peraza was 0-for-2, while CF Phillip Ervin (No. 12), trying to rebound from an uneven season, whiffed twice in two trips. 2B Alex Blandino and OF Scott Schebler also were hitless in two at-bats.
Cubs 3, Angels 0
Angels: High-priced Cuban SS Roberto Baldoquin had a hit in his one at-bat. No. 8 Kaleb Cowart pinch-hit for Andrelton Simmons in the ninth inning and grounded out.
Cubs: No. 2 C Willson Contreras, was 0-for-1 with a walk, while No. 6 CF Albert Almora was hitless in two trips. RHP Carl Edwards Jr., now a reliever, pitched a scoreless inning; RHP Andury Acevedo, a converted infielder signed to a major league deal after nine years in the minors, also pitched a scoreless inning.
Brewers 5, Mariners 2
Mariners: Speedy CF Boog Powell, acquired along with Nate Karns from the Rays, was 0-for-1 as he competes for a major league job. LHP Paul Fry, the organization’s minor league reliever of the year award a year ago, struck out one and walked one in a scoreless inning.
Brewers: Top prospect SS Orlando Arcia had a double in two at-bats as he tries to show he’s ready for the jump from Double-A. Speedy Keon Broxton, competing for the center field job, had a hit and scored a run.
Diamondbacks 6, Athletics (SS) 3
Athletics: 1B Rangel Ravelo (No. 15), rebounding from wrist surgery last June, struck out once in two at-bats. 2015 first-rounder SS Richie Martin was 0-for-1 with a walk; 3B Matt Chapman, Oakland’s No. 3 prospect, homered off Josh Collmenter.
Diamondbacks: No. 8 OF Gabby Guerrero, who struggled mightily against righthanders in 2015, hit a three-run homer in the third inning off RHP Chris Smith.
Athletics (SS) 9, Rockies 4
Rockies: No. 2 OF David Dahl struck out in his only at-bat; No. 8 SS Trevor Story walked to push home a run; Electric CF Raimel Tapia singled in his one plate appearance.
Athletics: Top prospect SS Franklin Barreto pinch-hit and homered in the sixth inning; No. 6 1B/OF Matt Olson doubled and walked; No. 2 LHP Sean Manaea struck out four in two dominant innings.
Indians 5, White Sox 5
Indians: No. 6 CF Tyler Naquin, competing for a spot in the wake of Michael Brantley‘s surgery and Abraham Almonte‘s suspension, singled and drove in a run.
White Sox: Michael Ynoa, who signed with the A’s for a then-whopping $4.25 million in 2008, is still just 23 and now trying to make it as a reliever. He pitched a scoreless inning. No. 5 CF Jacob May had a double and scored a run. OF Jason Coats had a two-run homer.
Dodgers 3, Rangers 3
Dodgers: No. 8 C Austin Barnes walked twice; No. 10 RHP Jharel Cotton, who dominated at Double-A, gave up a hit and walk in two scoreless innings.
Rangers: Top prospect Joey Gallo—No. 10 overall—had a Gallo-like day—minus the home run—with a walk and strikeout; RHP Connor Sadzeck, who was hitting 100 mph in the Arizona Fall League but has exhibited extreme command issues, walked two in two-thirds of an inning.
Padres 3, Royals 1
Royals: SS Raul A. Mondesi, the team’s top prospect and No. 29 overall, struck out in his only at-bat. No. 8 LHP Matt Strahm, who struck out 11 batters per nine innings a year ago, fanned two in his two scoreless innings.
Padres: RHP Colin Rea, the team’s No. 7 prospect, got the start and hurled two scoreless innings in his effort to lock down a rotation spot. Fireballing RHP Tayron Guerrero struck out two in his one inning of work. No. 2 CF Manuel Margot was 0-for-2. Slugging Rule 5 pick Jabari Blash struck out in his one at-bat; No. 3 OF Hunter Renfroe was 0-for-1. Carlos Asuaje, part of the Craig Kimbrel package along with Margot, was 0-for-2.
Comments are closed.