MiLB Distraction from LAD Misery

OKC Comets 11 – Salt Lake City Bees (LAA) 5

OKC put up 11 over the first 3 innings.  In the 1st CF Zach Ehrhard drew a 1-out BB.  Ehrhard moved to 3rd on LF Ryan Ward’s single.  RF James Tibbs III doubled (26) home both runners.  JTIII went to 3rd on a WP and scored on DH Alek Thomas’ single. 

In the 2nd, SS Noah Miller opened with a single and moved to 2nd on a WP.  C Griffin Lockwood-Powell walked.  Miller scored on a RBI single from 3B Alex Freeland with GLP moving to 3rd.  Freeland reached 2nd on groundout.  Ward followed up with a 3-run HR (14).  

In the 3rd, Miller led off with a double (14).  GLP and Freeland walked to load the bases.  Ehrhard singled to score Miller, with everyone else moving up 90 feet.  After 2 outs, Thomas hit a bases clearing double (13).  Just like that, OKC had a 11-0 lead. 

Meanwhile, LHSP Cole Irvin was pitching 4.2 scoreless innings.  With the 2 outs in the 5th, he gave up a single and a 2-run HR. 

RHRP Ryder Ryan and RHRP Griff McGarry combined for 3 scoreless innings, but with traffic.  RHRP Antonio Knowles entered in the 9th.  He allowed a leadoff single, a groundout, BB, back to back RBI singles, a BB to load the bases, and RHRP Paul Gervase was summoned.  He struck out the first batter, walked the next one on a 3-2 pitch for a run, and struck out the next to end the game. 

·      Zach Ehrhard – 3-5, 1 BB, 2 runs, 1 RBI, double (22)

·      Ryan Ward – 2-5, 1 BB, 2 runs, 3 RBI, HR (14)

·      Alek Thomas – 2-5, 4 RBI, double (13)

·      Hyeseong Kim – 2-5

·      Noah Miller – 3-5, 2 runs, 2 doubles (15)

·      James Tibbs III – 1-5, 1 BB, 1 run, 2 RBI, double (26) 

Box Score 

Tulsa Drillers 3 – Corpus Christi Hooks (Houston) 1 

Offensively, this was about as boring as you can get.  For 6.0 innings, RHSP Christian Zazueta was absolutely brilliant.  He only threw 69 pitches, 48 for strikes.  He allowed 2 singles.  The first single was a very good pitch, a slider in on the hands, but the hitter was barely able to get his hands in and bloop a single into RF.  I turned on the Dodger game, so I did not see the 2nd single.  He walked 1 and struck out 8.  His 4-seamer was touching 97-98, his slider had late life, and his change was almost untouchable.  

2B Taylor Young hit a solo HR in the 3rd giving Tulsa the lead.  

In the 6th, CF Mike Sirota led off with his 2nd BB.  3B Jake Gelof hit a one out single.  Sirota scored on a C Frank Rodriguez roller through the infield for an RBI single. 

In the 8th inning, DH Logan Wagner and Gelof hit one out singles, with Wagner moving to 3rd.  Wagner scored on Rodriguez’s SF. 

In the 9th, RHRP Kelvin Ramirez walked a batter between 2 K.  But then back-to-back singles broke the shutout.  He did get the final out without any further damage for the save.  

Taylor Young’s HR was the only XBH and Jake Gelof’s with his 2 singles was the only Tulsa batter with more than 1 hit.  

Box Score 

Great Lakes Loons 6 – Dayton Dragons (Reds) 1 

In the 1st inning, CF Charles Davalan hit a game leadoff HR (19).  RF Jaron Elkins drew a BB and scored ahead of 3B Chase Harlan and his 4th HR.  With 2 outs, DH Jose Meza walked and scored on LF Samuel Munoz’s double (18), giving GL a 4-0 lead. 

LHSP Sterling Patick was the scheduled SP.  However, LHRP Matt Lanzendorfer was the opener in this game.  He hit one batter and got a BB.  He was able to get a GIDP to limit the exposure.  

Patick entered in the 2nd and completed 5.0 innings.  He got 2 outs in the 6th and gave up a solo HR for the only run he allowed.  Besides the HR, Patik allowed a single and double.  He issued 2 BB and recorded 7 K.  

In the GL 7th, Elkins led off the inning with a single.  2B Eduardo Guerrero hit a one out single moving Elkins to 3rd.   Meza hit a RBI single with Guerrero stopping at 2nd.  Both runners moved up on a WP.  Elkins scored on a groundout for a 6-1 lead. 

No matter the team, the bullpen is always an adventure.  LHRP Cody Morse loaded the bases with a single, BB, and HBP. But got out of the inning. 

RHRP Davis Chastain pitched a scoreless 8th with a BB, and RHP Robby Porco pitched a clean 9th to secure the win for GL. 

·      Charles Davalan – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 1 RBI, HR (19)

·      Jaron Elkins – 2-4, 1 BB, 2 runs

·      Chase Harlan – 1-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 2 RBI, HR (4)

·      Samuel Munoz – 1-4, 2 RBI, double (8) 

Box Score 

Inland Empire Storm (San Diego) 10 - Ontario Tower Buzzers 8 

Ontario jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the 3rd.  In the 2nd, 3B Joendry Vargas singled, stole 2nd and scored when C Francisco Espinoza singled.  

In the 3rd, 2B Kellon Lindsey drew a BB and moved to 2nd on a groundout.  Lindsey moved up to 3rd on a WP.  1B Easton Shelton walked. LF Ching-Hsien Ko reached on an error with Lindsey scoring and Shelton to 3rd and Ko to 2nd.  Vargas followed with a 3-run HR (9).  13th round draft pick, DH Caleb Johnson walked, stole 2nd, stole 3rd, and scored on a WP and a 6-0 lead. 

7th round draft pick LHP Charlie West started the game.  He gave up a pair of singles but struck out the side for his professional debut.  RHRP Will Gagnon struggled in this one.  In the bottom of the 3rd, Gagnon walked the first batter he faced and hit the 2nd.  The Storm had a double steal, and both runners scored on a single.  The next batter walked, and the Storm pulled of their 2nd double steal of the inning.  After a K, Gagnon gave up a SF.  

In the 6th with Gagnon still on the mound, he gave up a solo HR.  After an out, Gagnon walked the next batter. A bunt single and pitcher throwing error put runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out.  RHRP Dailoui Abad replaced Will Gagnon.  The run scored on a groundout. 

Abad back out to the mound in the 7th.  A HBP, SB, single with runner to 3rd, 2 run double, ground out, RBI single, and BB before RHRP Accimias Morales replaced Abad with Inland Empire coming all the way back to an 8-6 lead.  He gave up a single but the lead runner was thrown out at home by RF Abel Lorenzo. 

Ontario was able to tie the score in the 8th.  Espinoza and Lorenzo singled.  The runners moved up on a sac bunt by Lindsey.  After an out, Shelton hit a 2-run game tying single.  

There is just no hiding all of the poor bullpens in the organization.  Ontario’s bullpen is a total adventure. 

·      Joendry Vargas – 4-5, 2 runs, 3 RBI, double (27), HR (9)

·      Francisco Espinoza – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 1 RBI

·      Abel Lorenzo – 2-5, 1 run 

Box Score