Delmarva is the only affiliate to come away with a win. Dylan Bundy looks great for Aberdeen. Sebastian Vader hates worms. Christian Walker goes yard. And more!
Indianapolis (Pirates) 10 Norfolk 4
With another Orioles pitcher (Bud Norris) suffering an injury yesterday, Suk-min Yoon had an opportunity to show he deserved to make a spot start or two if needed. He failed to seize the day, giving up 6 ER over 5.2 innings. He gave up a home run again; that makes 10 consecutive starts with allowing at least one round-tripper. And after only walking 3 in his past 9 starts he walked 2 in this game. The only real positive for him came in his 10:1 ground ball to fly ball ratio.
(RF) Francisco Peguero gave the Tides a first inning lead with a solo HR. (2B) Jemile Weeks drew two walks and went 1 for 3. #TeamSteve (Clevenger & Lombardozzi) went a combined 0 for 8, with Clevenger adding a GIDP to the ledger.
Binghamton (Mets) 7 Bowie 6
After cooling off for a spell Christian Walker had a great game, going 3 for 4 and falling a triple shy of the cycle. Dariel Alvarez failed to follow Walker's lead, and went 0 for 4 with a GIDP. Michael Ohlman also went took an 0 for 4, but managed to throw out 1 of 2 base stealers. Nolan Reimold's rehab has gone swimmingly (aside from missing 2 games with some groin discomfort). 1 for 2 with 2 walks in this game. He is slashing .333 / .472 / .556 over 9 games and 36 plate appearances. Look for him to return to Baltimore by the beginning of July, as he rehab assignment will be drawing to a close at that point.
On the mound, Tim Berry was rather erratic, yet still somewhat effective. One might call his performan 'Ubald-ian'. 5.2 innings, 6 hits, 5 walks, 2 HBPs, and a wild pitch resulted in 3 ERs. He K'd 5 and gave up a 2 run HR. 102 pitches thrown, with 58 going for strikes. That's about as Ubaldo as it gets. Berry may not be a starter long term, but he should be a mean LOOGY as he has held lefties to a slash line of .169 / .202 / .191 this season. I dare say go ahead and trade Matusz, because Berry can probably do as effective a job (if not more so) right now.
Frederick 2 Carolina (Cleveland) 12
Brady Wager got lit up for 8 runs (6 earned) over 3.1 IP. He walked 3 and allowed 2 dingers. (LHP) Lex Rutledge was one of my favorite arms to track during the '13 season while he was with Delmarva. But '14 in Frederick has been unkind to him as he sports a 4.39 ERA over 26.2 innings of work thus far, with 23 walks to 26 Ks. He had been on a 4 appearance scoreless streak, but that ended with 2 ERs yielded over 1.2 innings in this game. His usage seems quite sporadic, as he hadn't pitched since the 13th and previously went from May 23 thru June 2nd without being used. Perhaps some more regular work would do him good?
Mike Yastrzemski and Trey Mancini continue to adjust nicely to their new level of competition. Lil Yaz went 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored. Mancini got 2 base knocks and drove in a run. Adrian Marin went 1 for 4, but also committed his 12 error. Glynn Davis still hasn't been promoted to Bowie for some reason. He went 0 for 3 but drew a walk.
Lexington (Kansas City) 1 Delmarva 2
This type of game seems like it will be the norm for the Shorebirds now that two of their more potent offensive contributors (Yaz & Mancini) have been promoted to Frederick. The pitching staff remains strong, but the offense may struggle regularly. Sebastian Vader took his turn on the mound in this game. And as has been the case for most of the season he was great. 7 innings, 5 Ks, 6 Hits, 1 walk, 1 HBP, and 0 runs allowed. He threw 56 of his 86 pitches for strikes and sported a ground ball to fly ball ration of 14 to 0! Goodness gracious.
On offense, Gregory Lorenzo went 2 for 3, but also managed to get thrown out attempting to steal twice. d'oh! He is now 19/25 (76%) on the season. Gotta improve that rate. (3B) Drew Dosch went 1 for 3. ( C ) Chance Sisco took an 0 for 3.
Brooklyn (Mets) 3 Aberdeen 1 (Final/11 innings)
Dylan Bundy made his second start for the Ironbirds and he was dominant against this level of competition. I was in attendance for the game (as were a plethora of scouts and O's brass, including Dan Duqette, John Stockstill, and Keith Law) so I got to see what looked good and what still needed some work. First, his line: 5 IP, 2 H, 1 Walk, 0 R, 9 Ks; 64 pitches, 48 strikes. That's efficiency right there. The fastball sat 91-93 early on, touching 94. His velocity dipped a bit in the 5th, sitting 89-91 and touching 92. But the command of the fastball, particularly to the arm side of the plate was exceptional, as he continually dotted the black inside to right handed batters and away from lefties. He began mixing in the change up and curve in the 2nd inning. The change was a bit firm, sitting at 85-86, but had nice dip late. Once he recovers a tick or two of his FB velocity the change will play up even more. The curve was the problem pitch for him, as he seemed to lack feel and command of it, tossing a number of them 59-60 feet. However, his last pitch of the night was a gorgeous 73 mph curve that completely froze the hitter as hit swooped through the strike zone at the last moment. So he still has a plus curve in his arsenal. And seeing as it still hasn't even been a full calendar year since his surgery (June 27th, 2013) that is a minor quibble.
All in all, he looked far more advanced than the level of competition in this game. He is scheduled to make one more start for Aberdeen, next Friday, and then be reevaluated for assignment to another affiliate. Bowie seems the likely destination for him. And depending on how he performs there, could well be in line to see time with Baltimore come August or September.
As for the rest of the game, it was rather dull as neither offense did much of anything, trading zeros on the scoreboard until extra innings. ( C ) Jonah Heim went 1 for 4 with a GIDP, but struck the ball really well in each of his first 3 at bats. He also looks quite athletic behind the plate, cutting a nice long and lean figure at 6'3" and a listed 190 lbs. The one threat that Bundy faced came in the 4th. He allowed a lead off single, followed by a stolen base. Heim made a good throw but the runner got a great jump and slid in just ahead of the tag. After advancing to 3rd, the runner broke for home when Bundy threw a wild pitch. Heim turned and pounced on the ball about 7-8 feet behind him, delivering a quick side-armed fling to Bundy who tagged the runner as he began to slide.
This has gotten a bit long, so I'll leave it to the reader to peruse the GCL & DSL scores here
Today's Probables are:
Norfolk: Mike Wright
Bowie: Zach Davies
Frederick: Parker Bridwell
Delmarva: Luis Gonzalez
Aberdeen: TBD