Luis Toribio is leading Eugene in home runs and to wins, and Richmond continues to dominate the Eastern League behind Mason Black.

AAA: Doubleheader

GAME 1: Oklahoma City 5, Sacramento 2

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Game 2: Oklahoma City 1, Sacramento 0

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Sacramento Notes:

  • Well, this was just a miserable doubleheader for the River Cats.  The Cats went with a bullpen game in Game 1, but were down 5-1 after the first three innings.  In Game 2, Keaton Winn had a strong start, but the River Cats offense got just one hit en route to the sweep.
  • The biggest hit of the day was Matt Beaty’s home run in Game 1, as he went 1-for-3 in the first game, and 1-for-5 with a HBP overall.  It was his second home run of the season, with the first coming back on April 21st.  He has a .243/.333/.459 batting line on the season in Sac.
  • The second biggest hit of the day was off the bat of Heliot Ramos, whose single was the only thing standing in the way of getting no-hit in Game 2.  Ramos was 1-for- 5 with 2 walks and a stolen base on the day.  That gives Ramos a .324/.372/.459 batting line after 10 games in AAA, with four steals in as many attempts.  He had just six steals in Sacramento in 2022.
  • One Cat getting multiple hits was Gary Sánchez, who was 2-for-3 with a stolen base as the catcher in Game 1.  That raised his batting average from .159 to .191 on the season after 13 games.  The steal was just his third since 2017.  He had two in the big leagues with Minnesota in 2022.
  • Catcher Patrick Bailey made his Triple-A debut in Game 2 going 0-for-3 (all against right-handers).
  • Center fielder Shane Matheny as was 2-for-3 in Game 1, and overall was 2-for-4 with a walk and a steal.  Through 23 games, Matheny has just two doubles, but also 18 walks to 29 strikeouts for a .239/.396/.268 batting line, but now also has four steals in five attempts.  The four steals ties his career high, set twice in 2017 (34 games) and 2022 (108 games).
  • Cole Waites was the opener in Game 1, and his struggles returned, as he couldn’t get out the first inning, giving up two runs on three hits and a walk, with one strikeout.  That gives Waites a 10.38 ERA after ten games, three of which have been “starts”, and yet he’s only credited with 8.2 innings.  He’s giving up hits at a .306 average allowed, with 12 walks to nine strikeouts.  His fastball was sitting 95-97 mph, but only half of them were in the strike zone.
  • Game 2 starter Keaton Winn had a game that would normally be a good start, allowing one run in 4.0 innings on three hits and two walks, with five strikeouts, but it was the only run of the game by either team.  His ERA is 5.51 with 15 strikeouts to nine walks in 16.1 innings.  His fastball was up to 98, but sat closer to 96 mph.

AA: Richmond 7, Bowie 2

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Richmond Notes:

  • A big couple of middle innings led to a big win for Richmond.  With a 1-1 tie after five, the Squirrels picked up two runs in the 6th inning on an Andy Thomas RBI groundout and a Hayden Cantrelle RBI single.  In the 7th, a bases-loaded balk, a bases-loaded walk, and a 2-run Riley Mahan single to make it 7-2.
  • Right fielder Ismael Munguia hit a leadoff home run, his second of the season, while going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a strikeout.  Munguia now has a batting line of .243/.312/.329 through 17 games, with his two home runs being the only two extra-base hits he has this season.
  • Shortstop Tyler Fitzgerald hit his 5th double while going 1-for-4 with a walk and two strikeouts.  That gives Fitzgerald a batting line of .328/.423/.557 with five doubles, three triples and a home run, with nine walks to 19 strikeouts.
  • Catcher Andy Thomas was 1-for-3 with two walks.  That pushes his batting average back up to the Mendoza Line, at .200, with 16 walks to 18 strikeouts to give him a .410 on-base percentage.
  • Starting pitcher Mason Black struck out eight in 4.0 innings on one run, with two hits and two walks allowed.  Black lowered his ERA to a season-low 4.40, and now has 22 strikeouts to three walks in 14.1 innings.
  • Reliever Randy Rodriguez only allowed one unearned run on one hit and one walk with four strikeouts.  Rodriguez continues to whittle down his ERA since a rough start to the year, lowering his ERA to 4.91 from 6.75.  Rodriguez’s walk in this game was his first in the last three games (7.2 innings).
  • Blake Rivera struck out one in 1.0 innings without allowing a baserunner.  Through six games, Rivera’s ERA remains at zero, as does his walks, with 11 strikeouts to 7.0 innings.

High-A: Eugene 11, Vancouver 7

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Eugene Notes:

  • The biggest hits came in final innings of a big win for Eugene.  Ghordy Santos had a solo home run in the 8th inning, making a close game a bit less close, at 9-7.  In the 9th, Luis Toribio’s team-leading 4th home run gave them two more runs to give them an 11-7 win.
  • With a 2-for-4 day, Luis Toribio broke a tie for the team lead in home runs, hitting his fourth (and second game in a row with one) and adding a walk.  Toribio is coming off a season where he hit a career-high 21 home runs in Eugene, but the difference is that he hit .209 last season, and is batting .313 this season.
  • With a 2-for-4 day, Ghordy Santos picked up his second home run of the season.  Santos has only gotten into 8 games, going 4-for-21, with half of his hits being home runs.  That gives him a .190 batting average against a .476 slugging percentage.
  • Right fielder Jared Dupere was one of a pair of players to get three hits, going 3-for-5 with a pair of strikeouts.  That bumped up his batting line to .286/.349/.446 with three doubles and two home runs.
  • With a slumping April in the books so far, Grant McCray was 2-for-5 with his second triple of the season.  It was McCray’s first multi-hit game since April 8th, and it bumped his batting average from .125 to .148.  He now has two doubles and two triples in 16 games.
  • Also with a chilly April is Aeverson Arteaga, who went 2-for-5 with his third double of the year.  It pushed Arteaga back above the Mendoza line for just the second time this season, and he’s now batting .207/.319/.345 on the season after 15 games.
  • It was a lukewarm start for Eric Silva, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks in just 3.0 innings, with two strikeouts.  His ERA was bumped up from 0.75 to 1.80 with this one start, and now he has 11 strikeouts to six walks in 15.0 innings.
  • Hunter Dula had the most impressive relief appearance of the day, striking out the side while allowing a hit in a single inning.  Dula now has a 2.70 ERA, and seven strikeouts to two walks in 6.2 innings after five appearances.

Low-A: Fresno 6, San Jose 2

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San Jose Notes:

  • One big inning spelled doom for the Giants, as they gave up five runs in the third off of three hits, two HBPs, and a walk.  That set San Jose down 5-0 early.  It would be too much, even as Thomas Gavello hit a solo home run as the big offense for the Giants.
  • Thomas Gavello, playing second, hit his third home run of the season on a 1-for-3 day, with a HBP, and made his first error.  Gavello is 13-for-47 with two doubles and three home runs, and has a .277/.443/.511 batting line.
  • Edison Bella went 2-for-2 with a walk and his first double of the season.  In 13 games, Mora is just 7-for-39 (.179) with a double and a home run, with six walks to 15 strikeouts.
  • It was a very difficult start for William Kempner, giving up a season-high five runs on three hits and two walks in 4.0 innings, with three strikeouts and three HBP.  In 14.0 innings, Kempner has walked nine and hit three batters to 15 strikeouts, and allowed 12 hits, leading to a 6.43 ERA.
  • Reliever Miguel Mora gave up just one run in 3.0 innings, on three hits and a walk with five strikeouts.  It’s Mora’s first game not giving up four runs, and also his longest at 3.0 innings.  Mora had a 3.29 ERA in 13 games at the ACL in 2022.