Things were exploding in Eugene, where Grant McCray hit two home runs while getting four hits, and the returning Wade Meckler also picked up four hits.  And in Sacramento, Kyle Harrison has another great start and didn’t walk anyone!

AAA: Sacramento 9, Las Vegas 3

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Sacramento Notes:

  • On the back of another strong starting pitching performance, Sacramento got a big win against Las Vegas.  Kyle Harrison started the game, allowing only one hit and no runs or other baserunners over 4.0 innings.  That gave the Cats the chance to jump out to an early 4-0 lead, highlighted by Shane Matheny’s first home run, and the River Cats never gave up.
  • Kyle Harrison struck out seven while allowing just the one hit in 4.0 innings.  It was Harrison’s first game without any walks after he spent much of April dealing with walks.  Harrison lowered his ERA to 3.20, and now has 34 strikeouts to 21 walks in 19.2 innings.
  • Shane Matheny led the team with hits, going 3-for-4 with his first home run of the season.  It’s Matheny’s second straight multi-hit game.  Matheny had a career-high 14 home runs in 2022 between AA and AAA over 108 games.  He has a current batting line of .266/.398/.330.
  • On rehab, Bryce Johnson returned to Sacramento, and went 1-for-2 with a double and a HBP, plus two steals as he played five innings in his first rehab game.  Johnson hasn’t played since hitting the center field wall on a catch on April 12th, where he suffered a concussion.  He was batting 3-for-20 (.150) with only a home run, and zero walks to ten strikeouts in limited time over 10 games.
  • Also rehabbing was Darin Ruf, going 2-for-5 with a double.  After four games, Ruf is 4-for-18 (.222) with the double, and two walks to six strikeouts in his rehab.
  • First baseman Colton Welker was 2-for-4 with his third double of the season.After 15 games, Welker has a .326 batting average and a .455 on-base percentage as he has 11 walks to five strikeouts.
  • Casey Schmitt, back at shortstop, was 1-for-4 with a walk.  Schmitt has a batting line of .313/.352/.410 after 32 games.  Schmitt has now played 20 games at shortstop this season, with just nine games at third and three games at second base.

AA: Altoona 4, Richmond 2

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Richmond Notes:

  • The Squirrels gave up bookends of runs, leading to a 4-2 loss.  Altoona scored two runs in the 1st inning to jump out to a 2-0 lead, though Richmond scored runs in the 2nd and 6th innings to tie it at 2 apiece.  But Altoona picked up two more in the 9th inning, leading to a 4-2 loss for the Squirrels.
  • It was a big game for second baseman Hayden Cantrelle.  Cantrelle was 2-for-4 with his first home run of the season and a double, his fifth.  Cantrelle’s first home run comes in his 21st game.  He had six home runs in 2022, and a career-high seven in 2021 over 90 games in High-A and Double-A.
  • Ismael Munguia was 2-for-4 with two singles and his fifth steal of the season.  May’s been a good month for Munguia, as through five games, he’s 7-for-21 (.333) with three doubles and two steals.  He’s got a .278/.336/.381 batting line overall.
  • Also with two hits was third baseman Carter Aldrete.    Aldrete was 2-for-4 with his fourth double of the year.  Aldrete has a batting line of .256/.352/.385 batting lines, with four doubles and two home runs, and 11 walks to 20 strikeouts.
  • Starting pitcher Ryan Murphy had a rough first inning, and ended up giving up two runs in 2.2 innings, on four hits and three walks, striking out three.   It bumped his ERA back up to 5.31, and it was Murphy’s first game with allowing more than one walk.  Murphy now has 21 strikeouts to eight walks in 20.1 innings.
  • Wil Jensen got the majority of the innings in relief, going 4.0 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and one walk while striking out three.  Jensen has allowed just one run over his last three appearances, a total of 10.0 innings.  In a total of 17.1 innings, he has 19 strikeouts to eight walks.

High-A: Eugene 4, Spokane 2

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Eugene Notes:

  • A pair of 4-hit games, with the return of a top performer, highlighted a win for Eugene.  Grant McCray hit two home runs while going 4-for-5, being a big part of Eugene’s offense.  Meanwhile, outfielder Wade Meckler was 4-for-4 in his return from injury, with a triple.  That was enough as Carson Whisenhunt gave up just one run on a walk and one hit (a home run) in 4.0 innings to lead a strong pitching staff.
  • Grant McCray was 4-for-5, scoring two runs and knocking in three, with one strikeout, and two home runs to double his season total.  He also stole two bases.  May has been McCray’s month, as he’s 9-for-22 (.409) with three home runs, and two steals.  Overall, he has two doubles, two triples, and four home runs, and now has 10 steals in 13 attempts.
  • Wade Meckler has been out since April 22nd with a hand injury, but returned with a 4-for-4 day, picking up his first triple of the year and an RBI.  That means that Meckler now has a ridiculous batting line of .531/.571/.755 with six doubles, a triple, and a home run.
  • Continuing his rehab, Vaun Brown had a rough game, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts.  Brown’s now 2-for-10 in Eugene after two games, with four strikeouts to no walks.
  • Starter Carson Whisenhunt had a strong game for his second at High-A, giving up just one run on a walk and a hit (a home run) with three strikeouts.  Whisenhunt now has nine strikeouts to one walk in 8.0 innings at the level.
  • Trevor McDonald made his season debut, and gave up one run in 3.0 innings, off of four hits and two walks with three strikeouts.  McDonald had a 2.31 ERA in 2022 mostly in San Jose with two at High-A, with 120 strikeouts to 42 walks in 101.1 innings.

Low-A: San Jose 10, Modesto 9

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San Jose Notes:

  • San Jose was outhit, 13 to 12, and got just one extra-base hit, a triple, but still pulled out a 10-9 win.  They nearly blew the close game with two runs in the 9th inning, but they just barely held on to get the win.
  • Center fielder Carter Howell went 3-for-4 with a walk.  Howell now has three multi-hit games in a row, going 8-for-12 (.667) with a double, and three walks to one strikeout.  Overall, he’s batting .327/.386/.433 on the season with a .819 OPS.
  • Shortstop Jose Ramos was 2-for-4 with a walk and the team’s only extra-base hit, a triple, and an error, the fourth of the season.  That gives Ramos two triples to go with ten doubles on the season, going .256/.355/.411 on the season with 13 walks to 22 strikeouts.
  • Left fielder Alexander Suarez was 3-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout.  Suarez has a batting line of .288/.373/.424 with three doubles and three triples, and six walks to 20 strikeouts.
  • Starter Liam Simon gave up a season-high tying three runs in 4.0 innings, on a season-high five hits and a walk, with five strikeouts.  Simon’s ERA shot up to 3.86, and now has 32 strikeouts to nine walks in 21.0 innings.
  • Esmerlin Vinicio was unscored upon in 2.1 innings, with three hits and two walks to three strikeouts.  Vinicio now has nine strikeouts to ten walks in 13.1 innings this season, with a 3.38 ERA.