Cleveland Sports Forum

Alaska Abney now pitching for the Captains. Captains 8-1 over Dayton in the 7th.

jhonkensy Noel with a two run base hit in the 10th give the Clippers their first win of the season 4-3 over the Knights.. Clippers tied the game in the 9th after trailing 2-0. Fell behind 3-2 in the top of 9th.

What's the size of the AAA roster ? 27?

Looks like AA is 28, High A 29 and Low A 30

Is there a list somewhere of the players that were released?

Noel is 0-18 as a starter. And 2-2 off the bench. Up to .100 average [/list]

Preseason rankings

Williams No 5 RHp in the minors
Allen No 5 LHP
Valera No 5 Corner OF
Naylor No 9 C

Great debuts for both Williams and Allen last nigjt.

Columbus Clippers 4, Charlotte Knights 3 (F/10)

Box Score · Clippers improve to 1-4

The Columbus Clippers finally got their first win out of the way, and all it took was a dominant starting pitching performance from Logan Allen ... and extra innings.

After struggling at the Triple-A level upon promotion last season, Allen showed zero signs of issues in his 2023 debut, absolutely mowing down hitters. His final line was 4.2 innings pitched on 71 pitches with zero runs allowed on one hit with one walk and five strikeouts.

Also of note, Allen used his slider 55% of the time, which is not even his best-graded pitch (his changeup is elite) so that’s something to keep an eye on moving forward too.

Offensively, Chris Roller had a big day, going 2-for-3 with a double and a walk from the nine-spot in the order. Zack Collins continues to hit well, going 2-for-3 with a double and a walk. He has a team-high 1.237 OPS to start the season.

Another positive sign was Jhonkensy Noel, who came in late in the game as a pinch hitter and collected not only his first hit of the season after starting 0-for-18 but his second as well.

Tyler Freeman reached base twice, going 1-for-4 with a double and a walk. Brayan Rocchio went 1-4 with a walk and a stolen base and Bo Naylor walked twice.
Akron RubberDucks 0, Erie Seawolves 5

Box Score · RubberDucks fall to 0-1

Akron’s offense and bullpen failed to show up to start the 2023 season, but that didn’t stop starting pitcher Gavin Williams from doing his thing.

Williams was extremely impressive, opening the game with four no-hit innings before he was pulled after allowing a pair of hits in the fifth inning. His final line was 4.1 innings pitched, two hits, no runs, one walk, and nine strikeouts.

Offensively, no one on Akron had an extra-base hit, although Angel Martinez did go 2-for-4. Petey Halpin went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base, Joe Naranjo and Gabriel Rodriguez both walked twice, with Rodriguez stealing a base, and Connor Kokx walked and was hit by a pitch.

Trey Benton was the only bullpen arm that didn’t give up a run for Akron, striking out two in a scoreless inning of work.
Lake County Captains 8, Dayton Dragons 3

Box Score · Captains rise to 1-0

Ok, it’s not a big surprise that Logan Allen and Gavin Williams pitched well. They’re top prospects for a reason, but one of the biggest surprises on Thursday was the performance of Tommy Mace, a 2021 second-round pick who struggled in his pro debut last year and was repeating at High-A Lake County.

Mace had one of the best pitching performances of his young career, allowing one run in 4.0 innings on three hits while striking out eight and walking three. He still has some work to do, but it was a solid foundation for growth to begin his 2023 campaign.

Mace got some serious run support as well, with Jorge Burgos clearing the bases in the first inning with a grand slam. Burgos finished the game 2-for-5 with five runs batted in overall.

I nicknamed this Lake County lineup “Team BOB (base on balls)” in my season preview for the Captains and they lived up to the hype, walking nine times in their season opener.

Isaiah Greene led the way, going 0-for-2 with three walks. Joe Lampe reached base four times, going 2-for-3 with a double and a pair of walks and Juan Brito walked twice and was hit by a pitch. Micael Ramirez doubled and walked and Dayan Frias went 1-for-3 with a walk.

Isaaih Greene has league leader ability in walks and steals. He just has to hit some too.

Columbus Clippers 4, Charlotte Knights 0 (Game 1)
Columbus Clippers 17, Charlotte Knights 0 (Game 2)

Game 1 Box Score · Game 2 Box Score · Clippers improve to 3-4

Whatever demons the Columbus Clippers had that caused them to drop their first four games of the season were thoroughly exercised yesterday, as they swept the Charlotte Knights in a doubleheader by a combined score of 21-0. And, keep in mind, these are seven-inning games.

Game 1 was your regular baseball affair. It featured Tanner Bibee consistently hitting 97 mph on the radar gun and David Fry racking up two hits (including his first triple), but nothing too out of the ordinary.

Game 2, on the other hand, was entirely off the rails. The Clippers only had 11 hits, but they finished with 17 runs thanks to drawing 12 walks as a team and going 7-for-19 with runners in scoring position. Even with all that, they still left seven runners on base. In true Guardians fashion, the 17 runs were piled up with only one home run, hit by Daniel Schneemann in the fifth inning.

Brayan Rocchio, Bo Naylor, and Fry all had two hits in the second game. Rocchio has recorded at least one hit in each game this season, and this was his second multi-hit game. Three of the early runs came from this bases-clearing double by Naylor.

Lost in the offensive explosion was Konnor Pilkington rebounding from his disastrous 2023 debut to pitch four shutout innings. He did walk four batters, however, which limited how long he stayed in the game. Forty-five of Pilkington’s 70 pitches were four-seamers — probably more factoring in the pitches that went undefined by Statcast.

Amazing start by Charlotte's game 2 starter: 1 innings, 0 hits, 7 walks, 4 runs.
Would have been a great matchup wit h Clipper's Adam Scott who hit 5 in less than 2 innings, and allowed 7 runs in his debut last week. He returns to the mound today.

The Guardians took a risk in the offseason by dealing the fireballing, but injured, Carlos Vargas to the Diamondbacks in exchange for Ross Carver and some roster space. Vargas has already made his debut in Arizona, and the Guardians got their first look at Carver in Double-A yesterday. He pitched three innings, with four walks, one earned run, and one hit.

Petey Halpin led the offense with two hits, while Aaron Bracho hit his first home run of the season to tie the game in the sixth.
Akron would pull ahead with another run later in the sixth and tack on an insurance run in the seventh to secure their first win of the season.

Aaron Bracho after 2 sub-200 seasons at Lake County was promoted to Akron, I guess it was Akron or oblivion. In is first game he homered and walked twice. In 2019 he had a wonderful debut, has been a total dud since.

Lake County Captains 2, Dayton Dragons 1

Box Score · Captains improve to 2-0

It was a rough day for the Lake County Captains offense, but they were picked up by the pitching staff to remain undefeated through two games. The top third of the Lake County lineup — headlined by offseason acquisition, Juan Brito — combined to go 0-for-13 with five strikeouts. But they only needed three hits, thanks to Ryan Webb working around a few walks in 4.2 innings, and the bullpen (mostly) shutting things down over the final 4.1 innings.

Lynchburg Hillcats 1, Fredericksburg Nationals 4

Box Score · Hillcats fall to 0-1

The Lynchburg Hillcats were the last full-season affiliate to start their season yesterday, and they began with a loss. Parker Messick turned in a gem over four shutout innings, with five strikeouts and a walk,[sorry, blogger,it was not a gem, he allowed 7 hits, but it was ok debut but a pair of errors and an unfortunately timed home run sank the bullpen. Pres Cavenaugh, Guy Lipscomb, and Nate Furman all had hits in the loss.

3 lefties and one unnamed starter today

27 year old Adam Scott with his 10.80 ERA in his season debut back on the mound for Columbus. They should have someone better! Williams should be here soon
23 year old Joey Cantillo for Akron. 1.93 ERA in his 12 starts after injury held him out the first 1/2 season. He should expect to be in Columbus by June, too
22 year old Rodney Boone debuts in Lake County. He had a fine 3.54 ERA 137K vs 29BB ratio in Lynchburg, but he's described as a relatively soft tosser.
no one announced for Lynchburg.

Here is the Lynchburg pitching roster. I really don't know who among these guys will be staters. W. Vasquez and A. Richardson were pretty effective starters last summer in Arizona and pretty bad in a few Lynchburg outings. A Peterson is a big 6-6 kid drafted in the 9th round.
4th rounder and 2nd rounder Justin Campbell are not on any rosters at season's start

jjReny Artiles
Reny Artiles 33 R/R 6' 0" 160 01/17/2002
Active
No
Elmson Candelario
Elmson Candelario R/R 6' 4" 185 11/09/2000
Injured 7-Day
No
Magnus Ellerts
Magnus Ellerts 44 R/R 6' 5" 225 03/15/2001
Active
No
Yeury Gervacio
Yeury Gervacio 47 L/L 6' 1" 168 07/01/1999
Active
No
Yorman Gomez
Yorman Gomez 34 R/R 5' 11" 167 11/10/2002
Active
No
Allan Hernandez
Allan Hernandez R/R 6' 5" 225 01/19/2001
Injured 60-Day
No
Zach Jacobs
Zach Jacobs 41 R/R 6' 1" 170 09/09/2001
Active
No
Jack Jasiak
Jack Jasiak 37 R/R 6' 1" 198 03/06/2001
Active
No
Parker Messick
Parker Messick 15 L/L 6' 0" 225 10/26/2000
Active
No
Braunny Munoz
Braunny Munoz 24 R/R 6' 1" 170 08/20/2000
Active
No
Austin Peterson
Austin Peterson 49 R/R 6' 6" 234 09/19/1999
Active
No
Zach Pettway
Zach Pettway R/R 6' 2" 215 01/29/1999
Injured 7-Day
No
Bienvenido Polanco
Bienvenido Polanco R/R 6' 1" 170 10/03/2001
Injured - Full Season
No
Shawn Rapp
Shawn Rapp 23 R/L 6' 2" 200 07/03/2000
Active
No
Alonzo Richardson
Alonzo Richardson 6 R/R 5' 11" 165 10/07/2002
Active
No
Geo Rivera Jr.
Geo Rivera Jr. R/R 6' 3" 260 11/15/2000
Injured 60-Day
No
Adrian Rodriguez
Adrian Rodriguez R/R 5' 11" 155 08/21/2000
Injured - Full Season
No
Adam Tulloch
Adam Tulloch 32 L/L 6' 2" 200 07/01/2000
Active
No
Wardquelin Vasquez
Wardquelin Vasquez 36 R/R 6' 3" 194 07/25/2001
Active
No
Samuel Vasquez
Samuel Vasquez 40 R/R 6' 3" 170 09/20/1999
Active
No
Miguel Vinicio
Miguel Vinicio 30 R/R 6' 3" 170 09/01/1999
Active
No
Juan Zapata
Juan Zapata 38 R/R 6' 1" 198 11/19/1998
Active
No