Kyle Lloyd pitched well again Thursday. (Photo: Grant Wickes)
Chihuahuas 8 Nashville Sounds 5
Key Statistics: LF Travis Jankowski 2-for-4, 2 R, BB, 2B; RF Boog Powell 3-for-4, 2 R, 2 2B, BB, 2 RBI; 1B Ty France 4-for-5, R, 3 RBI; 2B Esteban Quiroz 2-for-5, R, HR (18), RBI; CF Michael Gettys 2-for-5, R, HR (26), RBI; C Webster Rivas 3-for-5, R; RHP Emmanuel Ramirez 6 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, BB, 5 K; RHP Trevor Megill (S, 3) 2 IP, H, 3 K.
Prospect Watch: El Paso got the win on the road in Nashville as they hit two more homers. … Left fielder Travis Jankowski doubled, singled and drew a walk out of the leadoff spot Thursday night. The 28-year-old has swung a hot bat over the last few weeks as he waits for an opportunity in the big leagues. Over his last nine games, Jankowski has gone 20-for-41 (.487 average) at the plate. … First baseman Ty France had four singles and drove in three runs to pace the El Paso offense. The infielder has had an OPS of at least 1.062 in every month he has played in the Pacific Coast League. Overall, France is leading the PCL with a .388 average and a 1.231 OPS. … RHP Trevor Megill pitched two scoreless innings to notch his third save of the year. Megill struggled in June in El Paso but pitched well in July. Over his last ten outings, the big righty from Loyola Marymount has a 1.93 ERA with 29 strikeouts and four walks in 18.2 innings. We’ve mentioned it before, but Megill will be Rule 5 eligible this winter if he isn’t added to the 40-man roster.
Sod Poodles 7 Frisco RoughRiders 4
Key Statistics: CF Taylor Trammell 0-for-4 (organizational debut); C Luis Torrens 3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, RBI; 2B Hudson Potts 2-for-4, 2 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI; DH Kyle Overstreet 2-for-4, R, HR (6), 2 RBI; RHP Kyle Lloyd (W, 6-5) 7 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, BB, 9 K; RHP Kazuhisa Makita (S, 2) IP.
Luis Torrens extended his hitting streak to 14 games Thursday night. Photo: Eddie Kelly.
Prospect Watch: The Sod Poodles won at home Thursday night. … Outfielder Taylor Trammell made his organizational debut and went 0-for-4 out of the leadoff spot. The 21-year-old should get the majority of the playing time in center field over the season’s final month. … Hudson Potts started at second base and had two doubles and a pair of RBI. Going into Thursday’s game, Potts had been in a bit of a dry spell, going 5-for-32 with 12 strikeouts in his last ten games. … Catcher Luis Torrens had a three-hit game to extend his hitting streak to 14 games. When the streak started on July 12, the backstop was hitting .265. Torrens’ big night raised his average to .300. The former Rule 5 pick has had a breakout campaign in the Texas League in 2019. Overall, Torrens is hitting .300/.371/.490 and has improved behind the plate. … RHP Kyle Lloyd earned the win Friday, pitching seven innings for the second straight outing. Lloyd, 28, has fared well as a starter for the Sod Poodles, posting a 3.23 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 53 innings over nine starts. Assuming he isn’t added to the 40-man roster, Lloyd will be a free agent after the season.
For subscribers: MacKenzie Gore has continued his dominance since moving up to Double-A. Marcus has an interview with him about the transition.
Storm 6 San Jose Giants 2
Key Statistics: SS Xavier Edwards 2-for-4, BB, 2 RBI; 3B Eguy Rosario 2-for-4, R; 1B Olivier Basabe 1-for-3, R, BB, 2 RBI; LHP Osvaldo Hernandez 3 IP, H, K; RHP Elliot Ashbeck (W, 6-2) 4 IP, 2 H, 5 K; RHP Jordan Guerrero (S, 4) 2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K.
Prospect Watch: This game was scoreless after seven innings until the Storm exploded with five in the eighth to win the series in San Jose. … Shortstop Xavier Edwards had two singles and drove in a pair of runs in the Storm victory and has four consecutive multi-hit games. Edwards, 19, is striking out in just 12.7% of his plate appearances with the Storm, up slightly from what he produced in Fort Wayne. In 21 games with the Storm, Edwards is hitting .360/.400/.382. … LHP Osvaldo Hernandez threw three shutout innings but didn’t factor in the decision. For now, Hernandez is being limited to three innings a start after missing the first half of the season with an injury. The 21-year-old has pitched well with the Storm in a limited sample. Opposing batters are hitting just .188 off of the Cuban-born southpaw. He has allowed two runs over his last 16.2 innings of work. … RHP Elliot Ashbeck followed Hernandez with four shutout innings to notch the victory. Over his last three outings, Ashbeck has not walked a batter in 15.1 scoreless innings. The Cal League All-Star has a 2.89 ERA across 84 innings for the Storm this year.
TinCaps 10 Great Lakes Loons 9
Key Statistics: RF Dwanya Williams-Sutton 2-for-4, R, 2B, 2 RBI, SB (9); DH Michael Curry 3-for-4, 2 R, BB, 3 RBI; C Juan Fernandez 2-for-5; 1B Luke Becker 1-for-4, 2 R, HR (1), RBI; RHP Moises Lugo 2 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, K; RHP Adrian Martinez (W, 5-3) 4 IP, 3 H, ER, 2 BB, 4 K; LHP Cody Tyler (S, 3) IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, 3 K.
Prospect Watch: The TinCaps used a five-run fourth inning to carry the club to a win. … Michael Curry got the start at designated hitter and had three hits and drove in three runs. Curry, a 16th round pick last year, has put together a very nice year in the Summit City. The former Georgia Bulldog is hitting .277/.372/.447 for the TinCaps this year. His .818 OPS leads all TinCaps (minimum 150 plate appearances) this season. … Infielder Luke Becker hit his first professional homer in the TinCaps victory. Becker, 23, signed for $5,000 as a ninth-round pick last year. The switch-hitter out of Kentucky has played with Tri-City the last two summers before a recent promotion to Fort Wayne. Between the two stops, Becker is hitting .198/.326/.279 this year. … RHP Moises Lugo made his first start as a TinCap Thursday. The 20-year-old righty allowed four runs in two innings but did not factor in the decision. Lugo pitched to a 2.08 ERA in 26 innings in the Arizona League before being promoted.
Dust Devils 15 Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 4
Key Statistics: SS Jordy Barley 2-for-6, R, SB (11); LF Matthew Acosta 3-for-6, 3 R, 2 2B, RBI; SS Kelvin Melean 2-for-6, R, RBI; RF Logan Driscoll 2-for-5, 3 R, BB, RBI; 3B Sean Guilbe 3-for-5, 2 R, 2B, 3B, BB, 3 RBI; DH Nick Gatewood 2-for-6, R, 2 RBI; CF Tre Carter 3-for-5, 2 R, HR (2), 2 RBI; LHP Ethan Elliott 3.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R (2 ER), 3 K; RHP Jake Sims 1.2 IP, 3 H, R, 3 K; RHP Dom DiSabatino (W, 2-0) 2 IP, H.
Prospect Watch: The Dust Devils pounded out 18 hits in an easy victory on the road. … Third baseman Sean Guilbe had three hits and finished a homer shy of the cycle. The 19-year-old Guilbe has been arguably the most exciting player on the Dust Devils roster, ripe with power potential. Overall, Guilbe has 113 wRC+ and a healthy walk rate of over 10%. If he continues to cut down on the strikeouts, the Padres might have a third-day draft steal. He was drafted in the 12th round last June. … Outfielder Matthew Acosta had three hits, including two doubles. The 21-year-old out of USC has been a fairly consistent performer for Tri-City in his professional debut. Acosta has a .380 on-base percentage in 176 plate appearances this year. … LHP Ethan Elliott gave up just one single through the first three innings, but got tagged for a homer, double and single while recording just one out when he came out for the fourth. The tenth-rounder out of Division II Lincoln Memorial University hadn’t gone more than three innings in his first seven games after throwing 92 frames in his college season. He signed for $5,000 as a senior sign.
AZL Padres-1 5 AZL Brewers-Blue 4
Key Statistics: CF Hudson Head 2-for-4; Yerry Landinez, 2-for-4, R, 2B; LF Tyler Malone 2-for-3, 2 R, RBI; RHP Luarbert Arias, 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K; RHP Koty Fallon (W, 1-0) 0.1 IP, BB; RHP Frank Lopez, 3 IP, 3 H, ER, BB, 6 K; RHP Chris Lincoln (S, 1) IP, 2 K.
AZL Padres-2 6 AZL Dodgers-Lasorda 4
Key Statistics: LF Taylor Lomack 2-for-5; RF Junior Perez 1-for-4, R, HR (8), 4 RBI; SS Yeison Santana, 2-for-4, 2 R; RHP Keegan Collett (W, 4-0) 4 IP, BB, 5 K.
Prospect Watch: The AZL teams both won Thursday night to finish off a system sweep. … Outfielder Junior Perez picked up where he left off in July, as he homered again. The 18-year-old outfielder hit six homers in 112 plate appearances last month and now has eight overall. The teenage outfielder struggled in the DSL last year but has been a revelation in the desert so far in 2019. He’s cut his strikeout rate to a manageable 23% and he has a 12% walk rate. Outside of C.J. Abrams, Perez might be the breakout star in Peoria this year. … Outfielder Hudson Head had two hits Thursday, as he looks to break out of a slump. The 18-year-old outfielder has been held hitless in seven of his last ten games. Despite the cold stretch, Head has has a .298/.410/.476 line in his professional debut. … RHP Keegan Collett earned his fourth win of the year by throwing four shutout innings for the AZL Padres-2. The former Florida Gulf Coast hurler has struggled in the desert thus far so Thursday’s outing was a step in the right direction. Collett didn’t allow a hit in his four innings of work. He was the Padres’ 35th-rounder in June’s draft.
Could you please clarify Rule 5 eligibility? Does it start with the date of signing AND the number of years actually played or does the date of signing control everything? For example, if I signed as a 16 year old on July 2 but didn’t play in the Rookie Leagues until the following year, does that first year that I didn’t play count as 1 of the 5 years for under 19 year old eligibility? What about seasons missed because of injury?
Thank you!
Randy
Unless the player signs his first contract after the conclusion of the season of the affiliate to which he’s assigned, that first summer counts. So the bulk of the traditional J2 guys from the 2016 class will be Rule 5 eligible for the first time after the 2020 season. However, Ramon Perez, for example, signed in December, 2016, so he won’t become eligible until following 2021. (Note: Eguy Rosario signed on his 16th birthday, August 25, 2015. I have to double-check whether that was after the 2015 DSL season, or if he becomes Rule 5 eligible for the first time this year – not that it matters in terms of his readiness for MLB action.)
Seasons missed due to injury still count (thus Anderson Espinoza was added last year).
The players’ age is as of the June 5 immediately prior to signing his first contract.So even though, Bobby Witt Jr. didn’t sign until after he turned 19, he will have five years until he is Rule 5 eligible.
Hope that helps!
David,
This is the most easily understandable explanation I’ve ever read on the Rule 5 draft and really clarifies things for me. Thank you so much!
Randy