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The highest prospect within the Los Angeles Dodgers system misplaced one in all his baseball “brothers” a month in the past. Not actually — Alex De Jesus is alive and effectively — however reasonably by dint of a trade-deadline deal. A 20-year-old infielder who’d been enjoying with the Excessive-A Nice Lakes Loons, De Jesus went to the Toronto Blue Jays group, together with Mitch White, in alternate for Moises Brito and Nick Frasso.
Shortly after the commerce, I requested Diego Cartaya what it’s wish to have a teammate who can also be an in depth buddy go away the group.
“It’s not simple, however I’m sort of blissful for him,” replied Cartaya, who together with being L.A.’s top prospect is No. 31 in our MLB prospect rankings. “He’s going to get a greater alternative with Toronto, so we’re fairly excited for him. However it’s laborious. As teammates, we spend extra time collectively than we do with our households. He’s identical to my brother.”
Cartaya’s actual household is in Venezuela, and it was his father who initially taught him the right way to hit. The tutoring he’s acquired since coming into professional ball at age 16 has resulted in occasional tweaks, each to his stance and his swing. Cartaya advised me that he was once “extra of an enormous launch-angle man,” however now has a flatter swing. Upon listening to that, I famous that the house run I’d seen him hit the earlier night time was extra of a line drive than a moonshot.
“I didn’t suppose that it was going out,” admitted Cartaya, whose shot to right-center simply cleared the glove of a Lansing Lugnuts outfielder leaping on the wall. “However thank God it went out. I used to be somewhat confused. I nearly took my helmet off to point out him ‘good catch.’”
As for his main place, the 20-year-old Cartaya has a rocket for an arm, however is seen by most scouts as an offense-first catcher with still-developing abilities behind the plate. Citing blocking as his largest want for enchancment, Cartaya expressed satisfaction along with his general defensive enchancment this season.
Cartaya is slashing .260/.395/.519 with 22 dwelling runs between Low-A Rancho Cucamonga and Excessive-A Nice Lakes, and he was just lately named the Dodgers’ Branch Rickey Minor League Participant of the Yr. It’s a secure wager that his former teammate Alex was amongst these blissful to listen to the information.
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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS
George Stone went 6 for 9 in opposition to Ralph Works.
Freddie Freeman is 4 for 4 in opposition to Brandon Workman.
Chuck Workman went 4 for six in opposition to Hod Lisenbee,
Eric Chavez went 5 for six in opposition to Horacio Ramirez.
Walter “Union Man” Holke went 6 for 7 in opposition to Jack Knight.
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Bobby Wilson caught a number of pitchers over his 17 skilled seasons, 10 of which have been spent within the huge leagues. Who amongst them stands out for having the most-unique motion profile on one in all his choices?
“Off the highest of my head, we had Fernando Romero once I was in Minnesota,” replied Wilson, who’s now the catching coach for the Texas Rangers. “He threw a one-seamer — principally, he cut up his pointer and center finger over one seam — and sort of the operating joke Mitch Garver and I had is that he was our 98-mph knuckleballer. Generally the ball would minimize left, generally it might go proper, and generally it might go straight down, like a cut up. Different instances it might be straight as an arrow. It was all over. He was laborious as hell to catch.”
A pitcher that Wilson by no means squatted behind the dish for has caught his consideration. Jhoan Duran encompasses a pitch that’s been dubbed a “splinker” — a high-90s sinker-spitter hybrid that has touched triple digits.
“The man that stands proud proper now’s Duran, from Minnesota,” Wilson mentioned. “Certainly one of our gamers got here into the dugout after going through him and mentioned, ‘That man simply broke my eyes.’ He’d by no means seen it earlier than. The pitch is disgusting.”
The hitter in query?
“He’s a fairly good participant,” allowed Wilson. “I’ll let you know that a lot.”
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A quiz:
Who has probably the most hits in Tampa Bay Rays franchise historical past?
The reply may be discovered under.
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NEWS NOTES
Bob Locker, a right-handed reliever who made 576 appearances whereas pitching for 4 totally different groups from 1965-1975, died final month at age 84. Locker’s greatest season got here with the Chicago White Sox in 1967 when he logged a 2.09 ERA with 20 saves whereas working in a league-leading 77 video games.
Pete Burnside, a left-handed pitcher who performed for 4 totally different MLB groups from 1955-1963, and for Japan’s Hanshin Tigers in 1964-1965, died late final month at age 92. A graduate of each Dartmouth School and Northwestern College, Burnside made 111 of his 196 big-league appearances with the Washington Senators.
SABR introduced the finalists for the 2022 Dorothy Seymour Mills Lifetime Achievement Award, which honors ladies in baseball. Biographical clips of Penny Marshall, Justine Siegel, Janet Marie Smith, Toni Stone, and Suzyn Waldman may be discovered here.
On a associated observe, registration is now open for the fourth annual SABR/IWBC Ladies in Baseball Convention, which can be held just about on September 16-18, 2022. Extra data may be discovered here.
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The reply to the quiz is Carl Crawford, with 1,480. Evan Longoria is second, with 1,471.
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Ji-Man Choi has by no means performed professionally in his homeland. Signed out of South Korea by the Seattle Mariners shortly after his 18th birthday, the 31-year-old first baseman has performed nearly completely in america, the lone exceptions being temporary stints within the Australian Baseball League and the Venezuelan Winter League. I just lately requested Choi if he needs he would have stayed in Korea for just a few extra years earlier than coming stateside.
“Half and half,” responded Choi, who has spent the previous 5 seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays. “Generally I believe to myself, ‘What if I did play on the professional degree, within the KBO? In Korea, earlier than you grow to be a free agent you must wait seven to eight years, so I might have been older. For that motive, I ponder if possibly I wouldn’t have ever made it to the Main Leagues.”
Returning dwelling to play, one thing Choi hopes to do someday, requires a ready interval of its personal.
“As a Korean, I clearly wish to play in Korea, in entrance of the followers,” mentioned Choi. “That’s my final dream, to finish my profession there. The one factor is, once you signal with a Main League crew as an newbie, you’ll be able to’t return to Korea and play instantly. You need to wait two years [from the time you’re released or choose not to sign another contract].”
Requested about countryman Shin-Soo Choo, who returned dwelling to play for SSG Landers lower than a 12 months after leaving the Texas Rangers, Choi known as that, “a unique case,” including that “an exception was made at the moment.”
Choo’s present crew is the one Choi would most need to play for, SSG Landers being primarily based in Incheon, the place he grew up. That’s not so easy, both. As Choi defined, not solely would he have to attend two years, he would go right into a draft the place he may very well be chosen by any crew.
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FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SSG Landers has the most effective file within the KBO, at 77-39-3. The worst file belongs to the Hanwha Eagles, who’re 36-79-2.
Hyeong Jun So is 12.3 with a 2.94 ERA and 103 strikeouts in 143-and-two-thirds innings for the KBO’s KT Wiz. The 20-year-old right-hander has allowed 126 hits.
The Yakult Swallows have NPB’s greatest file, at 70-48-2. The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters have NPB’s worst file, at 47-71-3.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is 12-5 with a 1.82 ERA and 172 strikeouts in 163 innings for NPB’s Orix Buffaloes. The 24-year-old right-hander went 18-5 with a 1.39 ERA with 206 strikeouts in 193-and-two-thirds innings a 12 months in the past.
Hotaka Yamakawa has been NPB’s greatest energy hitter not named Munetaka Murakami. The 30-year-old Seibu Lions first baseman has 37 dwelling runs to go along with a .275/.389/.611 slash line. Yamakawa hit a career-hight 47 lengthy balls in 2018.
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I ran a Twitter ballot earlier this week, the choices being Munetaka Murakami and Roki Sasaki. The query was as follows:
You’re a MLB GM and these younger NPB stars grow to be accessible. You may solely have one. Which do you are taking?
The outcomes have been shut. The 20-year-old Sasaki garnered 53.2% of the vote, whereas the 22-year-old Murakami polled at 46.8%.
Readers of this column are definitely accustomed to each gamers — even those that don’t pay a lot heed to NPB — as I’ve cited their numbers and accomplishments quite a few instances. Right here is an up to date snapshot:
Murakami is slashing .341/.477/.756 with 50 dwelling runs; he leads the league in all 4 classes.
Sasaki has a 2.05 ERA to go along with 162 strikeouts and 74 hits allowed in 118-and-a-third innings.
Would the ballot outcomes look a lot totally different if it have been precise MLB GMs voting? Based mostly on a handful of conversations I’ve had with entrance workplace members from a number of groups, it’s laborious to say. Each gamers are extremely fascinating, and with good motive.
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FARM NOTES
Yanquiel Fernandez is slashing .289/.347/.514 with 20 dwelling runs and 108 RBIs with the Low-A Fresno Grizzlies. A local of Havana, Cuba, the 19-year-old outfielder is No. 9 in our up to date Colorado Rockies prospect rankings.
Jose Rodriguez is slashing .280/.340/.430 with 11 dwelling runs and 40 stolen bases for the Double-A Birmingham Barons. A local of Valverde, Dominican Republic, the 21-year-old center infielder is No. 4 in our up to date Chicago White Sox prospect rankings.
Edinson Batista is 9-3 with a 2.63 ERA and 121 strikeouts in 102-and-two-thirds innings between Low-A Fayetteville and Excessive-A Asheville. A local of Santiago, Dominican Republic, the 20-year-old right-hander is No. 25 in our up to date Houston Astros prospect rankings.
Marco Raya is 3-2 with a 3.25 ERA and 69 strikeouts in 61 innings for the Low-A Fort Myers Mighty Mussels. A fourth-round decide in 2020 out of United South Excessive Faculty in Laredo, Texas, the 20-year-old right-hander is No. 12 in our up to date Minnesota Twins prospect rankings.
Davis Sharpe is 8-3 with a 1.86 ERA and 81 strikeouts in 67-and-two-thirds innings between Low-A Lynchburg and Excessive-A Lake County. A Thirteenth-round decide final 12 months out of Clemson College, the 22-year-old right-hander is No. 27 in our up to date Cleveland Guardians prospect rankings.
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Is there’s such a factor as a clutch hitter? In keeping with Toronto Blue Jays supervisor John Schneider, the reply to that query is sure.
“I believe it’s a particular actual factor,” Schneider mentioned previous to a latest recreation at Fenway Park. “If you’ve obtained 40,000 screaming at you and your coronary heart charge will get going, sure guys are actually good at staying within the second and embracing it. And also you see individuals do the alternative. So it’s undoubtedly an actual factor.”
A participant’s incapability to remain within the second can clearly be detrimental to his crew’s success. With that in thoughts, would Schneider attempt to keep away from placing sure gamers in conditions the place they could let the sport velocity up on them?
“I believe everybody at this degree goes to be fairly well-versed in it,” replied Schneider. “Certainly not are you attempting to shrink back from somebody who’s as gifted as they’re at this degree, simply because the strain goes to be too excessive. I believe strain is one thing that it’s best to get pleasure from. It’s one thing that you just’ve earned. When you’re enjoying, you’re going to be in strain spots. You belief guys to make the mandatory changes.”
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Left on the cutting-room ground from Wednesday’s nerdy interview with Mike McCarthy is what the El Paso Chihuahuas pitching coach mentioned in regards to the worth of a pitch holding its line for so long as potential.
“The flexibility to create tunneling is predicated on, the more durable you throw a pitch, the longer it is going to maintain aircraft, and the later it’s going to interrupt.” mentioned McCarthy, who’s in his first 12 months with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate. “That skill to create deception later in ball flight means the hitter has much less time to react. That’s normally favorable to a pitcher.”
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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE
Fernando Cruz made his big-league debut with the Cincinnati Reds on Friday at age 32, in his twelfth skilled season. Bobby Nightengale has the story at The Cincinnati Enquirer.
A Texas decide has declared a mistrial within the baby intercourse abuse case in opposition to former MLB pitcher John Wetteland. Kaley Johnson and Emerson Clarridge have the details at The Fort Price Star-Telegram.
Is Kansas Metropolis’s Brady Singer an ace or a wild card? Sam Lutz looked into that query at Pitcher Checklist.
Pinstripe Alley’s Esteban Rivera wrote about how Yankees rookie right-hander Greg Weissert has a sturdy seam-shifted wake profile.
MLB is overdue for a feminine umpire, and one could also be on the best way. Chelsea Janes has the story at The Washington Submit.
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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS
Miguel Cabrera batted .316 with a 112 wRC+ within the months of Could and June, and .177 with a 40 wRC+ in July and August. Albert Pujols batted .174 with a 66 wRC+ in Could and June, and .342 with a 202 wRC+ in July and August.
Yu Darvish has 3,040 skilled strikeouts, 1,790 within the U.S. and 1,250 in Japan. Hideo Nomo had 3,222 skilled strikeouts between the 2 nations, 2,018 within the U.S. and 1,204 in Japan. Masahiro Tanaka has 2,483 between the 2. Daisuke Matsuzaka had 2,395.
Darvish’s win on Friday night time was the 1,000th in MLB historical past by a Japanese-born pitcher of Japanese ancestry. Counting pitchers born in Japan however not of Japanese ancestry — Stephen Randolph is amongst them — there have been 1,016 wins.
Cal Quantrill is 12-0 with a 2.81 ERA at Cleveland’s Progressive Discipline.
Paul Quantrill went 2-5 with a 6.75 ERA pitching in Cleveland.
Brooks Robinson had precisely the identical variety of walks and strikeouts in three totally different full seasons. He had one other full season with another strikeout than stroll, in addition to a season with two extra strikeouts than walks.
The St. Louis Maroons gained the Union Affiliation title in 1884 with a file of 94-19-1. Fred Dunlap led the league in batting common (.412) and residential runs (13). Buttercup Dickerson batted .365. Orator Shafer batted .360.
On right this moment’s date in 1988, the Toronto Blue Jays scored 5 within the eighth and 4 within the ninth to beat the Texas Rangers 9-7. George Bell hit a walk-off grand slam.
The Cincinnati Reds homered 9 instances on right this moment’s date in 1999 on their approach to a 22-4 pummeling of the Philadelphia Phillies. Eddie Taubensee went deep twice.
Gamers born on right this moment’s date was Paul Jata, a primary baseman/outfielder who performed in 32 video games for the Detroit Tigers in 1972. The Astoria, New York native recorded three of his 17 profession hits in opposition to All-Star southpaw Ken Holtzman.
Additionally born on right this moment’s date was Kelly Heath, an infielder whose big-league profession comprised one recreation and one plate look — a line-out to heart in opposition to Detroit’s Milt Wilcox — for the Kansas Metropolis Royals in 1982. Wilcox hurled a one-hitter that day.
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