Minor League Baseball Daily Thread for April 8, 2022
Minor League Baseball Top Performers
It’s Opening Day for the “rest” of Minor League Baseball today after having a few days of Triple-A baseball alone. Enjoy!
Hitter of the Day
In a game that featured four long balls, Worcester shortstop Ryan Fitzgerald accounted for a pair of them, going 2-3 with 3 RBI on the day and adding a walk as well. Fitzgerald has been part of the Red Sox organization since signing as an undrafted free agent out of Creighton, and he’s meticulously worked his way up the Red Sox system with consistent bat-to-ball skills, but swing work during the pandemic both allowed Fitzgerald to tap into his raw power and tighten up his batting eye, allowing him to post better walk rates, lower strikeout rates, and better ISO than he had previously while playing in AA/AAA. He could be an under-radar guy that finds his way into the mix in Boston soon for a bench role.
Pitcher of the Day
Though Louisville came back with a 4-run eighth inning to win the game, Cole Sands sparkled for the first five innings for the St. Paul Saints on Thursday night. The 2018 fifth-round pick out of Florida State hurled five scoreless innings in his 2022 debut for the Saints, allowing just one hit and striking out seven. The Twins have seen Sands work his fastball into the mid-90s consistently, mixing in a sharp curve and a change. Sands is among a group of “ready” arms the Twins will have sitting in St. Paul this year to supplement the MLB rotation for a start or two and may push the issue with more performances like this.
Hitters
AAA
Nick Allen, Las Vegas – 2-4, R, BB
Bryson Brigman, Jacksonville – 2-3, R, 3 RBI, BB, K, HR
Jake Cave, St. Paul – 3-4, R, RBI, 2B
Brendon Dais, Salt Lake, 3-5, 2 R, RBI, 2B
Jonathan Davis, Nashville – 1-2, R, 3 BB, SB
Yusniel Diaz, Norfolk – 2-5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR
Ryan Fitzgerald, Worcester – 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB, K, 2 HR
Luis Garcia, Rochester – 3-6, 3 R, 2 RBI, K, HR
Jim Haley, Durham – 2-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 K, 2 HR
C.J. Hinojosa, El Paso – 1-3, 2 R, 2 BB, 2B
Drew Jackson, Las Vegas – 3-5, R, RBI
Jahmai Jones, Norfolk – 3-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR
Patrick Kivlehan, Charlotte – 3-5, 2 R, RBI, BB, 2B, HR
Christian Lopes, Las Vegas – 2-4, RBI, BB, K
Ryan Noda, Oklahoma City – 2-3, BB
Kevin Padlo, Tacoma – 2-3, BB, SB
Mark Payton, Charlotte – 2-4, 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2B
Ford Proctor, Durham – 3-4, R, K, 2B
Webster Rivas, El Paso – 1-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 2B
Dillon Thomas, Salt Lake – 1-2, R, 3 BB
Bubba Thompson, Round Rock – 3-5, 2 R, K, 2 SB
Trayce Thompson, El Paso – 3-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, K, 2 2B
Pat Valaika, Gwinnett – 3-4, R, 3 RBI, K, 2B, HR
Jamie Westbrook, Nashville – 2-3, BB
Pitchers
AAA
Colten Brewer, Omaha – 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
Grant Dayton, Jacksonville – 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Brandon Gold, Albuquerque – 3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
Sean Hjelle, Sacramento – 3 2/3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Brian Howard, Las Vegas – 3 2/3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Michael Pineda, Toledo – 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
Erasmo Ramirez, Rochester – 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
Cole Sands, St. Paul – 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K
Jackson Stephens, Gwinnett – 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K
Hunter Stratton, Indianapolis – 2 2/3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
Alexander Wells, Norfolk – 4 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
Today’s games
AAA
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre @ Syracuse (doubleheader)
Iowa @ Buffalo
Charlotte @ Norfolk
Rochester @ Toledo
St. Paul @ Louisville
Columbus @ Lehigh Valley
Worcester @ Jacksonville
Omaha @ Indianapolis
Durham @ Nashville
Albuquerque @ Oklahoma City
Gwinnett @ Memphis
El Paso @ Round Rock
Sugar Land @ Sacramento
Salt Lake @ Tacoma
Reno @ Las Vegas
AA
New Hampshire @ Portland
Harrisburg @ Altoona
Akron @ Erie
Somerset @ Reading
Chattanooga @ Tennessee
Binghamton @ Hartford
Richmond @ Bowie
Northwest Arkansas @ Springfield
Arkansas @ Frisco
Biloxi @ Pensacola
Montgomery @ Mississippi
Tulsa @ Wichita
San Antonio @ Corpus Christi
Midland @ Amarillo
Rocket City @ Birmingham
High-A
Lake County @ Lansing
West Michigan @ Great Lakes
Rome @ Greensboro
Brooklyn @ Wilmington
Hickory @ Winston-Salem
Quad Cities @ South Bend
Fort Wayne @ Dayton
Aberdeen @ Jersey Shore
Hudson Valley @ Greenville
Beloit @ Cedar Rapids
Asheville @ Bowling Green
Peoria @ Wisconsin
Vancouver @ Spokane
Tri-City @ Hillsboro
Eugene @ Everett
Single-A
Palm Beach @ Jupiter
Tampa @ Lakeland
Bradenton @ Dunedin
Fort Myers @ Clearwater
Fayetteville @ Kannapolis
Down East @ Carolina
Lynchburg @ Salem
Augusta @ Columbia
Fredericksburg @ Delmarva
Myrtle Beach @ Charleston
St. Lucie @ Daytona
Rancho Cucamonga @ Visalia
Stockton @ Fresno
San Jose @ Modesto
Lake Elsinore @ Inland Empire
Benjamin Chase
After 6 years of writing for FanSided on various sites and offering contributions to various other websites, family changes have encouraged me to start this site. I spend a ton of time watching baseball at all levels, but I love watching minor league baseball on milb.tv as I'm hours away from the closest minor league team. This is an effort of all those games I enjoy on a daily basis!
