Minor League Baseball Daily Thread for May 24, 2022
Minor League Baseball Weekly Top Performers
For minor league baseball fans of teams whose major league clubs are not doing well, seeing success from the team’s minor league players at least brings some excitement to what would be an otherwise rough year of baseball fandom. This week, Pirates and Orioles fans get to enjoy a player being noted as the player of the week. Let’s dig in!
Hitter of the Week
The Pirates drafted Matt Gorski in the second round of the 2019 draft out of the University of Indiana as a toolsy center fielder with plenty of growth left for a college draftee. He struggled his first two seasons with high strikeout rates as he worked through a swing change. Returning to High-A Greensboro this season, Gorski has notably reduced his strikeout rate and seen his rebuilt swing begin to pay off. He has an abnormally high home run per fly ball rate so far this season, which has allowed him to tie for the overall home run lead in the minors after a big week. He hit .435/.458/1.522 on the week with a double and eight home runs. Gorski’s natural athleticism comes through in his rebuilt swing, and he is an above-average runner, allowing him to handle center field, though he has played some first base this season, which indicates that the Pirates may be pushing to get his bat in the lineup as frequently as possible.
Pitcher of the Week
The consensus top pitching prospect in the game coming into 2022, Grayson Rodriguez had a huge week this past week to really push the Baltimore Orioles that he is ready to follow Adley Rutschman to the big league club. Rodriguez is currently second in the minors and third in the minors in FIP. Grayson offers a dynamic fastball in both velocity and shape. He also features a double-plus slider, a change that sits plus and works double-plus, and a curve as a fourth pitch that is above-average. Over the past week, Grayson had a loud pair of starts for Norfolk, striking out 20 over 11 1/3 innings. He will soon find his way to the front of the Orioles rotation.
Hitters
AAA
Alec Burleson, Memphis – .538/.538/1.038, 6 R, 4 2B, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 0/1 BB/K, SB
Tristan Gray, Durham – .421/.500/1.105, 4 R, 2B, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 3/7 BB/K
Jacob Nottingham, Norfolk – .467/.636/1.133, 5 R, 2B, 3 H, 8 RBI, 7/2 BB/K, SB
Mark Payton, Charlotte – .550/.609/1.150, 6 R, 3 2B, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 3/3 BB/K, SB
Kyle Stowers, Norfolk – .480/.567/1.200, 11 R, 3 2B, 5 HR, 10 RBI, 5/6 BB/K
AA
Andres Alvarez, Altoona – .421/.520/1.053, 8 R, 4 HR, 5 RBI, 4/3 BB/K, 3 SB
Corbin Carroll, Amarillo – .400/.500/.800, 8 R, 2B, 2 3B, HR, 5 RBI, 3/7 BB/K, 3 SB
Logan O’Hoppe, Reading – .550/.640/1.350, 8 R, 2B, 5 HR, 8 RBI, 3/2 BB/K
Blake Sabol, Altoona – .571/.650/1.429, 6 R, 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 5/3 BB/K
High-A
Zach Britton, Vancouver – .375/.500/1.000, 5 R, 2B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 3/3 BB/K, SB
Allan Cerda, Dayton – .389/.450/1.000, 4 R, 2 2B, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 2/6 BB/K, SB’
Matt Gorski, Greensboro – .435/.458/1.522, 9 R, 2B, 8 HR, 11 RBI, 1/7 BB/K
Trevor Hauver, Hickory – .500/.609/1.278, 6 R, 2 2B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 5/1 BB/K
Jake Holton, West Michigan – .333/.556/1.167, 7 R, 5 HR, 10 RBI, 7/5 BB/K
Terrell Tatum, Winston-Salem – .750/.800/1.250, 6 R, 5 2B, HR, 8 RBI, 3/1 BB/K, SB
Jorbit Vivas, Great Lakes – .560/.607/.920, 5 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, HR, 8 RBI, 3/0 BB/K
Single-A
Kenedy Corona, Fayetteville – .400/.455/.950, 5 R, 2 2B, 3 HR< 8 RBI, 2/3 BB/K
Lucas Dunn, Lake Elsinore – .450/.520/.950, 7 R, 3 2B, 2 3B, HR, 8 RBI, 3/8 BB/K, 2 SB
D’Shawn Knowles, Inland Empire – .524/.565/.857, 8 R, 4 2B, HR, 7 RBI, 2/4 BB/K, 2 SB
Milan Tolentino, Lynchburg – .429/.538/.810, 6 R, 5 2B, HR, 7 RBI, 5/2 BB/K, 4 SB
Pitchers
AAA
Cody Bolton, Indianapolis – 7 1/3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 12 K
Jeff Brigham, Jacksonville – 4 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 11 K
Johan Oviedo, Memphis – 12 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 14 K
Daniel Ponce de Leon, Tacoma – 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 12 K
Grayson Rodriguez, Norfolk – 11 1/3 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 20 K
Tommy Romero, Durham – 10 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 14 K
AA
Hunter Gaddis, Akron – 6 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 11 K
Brandon Walter, Portland – 7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 11 K
High-A
Nolan Clenney, Brooklyn – 9 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K
Ryan Costeiu, Tri-City – 9 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 11 K
Justin Jarvis, Wisconsin – 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 K
Antoine Kelly, Wisconsin – 12 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 18 K
Connor Phillips, Dayton – 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 13 K
Single-A
Garrett Hawkins, Lake Elsinore – 6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 11 K
Jordan Jackson, Modesto – 9 1/3 IP, 8 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 11 K
Mike Vasil, St. Lucie – 8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 13 K
Statistical leaders across minors
Hitting
AVG – Jacob Gonzalez .408, Milan Tolentino .379, Pete Crow-Armstrong .372, Lenyn Sosa .368, Zach McKinstry .364
OBP – Ross Adolph .505, Esteury Ruiz .484, Carlos Mendoza .483, Kyler Castillo .481, Milan Tolentino .479
SLG – Alex McGarry .806, Moises Gomez .802, Matt Gorski .754, Robel Garcia .713, Jacob Gonzalez .700
HR – Moises Gomez/Matt Gorski 17, Nolan Gorman/Nicholas Northcut 15, Three with 14
SB – Max Ferguson 32, Esteury Ruiz 29, Yhoswar Garcia 28, Shane Sasaki 26, Wilderd Patino/Braiden Ward 22
wRC+ – Jacob Gonzalez 224, Alex McGarry 219, Robel Garcia 191, Pete Crow-Armstrong 189, Brett Harris 186
Pitching
GP – Jose Cuas 19, Tyler Clippard/Andrew Perez 18, Four with 17
IP – Peyton Battenfield 49 1/3, Brandon Knarr 46 1/3, Gordon Graceffo 45 2/3, Ronald Herrera/Michael McGreevy 45 1/3
ERA – Bryce Miller 0.94, Gordon Graceffo 0.99, Logan Workman 1.09, Brandon Knarr 1.17, Tyler Herb 1.17
WHIP – Brent Headrick 0.67, Travis Adams 0.68, Gordon Graceffo 0.68, Bryce Miller 0.76, Braden Olthoff 0.77
K – Royber Salinas 74, Grayson Rodriguez 66, Logan Allen 62, Brandon Walter/Adam Macko/Connor Phillips 60
FIP – Kyle Harrison 1.42, John Stankiewicz 1.53, Grayson Rodriguez 1.77, Gordon Graceffo 1.77, Bryce Miller 1.83
Today’s games
Pitching matchup of the day
Matt Manning is working his way back to the Detroit Tigers as he takes the hill Tuesday against Nashville. The Sounds will throw former first-round pick Ethan Small who has been dominating at the Triple-A level, with a 1.65 ERA and 46 strikeouts over 32 1/3 innings. Small could very well be on his way soon to Milwaukee for a role in the Brewers’ staff.
AAA
Indianapolis @ St. Paul
Iowa @ Memphis
Las Vegas @ Tacoma
Nashville @ Toledo
Rochester @ Syracuse
Jacksonville @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
Omaha @ Louisville
Gwinnett @ Norfolk
Charlotte @ Durham
Buffalo @ Columbus
Worcester @ Lehigh Valley
Sugar Land @ El Paso
Reno @ Oklahoma City
Round Rock @ Albuquerque
Salt Lake @ Sacramento
AA
Binghamton @ Reading
Somerset @ Portland
New Hampshire @ Akron
Northwest Arkansas @ Midland
Altoona @ Harrisburg
Hartford @ Richmond
Erie @ Bowie
Birmingham @ Chattanooga
San Antonio @ Frisco
Wichita @ Corpus Christi
Amarillo @ Arkansas
Tennessee @ Rocket City
Mississippi @ Pensacola
Montgomery @ Biloxi
Springfield @ Tulsa
High-A
Winston-Salem @ Hickory (doubleheader)
Dayton @ West Michigan
Great Lakes @ South Bend
Greenville @ Jersey Shore
Rome @ Hudson Valley
Quad Cities @ Fort Wayne
Greensboro @ Asheville
Wilmington @ Aberdeen
Lake County @ Peoria
Wisconsin @ Cedar Rapids
Lansing @ Beloit
Brooklyn @ Bowling Green
Everett @ Spokane
Vancouver @ Hillsboro
Tri-City @ Eugene
Single-A
Stockton @ Fresno
Clearwater @ Jupiter
Columbia @ Lynchburg
Lakeland @ Tampa
St. Lucie @ Dunedin
Fort Myers @ Bradenton
Fayetteville @ Down East
Kannapolis @ Carolina
Delmarva @ Charleston
Salem @ Fredericksburg
Myrtle Beach @ Augusta
Palm Beach @ Daytona
Inland Empire @ Lake Elsinore
Visalia @ Rancho Cucamonga
San Jose @ Modesto
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!
