8/3 MiLB Gameday: NESN goes to Hadlock

[Cuzittt]

Today's Games:

IL:Pawtucket (Ryan Verdugo) vs. Columbus (Toru Murata) [1:05pm]
EL: Portland (Eduardo Rodriguez) vs. Trenton (Jairo Heredia) [1:05pm]
CL:Salem (TBD) @ Myrtle Beach (Vincent Payano) [6:05pm]
SAL: Greenville (Daniel McGrath) vs. Rome (Steve Janas) [4:05pm]
NYPL: Lowell (Jake Drehoff/Kevin McAvoy) @ Jamestown (Marek Minarik/Tyler Eppler)[2:05pm]
GCL: GCL Sox - OFF
DSL: DSL Sox - OFF
Notes:

Scoreboard:

Boston Red Sox Minor League Scores

Media:

MiLB TV
MiLB Radio

Local Media:

Pawsox:

Providence Journal
Pawtucket Times

Seadogs: Portland Press Herald

Salem: Roanoke Times

Greenville: Greenville Online

Lowell: Lowell Sun

 

[mabrowndog]

Eerie...
 

Mike Antonellis @seadogsradio  ·  5h

Exactly one year ago today…Henry Owens made his AA debut against Eduardo Rodriguez in Bowie…Today, Rodriguez takes Owens spot w/Portland
 


Mike Antonellis @seadogsradio  ·  36m

Eduardo Rodriguez is not only taking Owens’ spot in the rotation, he’s wearing the same number - 23.

 
The kid's got a smooth & compact delivery with sound & balanced mechanics. A fairly uneventful 1st inning (swinging K on 3 pitches, an 0-2 HBP, pop-up to 3B, another swinging K) but he ran into some trouble in the 2nd (leadoff line drive single to CF, a pitch in the dirt, walk, fly to short left, sac fly to right-center moving the lead runner to 3B, and a medium fly to left.)
 
17 pitches in the 1st, 25 in the 2nd.

 

[LogansDad]

This is my first time seeing Swihart on TV... kid looks great behind the plate.

 

[mabrowndog]

Back to back Ks to start the 3rd. Jake Cave goes down swinging on three pitches (for the second time today), then pinch-hitter Tyson Blaser gets caught looking as Rodriguez painted the corner low & inside on a breaking ball.

 

[mabrowndog]

Well, there's a mistake by Rodriguez. A 1-0 fastball to the RHH Dan Fiorito left chest-high over the middle of the plate. Came in straight as an arrow, and he turned on it hard to pull it over the Maine Monster.
 
That ties the game 1-1 in the 4th.

 

[mabrowndog]

Rodriguez will have to get out of some trouble that he didn't create. Two batters, two ROE for Trenton in the 5th as first 3B Mike Miller and then 3B David Chester (on a bunt that hugged the line) get charged with miscues.
 
EDIT - A 4-6-3 GIDP certainly helps. The slider he's throwing is pretty nasty.
 
EDIT - Wow, another slider gets the swinging K to end the threat.
 
He's through 5 IP with 1 ER on 2 H, 1 BB, 6 K, and 59 of 84 pitches for strikes, with his FB hitting 93-94.

 

[mabrowndog]

This is my first time seeing Swihart on TV... kid looks great behind the plate.

 
He's made about a half-dozen great blocks on sliders & changeups in the dirt, including that one in the 5th with the runner on 3B.

 

[mabrowndog]

Another swinging K on 4 pitches to start the 6th, and that'll do it after 88 pitches. He's in line for the win after the Sea Dogs took a 2-1 lead in the b-5th. Couldn't ask for much more in a system debut.

 

[burstnbloom]

Nice little debut for Rodriguez.  He looks pretty good to me. 
 
5.1 2H 1BB  1R 7 K  62 or 88 pitches for strikes.  
 
He really did groove that fastball though. 

 

[Harry Hooper]

Love the Blake!

 

[mabrowndog]

Lowell Spinners ‏@LowellSpinners 45m
For the second time in two nights, no #Spinners baseball. Doubleheader in Jamestown has been bagged. Doubleheader Monday starting at 4:05.

 

[Doctor G]

Swihart is as good as it gets at setting a low target and  catching the pitch without excess movement.His receiving is a lot like Jose Molina's. Real soft hands.

 

[mabrowndog]

Greenville had been protecting a 2-1 lead for most of the game thanks to Daniel McGrath (6 IP, 1 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 6 K), but a 2-run HR off Taylor Grover in the t-9th just took care of that.
 
It's a now a 4-2 Braves margin.

 

[foulkehampshire]

When all is said and done Swihart may be a more interesting player than Boegarts. What a year he's having. He could be the next Jason Kendall

 

[mabrowndog]

When all is said and done Swihart may be a more interesting player than Boegarts. What a year he's having. He could be the next Jason Kendall

 
Aside from speed on the basepaths and a couple years difference in age, that strikes me as a pretty damned good comparison in terms of tools and projection. His eye, bat, framing and defense are all right there.
 
Kendall broke in at age 22 at the start of the '96 season, albeit for a perennial last-place Pirates team that wasn't facing any 40-man pressures and vaulted him straight to the majors after he demolished AA. Swihart's in line to be the everyday starter by April 2016 at the latest, when he turns 24.
 
I'll tell you what's crazy: I seem to recall Kendall having a much greater presence on the All-Star team during the first half of his career, but I'm dead wrong. He was only selected three times. A criminally underrated ballplayer if there ever was one.

 

[Just a bit outside]

I hope Swihart is a better hitter than Kendall. Kendall was an average hitter for his career. Swihart needs to provide more power than Kendall to become a star.
Kendall had a great start to his career and then became a well below average player after 5 or 6 years.

 

[Jed Zeppelin]

I hope Swihart is a better hitter than Kendall. Kendall was an average hitter for his career. Swihart needs to provide more power than Kendall to become a star.

 
We'll all be thrilled if he can match Kendall's numbers before his SLG dropped like a rock in his 30s.

 

[Cuzittt]

Lowell was postponed/cancelled due to Wet Grounds in Jamestown. Doubleheader tomorrow.

 

[Cuzittt]

Pawsox lose 9-4.

Boxscore

Ryan Verdugo went 3 2/3 innings, allowing 3 runs on 3 hits (1 HR), 2 walks and a WP; striking out 6. Chris Hernandez went 2 2/3 innings, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits (2 HRs) and 2 walks. Dalier Hinojosa went 2 2/3 innings, giving up a hit and a walk; striking out one.

Justin Henry went 3/5. Carlos Rivero went 2/4 with a double. Corey Brown went 1/3 with a HR and a walk. Deven Marrero, Matt Spring and Derrik Gibson each went 1/4; Spring and Gibson each with a HR, Marrero with a double. Alex Hassan went 1/5. Travis Shaw went 0/3 with a walk. Garin Cecchini went 0/4.

 

[Cuzittt]

Seadogs win 4-1.

Boxscore

Eduardo Rodriguez went 5 1/3 innings, allowing a run on 2 hits (1 HR), a HBP, a WP and a walk; striking out 7. Dayan Diaz went 1 2/3 innings, giving up a hit and striking out 3. Noe Ramirez went 2 innings, giving up a hit and striking out 2.

Mike Miller went 2/2 with 2 walks. Keury de la Cruz went 2/4 with 2 doubles. Jonathan Roof went 1/3 with a double and a HBP. Shannon Wilkerson, Blake Swihart, Sean Coyle, and Heiker Meneses each went 1/4; Swihart and Meneses each with doubles. Ryan Dent went 0/3 with a HBP. David Chester went 0/4.

 

[Cuzittt]

Drive lose 4-2.

Boxscore

Daniel McGrath went 6 innings, allowing a run on 7 hits and a walk; striking out 6. Taylor Grover went 2 2/3 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits (1 HR), a walk and a WP; striking out one. Raynel Velette picked up the final out of the 9th.

Sam Travis went 2/3 with a walk. Franklin Guzman went 2/3 with a double, HR and a walk. Manuel Margot went 1/3 with a walk and a SB. Tim Roberson and Jimmy Rider each went 1/4; Roberson with a double. Tzu-Wei Lin, Kevin Mager, Hector Lorenzana and Cole Sturgeon each went 0/4.

 

[Cuzittt]

Salem loses 7-6.

Boxscore

Kyle Kraus went 5 innings, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits; striking out 2. Nate Reed went 3 innings, allowing a run on a hit and 4 walks; striking out 3. Madison Younginer went 1/3rd of an inning, allowing 2 unearned runs on 2 hits. a WP and a walk.

Carlos Asuaje went 2/4 with a double and a walk. Mario Martinez went 2/5 with 2 HRs. Carson Blair went 1/3 with 2 walks. Aneury Tavarez went 1/3 with a walk. Matty Johnson and Jantzen Witte each went 1/4 with a walk; Johnson with a SB. Jordan Weems went 1/4 with a double. Reed Gragnani went 0/4 with a walk. Jose Vinicio went 0/4.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

When all is said and done Swihart may be a more interesting player than Boegarts. What a year he's having. He could be the next Jason Kendall

 
Swihart may strike out as many times this season than Kendall did in his entire minor league career, which isn't to say he strikes out often, just that Kendall was a freak. 
 
Swihart's season is nearly a mirror image of Ted Simmons' year in AAA (.317/.365/.495, 38BB, 74K, albeit 3 years younger than Swihart). Probably a better comp as a switch-hitting catcher. Hell, there was a catcher on the team last decade that is a decent comp, but Swihart's contact skills are quite a bit better at a younger age/faster track to the majors.