Dodgers Minor Leaguers Swimming Just Below the Surface

Last Thursday AC completed a review of all nine Dodgers minor league teams. It was an exhaustive review in terms of its depth and probably a bit exhaustive for the author. AC looked at the players, from his perspective, who are on an uphill trajectory. He included 45 players, some on a seemingly quick ascent and others on a more slow but steady climb. The list certainly included some surprises such as Parker Curry and Connor Mitchell. Surprises in that they might not have been expected to progress this year as they have. Others might be considered as replacements for some on the Top-30 list.

AC and I are of one accord with regard to youngsters that might be on a bit of a downhill slide. This is a rugged hill, perhaps more mountainous than hilly, and neither of us wants to write about the struggles players are having and may be considered to be disappointments. First, it is simply more fun and rewarding to write about risers than it is to write about those that have fallen back or not progressed as expected. Expectations are a bit risky in any event as they are personal for each of us and for the players quite often tied to their drafting position. Certainly, drafting teams have expectations depending on the rounds in which the players were selected or on scouting reports for international signings.

AC didn’t leave me a whole lot of wiggle room as I really wouldn’t remove anyone from his “risers” list. I have only a couple I might add but am looking at another level that contains players that I see that are swimming just below the surface or are at a plateau in their climb up the MiLB mountain. Just think what it could be like if our politicians had the will and determination of these young men and just never gave up or caved to pressures.

Oklahoma City Dodgers (AAA) – I understand this is a level that must be filled with players that have been at or are presently at a level in which they can possibly contribute at the MLB level. Therefore a number of these players might be on that plateau and seemingly stuck there.

Connor Joe (26) has been Mr. Reliability with the Dodgers. Listed as a left fielder he has played more first base than any other position this year. In his minor league career, he has played more third base than the outfield. In 60 games with OKC in 2019, he has a triple slash of .293/.432/.510 and an OPS of .942. His OBP is the 6th best in the entire league while his OPS is tops with OKC.  He leads the team with 53 run and 48 walks. His K/BB is almost 1.00 at 52/48. Joe is hitting .288 with RISP and the right-handed hitter has an average of .323 against left-handers and .281 against right-handers.  He had 15 at-bats with the Giants to begin the season.

Right-hander Kevin Quackenbush (30) has pitched 207.2 innings at the MLB level. His highlight years were 2014 and 2016 with the San Diego Padres. Now 30, he has been a strong late-innings reliever for the Dodgers. In 41 innings over 36 appearances, he has posted a 2.85 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP with 63 strikeouts and 9 walks. In his last 10 appearances over 9.2 innings, he has an ERA of 0.93, a WHIP of less the 1.00 with 18 strikeouts and no walks.

DJ Peters (23) has been a bit of an enigma but I have been a consistent fan. He is just 23, last December,  at a step below MLB. Strikeouts have been the strike against him (no pun intended). His power potential cannot be ignored so in between the K and the HR he has to find a middle ground. It is way too soon to declare victory but his time with OKC is encouraging. In 14 games Peters has a slash line of .380/.484/.700 with 9 extra-base hits among 19 hits with 13 RBI. He has struck out 12 times and walked 11. I suspect the strikeout, which is not a crime of capital punishment anymore, will always be a bit of an issue with DJ. The take away will be what he does with his non-strikeout at-bats as he at least reduces them.

Tulsa Drillers (AA) –  AC covered this ground like a bloodhound but I have a couple of players that go mostly unnoticed who have some potential to make it to a higher level (s).

Nolan Long (25) – 16th round 2015 – at 6’10”/255-lb. is one of the tallest players in the Dodgers system so it is difficult not to notice him in team pictures. The big right-hander had an exceptional time with the Quakes in 2018 before his promotion to the Drillers. This year he is 4-0 with an ERA of 3.21 over 24 appearances and 42 innings pitched. He has given up just 27 hits with a BAA of 1.76 along with 57 strikeouts and 28 walks. His K/BB ratio has gone down this year so he must get back to his former ratio.

The invisible man is left-hander Victor Gonzalez (23) who was signed back in 2013 out of Vera Cruz, Mexico. He lost the 2017 season due to injury. Gonzalez outgrew the California League this year after 8 appearances with the Quakes and has been a versatile member of the Drillers staff over his next 12 appearances, eight of them starts. He is 3-1 with a 2.28 ERA over 43.1 innings pitched with 42 strikeouts and 14 walks. In his last 10 appearances, he has an ERA of 1.89. In his last four starts, he gave up four earned runs in 22 innings. Since then he has been used in long and short relief and given up no runs in 7.2 innings.

This is a bit unfair to others perhaps but Zach McKinstry (24) – 33rd round 2016 – is one of my personal favorite players so he gets special treatment although I think it has been earned. He is a grinder having played at four positions – 2B (49 games), SS ( 16 games), 3B (8 games), OF (2 games). His triple slash in 2019 is .270/.338/.472 with a career-high 12 home runs and 45 RBI. He is hitting .301 in 73 at-bats with RISP. The left-handed hitter is hitting .294 against left-handers and .264 against right-handers. This guy will make it to MLB, most likely in a utility role.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (A+) – there is one Quake that I think is flying under the radar or swimming just below the surface.

Outfielder Donovan Casey (23) – 20th round 2017 – is a mainstay of the Quakes offense slowly overtaking Devin Mann and is on fire since the All-Star performance. On the season he has slashed .277/.348/.513 with 15 home runs, 53 RBI, 64 runs scored and 18 stolen bases in 21 attempts. The right-handed Casey is just behind Mann is several offensive categories and near the top is some. In league stats he is 2nd in runs scored (64), 2nd in total bases (163), 4th in OPS (.861), 4th in SLG (513), 8th in stolen bases (18),5th in RBI (53), 6th in hits (88). Casey is hitting .329 with 7 home runs and 19 RBI in 20 games since the All-Star game. He has 10 outfield assists playing all three outfield positions. In the post-All-Star game period, he has cut down his K/BB ratio from 4/1 to 2/1.

Great Lakes Loons (A)

My main candidate and a candidate for the riser list is right-hander Justin Hagenman (22) – 23 rd round 2018 – who has been arguably the Loons best relief pitcher this year. He has appeared in 20 games over 45.1 innings pitched and posted a 1.79 ERA, a 0.90 WHIP and a BAA of .178. He has 4 appearances in which he pitched 4 or more innings. His others have ranged from 2 innings to one hitter which he struck out with the bases loaded. In his last 10 games, he has allowed 2 earned runs in 27 innings pitched for a 0.67 ERA and a 0.59 WHIP. He struck out 26 and walked 4.

Great Lakes has several more high profile players as pointed out by AC. I gave some consideration to James Outman (22) and Dillon Paulson(22). However, I settled on outfielder Chris Roller (22) – 30th round 2017.  He came to the Loons later in the season so has played only 51 games. He has had a 12-game hitting streak and an 11-game streak. Perhaps it is mostly a coincidence but the Loons took off to win the first half shortly after Roller’s arrival. He has played all 3 outfield positions. His numbers aren’t flashy with a triple slash of .278/.377/.461 with 5 home runs, 22 RBI and 36 runs scored. When things get interesting he seems to be part of it. He currently has a 24 game on-base streak.

Ogden Raptors (Rookie League)

Catcher Tre Todd (22) – 21st round 2018 – has caught my attention. He had 32 at-bats between Rancho Cucamonga and Great Lakes to start the season waiting for the short season rookie league to start and did not have a lot of success. He has been splitting time with fellow catcher Marco Hernandez so could use some more playing time. In 13 games he has posted a slash line of .391/.440/.761 with 4 home runs and 20 RBI.

Melvin Jimenez (19) was rushed in his progression in my opinion so I would include him as one who is treading water ready to make a bigger splash.  He actually pitched quite well with the Quakes earlier in the season waiting for the Pioneer League to start up. With the Raptors in 7 appearances over 16 innings, he has posted an ERA of 2.81 and a WHIP of 0.81 along with 36 strikeouts and 6 walks. He is due for another trip to Great Lakes.

AZL  and DSL – the DSL is especially difficult to assign a status to players. With so little information, unless a player is a high profile signing, one has to rely on stats. Age level and speed of progression can be used and with pitchers I always like K/BB ratio. For most right now the sample size is very small.

Four young pitchers that are putting up good numbers in the DSL are:

Heisell Baro (17) – First Year  10 G,22.2 IP,0.79 ERA, o.84 WHIP 24 K 9 BB

Axel Acevedo (18) – Second Year 10 G, 23.1 ERA, 1.16 ERA,0.69 WHIP, 17 K, 6 BB

Hendrick Briones (17) – First Year 11G, 16 IP, 0.56 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 9 K, 7 BB

Christian Suarez (18) – First Year 7G, 24.1 IP, 1.85 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 22 K, 3 BB (DSL All-Star)

Among others two players of interest for me in the AZL are:

Ryan Pepiot (21) – 3rd round 2019 – 4 G,5 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 10 K, 4 BB

Aldrich De Jongh (20) – 17th round 2018 – .17 G, 301/.342/.438, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 5 SB

Note: Statistics as of Saturday, July 13

DC’s Minor League Lowdown

DSL Dodgers Bautista 6 – DSL Athletics 7

Andrew Budier started and pitched 4 solid innings giving up one run and striking out 5. Abel Maya did not fare so well, giving up 4 runs in 1.2 innings while Jesus Turizo surrendered 2 more. Carlos De Avila (2.1 IP) and Hendrick Briones (0.2 IP)  had a clean slate.

The Bautista Dodgers scored six runs without any coming home on a hit – bases-loaded walk, error, ground out, throwing error, ground out, steal and error.

DSL Dodgers Shoemaker 6 – DSL Rays (2) 9

Pitching did not highlight the day. Starter Yamil Castillo gave up 7 runs in  4 innings and was followed by Luisenyer Perez who gave up 2 more in 2 innings. Samuel Reuben finished up with 2 scoreless innings.

At the plate, the Shoemaker Dodgers scored 2 in the 3rd and the 5th on singles by Nelson Quiroz and Juan Diaz. Frank Rodriguez brought one home in the 6th with a single and another scored in the 7th on a ground out.

AZL Dodgers Mota 1 –  AZL Dodgers  Lasorda 3

The  Dodgers won and lost a close one. Lasorda’s Dodgers got excellent pitching: Israiky Berroa with 4 scoreless innings, Adolfo Ramirez one run in 3.2 innings and Reinaldo De Paula a scoreless 9th.

The 3 runs came in the 8th on a WP, a SF and an Aldrich De Jongh single.

The Mota Dodgers also got good pitching with a slip in the 8th. Jeisson Cabrera pitched 4.2 scoreless innings with 6 strikeouts while Huei-Sheng Lin pitched 1.2 with no runs. Daniel Cruz ran into trouble and left with the bases loaded in the 8th. Jacob Cantleberry couldn’t close the gate and all 3 inherited runners scored.

Their lone run scored on a steal and an error.

Ogden Raptors 3 –  Missoula Osprey (Arizona) 9

Alfredo Tavarez had another good outing giving up 2 runs, none earned, in 5 innings. Jeff Belge surrendered another in his 2 innings while Melvin Jimenez pitched 2 perfect innings with 5 strikeouts.

The Raptor bats continued to rake. Jimmy Titus had 4 hits and 4 RBI with a 3-run home run in the 2nd and an RBI double in the 5th. Andy Pages (9) and Sam McWilliams (8) had solo home runs. Three additional runs scored in the 3rd on a Justin Yurchak SF, an Andy Pages single and a Ryan Ward single.

Great Lakes Loons 3  – Peoria Chiefs (St. Louis) 1

Pitching was the highlight of the day in Peoria. Twenty-year-old Jose Martinez went 7 innings, pitching 7 innings for his second consecutive start. He gave up 6 hits, one run walked one and struck out 7. Justin Bruihl and Guillermo Zuniga each tossed a scoreless inning with the trio recording 11 strikeouts.

The Loons first run came on a home run by recently promoted catcher Tre Todd. In the 7th inning. Todd got credit for another RBI in the 8th on a fielders choice and a 3rd run scored on a ground out.

Ranch Cucamonga Quakes 4 – Stockton Ports (Oakland) 6

Three Quakes pitchers gave up 6 earned runs in 6.1 innings pitched: Michael Grove (2.2 IP) – 3, Max Gamboa (2 IP) – 1, Wes Helsabeck (1.2 IP) – 2.  Austin Drury and Brett de Gues both had 1.1 scoreless innings.

Donovan Casey hit his 17th home run in the 2nd inning while Starling Heredia and Marcus Chiu plated 2 in the 5th with a double and single respectively. An additional run scored in the 8th on a wild pitch.

Tulsa Drillers – the Drillers were not scheduled.

OKC Dodgers  5 – Iowa Cubs 2

Tony Gonsolin (1.2 IP) and Mitchell White (4 IP) both struggled a bit. Gonsolin gave up 2 runs while White gave up the other 3. Justin Grimm and Chris Nunn each had a scoreless inning.

The offense was simple. Zack Reks hit a home run in the 2nd and Gavin Lux homered in the 8th.