Minor League Wrap (5/10-16/10)

Jay Yencich · May 17, 2010 at 7:05 am · Filed Under Mariners 

I don’t have any meditative/rambling intro prepared this time. The Diamond Jaxx are still playing good baseball though, and are within reach of the division lead, while the Clinton Lumberkings are getting it done with good pitching, home runs, and nothing else.

To the jump!

Summer Means Summer Leagues:
The Venezuelan Summer League starts up today, for those of you out there crazy enough to pay attention to it. Unless anything really bizarre happens, along the lines of Erasmo Ramirez last year, I won’t be covering it here, but from the looks of it, the roster will feature a few of the top dollar signings from the latest international signings period, including OF Alexy Palma, IFs Miguel (Andres) Brito, Diego Mina, and Pedro Okuda, and RHPs Waldy Alvarez, Daniel Mata, and Kevin Quintanilla. I don’t see RHP Julian Alvarado on there right now, which could mean that he’s in Peoria instead, or injured, or nothing at all since the rosters may not be finalized yet.

Tacoma Rainiers (2-5 this week, 16-19 overall)

The Week in Review:
Monday, May 10th 2010
Las Vegas 6 (TOR – 2), Tacoma 2
W: Mills (3-2, 2.63); L: Olson (1-3, 3.41)

Tuesday, May 11th 2010
Tacoma 3, Nashville 4 (MIL + 9) (ten innings)
W: Johnson (1-0, 5.40); L: Speigner (1-4, 4.96)

Wednesday, May 12th 2010
Tacoma 4, Nashville 0 (MIL + 8 )
W: Shell (2-1, 1.62); L: Waters (3-1, 2.97)

Thursday, May 13th 2010
Tacoma 0, Nashville 8 (MIL + 9)
W: Capuano (1-0, 0.00); L: Seddon (3-1, 3.86)

Friday, May 14th 2010
Tacoma 4, Nashville 3 (MIL + 8 )
W: Sweeney (2-0, 1.84); L: Smith (0-1, 1.32)

Saturday, May 15th 2010
Tacoma 1, Memphis 3 (STL – 1)
W: MacLane (3-3, 3.67); L: Olson (1-4, 3.57)

Sunday, May 16th 2010
Tacoma 0, Memphis 1 (STL 0)
W: Hill (2-2, 4.70); L: French (4-1, 1.64)

Hitter of the Week:
3B Matt Mangini, L/R, 12/21/1986
6 G, 21 AB, R, 5 H, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 6/1 K/BB, .238/.273/.429

The Mariners have promoted three of the top four hitters by OPS in the Rainiers lineup in Tui, Wilson, and Langerhans, so I’m left talking about the one remaining guy over .800, Mangini. This wasn’t even a good week, as you can plainly see. In the greater scheme of things, however, he’s coming along, with more than half of his hits these days going for extras, whereas in the past he was just over a quarter. He’s hitting right-handers particularly well, batting .294/.333/.569 with all three of his home runs, but that also exposes another one of his current limitations. He’s probably a platoon hitter at this moment, and plays an average third at best, so it’s hard to conceive of a role for him.

Right-handed DH Mention:
1B Tommy Everidge, R/R, 4/20/1983
7 G, 26 AB, R, 7 H, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 6/3 K/BB, .269/.333/.346

Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Steven Shell, 3/10/1983
1-0, GS, CG, 0.00 ERA in 9.0 IP, 4 H, 6/1 K/BB, 6/11 G/F

If you throw out the two uninspired relief appearances at the end of April, Shell is running a 1.45 ERA in 37.1 innings pitched, with twenty-three hits allowed and a 29/10 K/BB. He’s also only allowed one run in three May starts, including outings against legitimate offenses like Reno and Las Vegas, and has cut his walks down from three and a quarter per nine about half that. The Ks have dropped a bit as well, from seven-and-a-half to six, but as I said last time out, no one is really making contact off of him, and the shutout this week was proof of that, as he retired the first thirteen in order. If he were on the 40-man, people might be talking about him over French as a call-up.

Cliff Lee Impersonation His Second Time Out Mention:
LHP Luke French, 9/13/1985
0-1, 2 GS, CG, 2.40 ERA in 15.0 IP, 11 H (2 HR), 4 R, 8/0 K/BB, 15/18 G/F

From The Training Room:
The Rainiers had need of another catcher with Josh Bard getting called up, so Luis Oliveros was flown in from West Tenn… OF Greg Halman came off the DL and hit a home run in his first at-bat back. David Pauley returned to the inactive list to make way for him… OF Mike Wilson was added with promotion of Tui, and RHP Yusmeiro Petit was also activated from the DL.

Strange Happenings:
Jack Hannahan has been playing shot here and there lately. It’s only three games, but he’s yet to make an error there… Mike Carp hit two home runs this week. That’s good! Those accounted for two-thirds of his hits in twenty-four at-bats. That’s bad… Shell’s shutout was called by Josh Bard, if anyone’s wondering… Since people keep asking me about him and if he’s still around, here’s a feature on RHP Chad Cordero in Tacoma Weekly.

West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (5-2 this week, 20-16 overall)

The Week in Review:
Monday, May 10th 2010
Mobile 6 (ARI + 1), West Tenn 5 (ten innings)
W: Woody (3-2, 3.86); L: Littleton (1-1, 8.53)

Tuesday, May 11th 2010
Mobile 17 (ARI + 2), West Tenn 1
W: Layne (4-1, 2.96); L: Munoz (0-3, 3.91)

Wednesday, May 12th 2010
Mobile 3 (ARI + 1), West Tenn 4
W: Cortes (4-1, 5.09); L: McAnaney (1-4, 6.75)

Thursday, May 13th 2010
Mobile 4 (ARI 0), West Tenn 6
W: Bray (1-1, 3.74); L: Shaw (1-2, 3.48)

Friday, May 14th 2010
Mobile 3 (ARI – 1), West Tenn 4
W: Jensen (1-0, 5.12); L: Septimo (1-1, 6.57)

Saturday, May 15th 2010
West Tenn 8, Mississippi 7 (ATL 0)
W: Pineda (3-0, 2.11); L: Sullivan (1-3, 6.25)

Sunday, May 16th 2010
West Tenn 1, Mississippi 0 (ATL – 1)
W: Hensley (4-1, 1.03); L: Hyde (1-1, 0.89)

Hitter of the Week:
SS Carlos Triunfel, R/R, 2/27/1990
6 G, 23 AB, 4 R, 10 H, 2 2B, RBI, CS, 1/1 K/BB, .435/.458/.522

Like last week, this also might provoke a “finally!” response. Triunfel is now batting .300 for the year and the hot start to May, when he’s hitting .354/.385/.479, is a big part of that. The unusual thing about it all is that the walk and strikeout this week were the first two times he hadn’t put a ball in play all month. Here’s another odd note: he might just be facing more southpaws. Triunfel is hitting .436/.463/.590 in 39 at-bats versus left-handers this year, and only .242/.293/.330 in 91 at-bats versus right-handers. It could be BABIP influenced in both cases, as it looks like he was .500 against left-handers and .250 against righties.

Still Looking For Ticket to Tacoma Mention:
1B Johan Limonta, L/L, 8/4/1983
5 G, 18 AB, 2 R, 5 H, 2 2B, 6 RBI, 7/1 K/BB, HBP, .278/.350/.388

Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Steven Hensley, 12/27/1986
1-0, GS, 0.00 ERA in 8.0 IP, 3 H, 5/0 K/BB, 12/6 G/F

When Hensley took the mound on Sunday, he hadn’t thrown for eleven days, going back to Cinco de Mayo, when he pitched seven framesand had just two hits and eight strikeouts, but walked five. As you might expect, they kept him to a pretty strict pitch count of just eight-six, where other pitchers are now regularly passing ninety. With sixty-one strikes in there, that was all Hensley needed to trip up the Mississippi Braves for eight innings. It was the first time he’d hit that mark all season. One concern for Hensley is that his command has twice abandoned him this season, and with 35.0 innings in the books, he’s already 37.5% of the way to his last year’s total. Otherwise, there’s little you can complain about, and he’s getting more groundballs than ever.

Strong in Double-A Mention:
RHP Steve Bray, 12/22/1980
1-0, GS, 2.57 ERA in 7.0 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 4/0 K/BB, 10/5 G/F

From the Training Room:
Jack Wilson was 1-for-2 as the DH on Saturday, but did not play on Sunday… The promotion of Josh Bard up to Seattle moved Luis Oliveros to Tacoma. That was fine, as Guillermo Quiroz had been activated from the DL earlier and the D-Jaxx had three catchers active anyway… With Wes Littleton on and off the inactive list, they could use an extra pitcher, and brought in Jorden Merry, who has yet to appear in a game.

Strange Happenings:
Robles ran an 8/6 K/BB over 5.2 innings in his last start. This is the reason I am cautious… Pineda did not have a great week either, giving up four runs in two starts spanning ten innings after twelve hits, four walks, and thirteen Ks… In a 17-1 blowout on Tuesday, utility man Leury Bonilla threw an inning, giving up five runs on four hits (2 HR!) and a walk against two Ks, while scoring his lone inherited runner. No minor league season is complete without Bonilla taking the mound at least once… One might wonder how Limonta ended up on here. It’s quite simple: beyond Triunfel, he was the only one to have an OPS over .700 this week. The D-Jaxx win with pitching too.

High Desert Mavericks (3-4 this week, 21-16 overall)

The Week in Review:
Monday, May 10th 2010
High Desert 8, San Jose 4 (SF – 1)
W: Nation (3-0, 2.61); L: Quirarte (0-2, 1.20)

Tuesday, May 11th 2010
High Desert 4, Bakersfield 5 (TEX 0)
W: Miller (1-0, 0.82); L: Vega (0-2, 5.25)

Wednesday, May 12th 2010
High Desert 1, Bakersfield 2 (TEX + 1)
W: Boscan (2-4, 4.54); L: Carraway (2-2, 4.45)

Thursday, May 13th 2010
High Desert 5, Bakersfield 6 (TEX + 2)
W: Tufts (2-1, 5.17); L: Penney (1-2, 2.81)

Friday, May 14th 2010
Stockton 9 (OAK – 6), High Desert 10 (eleven innings)
W: Richard (1-2, 4.32); L: Deal (0-4, 4.60)

Saturday, May 15th 2010
Stockton 9 (OAK – 5), High Desert 4
W: Haviland (3-1, 3.07); L: LaFromboise (3-2, 4.66)

Sunday, May 16th 2010
Stockton 5 (OAK – 6), High Desert 11
W: Wild (4-0, 3.55); L: Smith (3-3, 6.21)

Hitter of the Week:
3B/LF Nate Tenbrink, L/R, 12/21/1986
7 G, 26 AB, 7 R, 9 H, 2B, 3 HR, 6 RBI, SB, 4/4 K/BB, .346/.433/.731

Tenbrink is back in the top spot after slugging his fifth, sixth, and seventh home runs of the year at Bakersfield. The Blaze play in a good hitting park, so I’m not as excited about it as I might be if they had come at Inland Empire, but better there than in Stockton or at home in Adelanto. I’ll add on that note that he did have two home runs the previous week at San Jose, which is not an easy park to hit it out. The crazy thing is, Tenbrink’s season line is not aided so much by playing at home, unless you want to count that he seems to walk three times as much in Mavericks Stadium, which is not so easily explicable. No, his slugging is actually .250 higher on the road, which goes some way to suggesting that this isn’t all a fluke. Oh yeah, and he’s also leading the Cal League in that category as I write this.

Rare Power Show Mention:
DH Scott Savastano, R/R, 6/12/1986
5 G, 4 R, 20 AB, 7 H, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 1/1 K/BB, .350/.363/.650

Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Jake Wild, 8/18/1984
1-0, 2 GS, 2.45 ERA in 14.2 IP, 12 H (HR), 4 R, 7/3 K/BB, 15/17 G/F, WP

The Mavericks got some good outings out of a few of their starters this week, but the overall record in those was a bit weak. On his first start alone, Wild might have gotten in, as he had just five hits and a walk allowed in seven innings against five Ks. The second time out was a bit of a mess, as you can glean from the four runs in his column, but as two of them came around as inherited runners, I was willing to let that one go. This month, Wild has seen his average against drop by .070 to .244, but he’s lost some strikeouts, coming in just under six per nine when he was nearly at ten for April. He’s also not giving up nearly as many home runs, which is a good thing as he leads the league with seven. I’d say he’s just around the strikezone less, except for the fact that the walks are about the same.

Second Walk of the Year Mention:
RHP Andrew Carraway, 9/4/1986
0-1, GS, 2.57 ERA in 7.0 IP, 6 H (2 HR), 2 R, 4/1 K/BB, 7/8 G/F, HB

Disappearing Ks and Groundballs Mention:
RHP Kenn Kasparek, 9/23/1985
0-0, GS, 1.29 ERA in 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R (ER), 4/0 K/BB, 3/11 G/F, HB

From the Training Room:
After not playing since the fifth, the Mavericks finally placed Maximo Mendez on the DL this week, which brought off RHP Maikel Cleto, who was immediately amazing, striking out four and inducing two groundouts in two innings. CLETO!… Utility man Luis Nunez, a former infielder who was caught playing center at one point this week, was added to the roster after the release of LHP Travis Mortimore. Mortimore logged 209 career innings with the Mariners and only seventy-three of those were not in High Desert… Ryan Feierabend’s line for the week: 4.1 IP, 7 H (2 HR), 6 R (5 ER), 2/2 K/BB.

Strange Happenings:
RHP Stephen Penney let four of five of his inherited runners score this week… The Maverick swept a four-game series in San Jose, after the Giants swept them out of the championships last season.

Clinton Lumberkings (6-1 this week, 19-19 overall)

The Week in Review:
Monday, May 10th 2010
Rain out

Tuesday, May 11th 2010
Clinton 13, Peoria 3 (CHC + 6) (seven innings)
W: Ramirez (1-2, 2.73); L: Whitenack (2-2, 5.91)

Clinton 11, Peoria 2 (+ 5) (seven innings)
W: Vasquez (2-2, 0.84); L: Antigua (0-2, 5.51)

Wednesday, May 12th 2010
Clinton 5, Peoria 4 (CHC + 4)
W: Stanton (3-2, 4.09); L: Struck (2-4, 4.33)

Thursday, May 13th 2010
Rain!

Friday, May 14th 2010
Cedar Rapids 5 (ANA + 6), Clinton 1 (seven innings)
W: Arenas (3-4, 1.99); L: Hesketh (2-3, 6.82)

Cedar Rapids 1 (+ 5), Clinton 5 (seven innings)
W: Gillheeney (2-3, 2.72); L: Skaggs (1-2, 2.57)

Saturday, May 15th 2010
Cedar Rapids 0 (ANA + 4), Clinton 5
W: Lewis (1-0, 0.00); L: Richards (2-2, 3.96)

Sunday, May 16th 2010
Cedar Rapids 3 (ANA + 3), Clinton 4 (ten innings)
W: Kirkland (1-0, 0.39); L: Hurst (4-2, 2.84)

Hitter of the Week:
RF James Jones, L/L, 9/24/1988
7 G, 23 AB, 9 H, 3 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 4/3 K/BB, HBP, .391/.481/.652

Alert readers may go “hey, wait a second, didn’t Franklin hit two home runs last night? How did he not make it here?” Quite observant of you, but Franklin doesn’t seem to want to walk, and hit for a lower average this week, and until one of those things turns around, Jones is a good pick. If you’ve been tracking the Lumberkings this season, you would recognize Jones as one of a number of highly touted hitters who have not yet done much of anything for the team, but this week he seemed to come around. Strangely, in spite of that, his May line is .173/.271/.288, which gives you an idea of what kind of funk he’s emerging from. Jones was one of a few players I was a little suspicious of entering the season, but performances like this go a long way toward establishing his legitimacy as a prospect.

Third in the League in HRs Mention:
SS Nick Franklin, S/R, 3/2/1991
7 G, 29 AB, 5 R, 8 H, 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 2 CS, 7/0 K/BB, .276/.276/.690

Pitcher of the Week:
RHP Chris Kirkland, 10/6/1985
1-0, 2 G, 0.00 ERA in 5.0 IP, 3/1 K/BB, 4/5 G/F

A funny thing happened on the way to the write-up this week. You see, I noticed that Kirkland picked up his first win on Sunday, and it set off a trigger, seeing that 0.43 ERA at the top of the box score. So, I looked it up and sure enough, Kirkland hasn’t allowed a run in the last twenty innings, dating back to April 12th, his first appearance and his only run. Since that time, he’s run a 22/7 K/BB and allowed only nine hits. Not bad, for a former catcher. While he’s jumped up a K per nine innings to just barely under ten, nothing else in his rate stats has really changed save that he’s not allowing as many hits now. That raises a few questions about how sustainable it is, but hey, STRIKEOUTS.

Bad Week Mention:
LHP Anthony Vasquez, 9/19/1986
1-0, 2 GS, 3.00 ERA in 12.0 IP, 9 H (HR), 4 R, 14/2 K/BB, 10/9 G/F

Bad Luck Mention:
LHP Jonathan Hesketh, 6/3/1986
0-1, GS, 3.60 ERA in 5.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R (ER), 9/1 K/BB, 5/1 G/F

From the Training Room:
OF Daniel Carroll came off the DL after what for him was a short stint, which sent C Henry Contreras back to extended… RHP Taylor Lewis was added to the staff on Thursday and threw five innings on Saturday, allowing a hit and two walks while striking out two. This came on the heels of RHP Tyler Blandford hitting the DL with Rick Ankiel syndrome.

Strange Happenings:
With eleven home runs on the week, the Clinton Lumberkings have pulled into first place in the league with thirty-eight. DINGERS. What’s hilarious about this is that they rank second to last in average and OBP with .233 and .299, but are second in slugging at .394.

Comments

14 Responses to “Minor League Wrap (5/10-16/10)”

  1. Mere Tantalisers on May 17th, 2010 7:42 am

    Sweet sweet minors league report, how I missed thee.

    Most people reading this probably know it already, but perhaps it bears repeating that Triunfel is playing in a league where the average hitter’s age was 24.5 last year (and this year). He’s 20. The fact that he has the line he does, having lost as much time as he did to injury, is remarkable.

  2. Mere Tantalisers on May 17th, 2010 7:46 am

    Also on Triunfel – any word on how he looks at SS? Any chance he sticks?

  3. mlathrop3 on May 17th, 2010 8:09 am

    Thanks Jay, that was much better than the statistical analysis of suckity suck that I was expecting from Dave this morning!

    Looks like we have some arms that could be useful in a trade at the AA/AAA level, even if it is to balance out the absence of hitting prospects in AAA vs. getting the major league team a bat.

  4. TomG on May 17th, 2010 8:44 am

    Jay, how much of Vasquez’s success can be attributed to actual talent as opposed to him picking on younger kids? I know you’ve been pretty optimistic about him in the past; does he still have potential as a back-end starter type as he moves up the organizational chain?

  5. SonOfZavaras on May 17th, 2010 9:15 am

    Excellent stuff, Jay. Just like last year, this is rapidly getting to be my favorite regular jot to peruse in all of baseball blogging.

    Also on Triunfel – any word on how he looks at SS? Any chance he sticks?

    @Mere Tantalisers:

    I’ll concede to Jay the better, wiser opinion of Carlos Triunfel, but if you’ll allow me my own two cents:

    Triunfel’s a bit bigger than his listed 5’11” 175…guy is a good athlete, but might be getting a bit too thick to keep lateral range where it’s needing to be to keep him at short.

    My gut feeling is that the guy’s a right-fielder or a third baseman in the big leagues, if he makes it that far (and I think he will make it). I don’t see him as a middle infielder, myself. His main attribute is that Howitzer of an arm he’s got, no matter where he plays.

    I could see him being at least as good as Jose Lopez defensively at third, if he makes a switch there in time. He’s in a better athletic class than Lopez.

  6. Adam S on May 17th, 2010 10:04 am

    Haven’t read the post, but the subject/title is messed up. “5/10 – 5/16” maybe?

  7. Mike Snow on May 17th, 2010 10:40 am

    That’s what’s meant, yes, but I think Jay has always formatted his wrap titles that way.

  8. Jay Yencich on May 17th, 2010 11:13 am

    Haven’t read the post, but the subject/title is messed up. “5/10 – 5/16? maybe?
    ….
    That’s what’s meant, yes, but I think Jay has always formatted his wrap titles that way.

    Right. If the month changes while the week is in progress, I’ll do something like 4/26 – 5/2, but otherwise, if it’s all the same month, I’ve used the dash and let people fill in the blanks.

    Also on Triunfel – any word on how he looks at SS? Any chance he sticks?

    Triunfel has been about an average defender for his league at short. Nothing damning or praiseworthy is really pushing it in either direction right now. Assuming that he fills out a bit more, which may or may not happen as he’s already gotten fairly big if you remember the AFL Rising Stars Showcase last season, he would proabbly end up in right field or at short, as SonOfZavaras says, because of his arm. His bat is coming along right now, so that may keep the M’s from making a move that takes pressure off the glovework. He could still DH every now and then though. I believe that’s what they’ve been doing with Ackley after his slow start.

    Jay, how much of Vasquez’s success can be attributed to actual talent as opposed to him picking on younger kids? I know you’ve been pretty optimistic about him in the past; does he still have potential as a back-end starter type as he moves up the organizational chain?

    Me? Optimistic? Not exactly in this case. He has decent stuff for a lefty, but you’re looking at a guy who is twenty-three going on twenty-four in September in a league where the average hitter is 21.5 at the moment. Steven Hensley, for example, is three months younger and beating up on double-A hitters.

    High Desert is not a promotion so much as an exile in some cases, but I’d like to see him do something against tougher hitters. One area he could improve right now is developing something extra to get out right-handed hitters, for whom his K-rate is about half, but otherwise I’m kind of wondering how much more he has to learn at the Midwest League level.

  9. littlelinny6 on May 17th, 2010 11:59 am

    Jay,
    According to statcorner West Tenn has 3 very legit starters:

    Hensley–FIP: 3.29; tRA: 3.00; 56.4% GB rate
    Robles–FIP: 2.08; tRA: 2.71; 50.6% GB rate
    Pineda–FIP: 2.84; tRA: 2.84; awesome command

    If Hensley and Robles take a slight uptick in their control, how soon before we actually get to watch someone interesting on the Tacoma Rainiers?

    Do you think Hensley/Robles has the repetoire to be more than a back end starter in the big leagues? The M’s suck so I’m looking for a reason to get excited about 2011/2012.

  10. littlelinny6 on May 17th, 2010 12:03 pm

    Also, are you worried about Truinfel’s (and Franklin’s for that matter) lack of walks? I realize Truinfel doesn’t strike out much either but I’m a bit concerned he could become a less powerful version of Jose Lopez at the big league level which is not an exciting prospect.

  11. Jay Yencich on May 17th, 2010 12:38 pm

    If Hensley and Robles take a slight uptick in their control, how soon before we actually get to watch someone interesting on the Tacoma Rainiers?

    Do you think Hensley/Robles has the repetoire to be more than a back end starter in the big leagues? The M’s suck so I’m looking for a reason to get excited about 2011/2012.

    What’s odd about Hensley is that in the past he has demonstrated command as a strong suit of his and has had it turn on him only recently. There are two likely scenarios as an explanation there. One is that it’s elbow related, which history might support as he had some issues around the time he was drafted. That’s the bad scenario. The good scenario would be that either because the M’s are trying to get him to do something new or for his own reasons, he’s just been slightly off mechanically this season. I’d slot him as a probable #3/4.

    Robles is trickier because he’s not shown good command for more than a few starts at a time. Part of that is him only having pitched for something like four years coming into the season, so we can’t expect him to be perfect. In his case, however, he has the added complication of being a smaller guy and his true endurance level right now is a mystery. The stuff and the left-handedness make him perhaps a higher ceiling than Hensley, but the risk is also a great deal larger.

    I’d say that of the three, Pineda’s probably the most likely to get promoted, then maybe Hensley, with Robles as a more distant one unless there’s someone in Tacoma they specifically want him to work with.

    Also, are you worried about Truinfel’s (and Franklin’s for that matter) lack of walks? I realize Truinfel doesn’t strike out much either but I’m a bit concerned he could become a less powerful version of Jose Lopez at the big league level which is not an exciting prospect.

    You’re right to have some concerns there, so for the sake of having a little comparative fun, let’s look at their age eighteen seasons.

    Triunfel (HD): 108 G, 436 AB, 75 R, 125 H, 20 2B, 4 3B, 8 HR, 49 RBI, 30 SB, 9 CS, 52/30 K/BB, .287/.336/.406
    Lopez (San B): 123 G, 522 AB, 82 R, 169 H, 39 2B, 5 3B, 8 HR, 60 RBI, 31 SB, 13 CS, 45/27 K/BB, .324/.360/.464

    Eerie, isn’t it? To make matters worse, Triunfel’s performance might need to be scaled down a little for playing half his games in High Desert, while Lopez was in San Bernardino/Inland Empire, no easy park.

    I have more confidence in Triunfel’s ability to draw a walk, but his power is coming on a bit slower and that’s a little bit worrisome. But one thing to remember right now is that Lopez wasn’t ever really injured, where Triunfel lost a year of development to the leg thing. He seems to be adjusting to the pitching better than Lopez did in his tour of double-A, but the power may not be coming for a little while yet.

    As to Franklin, yes, that’s one of the reasons I’ve downgraded him a little bit in recent weeks. He’s yet to walk in the month of May and has surpassed his strikeout totals in five fewer games. Franklin has skills to get away with it, but they seem to be on to him now and are messing with him a bit more. My guess is that he got a little overconfident after tearing it up in April and has presumed himself to be some kind of power hitter and is now trying to knock everything out of the park.

  12. littlelinny6 on May 17th, 2010 1:53 pm

    Jay, thanks for the great response. I saw Hensley pitch at Inland Empire a few times last year I was pretty impressed overall.

    I definitely worry about Franklin and Truinfel because if they don’t develop some patience and get on base more (the most important thing for a hitter to do) they are going to be prime targets for protracted slumps (see Jose Lopez 2010 vs. Jose Lopez 2009).

  13. Vital on May 17th, 2010 2:24 pm

    Where are Ji-Man Choi and Guillermo Pimentel expected to make their debuts? Also, any word on DeJesus and Morban?

  14. Jay Yencich on May 17th, 2010 3:02 pm

    Morban was held back a bit because they thought it might be too aggressive to send him to Clinton to start the year. He may turn up there around midseason, or he could spend the whole season in Everett.

    I’m thinking Choi/Kim and Pimentel don’t make it beyond Pulaski if that. They may spend the whole year in Arizona instead.

    I haven’t heard anything on DeJesus. He may be nursing injuries.

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