Monday, July 10, 2017

Dominican Summer League Cardinals Notebook 7-10-17



The Dominican Summer League Cardinals began this period losing their first four games, then won two in a row, and lost the finale.  The Redbird are 12-18 with a .400 PCT and are 12 games out of first place in the North Division.  They are 7-7 at home and 5-11 on the road.

Week In Review:

July 3, 2017: The Cardinals faced the Twins in a doubleheader with the first game schedule on the road.  The Redbirds offense was almost non-existent with only three hits.  Jose Moreno started and pitched four innings allowing two runs and Nelson Prada followed giving up one run over the final two innings.  Ivan Herrera had the sole extra base hit with a double and Raffy Ozuna reached base twice on walks.

July 3, 2017 (June 15, 2017 makeup): The Cardinals hosted the Twins in the second game of the doubleheader.  Hector Soto got the spot started and struck out a season-high five but allowed two runs over three innings.  The Twins offense continued on plating another six runs on the following two Redbird relievers in three innings.  Freddy DeJesus hit a solo home run to lead off the fifth and jump started the Cardinals offense.  The Twins would only give up another three runs and hold on for the victory.  Dionis Zamora was the only Redbird pitcher not to allow a run as he struck out three of six batters in the seventh.

July 4, 2017:  The Cardinals returned to the road to take on the Angels.  Both teams pitching was solid to open and rolled until the middle of the game.  The Redbirds were first on the scoreboard with one run in the first but went silent for the next six frames.  Enmanuel Solano cruised easily until the sixth when he was knocked out on three runs.  The Cardinals bullpen could not hold on and gave up another three runs with the walks racking up.  The Redbirds offense made a comeback but came up short and Pablo Gomez lead the way with a double and two RBIs.

July 5, 2017:  The Cardinals looked to end their losing streak as they welcomed in the Angels for the second game of the two-game set.  Wilfredo Pereira had a decent start for the Redbirds as he went five innings and only allowed two runs.  The Cardinals problem was the offense as they did not show up for most of the game, they could hit but could not get the run across home plate.  The Halos hammered the Redbirds reliever following the starter then cooled.  Anthony Trompiz and Cristoffer Zapata pitched the final three and a third, combining to strike out three and not allow a walk or run. Franklin Soto hit a three-run homer in the ninth and Pablo Gomez contributed with an RBI but the comeback came up three runs short as the Angels prevailed.

July 6, 2017:  The Cardinals took in the Nationals for the first contest of the two-game series.  The Redbirds opened the first with a run and went quiet for the next three frames.  Diego Cordero was strong to start as he allowed only one run in the first five innings but the Nats opened up the sixth and tagged him with another four runs.  The Cardinals offense re-booted in the fifth and sixth with a total of eight runs lead by Pablo Gomez and his solo home runs along with two more RBIs, Yowelfy Rosario added another three runs and Alexander Samuel contributed two.  Dionis Zamora closed out the game with two and a third scoreless innings and ended the Redbirds losing streak.

July 7, 2017:  The Cardinals looked to extend their winning streak and sweep the Nationals on the road.  The Redbirds offense fired away in the first with four runs including a three-run homer by Freddy DeJesus.  Francis Ventura was solid as he went five innings and allowed only two runs, the Oneiver Diaz followed with three scoreless.  The Cardinals added another runs in the fourth and seventh innings to build the lead by four runs.  The Nationals came to life in the ninth as they plated four and sent the contest into extras.  William Jimenez drove in the winning run in the tenth and Hector Soto rebounded from the ninth to earn the save.

July 8, 2017:  The Cardinals, riding a two-game winning streak, headed out on the road to case the Rockies.  Both team exchanged two runs in the first innings.  The Redbirds starter was knocked out in the second inning.  Wilman Madera followed by striking out one over three and two thirds innings, including holding the bases loaded in the second.  The Cardinals added another two runs in the fourth, one in the seventh, and two in the ninth as the Nationals plated one run in each of the innings from sixth until the ninth to tie the contest.  The Nats held the Redbirds off the board in the top of the tenth and scored in the bottom half for the victory.  Freddy DeJesus had another great game with two singles and two RBIs.

Who's Hot:

Pablo Gomez finished the week on a five-game hitting streak which included four multi-hit games on the end.  The 17-year old right-handed hitter went 10-for-22 (.455) with two doubles, one home run, seven RBIs (one w/two-outs), five runs, two walks, one hit by pitch, one sacrifice, three stolen bases, and three strikeouts.  He played four games at third base (assisted in one double play and one throwing error) and two at second base (assisted in one double play).  The September 15, 2016 free agent signing leads the team in AVG, hits, total bases, and tied for the most in stolen bases.

Ivan Herrera will look to extend his eight-game on base streak.  The 17-year old right-handed hitter went 5-for-12 (.417) with three doubles, two RBIs (one w/two-outs), two runs, four walks, one hit by pitch, two strikeouts, and one caught stealing/pickoff. He played five games behind the plate where he threw out two of six base runners.  The July 7, 2016 free agent signing is tied for the team lead in doubles.

Freddy DeJesus has an eight-game one base streak to work on that includes collecting a hit in last two contests.  The 17-year old right-handed hitter went 9-for-20 (.450) with one double, two home runs, six RBIs, four runs, six walks, three hit by pitches, five strikeouts, one caught stealing, and grounded into two double plays.  He played four games at first base (assisted in two double plays and one fielding error) and three as designated hitter.  The September 6, 2016 free agent signing leads the club in home runs.

Erik Pena had his eight-game on base and five-game hit streak snapped in the final game of this period.  The 17-year old switch-hitter went 6-for-15 (.400) with one double, one RBI, three runs, one walk, one hit by pitch, one strikeout, one caught stealing (one pickoff), and grounded into one double play.  He played three games at second base (assisted in two double plays and one throwing error) and two as designated hitter.

Cristoffer Zapata extended his scoreless streak to six appearances, spanning six and two-thirds innings.  The 18-year old left-hander was called from the bullpen on July 5th and pitched one inning allowing one hit, no runs, and struck one out.  He had a ground out-to-fly out ratio of 1-to-1.

Who's Not:

Luis Montano managed  to snap his five-game hitless streak in the final contest of the week.  The 17-year old left-handed hitter went 1-for-17 (.059) with one double, two runs, two walks, and eight strikeouts.  He played three games in left field, two in right, and one in center.

Allinson Benitez has only gone beyond three innings in two of his starts this season.  The 17-year old right-hander started on July 8th and allowed four hits, two earned runs, two walks, threw one wild pitch, and struck one out for his shortest outing of the season of one and a third innings.  He had a ground out-to-fly out ratio of 0-to-2.  The July 2, 2016 free agent signing leads the team in strikeouts but does have the worst ERA and WHIP among the starting rotation.

Roy Garcia struggles continue as he has given up one or more runs in each of his last six relief appearances.  The 16-year old right-hander came out of the bullpen on July 4th and gave up two hits, one earned run, two walks (one intentional), one balk, and struck one out over one and two-thirds innings.  He pitched again on July 8th, where he lasted two innings but allowed four hits, two earned runs, and hit one batter for the blown save.  The September 6, 2016 free agent signing had a combined ground out-to-fly out ratio of 6-to-1.

Leonardo Taveras coughed up three or more runs in his two appearances this period.  The 18-year old right-hander made his first on July 3rd as he gave up three hits, three earned runs, one walk, threw one wild pitch, committed one throwing error, and struck two out over two and a third innings.  On July 7th, four of the five batters he faced scored on two hits and two walks.  He had a ground out-to-fly out ratio of 1-to-3 and held one inherited runner on base.  The September 12, 2016 free agent signing has struck out seven, walked 12, and allowed 12 hits and 16 runs (13 earned) over eight innings this season.

Rodard Avelino has been thumped all season long with only one of six appearances he tossed a zero.  The right-hander pitched his first relief outing on July 3rd where he lasted six batters and allowed one hit, three earned runs, three walks, two balks, and struck one out.  In his second game, he lasted five batters and gave up two hits, two runs (one earned), and one walk before being pulled.  He had a ground out-to-fly out ratio of 2-to-0.  The July 2, 2016 free agent signing carries the worst ERA and WHIP on the pitching staff.

Notes:

Victor Garcia has been out of action since June 23rd, Diomedes Del Rio since June 29th, and Joyser Garcia and Yowelfy Rosario only played two games each in the last week.

The St. Louis Cardinals signed 17-year old Canadian Francisco Hernandez on July 7th.  He began his professional career on July 8th with the Dominican Summer League Cardinals.  Hernandez started at third base and went 2-for-5 (.400) with one strikeout and grounded into one double play.

Dominican Summer League Stats:

The team is hitting .238 (21st, 235-for-987) with 48 doubles (6th), nine triples, 11 home runs (t-8th), 115 RBIs, 334 total bases, 141 runs, 126 walks, 28 stolen bases (5th worst), 305 strikeouts (worst), 17 caught stealing, .336 OBP (t-23rd), .338 SLG (14th), and .674 OPS (t-21st).

The club is 12-18 with a 4.75 ERA (36th), 1.57 WHIP (t-37th), five holds, and six saves.  They have allowed 278 hits (t-3rd worst), 166 runs, 138 earned runs (6th worst), eight home runs (t-5th best), 133 walks, hit 20 batters, and struck 216 out over 261.1 innings.

Raffy Ozuna is ranked tied for fourth in strikeouts.

Luis Montano is ranked tied for seventh in strikeouts.

Carlos Soler is ranked tied for seventh in caught stealing.

Wilfredo Pereira is ranked tied for fourth in losses.

Dionis Zamora is ranked tied for fourth in saves.

Diego Cordero is ranked tied for seventh in hits allowed.

Up Next (2017 Record, Record Vs. Cardinals):

July 10: Rockies (15-15)(3-2)
July 11: Yankees (13-17)(2-2)
July 12: @ Yankees
July 13: @ Mets One (20-11)(4-0)
July 14: Mets One
July 15: All-Star Break
July 16: All-Star Game

Past Notebooks:

June 12, 2017: Roy Garcia, Ivan Herrera, William Jimenez, Luis Montano, and Brian Pirela.
June 19, 2017: Cristhian Longa, Jose Moreno, Raffy Ozuna, Erik Pena, and Hector Soto.
June 26, 2017: Oneiver Diaz, Jose Geronimo, William Jimenez, Cristian Longa, and Cristoffer Zapata.
July 3, 2017: Diego Cordero, Freddy DeJesus, Pablo Gomez, William Jimenez, Cristhian Longa, Wilfredo Pereira, Enmanuel Solano, Franklin Soto, Hector Soto, and Francis Ventura.

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