Triple-A International League: Durham Bulls 9, Norfolk Tides (BAL) 0

The score in this one is very misleading as the Bulls led 2-0 in what was a tight pitchers’ duel through 7 innings. It was the pitching that dominated the most for the Bulls, and that began with starter Alex Colome. Colome had an outstanding outing for the second time out in a row to begin the season, going 6 innings shutout innings allowing just 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 7. And it wasn’t just the results that were so notable for Colome- according to Adam Sobsey, his fastball touches 95-96 MPH, breaking the Tides’ bats as he overpowered them. Chris Archer and Jake Odorizzi are the two best-known pitchers in the Bulls rotation, but don’t sleep on Colome. His stuff is as good is there is in the system, and when he’s locked in he can be every bit as overbearing as he was on Thursday. It was a 9-0 game at the finish, but it was 2-0 when Josh Lueke came in and Lueke undeniably slammed the door, going 1.1 innings striking out each batter he faced. Lueke saw Brandon Gomes get an opportunity for the Rays and he’s next in line just waiting for injury or poor performance to give him a chance.

Now to the hitters. Mike Fontenot went 2 for 4 with 2 doubles, a walk, and an RBI, Chris Gimenez went 2 for 4 with a walk, an RBI, and 3 runs scored, Vince Belnome and Rich Thompson also had multi-hit games, and Leslie Anderson followed up his 2-homer day on Wednesday with a 2-run double. But impressing the most had to be Wil Myers, who went 0 for 2 but drew 3 walks without striking out a single time. Obviously it would be better if Myers could throw some hits in their too, but great to see Myers showing off his batting eyes and hopefully this is only the start as Myers breaking through with his plate discipline could be key as the Rays decide when to call him up. Between Colome and Myers, great to see a pair of top prospects really standing out, but it wasn’t just them as so many others got involved to make this a satisfying team win. This Bulls team is scary good between quite a few top prospects and a few MLB veterans stuck at Triple-A, and if the top prospects remain down long enough, the Bulls will be the International League favorites.

High-A Florida State League: Charlotte Stone Crabs 7, Bradenton Marauders (PIT) 4

It had to be frustrating for Kyeong Kang to watch his professional baseball career stole and then reverse. He played pretty well at Double-A Montgomery, but he was nevertheless returned to the level and he struggled, prompting the Rays to send him back to Charlotte to begin 2013. Now Kang hopes to restore his confidence and find his way back to Montgomery before long. He went just 3 for 13 in his first four games, but on Thursday he finally got the breakout game he was waiting for, going 2 for 2 with a double, 2 walks, a stolen base, and 2 runs scored, proving himself critical in the Stone Crabs’ 7-4 win over the Marauders.

Felipe Rivero got the start for Charlotte, making his second start after a rough season debut that saw him leave after just 1.2 innings, allowing 4 runs. Rivero still has plenty more work to do, but he took a big step forward against Bradenton, going 5 innings allowing 3 runs on 7 hits, striking out 5 while walking none and managing a 6-2 groundout to flyout ratio. That groundout to flyout ratio is misleading because Rivero missed too often up in the zone and got punished for it, including a Carlos Mesa home run. But for the most part, he was able to keep his fastball down and use his curveball and changeup effectively, and while still raw, he resumed being the pitcher who ranks among the Rays’ top prospects. Other than Kang and Rivero, the other Stone Crabs to impress were Hector Guevara, who went 2 for 4 with a double and 3 RBI, Alejandro Segovia, who slammed a 3-run home run, and Drew Vettleson, who went 2 for 4. The entire Charlotte team has been enigmatic so far on the young season, going 4-3, but a couple of the main culprits of that, Kang and Rivero, finally turned a corner and hopefully this team is ready to go on a run.

Kyeong Kang

Back in 2009, two Rays outfield prospects participated in the MLB Futures Game. One you know very well: Desmond Jennings. The other one spent 2012 repeating Double-A, Kyeong Kang. Kang, who will turn 25 in a few days, essentially repeated his 2011 production for the Biscuits in 2012, managing a .243/.349/.441 line with 18 doubles, 14 home runs, a number that led the Biscuits and ranked 11th in the pitcher-friendly Southern League, 53 RBI, 4 of 6 stolen bases, and a pretty alarming 135-51 strikeout to walk ratio in 104 games and 404 plate appearances. Overall, Kang’s numbers in his return to Double-A, specifically his strikeout to walk ratio slipping from 83-53 to 153-51, have to be deemed a disappointment, but one thing specifically stood for Kang: increased patience. He struck out more and actually walked a little bit less, but according to Minor League Central, his pitches per plate appearance jumped from 3.93 to 4.24, the most in the entire Southern League minimum 250 plate appearances. And while Kang didn’t see that pay off in terms of walks, it helped him big-time in terms of quality of contact and specifically power as he improved from 11 homers and 29 extra-base hits in 2011 to 14 homers and 36 extra-base hits even in a down 2012. But really looking at the overall numbers is the wrong strategy here because Kang, a lefty batter, had an enormous platoon split. In 2011, Kang had a .888 OPS against right-handed pitching and a not terrible .692 mark against lefties. In 2012, though, he mashed righties to a .290/.406/.545 line (.951 OPS) with all 14 of his homers, all but 3 of his extra-base hits, and an 88-46 strikeout to walk ratio in 304 plate appearances. Against lefties, he didn’t play, making just 96 plate appearances, and that was because he was a total disaster managing just a .111/.167/.164 line. If we look only at the numbers against right-handed pitching, it looks like Kang made major strides, adding quite a bit more power while improving his patience. And if that’s really the case, Kang might be worth watching next season.

Kang is not a very imposing presence at the plate at 6’2″, 200, but he shows good bat speed and has made progress at finding better pitches to hit and adding lift to his swing to hit for more power. His increased patience in 2012 did not fix his pitch recognition issues- he still has to do a better job laying off breaking pitches down in the zone- but it certainly provides hope that he’ll be able to put everything together at least as a platoon player against right-handed pitching in the major leagues someday. Kang isn’t a completely lost cause against lefties although that probably won’t happen at this point, but Kang deserves a chance to go to Triple-A and see if he can become that platoon player. Kang’s struggles in 2012 may have also had a lot to do with DHing a lot more than he had in the past with the Biscuits featuring a bevy of excellent fielding outfielders, and he’s actually OK out there, featuring fringy arm strength but good range, and he can play a fine left field while managing a halfway-decent right field as well. Kang’s realistic upside is probably a platoon player who sees time in the corner outfield spots and first base against right-handed pitching and delivers a solid average and OBP along with 10-15 home runs in a part-time role. That would be far from the most exciting player you’ve ever seen, but the Rays have embraced players who can play that type of role before- with Gabe Gross immediately coming to mind- and we’ll have to see if Kang could fit in with the Rays in the same type of role at some point over the next couple of years.

Morrison is always going to stand out first and foremost for his speed, but he has shown solid ability at the plate with remaining room to grow. (Credit: Flickr user wizardkitten)

Ty Morrison

No one would have guessed back then, but there’s a real chance that Ty Morrison end up as the best player from the Rays’ 2008 draft class. Morrison, 22, is coming off of a breakout season of sorts as he moved up from High-A to Double-A early on in the season, managing a .272/.341/.372 line with 25 doubles, 10 triples, 3 homers, 49 RBI, 31 of 41 stolen bases, and a 117-44 strikeout to walk ratio. Morrison struck out a little bit too much and didn’t walk quite enough for a player without much power, but he was able to compensate with great speed and great defense in centerfield. He also was a lefty hitter with basically no platoon split, managing a .272/.341/.373 line against right-handed pitching and a .272/.335/.361 line against lefties. Morrison is interesting  as a four-tool player with the final tool, power, still something that might come around a little bit. A lean, athletic 6’2″, 170, Morrison stands out most for his plus speed, but also attracting attention is a quick, compact line drive swing. Morrison has always been a little overaggressive at the plate, but his pitch recognition is fine, although he could use some work against lefty breaking pitches, and he made strides being more patient in 2012, setting a career-high with 44 walks and improving his strikeout to walk ratio astronomically, from 133-43 in 2010 and 67-11 in an injury shortened 2011 to 117-44 in 2012. In terms of Morrison’s power, he’ll never be a big home run guy at all, but if he could add another 10-15 pounds of muscle to his thin frame, that would certainly help him at the plate. What he will always do well is stretching singles to doubles and doubles to triples with his speed. On the opposite edge of the spectrum, Morrison is also a great bunter and does a great job beating out groundballs for singles as well. Defensively, Morrison puts his speed to good use, showing outstanding range, and shows a slightly below-average but very accurate arm. Morrison still has work to do to give him a chance to profile as an outfield starter, specifically continuing to work on his patience and adding some power, but Morrison has a chance to be profile as a centerfield regular, maybe hitting in the bottom third in an American League lineup but showing decent ability at the plate and adding a lot of value with his speed and defense. Morrison will head to Triple-A in 2012 and has a chance to see time in the major leagues by September.

Brett Nommensen

We’ll finish off this installment of our Biscuits series with our third lefty-hitting outfielder, Brett Nommensen. Nommensen, who turned 26 in October, suffered through a lost season in 2012, out until May with some injury and not arriving in Montgomery until June. But when he was healthy he actually played OK, managing a .255/.360/.376 line with 10 doubles, 3 homers, 25 RBI, 2 stolen bases, and a nice 33-25 strikeout to walk ratio. Nommensen was old for the level in 2012, but that doesn’t mean that a future for him in the major leagues is out of the question. 5’11″ and 190 pounds, Nommensen is a player who doesn’t stand out in any of the five tools. His swing is compact but he won’t hit for a high batting average, his power is insignificant, his speed is average (although he stole 70 bases combined from 2009 to 2011 and just never got on track reading pitchers in 2012), his range in the outfield is fine, and his arm is average. Nommensen does excel, though, in patience. He’s a scrappy hitter who doesn’t strike out at all and does an excellent job fouling pitches off and working counts. That’s basically all he does, and as a player with solid outfield range but certainly not enough to play centerfield on a regular basis, he’s a fourth outfielder at best. But the ability to come into a game and deliver a professional at-bat while also showing solid speed and defense is nothing to scoff at completely, and although he may start 2013 back at Montgomery, if he can hit solidly at Triple-A he may get that opportunity someday.

Today we saw three outfielders who could see time in Tampa Bay over the next two to three years and one in Morrison with a real chance to start. Morrison is a noteworthy player with the type of topflight speed and defense that the Rays can’t get enough of, but even Kang and Nommesnen have value because they have abilities that translate to the major leagues, and considering they have made it Double-A and should see time at Triple-A next year, their talents aren’t just their potential but things they are not too far away from doing in the major leagues. It should be interesting to see where these three outfielders end up over the next few years. We’ll continue next time with the Biscuits’ starting rotation.

For more of our analysis of the Rays prospects at each level of their system, check out our Minor League Affiliates Analysis page here at RCG.

A number of close games highlight the action around the minor leagues tonight. The Princeton Rays and Johnson City Cardinals faced off in a doubleheader as well. Here is this morning’s look at the action Friday night around the farm system:

Columbus Clippers 4, Durham Bulls 3

The Clippers used a two out home run in the bottom of the fifth by Juan Diaz to snap a scoreless tie, taking a 2-0 lead over the Bulls. Durham came back in the top of the sixth, as Tim Beckham led off the inning with a solo home run, and tied the game on a run scoring double by Leslie Anderson. The Bulls had the bases loaded with one out in the inning, but Matt Langwell struck out Reid Brignac and Cole Figueroa to end the threat. Durham took the lead in the top of the seventh, as Brooks Conrad‘s two out base hit drove in Chris Gimenez, giving the Bulls a 3-2 lead. However, the Clippers rallied in the bottom of the eighth, as Cord Phelps and Russ Canzler hit back to back home runs, giving the Clippers the eventual 4-3 victory. Brandon Gomes took the loss, giving up 2 earned runs on 2 hits in his inning of work. Conrad and Anderson both had two hits in the defeat.

Huntsville Stars 9, Montgomery Biscuits 8

The Stars jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the bottom of the first, highlighted by a run scoring throwing error by Nick Barnese, and a two run, bases loaded double by Hunter Morris. Barnese was knocked from the game after the 6 run barrage, having not recorded a single out. The Biscuits got two runs back in the top of the fourth, scoring on a hit batsman and a walk with the bases loaded. Montgomery batted around in the fifth, scoring six times, highlighted by a two run single from Brett Nommensen and Kyeong Kang‘s RBI double. Huntsville got a run back in the bottom of the sixth, as Brock Kjeldgaard led off the inning with a home run. The Stars took the lead with two out in the bottom of the eighth, as T. J. Mittelstaedt hit a two run single. The Biscuits attempted to rally in the top of the ninth, putting runners on first and second with no outs, but were unable to push a run across. Marquis Fleming took the loss, giving up a run on a hit and a walk in his inning of work. Kang was 3-5 with 2 runs scored, a double, and an RBI.

Charlotte Stone Crabs 6, St. Lucie Mets 5

The Mets put a quick run on the board, as Alonzo Harris singled to lead off the top of the first, stole second, and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Daniel Muno. The Stone Crabs tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, as Luke Scott led off the inning with a home run, knotting the game at 1-1. The Mets took the lead again in the top of the fifth, as Cory Vaughn hit a two run double, and came around to score on Aderlin Rodriguez‘s single. The Rays and Mets swapped runs over the next inning, giving the Mets a 5-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Charlotte then exploded int he bottom of the seventh, as Luke Scott hit a two run single with the bases loaded, putting the Stone Crabs within one. Todd Glaesmann, who homered in the sixth, double to tie the game. Scott then scored the game winning run on Cody Rogers‘ base hit. Alex Koronis picked up the victory in relief, giving up 1 run on 3hits and a walk over 2 innings, striking out 3 batters. Scott and Glaesmann each finished 2-4 with a home run.

Bowling Green Hot Rods 2, Great Lakes Loons 1

The Hot Rods jumped out to a quick lead, as Ryan Brett doubled, stole third, and scored on a sacrifice fly to give Bowling Green a 1-0 lead just two batters into the game. The Loons tied the game in the bottom of the third, as James Baldwin singled, stole second, and scored on a groundout. Hot Rods’ starter Jake Floethe left while warming up in the bottom of the fourth, due to an apparent injury. The Bowling Green bullpen, however, was up to the task, shutting down the Loons the rest of the way. The Hot Rods got another run in the top of the fifth, when Juniel Querecuto doubled, and advanced to third on an error by Nick Akins. Querecuto then scored on a base hit by Tyler Goeddel. The Bowling Green bullpen pitched six innings, giving up two hits and three walks. Justin Woodall picked up the victory, pitching 2 hitless innings, walking 2 and striking out 3 Loons. Brett was 1-3 with a double, a stolen base, a run scored, and 2 walks.

Connecticut Tigers 5, Hudson Valley Renegades 3

After falling behind 1-0 after the first inning, the renegades came back, scoring a run as Ryan Dunn singled, went to second on a passed ball, stole third, and scored on a Jake DePew single to tie the game at 1-1. Hudson Valley took the lead in the top of the fifth, as Joey Rickard doubled, scoring DePew, and came around to score on a base hit by Richie Shaffer. The Tigers loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth, and scored a run with a two out bases loaded walk. Jordan Dean singled, the ball glancing off of Luke Maile‘s glove, driving in two and giving the Tigers a 4-3 lead. Connecticut tacked on an insurance run in the eighth, coming back for a 5-3 win. Matthew Spann took the loss, giving up 4 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 3 in 5.2 innings. Three Renegades had two hits each in the loss.

Johnson City Cardinals 10, Princeton Rays 9 (7 innings)

In the first game of the double header, the Rays jumped out on the Cardinals. The Rays scored a run in the top of the second, then put another three runs on the board in the third, highlighted by Reid Redman‘s RBI double and a run scoring single from Andrew Toles. Princeton scored four more runs in the top of the fourth, on two runs home runs from Brandon Martin and Toles, taking an 8-0 lead midway through the fourth inning. The Cardinals got three runs back in the bottom of the inning, as Jeremy Schaffer, Gerwuins Velazco, and Ronard Castillo each had RBI doubles. Both teams swapped runs in the sixth, giving the Rays a 9-4 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. However, the Cardinals came all the way back, scoring six times in a wild inning. Two errors and a wild pitch contributed to the baserunners, and the scoring was highlighted by a two run bases loaded double by Carson Kelly. With the game tied and the bases loaded with two out, a passed ball allowed Bruce Caldwell to score from third, giving the Cardinals the 10-9 victory. Jonathan Weaver picked up the loss, giving up 2 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits without recording an out. Andrew Toles and William Argo each had three hits in the defeat.

Johnson City Cardinals 8, Princeton Rays 4 (7 innings)

In the second game of the doubleheader, the Rays again started quickly, scoring three times in the top of the first. Andrew Toles had an RBI double, moved to third on the throw home, and scored on a throwing error. The Cardinals came back in the bottom of the inning, as Bruce Caldwell hit a bases loaded single, driving in two runs. Toles scored again in the top of the third, this time on a Omar Narvaez sacrifice fly, giving the Rays a 4-2 lead. As in the previous game, the Cardinals came back, scoring a run in the fourth as Trevor Martin hit a solo home run. Johnson City then put three more runs up in the fifth, highlighted by an RBI double by Michael Knox. Knox scored on an attempted stolen base by Trevor Martin. The Cardinals scored twice more in the sixth, as Bruce Caldwell hit a two run double, providing the final margin in the 8-4 victory. Hugo Duarte took the loss, giving up 4 runs on 6 hits in his inning of work, while registering 3 strikeouts. Toles, William Argo, and Chad Nacapoy each had two hits in the defeat.

GCL Rays 6, GCL Orioles 1

The Rays broke open a scoreless game in the bottom of the third, scoring three runs on Bralin Jackson‘s two out, bases loaded triple. The Rays tacked on single runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings, opening up a comfortable 6-0 lead. The Orioles got a run back in the top of the eighth, as Adrian Marin hit a two out RBI single to score Andres Aguilar. However, it was too little, too late, as the Rays won 6-1. Isaac Gil picked up the victory, pitching 5 scoreless innings, giving up 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 4 batters. Jackson was 2-4 with a triple and 2 RBIs, and Armando Araiza went 1-3 with an RBI, a walk, and 2 runs scored.