Draft 14 – Michael Gettys, Foster Griffin, Brandon Murray, Carson Sands, Hunter Williams

Draft 14 – Michael Gettys, Foster Griffin, Brandon Murray, Carson Sands, Hunter Williams

8-30-13 - Like Buxton and Demeritte, Michael Gettys is a two-way player with a plus arm who has been clocked at 100 mph from the outfield and can hit 95 mph on the mound. Also like those two, his offensive potential should override his upside on the mound. Aside from his plus arm, Gettys also has plus speed, plus bat speed and showed some serious power at the Under Armour All-American Game home run derby at Wrigley Field. One of his home runs was a moonshot to dead center field and several others were high arching bombs to left. Pitchers don’t typically do things like that. In fact, most of the people around me at the game agreed when I stated, “That’s not a pitcher.” That’s not to say he couldn’t make it as a starter. Aside from his fastball, he has a nice mid-70s curveball and is very aggressive on the mound, attacking hitters without fear. He tossed two no-hitters as a junior and posted a 0.99 ERA, 0.74 WHIP with 114 K/18 BB over 73 innings. On April 12, in a heavily scouted game between Gainesville and Loganville, he struck out 2013 fifth-overall pick Clint Frazier twice. He has the size, stuff and mentality to make it. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/michael-gettys/37172

8-27-13 - Player:  Foster Griffin   Primary Position:  LHP  Secondary Position(s):  OF  Height/Weight:  6’5/195  Bats/Throws:  R/L  Home Town:  Orlando, FL  School:  The First Academy   Travel Team(s):  Orlando Scorpions  Class of:  2014  Committed To:  Mississippi  Scouting Notes:  2013 USA Baseball Tournament of Stars Notes from Don Olsen - Long, sloped and slider athletic build in Brian Matusz type mold.  He has a sound three piece delivery with the balance and transfer that is relaxed, effortless.  He repeats well for a long and limber pitcher, nice extension that allows him to attack the lower half with plane on every offering.  Fastball was 89-91 mph with an extension that plays up the offering.  Good movement on it with a tough plane to square up.  Curve, 73-75 mph, has the shape and path to project into an above average offering.  He did not show the change up this event, but that pitch could round out a nice 3 pitch mix.  Foster is very projectable with easy arm speed. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/08/27/2014-mlb-draft-profile-foster-griffin/

 

8-27-13 - Player:  Brandon Murray   Primary Position:  RHP  Secondary Position(s):  1B  Height/Weight:  6’4/200  Bats/Throws:  R/R  Home Town:  Hobart, IN  School:  Hobart  Class of:  2014  - Committed To:  South Carolina -  2013 Tournament of Stars notes from Don Olsen  - Brandon has an ideal height with narrow athletic build, little bit of development in the hips and rear in a Jeremy Bondermann type mold.  Good push drive from the lower half; arm shows a little wrap and elevation with a decent slot at plant.  Really good weight transfer and extension allows him to keep it down in the zone constantly.  Really good arm speed and drive using the entire body.  He is a solid athlete that fields well, shows the one step lateral agility, high caliber athlete.  Fastball was 92-93 (94) mph, with a bit of hand side tail with the ¾ delivery.  Curve, 79-81, flashed some depth and solid 11/5 type movement in a power curve type offering.  He did not show a change up in event.  Good athlete and some items to iron, but arm speed you want to see. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/08/26/2014-mlb-draft-profile-brandon-murray/

8-14-13 – Through The Fence – Top 50 Prospects – 42. Carson Sands, LHP, N. Florida Christian HS (FL) - The 6’-3”, 215-pound southpaw has a low-90s fastball with arm-side run and there is still room for more velocity as he matures. He has great mound presence and looks like a polished pro. He also shows two solid secondaries in a change-up and curveball. His command gets him in trouble at times, but all of the ingredients are there. An alumni of Team USA Baseball, he has played against the best competition. Committed to Florida State. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-top-50-prospects/36463#mwWwsFxSUZy7YC5V.99

2013 East Coast Pro Showcase Top 50 Prospects    - 42. Hunter Williams – 1B/LHP, Cosby (VA) HS - Two-way player showed big power and 88-90 on the mound. http://www.ninebaseball.org/Wordpress/sullys-top-50-ecp-prospects/

Draft 14 – Kodi Medeiros, Grant Hockin, Micah Miniard, Milton Ramos, Brandon Finnegan

8-16-13 - 11th All-American Classic - Kodi Medeiros | LHP | Waiakea (Hilo, HI)  Height/Weight: 6 feet/185 pounds  B/T: L/L  Draft Day Age: 18 years, 0 months  Commitment: N/A  Scouting Notes: Impressive; deception pitcher with stuff but not a gimmick guy; worked from extreme low three-quarters slot—basically a sidearmer; fastball worked 93-94 with plus movement; ball was diving under barrels; upper-70s to low-80s slider was filthy; fastball disguise and pure funk on the late two-plane break; showed mid-80s changeup as well; curious to see if he can hold velo and command the fastball to both sides of the plate; can’t wait to see him this spring.  http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=21537

 

8-14-13 – Through The Fence – Top 50 Prospects – 38. Grant Hockin, RHP, Damien HS (CA) - Hockin is an athletic 6’-2” right-hander whose fastball has touched 95 mph with late life and sits in the 89-92 mph range. He also adds two solid secondary offerings in a curveball and change-up, and he locates his pitches well. He repeats his delivery well and still has some projection left. He is the grandson of Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-draft-top-50-prospects/36463#mwWwsFxSUZy7YC5V.99

 

2013 East Coast Pro Showcase Top 50 Prospects    - 50. Micah Miniard – RHP,  Boyle County (KY) HS - 6’7, 200 RHP worked 90-91. http://www.ninebaseball.org/Wordpress/sullys-top-50-ecp-prospects/

 

8-24-13 - Most of the top high school hitters in the 2014 draft class are on hand for the Under Armour All-America Game, powered by Baseball Factory. Friday’s workout at the University of Illinois-Chicago’s Miller Field featured batting practice, infield and outfield and a home run derby, winnowing the field for Saturday’s derby prior to the game at Wrigley Field. Of the 2014 players, shortstop Milton Ramos (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.) put on the best show Friday. Ramos, who played at Florida Christian High in 2013 and will attend American Heritage this upcoming academic year, entered the summer with a reputation as a flashy, at times brilliant defender, and he didn’t disappoint in the workout. http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/under-armour-all-star-game-notebook/

 

7-17-13 –  Brandon Finnegan, LHP, TCU - The stadium gun was off on Monday night but it was easy to see Finnegan was throwing heat, blowing his fastball past hitters and recording two strikeouts in his one inning of work.  Kevin Gallo tells me he topped out at 96 mph.  I mention Finnegan because he's just 5'11", 185 lbs and generates much of that velocity with tremendous arm speed.  Obviously there's not a lot of downward plane here and you wonder if his size will relegate him to the bullpen, though I'm told he can sustain that velocity late in games and he has a hard slider and a solid change-up to go with the fastball -- so he does have the necessary tools/skills to stick as a starter.   Either way, he's an interesting prospect whether he sticks as a starter or becomes a Billy Wagner type closer. http://www.chicagonow.com/cubs-den/2013/07/looking-ahead-to-the-2014-and-2015-mlb-draft-notes-from-the-collegiate-national-team-games/

Draft 14 - An Early Look At: Bryce Montes De Oca, RHP, Lawrence HS (MO)

45th RHP  -  Bryce Montes De Oca

 

6-9-13  -  29. Texas Rangers — Bryce Montes De Oca, RHP, Lawrence HS (MO) - This one is all about upside. At 6’-8” and 265 pounds, the right-hander can run his fastball up to 95 mph with ease. Add in the fact that it his release point is probably halfway to home plate, it is near impossible to pick it up as a hitter. His secondary stuff is still developing and he is still learning to pitch, but it’s hard to pass on a kid with his size and arm strength. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-mock-draft-1-0-no-time-like-the-present/34008#Vj5KQGPZZT1XUyhx.99

 

6-9-13  -  14.Bryce Montes De Oca, RHP, (Kansas HS): Good velocity on his fastball, currently sitting in the low-to-mid 90s, with two developing offspeed pitches. Big frame at 6’7″, 255 lbs. http://www.minorleaguerundown.com/2013/06/09/2014-mlb-draft-top-30-prospects/

 

6-13-13  -  29. Texas Rangers — Bryce Montes De Oca, RHP, Lawrence HS (MO) - This one is all about upside. At 6’-8” and 265 pounds, the right-hander can run his fastball up to 95 mph with ease. Add in the fact that it his release point is probably halfway to home plate, it is near impossible to pick it up as a hitter. His secondary stuff is still developing and he is still learning to pitch but it’s hard to pass on a kid with his size and arm strength. http://beforeitsnews.com/sports/2013/06/2014-mlb-mock-draft-1-0-no-time-like-the-present-2513748.html?currentSplittedPage=2

 

7-2-13 - 35. Bryce Montes De Oca- RHP, Lawrence (KS) HS http://www.ninebaseball.org/Wordpress/jeff-sullivans-top-100-2014-prospects/

 

8-9-13 - The biggest player on either the East or West teams' rosters for Sunday's 11th annual Perfect Game All-American Classic presented by Rawlings won't throw a pitch, swing a bat or field a ground ball at all this weekend.  But Lawrence (Kan.) High School senior and University of Missouri commit Bryce Montes de Oca is determined to make the most out of the PG All-American Classic opportunity that he has been presented with, even if Tommy John surgery performed in early April will keep him from competing. http://www.perfectgame.org/AllAmerican/News.aspx?num=8868

Roster Moves

From St. Lucie to Binghamton -

IF - Matt Reynolds

C - Kevin Plawecki.

The War Room - SS

 

 From:  Jan Groot -

Mack, Just a thought for you. Every week a different position to discus in the war room?

I know the Mets are set at 3rd. TDA looks like the future catcher. Perhaps even Lagares is the future in CF. But the rest is open for debate.

My first imput is SS. I would try to trade for Chris Owings. I would offer Wilmer Flores. Why? The Snakes are set at SS with Gregoriuos so they can trade Owings. The Mets are set at 3rd so they can trade Flores. This also means that Arizona can put Prado in LF now they traded Kubel away.

FYI...

Here are the SS that have one year (2014) left on their contracts:

Cleveland – Asdrubal Cabrera - $10mil – 27-yrs. old - .240/.296/.387/.683, 9-HR, 47-RBI

Baltimore – J.J. Hardy - $7.917 – 30-yrs. old - .255/.298/.437/.735, 23-HR, 67-RBI

 Texas – Elvis Andrus - $6.725 – 2.26 - 24-yrs. old - .262/.323/.314/.636, 1-HR, 49-RBI

 Philadelphia – Jimmy Rollins - $11mil – 34-yrs. old - .247/.310/.337/.647, 5-HR, 35-RBI

 Los Angeles Dodgers – Hanley Ramirez - $16mil – 29-yrs. old - .346/.393/.634/1.027, 15-HR          

 

 

 

The 51s defeated the Padres, 8-6, in game two of the four-game series before a Fan Appreciation/51s Jersey Night crowd of 7,207 at Cashman Field...with the victory, the 51s clinched the Pacific Southern Division and will advance to the PCL Playoffs for the first time in 11 seasons (since 2002)...Las Vegas will meet Salt Lake (Pacific Northern Division) in the Conference Championship Series (Best-of-5) beginning in Salt Lake City, Utah on Wednesday, September 4...First baseman Eric Campbell led Las Vegas' 13-hit attack with a 3-for-4, double, RBI performance...game three of the series is Sunday at 7:05 p.m.

Las Vegas 51s (81-61) 8, Tucson Padres (75-67) 6 August 31, 2013

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Tucson 0 0 3 0 2 0 0 0 1 6 14 1 Las Vegas 1 0 2 1 2 0 2 0 x 8 13 1

 

Tucson AVG AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO PO A Decker, CF .286 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 1 Petit, G, 3B .293 5 2 4 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 Anna, SS .333 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 Wilson, M, RF .286 4 2 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 3 1 Allen, 1B .270 4 2 2 0 0 2 5 0 0 6 0 Francisco, B, LF .240 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Galvez, 2B .278 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 Rodriguez, E, C .208 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 8 0 Sampson, P .182 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0   Cortes, P .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1   a-Moore, S, PH .270 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   Andriese, P .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   b-Robertson, PH .287 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   Kloess, P .273 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals .283 39 6 14 2 0 3 6 1 10 24 7 a-Doubled for Cortes in the 6th. b-Flied out for Andriese in the 8th. BATTING 2B: Wilson, M (12, Schwinden), Moore, S (33, Church). HR: Allen 2 (17, 3rd inning off Schwinden, 2 on, 1 out; 5th inning off Church, 1 on, 2 out), Petit, G (4, 9th inning off Wade, 0 on, 1 out). RBI: Allen 5 (76), Petit, G (61). GIDP: Allen. Team RISP: 2-for-9. Team LOB: 7. BASERUNNING SB: Petit, G (5), Anna (3). FIELDING E: Francisco, B (1). Outfield assists: Decker (Baxter at home), Wilson, M (Lawley at 2nd base).

Las Vegas AVG AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO PO A Nieuwenhuis, CF .250 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 Tejada, R, SS .289 5 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 2 Baxter, RF .291 4 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 Lutz, Z, 3B .293 4 2 2 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 Campbell, 1B .310 4 2 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 6 0 Hoffmann, LF .275 4 0 2 1 0 0 2 0 1 2 0 Pena, F, C .256 3 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 4 0   Henn, P .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   a-Lawley, PH .417 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0   Burke, P .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   Wade, P 1.000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Hicks, 2B .284 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 Schwinden, P .083 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1   Church, P .000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0   Centeno, C .297 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 Totals .288 36 8 13 3 1 2 8 2 7 27 5 a-Singled for Henn in the 7th. BATTING 2B: Baxter (12, Sampson), Hoffmann (29, Cortes), Campbell (24, Andriese). 3B: Lutz, Z (4, Sampson). HR: Tejada, R (2, 1st inning off Sampson, 0 on, 1 out), Pena, F (9, 4th inning off Sampson, 0 on, 0 out). RBI: Tejada, R (24), Lutz, Z (80), Campbell (64), Pena, F (38), Hoffmann 2 (54), Lawley 2 (4). Team RISP: 4-for-12. Team LOB: 8. BASERUNNING SB: Hicks (9). FIELDING E: Campbell (7). DP: 2 (Schwinden-Campbell, Hicks-Tejada, R-Campbell).

Tucson ERA IP H R ER BB SO HR BF Sampson (L, 2-3) 7.11 4.2 9 6 6 0 4 2 23 Cortes 0.00 0.1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 Andriese 4.45 2.0 2 2 2 2 2 0 11 Kloess 4.99 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 4 Totals 4.58 8.0 13 8 8 2 7 2 40

Las Vegas ERA IP H R ER BB SO HR BF Schwinden 5.78 4.2 9 4 4 0 4 1 22 Church 3.21 0.2 3 1 1 0 0 1 5 Henn (W, 3-5) 2.81 1.2 0 0 0 1 2 0 5 Burke 4.55 1.0 1 0 0 0 2 0 4 Wade (S, 1) 7.94 1.0 1 1 1 0 2 1 4 Totals 4.66 9.0 14 6 6 1 10 3 40

Team ER: off Tucson 8, off Las Vegas 6. BB: off Andriese 2 (Hicks, Lutz, Z), off Henn (Wilson, M). SO: by Sampson 4 (Hicks, Schwinden, Nieuwenhuis, Schwinden), Andriese 2 (Baxter, Hoffmann), Kloess (Lutz, Z), by Schwinden 4 (Decker, Rodriguez, E, Sampson, Galvez), Henn 2 (Decker, Petit, G), Burke 2 (Francisco, B, Rodriguez, E), Wade 2 (Decker, Anna). HB: Baxter (by Sampson), Nieuwenhuis (by Andriese). Pitches-strikes: Sampson 80-49, Cortes 4-3, Andriese 42-23, Kloess 16-10, Schwinden 80-56, Church 22-12, Henn 24-14, Burke 18-12, Wade 15-10. Umpires: HP: Gerard Ascani. 1B: Joel Hospodka. 3B: Tom Woodring. Official Scorer: Gary Arlitz. Weather: 88 degrees, partly cloudy. Wind: 4 mph, R to L. T: 3:03. Att: 7,207. Venue: Cashman Field. August 31, 2013

Compiled by MLB Advanced Media; Copyright by MLB Office of the Commissioner

Gnats Plow Over Drive in Doubleheader

Savannah, GA – The Savannah Sand Gnats continued their winning ways Saturday by sweeping the Greenville Drive in a doubleheader at Historic Grayson Stadium by scores of 4-2 and 6-4 in games one and two, respectively. The Gnats (32-33/75-59) took advantage of every opportunity, toppling the Drive (27-38/49-85) despite being outhit 15-12 on the night.

 

Fans were treated to heaps of offense, as the Gnats did most of their damage in the first inning in both contests, scoring three in the first inning of game one and then crossing the plate six more times in the first inning of game two.

 

The Gnats' offensive outburst started off with a scorching RF Maikis De La Cruz ground rule double in the first inning of game one. SS Dreily Guerrero could not make the throw on a DH Dilson Herrera fielder's choice, allowing De La Cruz to advance to third. A costly balk by Drive starter RHP Justin Haley plated De La Cruz and moved Herrera to second. Next, a patient 3B Cole Frenzel worked a walk. In what would become a running theme on the night, LF Stefan Sabol hit a laser beam double up the third baseline to score both runners. Sabol finished the night 3-for-6, driving in five while smacking two doubles and a triple.

 

RHP Luis Cessa navigated all seven innings of game one to earn himself his first complete game of the year and his eighth win. Cessa struck out seven while allowing just two earned runs.

 

RHP Jake Kuebler did his best to match Cessa, allowing only two earned runs over five innings of work. Kuebler has now allowed just five earned runs over his last five games. RHP Beck Wheeler closed the door for the Gnats, earning his 19th save since taking over the closer role in the second half of the season.

 

Drive starter RHP Pat Light lasted just two and two-thirds innings in game two, his first start since being activated from the Greenville DL.

 

Dilson Herrera is now hitting .385 over his first five games as a member of the New York Mets organization and the Savannah Sand Gnats.

Aberdeen 7 - Brooklyn 0

The Cyclones opened up their final home series of the 2013 season with a dud on Saturday night, as they were blanked by the Aberdeen IronBirds by the score of 7-0.  It marked the eighth time this season that the Cyclones have been shutout, the second highest total in the NYPL.  With the loss, Brooklyn falls 0.5 a game behind Aberdeen in the McNamara  Division standings, setting the stage for a must-win on Sunday in  Brooklyn's 2013 regular season home finale.
After a scoreless first inning, the IronBirds drew first blood in the top of the second thanks to an unlikely source.  IronBirds thirds baseman Tanner Rust, who came into Saturday’s game with only two extra-base hits in 92 at-bats, sent the first pitch he saw into the right field bleachers to give Aberdeen a 1-0 advantage.
That was all the offense that Brooklyn starter Akeel Morris would allow, as the righthander struck out seven, allowing just three hits over his 5.0 innings of work.  For the season, Morris has allowed just one earned run in 35.0 innings on the mound at MCU Park.
With Morris out of the game in the sixth, the IronBirds quickly expanded their lead.  Conor Bierfeldt started the frame with a leadoff double, and moved to third on a groundout.  With the infield drawn in, Austin Wynns laced a single to left field pushing Bierfeldt home with the second run of the game.  After Wynns swiped second base, Jared Breen lofted a soft liner that was just out of the reach of a leaping L.J. Mazzilli, bringing Wynns around to score and pushing Aberdeen’s lead to 3-0.
That was more than enough as Aberdeen ace Sebastian Vader kept the Cyclones batters off balance all night.  The 18th round selection in the 2010 MLB Draft out of San Marcos High School in California, tossed 7.0 shutout innings, allowing just four hits, and did not allow a runner to reach third base all night.
In the eighth, the IronBirds added a pair of insurance runs off of Kevin McGowan, who was charged with four runs on eight hits over his 3.0 innings of relief, to extend their lead to 5-0  Cameron Griffin came in to pitch the ninth and didn't fair any better, allowing a pair of runs in as Aberdeen's lead ballooned to 7-0.

Press Release

In the bottom of the ninth, the Cyclones mounted their first threat of the game, loading the bases with two outs, but Matt Oberste struck out looking to end the game.

B-Mets and Fisher Cats Canceled

BINGHAMTON, NY – The Binghamton Mets and New Hampshire Fisher Cats were cancelled due to unplayable field conditions and inclement weather on Saturday night at NYSEG Stadium. The game will not be made up, and the B-Mets now have two more games scheduled in the regular season.

The B-Mets (85-54) and Fisher Cats (67-71) will try it again on Sunday evening at 6:35 PM. They will send RHP Greg Peavey to the mound against RHP Marcus Walden. The Horizons Federal Credit Union Pregame Show is set to begin at 6:20 PM on Newsradio 1290 WNBF.