Cardinals Minor League Report

Hey everyone, yesterday was Saturday and that means it’s time to check in on the farm. Obviously this is a day late, so I apologize. The Cardinals minor league affiliates went a combined 15-13 this past week. They also saw a handful of very good pitching and hitting performances. The teams haven’t had as much success as their major league counterpart, but are showing the roster depth that has gotten the Cardinals minor league system ranked very highly. Let’s break down the results by league and hand out the Redbird Rants Weekly Awards.

Memphis

The Redbirds had a 4-3 record this week and finished 12-16 overall for the season. They are currently in second place in their division, sitting 6.5 games back of the Kansas City Royals’ affiliate Omaha Storm Chasers. Offensively, the Redbirds got good overall production from their starters and worked to bring their strikeout totals down. After a hot week last week, Bryan Anderson came back down and had a 2 for 17 week. Anderson continues to be an enigma, as his inconsistency is truly what keeps him from being trusted by the organization. Infielders Pete Kozma, Zack Cox, and Ryan Jackson all had decent weeks, with Kozma and Jackson having wOBAs of .285 and .288, respectively, and Cox ending at .344. Kozma and Cox also hit home runs this week. Matt Adams continued his solid start. He put up a .409 OBP and .348 wOBA while driving in three runs and scoring twice. The Hitter of the Week for the second week in a row is Adron Chambers. Chambers is playing for a bench spot with the team, as he continues to show great contact hitting and speed on the basepaths. Chambers has a .522 OBP and .538 wOBA for the week.

The five starting pitchers all earned decisions this week, although three of them were losses. Brian Broderick started the week with a poor three inning outing in which he gave up four earned runs. Broderick gave up two home runs and took the loss. Broderick also had a start on Thursday and didn’t fare any better. He pitched five innings and gave up five earned runs. Broderick allowed two more home runs in this outing, so obviously he needs to work on keeping the ball down. Joe Kelly took the hill on Sunday and pitched very well. He lasted six innings and gave up one earned run, but didn’t earn a decision as the offense struggled to score. Kelly also pitched yesterday and took a five inning loss after allowing three earned runs. Shelby Miller got a start on Monday and got a good luck win, as he lasted five innings and gave up four earned runs. He struck out four and walked four. Miller continues to struggle with control and isn’t showing signs that he is ready for a big league rotation spot just yet. The fifth starter, Nick Additon, also took a loss this week, as he got rocked in three and two thirds innings of work. Additon allowed eight earned runs off eleven hits. With his eight inning, one run performance, Brandon Dickson is our Starting Pitcher of the Week. Dickson notched ten strikeouts against no walks and picked up the win.

The bullpen had three solid performers in Maikel Cleto, Barrett Browning, and Adam Reifer. Cleto had three and a third innings of work this week, allowing one earned run and striking out three. Browning picked up a win and worked a total of four and a third innings. Reifer also only allowed one earned run this week and worked three and a third innings. The Relief Pitcher of the Week is Eduardo Sanchez who picked up two saves in two appearances this week. Sanchez struck out three and allowed no earned runs in two innings of work.

Springfield

The Springfield Redbirds put up a 3-4 record this week, finishing with an 11-17 record. They currently sit in last place, nine games of the Tulsa Drillers.

The Redbirds got great production from their offensive players this week, including nine home runs total. Catcher Audry Perez contributed one of the homers and also put up a .353 OBP. Kolten Wong had a .444 OBP, scored seven runs, and stole two bases. His batwork this year may lead to a AAA callup before season’s end. Shortstop Greg Garcia hit a home run, knocked in four runs, and finished with a .387 wOBA. Jake Shaffer had two home runs, scored six runs, and knocked in four. The Hitter of the Week for the second week in a row is top offensive prospect Oscar Taveras. Taveras continues to hit well, ending with a .348 average, .483 OBP, and .518 wOBA. He had two home runs this week, scored six runs, knocked in four runs, and stole a base.

John Gast started the week with a losing effort on Saturday. He pitched five innings and gave up three earned runs, including two home runs. Gast had another start on Thursday and earned a no decision in six innings of work. He allowed two earned runs, but allowed nine base runners. Trevor Rosenthal also had two starts this week, picking up a win and a loss. On Sunday, he pitched five and a third, allowing three earned runs for the loss. His control was off as he allowed six walks. He won on Friday after a five inning, two earned run performance in which he struck out five. Michael Blazek took the hill on Monday and earned a no decision after pitching six innings of shutout baseball. Scott Gorgen also earned a no decision in a five inning shutout performance. The Starting Pitcher of the Week is Tyler Lyons. Lyons earned a win in a six inning start. He allowed one earned run, but struck out seven hitters, and only allowed five runners.

The bullpen had three pitchers who had shutout weeks. Keith Butler earned a save in three innings of work. He struck out one and allowed four base runners total. Eric Fornataro pitched an inning and two thirds, allowed five baserunners, and struck out two. The Relief Pitcher of the Week was Sam Freeman. Freeman pitched three and a third, struck out one, and only allowed three baserunners.

Palm Beach

Palm Beach had the best record of all four affiliates. They went 5-2 this week and finished with a 13-15 record which leaves them in third place, ten games behind the red hot St Lucie Mets.

Nick Longmire had a good week for counting stats, as even though he only got on base a .280 clip, he scored six runs, bat in five, and hit a home run. Geoffrey Klein had the team’s third highest OBP for the week, finishing with a .421 mark. Left fielder Mike O’Neill‘s .548 OBP was the team’s highest, as he walked five times to go with his twelve hits for the week. The team’s Hitter of the Week was shortstop Ronny Gil. Gil finished with a .471 average, .524 OBP, and .451 wOBA. He scored and bat in four runs, stole two bases, and walked three times.

Anthony Ferrara took the hill on Saturday, earning a no decision with a six inning, one earned run performance. He also pitched a five inning, one earned run game on Friday, but took the bad luck loss. Seth Maness had a solid seven inning turn in which he allowed three earned runs, but earned a no decision. Richard Castillo also earned a no decision with a six inning, one earned run performance. Earning a wins this week Carlos Martinez and Chris Corrigan. Martinez struck out three but walked two in five innings of work. He also allowed two earned runs. Corrigan lasted six innings, struck out four and walked one. The Starting Pitcher of the Week was Drew Benes. Benes, the son of former Cardinals pitcher Andy Benes, earned a win in a seven inning shutout. He struck out five and walked one.

The bullpen was sterling this past week. Iden Nazario and Chase Reid allowed the unit’s only earned runs, as Dean Kiekhefer, Zach Russell, and Ricky Martinez all allowed no earned runs. Logan Billbrough also allowed no earned runs in four innings of work, notching two saves. The Relief Pitcher of the Week was Aidan Lucas. Lucas pitched four innings in three games, allowed no earned runs, and struck out five.

Quad Cities

The River Bandits went 3-4 this week, ending with a 15-13 record that leaves them in third place, two games behind the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

The River Bandits continue to get strong play out of Colin Walsh. Walsh hit a home run and scored six runs. His three extra base hits led the team. He finished with a .427 wOBA. Third baseman Tyler Rahmatulla returned to action this week and posted a .385 OBP, hit a home run, and knocked in two runs. NicK. Martini scored four runs, stole a base, and tied for the team lead with five walks. The Hitter of the Week was left fielder Anthony Garcia, who hit a home run, scored four runs, bat in six runs, and tied Colin Walsh with three extra base hits. He ended the week with a .585 wOBA.

The starting rotation saw three scoreless starts. Todd McInnis lasted five innings, but earned a no decision. Dail Villanueva went six innings and struck out three to earn the win. Tyrell Jenkins was the team’s Starting Pitcher of the Week, as he went five and two thirds and struck out seven. Jenkins earned a no decision. Hector Hernandez had the teams worst outing as he allowed six earned runs in a three inning start. Sam Gaviglio and Kyle Hald rounded out the rotation, with Gaviglio earning a loss and a no decision in two starts after allowing eight earned runs in eight and a third. Hald struck out six in a six innings, one earned run start, but took a no decision.

The bullpen had two shutout performances and another solid contributor behind them. Willy Paulino worked five innings across two games, allowed two earned runs and struck out four. Kevin Jacob had a two inning performance in which he struck out three and allowed no earned runs. The Relief Pitcher of the Week was Ethan Cole, who pitched three and two thirds across two games, picked up a win, allowed no earned runs and only one base runner, and struck out four.

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