Mets Daily Farm System Report - 7/9: Aderlin Avenue

New York Mets Daily Farm System Report - Results from the morning/afternoon/night of Thursday July 8, 2010

Before we get started, I forgot to mention that the Signing Period for International Free Agent's began a week ago today on July 2nd.  That's important because yesterday the Mets announced the signing of a couple of kids out of Venezuela, an infielder and an outfielder.  The latter is apparently somewhat highly regarded, ranked 25th among all IFA's by BA.  (Photo here)

The Usual Suspects

AAA - Buffalo (45-43)

• RF Fernando Martinez: 1-5, RBI, E(2) (.256/.314/.438)
• LF Lucas Duda: 1-5, K (.321/.385/.716)  So he is human
• 2B Jacob Turner: 3-5, HR(3), RBI, 2 R (.283/.338/.389) That's two straight with a homer, batting .341 over his last ten
• CF Jorge Padilla: 3-5, RBI, 2 R (.331/.395/.459) Batting .390 in his last ten, hitting streak up to 12 games ties Jesus Feliciano for the Bisons high in 2010
• SP Ramon Ortiz: 5.2 IP, 6 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR (0-2, 8.53 ERA, 19 IP, 28 H, 6 BB, 13 K, 1 HR)
• RP Brian Bruney: 1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K; Not a great debut appearance for the former Yankee

AA - Binghamton (46-40)

• CF Kirk Nieuwenhuis: 2-5, HR(13), K, CS(4) (.302/.348/.532) The Captain is batting .607 in his last six games with ten extra-base hits in that span; he's pretty much the hottest hitter in the minors right now
• LF Sean Ratliff: 1-2, 2B, 2 R, 2 BB, K (.340/.380/.640) Batting .452 with a 1.262 OPS in his last 10 games
• 1B Nick Evans: DNP (.290/.363/.518) 
• 2B Josh Satin: 0-3, R, K (.319/.394/.440)
• SP Josh Stinson: 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 3 K (6-1, 3.31 ERA, 50.1 IP, 62 H, 9 BB, 36 K, 3 HR)
• Binghamton will be holding their annual Outdoor Slumber Party tonight where fans are encouraged to set up camp in the outfield and enjoy a firework show after the game

Hi-A - St. Lucie (43-40)

Game 1 (Continuation of yesterday's suspended game)
• SS Wilmer Flores: 3-5, 2B, RBI, 2 R, E(6)
• 2B Jordany Valdespin: 2-4, RBI, R, CS(7)
• 1B Stefan Welch: 2-4, R, 2 K
• C Kai Gronauer: 3-3, 2 RBI, R, BB
• DH Michael Barrett: 1-5, 2 RBI; Why is he here again?
• RF-CF Juan Lagares: 1-5, 2 RBI
• SP Eric Beaulac: 5 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 4 K, WP (4-2, 3.33, 67.2 IP, 63 H, 33 BB, 43 K, 1 HR) Gotta love that 1.49 GB:FB, 6:3 in this game
• RP Scott Moviel: 4 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 K, (2-6, 6.10, 72.1 IP, 89 H, 39 BB, 49 K, 6 HR) Heck of a pseudo-relief effort
• Beltran-Watch: Beltran went 1-for-1 with a double, two runs and a walk in the first half; he got the second half of this one off.

Game 2
• SS Wilmer Flores: 1-4, 2B, RBI, R, BB, K (.443/.449/.522) That now marks hits in 13 straight games
• 2B Jordany Valdespin: 1-5, 2 K (.297/.335/.433)
• 1B Stefan Welch: 0-4, RBI, BB, K (.293/.363/.433)
• RF Juan Lagares: 2-5, RBI, R, K (.194/.200/.193)
• SP Jeurys Familia: 3.2 IP, 4 ER, 2 H, 7 BB, 3 K (2-4, 5.85, 64.2 IP, 60 H, 48 BB, 63 K, 2 HR) And Familia has now officially eclipsed last season's walk total in about half the innings
• Beltran-Watch: In the night cap, Beltran went 1-for-4 with a strikeout and an intentional walk.  He's now up to .400/.472/.511.
• Tonight is Country Night down at Digital Domain Field where the Mets urge fans to "Wear your boots, buckles, or ten gallon hats to receive $2 off admission!"

Lo-A Savannah (48-35)

• 3B Jefry Marte: 1-4, RBI, 2 R, BB, K (.237/.317/.348)
• RF Cesar Puello: 0-2, 3 R, 2 BB (.263/.352/.320)
• CF Pedro Zapata: 2-6, RBI, 2 R, 3 K, SB(25) (.286/.346/.374)
• SS Wilfredo Tovar: 0-5 (.347/.418/.408)
• 1B Travis Ozga: 2-5, 5 RBI (.371/.425/.514)  The switch-hitting Ozga has been a revelation since joining the Mets in mid-June
• LF RJ Harris: 2-3, HR(2), 2 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB (.182/.328/.291) I'm expecting a big bounce back from the talented 2009 14th rounder
• SP Taylor Whitenton: 6 IP, 3 ER, 9 H, 2 BB, 3 K (4-4, 3.66 ERA, 66.1 IP, 56 H, 40 BB, 67 K, 4 HR) Dodged a lot of bullets in this one as he put men on in nearly every inning

 

SHORT-SEASON LEAGUES

 

SS Brooklyn (11-9)

• CF Darrell Ceciliani: 3-4, 2 R, 3 SB(7) (.392/.442/.608)
• RF Cory Vaughn: 0-4 (.250/.333/.513)
• 3B Joe Bonfe: 3-4, RBI (.345/.465/.466) Quick start after a nice '09 showing in Kingsport
• SP Mitchell Houck: 6.2 IP, 1 ER (1 unearned), 5 H, 1 BB, 8 K (3-0, 0.99 ERA, 27.1 IP, 20 H, 9 BB, 26 K, 0 HR) Owes his success to an impressive 2.12 GB:FB thus far, 10:2 in this one; after just ten pro appearances over two injury-plagued years, Houck is off to a very nice start in 2010

 

RK Kingsport (7-10)

• CF ZeErika McQueen: 2-4, 2 RBI, R, SB(4) (.370/.390/.452)
• 3B Aderlin Rodriguez: 3-5, 2B, 2 HR(7), 5 RBI, 2 R, K (.267/.329/.692) This kid has got some serious power
• DH Nelfi Zapata: 1-5, 2B, R (.240/.356/.280)
• RF Javier Rodriguez: 3-5 (.400/.431/.633)
• SP Jacob DeGrom: 5 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 3 K (0-1, 3.86 ERA, 11.2 IP, 18 H, 2 BB, 10 K, 1 HR) That makes two nice starts in a row for the 2010 9th rounder and converted SS out of Stetson U

RK GCL Mets (7-4)

• SS Robbie Shields: 3-4, 2B, SB(1), 3 E(3) (.260/.304/.357) All three errors were on throws which isn't too surprising considering this is only his third game back at short since the TJ surgery on his throwing arm; at least the bat and the legs still work
• DH Brian Harrison: 0-2, BB, K (.296/.367/.593)
• SP Domingo Tapia: 2.2 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 4 BB, 0 K, HBP, Balk (0-2, 8.71 ERA, 22 IP, 23 H, 10 BB, 11 K, 0 HR) That makes three out of three starts with under 4 IP and at least 3 ER for him
• REHAB ALERT - RHP Carlos Muniz: .2 IP, 7 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HR, WP (1-0, 12.15, 6.2 IP, 11 H, 3 BB, 6 K, 1 HR) Ugh
• REHAB ALERT - RHP Brant Rustich: 1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K

Star of the Night

I'd say 3B Aderlin Rodriguez is certainly making up for lost time.  After missing all but 17 games in '09 due to wrist problems, Rodriguez has opened up his 2010 campaign on an absolute power binge, especially of late.  Rodriguez is batting .460 over his last five games with seven extra-base hits, including four home runs.  I posted the link the other day but for anyone who didn't see it, here is a video profiling Aderlin's July 4th game which included a bomb.  With that natural loft and tremendous bat speed, you can see where the plus power comes from; I just hope that with something of a long, uppercut stroke he'll be able to keep that average up.  Either way, I'm excited to see what this guy can do over the course of a full summer.

Do I have any other choice for the Goat of the Night than RHP Carlos Muniz making his fourth rehab appearance in the GCL?  His sequence was as follows: Homer, Out, Single, Wild Pitch, Walk, Single, Out, Walk, Single, Double.  Just awful.

System Roundup

• Buffalo dropped the opener of a quick 2-gamer with the Scranton Yankees, 10-7.  Despite nice performances by newcomers 2B Justin Turner & CF Jorge Padilla, as well as 1B Mike Jacobs' fifth bomb in as many games, RHP Ramon Ortiz couldn't hold onto this one.  After breezing through the first five innings, Ortiz lost control of the game, allowing a big five run inning and each of the three subsequent relievers allowed at least one run.  Though they rallied in the 9th, this one was out of reach. Boxscore
• Binghamton won this pitcher's duel 4-3 over Altoona, notching their seventh straight series victory.  It wasn't exactly a low scoring affair but all seven runs were scored in the first two innings of this game before both staffs completely clamped down and put up zeros the rest of the way.  The two lineups combined for 17 strikeouts and only 4 walks total.  Also, CF Kirk Nieuwenhuis continued his absolute rampage with a 2nd inning bomb, bring his home run total to 13 before the break (vs. 17 all of last year).  Even more encouraging is his .315 AVG against lefties thus far (vs. .235 in '09).  Boxscore
• In Game 1, St. Lucie finished off an 8-2 win that was suspended due to electrical issues at Digital Domain Stadium on Wednesday.  RHP Eric Beaulac took the first half of this one, allowing just a run on six hits and in the conclusion RHP Scott Moviel picked up right where Beaulac left off, allowing just one more run over the final four innings.  SS Wilmer Flores and C Kai Gronauer led the team with three hits apiece.  Boxscore  In Game 2, RHP Jeurys Familia was extremely wild and though he put them behind early, the Mets managed to come back for a thrilling 7-6 walk-off win against the Fort Myers Miracle.  The Mets scored six in the final three innings, including four in the 9th.  SS Wilmer Flores extended his hit streak to 13 games with a key RBI double in the final frame and RF Juan Lagares provided the walk-off single to cap it. Boxscore
• Savannah won the opener of their 5-game weekend series with Asheville 11-6.  This was a strange one as both teams had the same amount of hits, errors and walks and the Tourists actually had fewer strikeouts and more hits with RISP, yet scored almost half as many runs as the Gnats.  Obviously that means a handful of really big hits by the Gnats, especially newcomer 1B Travis Ozga who tallied five RBI's.  Starter RHP Taylor Whitenton was also quite clutch (some might say lucky) as he put nearly a dozen men on base yet only allowed three to cross the plate in his six innings. Boxscore
• Anybody that watched this one got to see a nice all-around team performance in this 6-2 Cyclones win over the Spikes.  LHP Mitchell Houck tossed yet another impressive game and if you noticed, he kept the ball down well and just about everything was on the ground for him.  We also got a chance to see first-hand that CF Darrell Ceciliani is fast.  Brooklyn scored in five of the first six innings of this one and with the pitching keeping State College off the board until late, that was more than enough.  Boxscore
• Kingsport rallied late to take this one against Bristol 8-3.  Trailing 3-2, the K-Mets managed to score seven runs in the final three innings.  Both of the Rodriguez boys went 3-for-5, including two more bombs from Aderlin, and RHP Jacob DeGrom threw his best pro game to date, allowing nothing over five very strong innings. Boxscore
• The GCL Mets played two yesterday.  The first was the final six innings of the game suspended on July 3rd, which ended up as a 7-4 loss to the Cardinals.  2010 37th rounder out of OK St. CF Dylan Brown hit his first pro bomb and the rehabbing RHP Eduardo Aldama was very strong over two relief innings (0 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 4 K).  But after scoring in the opening frame, Mets hitters went down 1-2-3 in every resulting inning. Boxscore  Game 2 was one of the most lopsided losses for any Met affliate this year, 16-2.  All but one Cardinals regular got a hit and six of them had multi-hit game.  Two separate Met pitchers allowed seven runs (one of them being RHP Carlos Muniz who has no excuse for that) and even worse were the combined seven walks and five errors.  The Mets hitters didn't have a hit after the fourth inning. Boxscore

Prospect Spotlight

Nicholas Reginald Evans (yes, his middle name is Reginald)

Much has been made of Evans and his seemingly endless assignment in Binghamton.  As we all know he's currently beating up Double-A pitching to the tune of a nearly .900 OPS with 15 homers in just over 300 ab's.  What's more, in his first stop at Bingo back in '08, he batted .311 while knocking 14 bombs in under 350 ab's.  The 24-yr old seemingly has little left to prove at this level. 

What's holding Evans back is the fallout from his '09 season.  After missing the cut on the very last day of ST last year, Evans struggled mightily (.211/.280/.414) and didn't really get back on track until late in the season.  Though he did hit 13 home runs, it was something of a lost season for Evans' development and seems to have given the organization the perception that he needs to be handled with kid gloves.  So I guess I'm not surprised that Evans has spent the entire first half in Binghamton. 

The question is where does he spend the second half?  It would seem that the Mets (for whatever reason) don't want to lose Mike Jacobs so I don't see first base opening up in Buffalo but what about the majors?  I'm looking at you Fernando Tatis.  Now I know a righty pinch hitter/occasional spot starter off the bench is not the best place to allow Evans to continue to develop but here's some food for thought:  

Tatis' role has basically devolved into just a righty pinch hitter yet he is 2 for his last 25 (over 15 games) facing mostly lefties.  In 2010 he's hit just .250/.313/.409 in his 44 pinch-hit appearances against southpaws and in his starts he's batting a paltry .143/.189/.229 in 35 ab's against them.  In 2009 he batted an OK .278 against lefties, 7 points lower than he hit righties.  Meanwhile, in 68 ab's this year Nick is batting .382/.476/.735 against lefties.  That's right, that's a 1.211 OPS.  And yes that's versus Double-A pitching but in his 100 career major league ab's against lefties Evans has a .320/.382/.490 line so there.

Now I know another reason Jerry likes to keep Tatis around is for his defensive versatility but Nick too can play OF, 1B and he's even been getting starts at 3B over the last couple weeks so even that isn't a valid excuse anymore.  Again, I know the major league bench isn't the best place to develop a 24-yr old kid and i know they probably want to take it slowly with him after last year's disaster but the difference is so stark between these two that for a team right in the thick of things this is a move you really have to consider.