DotF: Littell dominates, Mateo makes AA debut in Trenton win

A few quick notes to get us started:

• As expected, SS Jorge Mateo was moved up from High-A Tampa to Double-A Trenton, and IF Abi Avelino was moved up from Double-A Trenton to Triple-A Scranton. Also, IF Angel Aguilar has been moved up from Low-A Charleston to High-A Tampa as well, the team announced. That’s all one big chain reaction to Starlin Castro getting hurt and SS Tyler Wade being called up to MLB.
• RHP Clarke Schmidt, this year’s first round pick, told Matthew Martell his Tommy John surgery rehab is going well. He expects to begin throwing in roughly two months. Schmidt had surgery in May. “They said the time frame should be about September for me to start throwing again. Right now, it’s just slight mobility work and easing back into it. The progressions have come quickly, so I can tell everything’s going well so far,” he said.
• I missed this yesterday, but RHP Domingo Acevedo was included in Baseball Prospectus’ Monday Morning Ten Pack (subs. req’d) “(Saying) there’s a ton of violence in the delivery feels almost kind. There’s bad head movement, a ton of torque, and a severe fall-off at the end. I just don’t think it’s repeatable thirty or more times a year for 100 pitches. I do think he could be a heck of a reliever letting it fly for an inning or two,” said the write-up.

Triple-A Scranton‘s game was suspended due to rain with one out in the top of the second. It’ll be completed tomorrow. Stinks a RHP Chance Adams start was washed away. OF Dustin Fowler did hit a home run before the rain came. Here’s the video. Here’s the box score. I’ll update the stats when they finish the game tomorrow.

Double-A Trenton (10-4 win over Richmond)

• SS Jorge Mateo: 2-5, 1 R, 3 K, 1 CS — both hits were infield singles … nice little Double-A debut
• 2B Thairo Estrada: 2-5, 1 R, 1 SB
• CF Rashad Crawford: 1-4, 2 R, 2 RBI
• LF Zack Zehner: 3-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 SB — the 2015 18th round pick is quietly hitting .292/.386/.412 this year
• RHP Zack Littell: 6 H, 3 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 BB, 10 K, 2 WP, 4/3 GB/FB — 59 of 97 pitches were strikes (61%) … ten strikeouts in seven innings of one-run (unearned) ball in his first Double-A start, now ten strikeouts in six shutout innings in his second Double-A start
• RHP Nick Rumbelow: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 2/2 GB/FB — 24 of 38 pitches were strikes (63%) … first runs allowed in eight appearances since coming back from Tommy John surgery

High-A Tampa (8-4 win over Daytona)

• LF Tito Polo: 2-3, 4 R, 1 3B, 1 HR, 2 BB, 2 SB — 12-for-27 (.444) with three doubles, a triple, and a homer during his seven-game hitting streak
• RF Trey Amburgey: 2-5, 2 RBI
• 2B Nick Solak: 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 K — 15-for-27 (.556) in his last seven games
• SS Angel Aguilar: 1-5, 1 RBI, 1 K, 1 E (throwing)
• RHP Dillon Tate: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 9/3 GB/FB — 54 of 78 pitches were strikes (69%) … second start didn’t go as well as the first, but at least the shoulder is healthy
• LHP James Reeves: 1 IP, zeroes, 2/0 GB/FB — ten of 14 pitches were strikes (71%)

Low-A Charleston (11-3 win over Rome)

• SS Hoy Jun Park: 2-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 K
• 2B Diego Castillo: 2-5, 1 R, 3 RBI — has a 9.4% walk rate as a 19-year-old in full season ball
• CF Blake Rutherford: 1-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K
• DH Isiah Gilliam: 2-5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 1 K
• C Donny Sands: 1-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
• RF Alex Palma: 2-5, 1 R, 1 K
• 3B Chris Hess: 0-3, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB — 17th rounder is the first 2017 draftee to reach full season ball … I assume he’s here because Aguilar was moved up to Tampa
• RHP Freicer Perez: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 1 WP, 4/4 GB/FB — 55 of 82 pitches were strikes (67%) … 40/11 K/BB in his last seven starts and 42.2 innings

Short Season Staten Island had a scheduled off-day.

Rookie Pulaski (6-4 win over Elizabethton)

• CF Pablo Olivares: 2-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 1 CS — 19-year-old is 7-for-18 (.389) with three walks and two strikeouts in five games so far
• SS Jesus Bastidas: 1-4, 1 R, 2 K
• 1B Eric Wagaman: 1-3, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB — 7-for-18 (.389) with three doubles and two homers in five pro games for his year’s 13th round pick
• LF Brayan Emery: 0-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K — threw a runner out at third
• RHP Carlos Espinal: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 2 WP, 1/2 GB/FB — 48 of 82 pitches were strikes (59%)
• RHP Nolan Martinez: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 3/0 GB/FB — ten of 15 pitches were strikes … kinda weird he came out of the bullpen … not sure what that’s about

Rookie GCL Yanks East (9-3 win over GCL Braves)

• OF Robert Javier: 0-5, 1 BB, 1 K
• RF Steven Sensley: 2-5, 3 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI — this year’s 12th rounder is 2-for-6 with two doubles and three walks in two games so far
• LF Canaan Smith: 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K — this year’s fourth rounder is 3-for-5 with two walks and two strikeouts through two games
• RHP Luis Rijo: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 7/2 GB/FB — 18-year-old had a 30/2 K/BB in 32.1 Dominican Summer League innings last year
• RHP Yancarlos Baez: 2 IP, zeroes, 1 K, 2/1 GB/FB — the Yankees signed him as a shortstop for $650,000 back in 2012, but he hit .211/.278/.296 (72 wRC+) in 639 plate appearances from 2014-16, so now they’re trying him as a pitcher
• RHP Aaron McGarity: 1 IP, zeroes, 2 K, 0/1 GB/FB — pro debut for this year’s 15th rounder, who was an interesting prospect at Alabama-Birmingham a few years back, before he dealt with some injuries

Rookie GCL Yanks West Game One (8-6 loss to GCL Phillies in seven innings) makeup of yesterday’s rainout … since this is technically Opening Day, here’s the full lineup

• LF Evan Alexander: 1-3, 1 3B, 1 BB, 1 K — got picked off first
• SS Oswald Peraza: 0-4, 1 E (fielding)
• RF Juan De Leon: 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 K — threw a runner out at the plate … signed for $2M as part of the July 2nd spending spree in 2014, but he still hasn’t made it out of rookie ball
• 1B Miguel Flames: 2-3, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB — I guess Miggy Fire is no longer a catcher … that’s a bummer
• DH Jordan Scott: 1-2, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 BB
• 3B Griffin Garabito: 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 K — somehow still only 19 years old … seems like he’s been in the GCL forever
• CF Luis Martinez: 0-3
• C David Vergel: 1-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 PB
• 2B Borinquen Mendez: 1-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 K — 19-year-old hit zero home runs in 53 Dominican Summer League games the last two years … first GCL game? dinger time
• LHP Chaz Hebert: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 0/1 GB/FB — missed all of last season and the start of this season with Tommy John surgery … he had a breakout 2015 season, remember, throwing 134 innings with a 2.55 ERA (3.11 FIP), 20.0% strikeouts, and 5.6% walks
• RHP Kenlly Montas: 3.2 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 4/3 GB/FB
• RHP Bringnel Mendez: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 5/0 GB/FB

Rookie GCL Yanks West Game One (4-3 win over GCL Phillies in seven innings)

• CF Evan Alexander: 1-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB — triple in the first game, homer in the second game … not a bad doubleheader for last year’s 19th round pick
• SS Borinquen Mendez: 1-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 K, 2 SB, 1 E (fielding)
• 1B Miguel Flames: 1-3, 1 R, 1 BB
• RF Antonio Arias: 0-2, 1 BB — signed for $800,000 as part of that 2014 international class
• RHP Jhonatan Munoz: 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 WP, 1/0 GB/FB — 17-year-old (!) allowed three runs with 12 strikeouts and two walks in 9 1/3 Dominican Summer League innings this year before the Yankees brought him to Tampa
• RHP Bryan Blanton: 1 IP, zeroes, 2/1 GB/FB — pro debut for this year’s 21st rounder
• LHP Dalton Lehnen: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 4/0 GB/FB — pro debut for this year’s sixth rounder
• RHP Alex Mauricio: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 2/1 GB/FB — another pro debut … he was this year’s 27th rounder