Minors Report for 6/22/10 (Zach McAllister; Austin Romine; Dellin Betances; Sally League All-Stars)

Minor Leagues Report — By Tom K on June 22, 2010 9:47 pm

Scranton:

Zach McAllister pitched a solid game, but still took the loss as Scranton fell, 3-1. McAllister went seven innings, allowing three runs on five hits. He walked two, struck out one, and allowed a home run. McAllister is now 5-5 on the season with a 4.50 ERA (14 starts, 78 IP, 88 H, 19 BB, 47 K, 8 HR). The not so great home run rate coupled with a bad strikeout rate is concerning.

Marc Melancon pitched two innings of scoreless relief, walking two and striking out four.

At the plate, Jorge Vazquez hit his first AAA home run in the losing effort. Vazquez also doubled and is hitting .273 in 33 at-bats since his promotion.

Reegie Corona contributed three hits, his third consecutive multi-hit effort…raising his average to a still pedestrian .233. ———————————————————————————————————————————— Trenton:

Austin Romine hit his fourth home run of the season in the completion of a suspended game…then went 2-for-4 with a double (19) and run scored in the regularly scheduled game as Trenton earned the split. Romine is now hitting .286 on the season. He had a three-hit game a few days ago, so perhaps he is starting to break out of his slump.

Brandon Laird went 1-for-3 with a double, two runs scored, and two RBI (now up to 67 on the season) in the victory.

Lance Pendleton earned the victory with six innings of three-run, four-hit ball. He walked one and struck out six. He is 6-3 with a 3.72 ERA (77.1 IP, 62 H, 31 BB, 65 K, 5 HR) on the season. As I have stated before, Pendleton is no longer a prospect – but he has done a solid job for Trenton this year.

Tampa:

It probably takes a special kind of talent to do what Dellin Betances is pulling off.

In his third start since coming back from his injury, Betances was dominating, pitching six innings of one-hit baseball to help Tampa to a 3-0 victory in game one of a double-header. Dunedin turned the tables in game 2, winning 4-0. Betances allowed one walk and struck out eight to get the victory. In those three starts, Betances is 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA (18 IP, 6 H, 0 HR, 2 BB, 21 K). It is very obvious want this kid to stay healthy.

A two-run double by 21-year old shortstop Jose Pirela was the big hit in the game. Pirela is at .227/.281/.340 on the season. He has a lot of speed (8 doubles, 8 triples, 9-for-12 stealing bases) and is another interesting middle infield prospect in an organization that suddenly is starting to show life at the two middle infield positions. Pirela put up a .295/.354/.381 seaon in Charleston last year, so he does have some hitting ability.

In the second game, Adam Warren didn’t fare quite as well as Betances. Warren lasted four innings, allowing all four runs on nine hits. He walked nobody and struck out two. He also allowed a home run. Warren (22) is now 6-5 with a 2.86 ERA on the season (63 IP, 60 H, 14 BB, 48 K, 2 HR). Rehabbing right-hander George Kontos pitched an inning of scoreless relief in the loss, as did Pat Venditte.

Corban Joseph was only able to go 1-for-7 in the two games, as his average fell below the .300 mark (.299). Melky Mesa picked up his 18th steal in the second game and had a hit in each game. ————————————————————————————————————————————- Charleston:

Charleston was off as the Sally League played their All-Star Game tonight.

There are quite a few promising prospects on this team right now….but only three guys made the team, one of which couldn’t make it due to injury.

Zolio Almonte is the most intriguting name on the list. The recently-turned-21 year old outfielder is hitting .278/.341/.485 on the season with 13 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs, and 35 RBI. He has stolen seven bases (also caught six times), and has 21 walks to go along with 65 strikeouts in 227 at-bats. Obviously, there is room for growth here; but the 10 home runs jump out at you the most at this stage.

Luke Murton couldn’t make the game due to injury. The 24-year old corner player is hitting .291/.375/.498 on the season with 23 doubles, 8 home runs, and 37 RBI. Drafted in the 19th round of the 2009 draft, he is old for the league in terms of age…not quite so in terms of experience. However, at the age of 24, he’d need to move pretty quickly to get to the majors in his prime. he has a .927 OPS vs. lefties.

Ryan Flannery was the third player chosen. A 24-year old closer, Flannery is 5-2 with a 1.91 ERA and 7 saves for Charleston. In 37.2 innings, he has allowed 27 hits while walking 7 and striking out 27. In April, Flannery had an ERA of 6.75 in 9.1 innings. Since then, he has allowed two runs (one earned) in 28.1 innings. Wow. He has allowed 15 hits during that stretch with four walks and 20 strikeouts.

Charleston would likely have produced more All-Stars, but Graham Stoneburner and Shaeffer Hall were both promoted to Tampa earlier this season. I will assume Jimmy Paredes was on the radar for the team (.279/.309/.368 with 24 steals in 30 attempts for the shortstop), but he is far from an oversight. Third baseman Robert Lyerly (22) may have the biggest beef after a .314/.367/.411 first half.

Tags: Adam Warren, Austin Romine, Brandon Laird, George Kontos, Graham Stoneburner, Jimmy Paredes, Jorge Vazquez, Jose Pirela, Lance Pendleton, Luke Murton, Marc Melancon, Pat Venditte, Robert Lyerly, Ryan Flannery, Shaeffer Hall, Wes Ferrell