Article: Brewers Minor League Link Report (6/7): Black Sets Shuckers On Base Streak Record; Gasser Pitches Complete Game Win

[Joseph Zarr]

It was Double Double-Header Make-Up Wednesday for the Sounds and Mudcats. The Mudcats continue to inexplicably play middle-of-the-road ball at their home ballpark. The Sounds split. The T-Rats cruised late. The Shuckers held on. Let's get into the report!

Image courtesy of Brewer Fanatic

Game Balls: 

• INF/OF Noah Campbell absolutely gets the nod for his two homer 6 RBI game two in Jacksonville. Those long balls were not cheap. His second moon shot, a three-run jack, nearly left the entire ballpark. 
• OF Je'Von Ward gets the nod for his two doubles in a 3-for-4, 2 R, 1 RBI performance. He nearly ended the game on a web gem catch at the wall to boot. He saved that honor for INF Eduardo Garcia on the ensuing play (more below).
• INF Tyler Black is now a part of the Shuckers record books. You don't extend your on-base streak to 28 games, break a franchise record, and not get more than one mention in this article. 
• LHP Robert Gasser gets the nod for his 7 IP CG effort in Game 2 in Jacksonville. The recipient of more ridiculously bad luck on extremely weakly hit grounders and pop fly HR's, his line would have looked even better had the baseball gods not been sleeping throughout.
• RHP Abner Uribe gets the nod here. He tallied his 6th save on the calendar year in a 1 IP, 1 H (a broken bat seeing eye liner up the middle), 0 BB, 2 K outing. 

Transactions:

• OF Jesse Winker was sent on his rehab assignment to the Nashville Sounds
• C Brent Diaz was activated by the Nashville Sounds
• INF Brice Turang was optioned to the Nashville Sounds from the Milwaukee Brewers

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Game #1 Final: Jacksonville (Marlins) 4, Nashville 1
Box Score / Game Log
Game #2 Final: Nashville 11, Jacksonville (Marlins) 4
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 

Via the Sounds' site, game details, please visit and review:

Sounds Split Twin Bill in Jacksonville

RHP Caleb Boushley probably deserved better considering his ability to work around batters in a 5 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 3 BB, 7 K outing.  LHP Robert Gasser definitely deserved a better final line. An absurd fifth inning saw two improbable 90 mph EV pop flies leave the yard in left field as the wind had miraculously shifted out LF way the inning prior. These improbable long balls came after two botched ridiculously weak choppers ate up INF's Patrick Dorrian and Eddy Alvarez. Throw it in the trash. Gasser was very good overall. We'll take it as another building block off his last shutdown outing. He is definitely trending.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) I am going to say this now given what I witnessed in game two of todays' double-header: I am unconvinced the ABS system is always functioning as it should. There, I said it 😅. Let me be clear: I am all about the ABS system. I am unabashedly in support of the system given what I consistently see when human umpires are left to their own devices (don't get me started on Minor League infield umpires). But, I do want to ask: What and how is an automated strike zone determined from batter-to-batter? What oversights do we have in place to ensure the system is actually calling balls and strikes accurately throughout the game? The Jesse Winker called strike three in the third inning of game two was a sinker that landed in the right-handed batters box. The catcher slid a good three feet to his left. I welcome a deeper understanding.

2) Before a C Brian Navarreto deep fly landed just shy of the right field warning track to end the Sounds seventh inning, the Sounds had scored one run or more in every inning of game two of the double-header. It was a far cry from game one when a late INF Cam Devanney 447 blast to straightaway CF prevented a 4-0 shutout. Game two was about as fun as it gets as a Sounds baseball fan. Hits, hits, and more hits. Go ahead and check out that box score.

3) It pains me to say it, but RHP Ryan Middendorf continues to allow base runners and runs in nearly every outing in 2023. It's a season that is quickly getting away. This is a far cry from what we were all looking for coming off a shutdown AFL performance and a brilliant debut season for the Brewers in 2022 - his first in affiliated ball. I will say, the one thing I've noticed as a daily watcher he appears to be playing tighter than he did all of 2022 - I see it in his delivery and I see it in the very tight mechanical nature of his pitches. If he is to reclaim last year's glory, I would opine he needs to loosen up a bit across the board without losing what holds it all together. 

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Final:  Biloxi 4, Mississippi (Braves) 3 
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 

Via the Shuckers' site, game details, please visit and review:

Black Sets Franchise Record with 28-Game On-Base Streak in 4-3 Win

RHP Christian Mejias continues to give solid outings to manager Mike Guerrero and his Shuckers teammates. He may hiccup from time-to-time, but more often than not of late Mejias is giving you at least five solid innings. He completed 5 1/3 IP tonight of 3 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 7 K baseball. That will play most nights. 

Three Quick Strikes:

1) A huge congratulations are in order for super prospect, INF Tyler Black. What an offensive season for an incredible offensive talent:

2) Last year, in the summer months, INF Andruw Monasterio was sent down to the Biloxi Shuckers from the Nashville Sounds. The Brewers wanted to get him more playing time with a veteran-laden loaded Nashville dugout. He rose to the occasion. He is now a Brewer - improbably, perhaps, but he always showed flashes. I'm going to the pitching side in 2023 to discuss the continued excellent work I see from RHP Luis Contreras. Contreras was sent down early in 2023 even though he had been performing quite well in Nashville. Perhaps this was due to the loaded Sounds bullpen or, perhaps, it was a move made to give some other arms International League run as well. Regardless, nearly every outing I see in 2023 he makes a case he is a very underrated and, somehow, under-the-radar arm in the Brewers relief corps. He has very good ride and deceptive movement on his heater that touches 95-96 mph with regularity. He has some off-speed he can sprinkle in to keep hitters honest. If you don't know him, you do now. I'm a fan.

3) This game came down to an unearned run for the Shuckers and the tremendous scoreless 4 2/3 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 7 K, 0 ER from the combined bullpen effort of the above-mentioned Contreras; RHP Abner Uribe (6th Save in 1 IP, 1 H, 2 K), RHP Zach Vennaro; and LHP Nick Bennett. Just fantastic shutdown stuff from the relief corps adding mightily to a win that evened up the series at 1-1.

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Final: Wisconsin 9, West Michigan (Tigers) 4
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes  
 
Via the Timber Rattlers' site, game details, please visit and review:

Rattlers Comeback Breaks Whitecaps
 

This was a much better outing for RHP Cameron Wagoner than most of recent High-A memory. We can build off an outing like this. He didn't walk a batter. He limited base runners overall - six total hits in five complete innings is great work. All damage came in the third frame. He allowed his team the opportunity to make a game of it. And, make a game of it they did when they knotted everything at three runs apiece scoring two runs with two down in the sixth frame. Overall, Wagoner completed 5 IP, 6 H, 0 BB, 3 K, 3 ER. The T-Rats are now winners of two straight at West Michigan to open the series. They are creeping their way back to ten games under 0.500. Kudos are due for the young men as they continue to try and steady the ship and get their season trending in the right direction.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) I loved the aggression on the base paths from the young T-Rats legging out several borderline singles into doubles. I loved the AB's throughout. This was just a much much better version of the T-Rats overall. They worked the counts and drove several relievers from the game. They were extremely patient - something noted on more than one occasion by the Whitecaps' broadcast crew. I'll take this version of this team any night.

2) C/DH Darrien Miller continued his clutch moments with a two out double to right center field scoring C Matt Wood and pulling the Timber Rattlers within one run in the middle innings. Miller has been rising to the occasion quite a bit lately and is currently solidifying his bat as the 'must play' variety. We've seen runs like this in the past from the talented young lefty bat, but, as always, the challenge has been maintaining the consistency. 

3) A play after LF Je'Von Ward missed corralling a wildly tailing fly ball to the wall in deep left field, INF Eduardo Garcia made what was quite easily the defensive play of the day throughout the Brewers Minor League system. Unfortunately, being a road game, we have no highlight to offer you. Let me just say it was a flat out winning play. With a runner on second base and two down, Garcia made a completely sprawling diving stop past the dirt into the shallow left field grass. He leapt to his feet with all momentum still carrying him into the outfield grass and delivered an absolute dead accurate missile to first base. He's made several charging tricky transfer plays of late as well - from 3B and SS. He continues to dazzle in the field.

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Game #1 Final: Fayetteville (Astros) 3, Carolina 1
Box Score / Game Log
Game #2 Final: Fayetteville (Astros) 5,  Carolina 2
Box Score / Game Log

Game Notes 
  
Via the Mudcats' site, game details, please visit and review both game summaries:

Late Rally Falls Short in Game 1 Loss to Fayetteville

Mudcats Fall 5-2 While Dropping Both Games of Doubleheader

18-8 Away from Five County Stadium. Now a game under 0.500 at the home ballpark?! The young Mudcats lost both games of their double-header today against the pesky last place Woodpeckers. RHP Quinton Low started the first game and gave manager Victor Estevez 2 IP of solid work - 1 H, 0 BB, 3 K. The heater was touching 97-98 and the off-speed was dancing off that gas. RHP Aidan Maldonado grabbed the start in game number two and didn't fair as kindly: 2 1/3 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 3 K. That shutdown debut where Maldonado was dominating the zone and attacking hitters feels like a lifetime ago. Let's hope he can turn it around.

Three Quick Strikes:

1) After shaking off the rust in his debut, RHP Will Childers did get better in spurts. His first registered run is recorded as a balk. The second came via a throwing error to third base by C Blayberg Diaz (that runner had advance to 2B via the same balk). The third run, however, came in his fourth inning of work and it highlighted what in my humble viewing opinion is a current area of development: his four-seamer invites hard contact. He has a plus breaking ball. He absolutely does. Childers achieves very nice break that can leave the zone quickly:

But, the four-seamer is, simply put, all too flat at present. It left that hand on an extremely level plane - very little ride and very little movement. I saw several 100 mph plus liners - including the home run that left in a hurry over the left field wall. This is a first outing so we take this observation with a precious grain of salt but the ball doesn't lie. Nor did the EV leaving those bats.

2) I've seen so many blown calls on the base paths this week going against the Brewers affiliates, I'm going to quickly show you what these players are dealing with on a nightly basis. First and foremost, a reminder is due here: there is only a single infield umpire in Low-A Carolina. But, in a tight playoff race in a bases loaded two-out scenario for a team that hasn't seen the playoffs in 10 years, blown calls like this...

have happened far too many times for my liking. This was really a crucial blown call. And, well, I guess my point is: there is nuance to the stat line and the box score that mostly goes unseen. I salute the young men as they accept this fate with far more acceptance than I ever could. 😂

3) Two things repeatedly stand out in near every Mudcats contest (especially since 'Mr. Always On-Base', INF Daniel Guilarte's extended IL stint): INF Luke Adams has plate patience well beyond his years and INF Gregory Barrios is a different batter since the calendar flipped to May. All Adams needs is some more luck - 0.213 BABIP and his BA just don't tell the tale. A breakout feels imminent. All Barrios needs is further distance from his extremely rough start. Over his last 10 games Barrios has an 0.811 OPS while hitting 0.325. Zesty!

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Please return tomorrow when my cohorts begin covering the return of our DSL/ACL teams and the coveted 7-game affiliated write-up. DSL teams will be hitting the diamond in the morning hours. ACL teams will be the bookend final chapter in the later hours. The headliner will be RHP Jacob Misiorowski's High-A debut in West Michigan. But, really, this shouldn't overshadow RHP Logan Henderson back in Carolina or RHP Carlos F. Rodriguez down in Mississippi. It's been a fun few days. As always, thank you for reading and thank you for supporting Brewers Minor League baseball! 

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[wiguy94]

Even though I watch these games, I am very grateful for these incredibly thorough recaps. Great work!

[Jake McKibbin]

7 minutes ago, wiguy94 said:

Even though I watch these games, I am very grateful for these incredibly thorough recaps. Great work!

I get the chance to see the odd game, and I'm really grateful. Amazing to hear Gasser doing so well

Also fun to see @wiguy94's statcast info in the game threads, very much appreciated!