Sun. 5/18: Tanner Gillis' First Wisconsin Start. Biloxi + Carolina Can Join Nashville as Series Winners

[sveumrules]

34 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

Tanner Gillis has put up three scoreless (2 BB | 2 K) so far in his TRats debut.

& Gillis goes 1-2-3 in the fourth.

[biedergb]

12 minutes ago, biedergb said:

Do they add Flores to the rotation in Carolina sometime soon?

Or not. I say one nice thing about him and he gives up runs. Grrrrr 

[Jake McKibbin]

The mudcats did have a chance to give Bitonti an opportunity at third base as a replacement for Peña but have done a few switcheroos to keep him at first base. I'm guessing they don't see him at third going forward 

[wiguy94]

1 minute ago, Jake McKibbin said:

The mudcats did have a chance to give Bitonti an opportunity at third base as a replacement for Peña but have done a few switcheroos to keep him at first base. I'm guessing they don't see him at third going forward 

He's taken quite a tumble in prospect status this year. Looks like a full time 1B and has seriously struggled at the plate this year.

[Jake McKibbin]

1 minute ago, wiguy94 said:

He's taken quite a tumble in prospect status this year. Looks like a full time 1B and has seriously struggled at the plate this year.

Very much so. He should still be rangey as first basemen go, but whole some issues were to be expected the lack of home run production is slightly concerning.

Like we probably should have expected he'd face issues at a point with his zone coverage but not to this extent in Low A

[sveumrules]

12 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

& Gillis goes 1-2-3 in the fourth.

Tanner gives up his first hit to lead off the fifth, then Baez made an error to put two on nobody out but Gillis comes back with the strikeout and 3-6-1 double play to get out with a zero.

[sveumrules]

9 minutes ago, biedergb said:

Or not. I say one nice thing about him and he gives up runs. Grrrrr 

No worries, Carolina answers back with a Di Turi double then singles from Walling and Nadal to get the run back.

[wiguy94]

2 minutes ago, Jake McKibbin said:

Very much so. He should still be rangey as first basemen go, but whole some issues were to be expected the lack of home run production is slightly concerning.

Like we probably should have expected he'd face issues at a point with his zone coverage but not to this extent in Low A

Yeah he's making less contact than he did in 2024 in Carolina while hitting for substantially less power. That's not the recipe you want to see.

[sveumrules]

Garrett Hodges on for the ninth in Carolina and goes 6-3, BB, 5-4-3 to secure the Mudcats victory.

[Jake McKibbin]

13 minutes ago, wiguy94 said:

Yeah he's making less contact than he did in 2024 in Carolina while hitting for substantially less power. That's not the recipe you want to see.

I guess you never know if he's trying to make some swing changes and we're seeing the in between bit where everything goes to pot. That's maybe my only reservation with it being a month and a half

[biedergb]

Gillis makes it through 6 IP. Has some trouble in the 6th but gets a big groundout to 3rd and it’s still 5-1. He is only at 63 pitches, but was a reliever in Carolina sometime soon could be at the upper limit of his pitch limit as he transitions to starter?

[sveumrules]

Jimmy Herron walk & a Bobby Dalbec dinger get NASH their first two runs of the game top of six.

Just need eight more to tie it up.

[sveumrules]

Just now, sveumrules said:

Just need eight more to tie it up.

& Alfaro dice Adios.

Make that seven more to tie it up.

[Joseph Zarr]

This 2025 RHP Ryan Middendorf season makes me sad. He is down in velo and he's down in impact. He really just hasn't pitched well all season. Long gone are my early feels about his upside. His 'stuff' just seems to have worsened the past two years - everything flat; hanging; or tight. His rise in his first season was predicated on his looseness and movement off of that. Since that time, he's become mechanical and his tools have lost their luster as a result. <Sad Face>.

[Joseph Zarr]

1 hour ago, Jake McKibbin said:

Peña had a horrible looking collision at first, I THINK he may have caught an elbow to the face and is now being replaced by bitonti. I think it'll be concussion checks but hopefully nothing more sinister.

For anyone wanting to see this, we're talking bottom of the seventh inning. 3:13:26 on the replay. It was a scenario of a high throw from the catcher. A 1B leaping. And Pena running full steam directly into the falling 1B (directly in his path). Ugly play. Here's hoping he just got shook up! Very much looked like a left 'forearm shiver' in the collision too. Good grief. He also very clearly bounced his head off the dirt. When Stanley went to immediately check on his star, Pena immediately tapped on the top back left of his head. 

[Joseph Zarr]

The worst part about that collision? Pena's helmet popped off before his head slammed into the dirt in the fall. So that was full force forearm shiver; helmet flies off; Pena's head slams into the dirt. Goodness gracious. That's an obvious concern there. 

[Jake McKibbin]

That was perhaps the most awkward at bat I've seen from Pratt. Really didn't seem able to pick up the pitch with two on, no outs. Two big chases v the slider, then Wilken had two nice fastballs to hit that he took before whiffing on an in zone slider

[sveumrules]

50 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

Make that seven more to tie it up.

Herron double, Dalbec single, EMJ walk and a Raynel Delgado single got two more back in the 8th.

Freddy Zamora single and Oliver Dunn double gets another back in the ninth.

Dalbec fouls off seven straight two out full count pitches before working the 13 pitch walk.

Still a sliver of a chance.

[sveumrules]

1 minute ago, sveumrules said:

Still a sliver of a chance.

EMJ groundout ends it, 10-6 Sounds loss.

[Ro Mueller]

From 5-0 ahead (and 5-3 with 2 outs and nobody on in the 9th) to now tied 5-5 for Wisconsin. We’re out-hitting Beloit 11-5, but just can’t get that final out.

Four straight have reached with 2 outs in the 9th against Rund, who’s basically been ahead of every batter. A catcher’s interference and game-tying passed ball (Blayberg) haven’t helped.

[sveumrules]

Jesus Broca loads the bases with an HBP but gets the third out to keep it a tie ballgame.

Hedbert, Jadher, Burke due up bottom nine to try & walk it off.

[sveumrules]

Hedbert gets down 0-2 but works an eight pitch walk.

[sveumrules]

5 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

Hedbert gets down 0-2 but works an eight pitch walk.

Jadher goes 5-4-3 and Burke strikes out.

On to extras.

[Jake McKibbin]

Pratt is having real trouble with this slider

[sveumrules]

Single and a sac fly score the Manfred Man in the top half.

Guilarte pinch runs for Burke to open the TRats half and is promptly replaced at second base by Eduardo Garcia with an RBI double to tie it back up.