Mon. 5/4: May the Fourth be with Maryvale in their Home Opener

[Jim Goulart]

This thread will be utilized for any minor league news Monday.

Arizona Complex League Scoreboard 

We plan on a one-game Link Report for Tuesday AM. The Maryvale game begins at 8:00 PM Central.

[TURBO]

1 hour ago, Ro Mueller said:

- OF Kay-Lan Nicasia released by AA Biloxi

Born in the Netherlands, raised in Curaçao and drafted in the 16th round as an infielder out of a Florida high school in 2021, the now 24-year old Nicasia has 981 plate appearances across 4 minor league levels (ACL to AA).

Shifted to the outfield in 2022, Nicasia had solid 2022 (ACL: .776 OPS) and 2024 (Low-A: .745 OPS) seasons. Known for a strong arm, Nicasia posted a .611 OPS at High-A Wisconsin in 2025, then had 42 PAs for AA Biloxi this April. We wish him success in his next opportunity. 

Possible Braylon Payne call up to fill his spot on the roster?

[wiguy94]

5 minutes ago, TURBO said:

Possible Braylon Payne call up to fill his spot on the roster?

Feel like Ragsdale is more likely to get promoted in the next month or so than Payne is if we are talking A+ OF.

[TURBO]

1 hour ago, wiguy94 said:

Feel like Ragsdale is more likely to get promoted in the next month or so than Payne is if we are talking A+ OF.

Interesting take, but my bet is that it's Payne...

[nate82]

Very gloomy day in AZ today along with some poor air quality due to a large brush fire.  I could just barely breathe this morning but it has improved since this morning.  

[Ro Mueller]

It's a 7-inning affair between ACL Padres and ACL Brewers tonight, with a battery of undrafted 2025 signees making their professional debuts:

• 6'4", 21-year old RHP Caleb Nieman, who was reported to have elbow surgery early in the 2025 season at Central Arizona Junior College; and
• 5'9", 19-year old C Malachai "Chai" Halterman, who was announced as an outfielder out of a Nashville high school at signing and can also play third base.

20-year old INF/OF Tyler Rodriguez (who played the 2025 season in the Low-A Carolina League, but was last seen exiting a game with an injury on September 3rd) also features in the lineup, along with 18-year old 2B Moises Polanco making his stateside debut and 19-year old Rylan Mills (who caught Saturday's season opener) getting a start at first base.

[Ro Mueller]

And we've got a professional debut for 19-year old RHP Ma'Kale Holden, a 20th round pick out of an Alabama high school last summer, who takes over in the 3rd inning with the ACL Brewers leading 1-0 on four walks in the last frame.

[Tedaldtada]

1 minute ago, Ro Mueller said:

And we've got a professional debut for 19-year old RHP Ma'Kale Holden, a 20th round pick out of an Alabama high school last summer, who takes over in the 3rd inning with the ACL Brewers leading 1-0 on four walks in the last frame.

Great inning! No damage. Numerous 93’s and even a 94 on a high fastball. Got a swinging K on a nasty splitter the catcher had to block. 

[Ro Mueller]

 

[Tedaldtada]

Fun night so far in AZ! SS CJ Hughes hit a sub 100 MPH EV jack. Everyone’s on base. Acosta at 3B. Antunez in CF.

Holden and Nieman have thrown a ton of strikes. Not so much for the Padres hurlers. 

[gregmag]

This is what I want from the A-Crew on an otherwise barren Monday night.  But what the hell is Halterman’s problem, not drawing a single walk?

Also, they scored in a Fibonacci sequence (0 1 1 2 3 5). That’s pretty mathematically sophisticated for the complex league.

[snoogans8056]

Beat the Padres 25-1 over two games. Pretty good.

[wiguy94]

Holden has a pretty nice pitch mix for such a young guy. Four distinct shapes with two clear breaking ball shapes that he threw pretty consistently. I’m intrigued.

[wiguy94]

Bat speed readings look pretty inconsistent so not sure how accurate they are but Frias had a 78.7mph swing and Hughes had a 76.1mph swing. 

[Terry]

Daily farm pitcher leaderboard (2026-05-04), ranked by whiffs

Team	Pitcher	Age	Summary	PA	Pitches	Whiffs	Swstr%	Whiff%	CSW%	PutAway%	Strike%	K%	BB%	K-BB%	GB%	BABIP
A-BRW	Ma'Kale Holden	19	5.0 IP, 0 ER, 6 K, 1 BB, 3 H	18	64	8	10.9	25.8	29.7	37.5	65.6	33.3	5.6	27.8	45.5	0.273
A-BRW	Caleb Nieman	21	2.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 K, 0 BB, 0 H	6	17	6	35.3	54.5	41.2	75.0	70.6	50.0	0.0	50.0	100.0	0.000

 

Daily farm hitter summary (2026-05-04), ranked by age

Team	Batter	Age	Summary	PA	Swstr%	Swing%	Whiff%	CStr%	CSW%	K%	BB%	GB%	LD%	FB%	PU%	BABIP
A-BRW	Alexander Frias	18	2-4, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB	5	6.2	50.0	12.5	6.2	12.5	0.0	20.0	0.0	50.0	50.0	0.0	0.333
A-BRW	Brailyn Antunez	18	1-2, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 2 HBP	5	13.0	47.8	27.3	4.3	17.4	0.0	20.0	0.0	50.0	50.0	0.0	0.500
A-BRW	CJ Hughes	18	1-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 K, 2 BB, 1 SB	5	20.0	35.0	57.1	10.0	30.0	20.0	40.0	0.0	0.0	100.0	50.0	0.000
A-BRW	Cristopher Acosta	18	0-2, 2 K, 3 BB, 1 SB	5	9.5	19.0	50.0	19.0	28.6	40.0	60.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.000
A-BRW	Moises Polanco	18	2-3, 1 2B, 1 BB	4	0.0	38.5	0.0	15.4	15.4	0.0	25.0	33.3	33.3	33.3	0.0	0.667
A-BRW	Engel Paulino	19	0-2, 2 K, 2 BB, 1 SB	4	20.0	36.0	55.6	12.0	32.0	50.0	50.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.000
A-BRW	Malachai Halterman	19	1-4, 1 RBI, 2 K	4	45.5	72.7	62.5	0.0	45.5	50.0	0.0	50.0	0.0	50.0	50.0	0.500
A-BRW	Rylan Mills	19	1-3, 1 K, 1 BB	4	16.7	44.4	37.5	11.1	27.8	25.0	25.0	50.0	50.0	0.0	0.0	0.500
A-BRW	Tyler Rodriguez	20	0-4, 3 K, 1 BB, 2 SB	5	19.2	30.8	62.5	15.4	34.6	60.0	20.0	0.0	0.0	100.0	100.0	0.000

[Terry]

Yup, Holden might get a taste of single-A soon.

[Jake McKibbin]

CJ Hughes homer coming off the bat at 98.3 mph and going 404 feet is somewhat surprising, not sure I've seen a sub-100 mph ball go that far before. Perfect launch angle but does slightly make me question some of the data coming through

 

Its not impossible, but on only four occasions has a hitter hit a ball sub-99 mph outside of Colorado and hit a home run further than CJ Hughes managed to. Oddly enough, each of the occurrences (and the ones tied for 404 fit with Hughes which would extend the sample size to 6 hitters) happened in either 2015 or 2017.

 

He must have back-spun that ball like crazy

[snoogans8056]

3 hours ago, Jake McKibbin said:

CJ Hughes homer coming off the bat at 98.3 mph and going 404 feet is somewhat surprising, not sure I've seen a sub-100 mph ball go that far before. Perfect launch angle but does slightly make me question some of the data coming through

 

Its not impossible, but on only four occasions has a hitter hit a ball sub-99 mph outside of Colorado and hit a home run further than CJ Hughes managed to. Oddly enough, each of the occurrences (and the ones tied for 404 fit with Hughes which would extend the sample size to 6 hitters) happened in either 2015 or 2017.

 

He must have back-spun that ball like crazy

Are you suggesting CJ Hughes is a time traveler?

[Playing Catch]

12 hours ago, Ro Mueller said:

5'9", 19-year old C Malachai "Chai" Halterman, who was announced as an outfielder out of a Nashville high school at signing and can also play third base.

This player is really intriguing to me. Nineteen year-old American third basemen/outfielder/pitchers don't typically sign as a free agent catchers.

Based on the little internet-ing I've dug through, he is reported (perhaps by himself/agent) to be "uber-athletic," and has posted elite pop times.

I guess I can see a situation where an undersized gamer doesn't have the juice to get paid in college OR the draft as a hitter/pitcher, but loves the game enough to commit to catching for an organization that will value him despite his size(?)