8/17 - 8/23 Minor League Game Thread

[Nick]

Velez with a very impressive AA debut. Conine with another 2 homers. His numbers are something else. Hitting .189 with a .514 SLG% at AA. We need to find some place where J.D. Orr can play every day, been basically a bench player since he's gone to AA, but he's hit everywhere he's gone, deserves some PT.

Kahlil Watson been impressive in Rookie Ball in his first 25 PAs. slashing .368/.520/.474.

[Lee Stone]

Velez with a very impressive AA debut. Conine with another 2 homers. His numbers are something else. Hitting .189 with a .514 SLG% at AA. We need to find some place where J.D. Orr can play every day, been basically a bench player since he's gone to AA, but he's hit everywhere he's gone, deserves some PT.

Kahlil Watson been impressive in Rookie Ball in his first 25 PAs. slashing .368/.520/.474.

Velez is an upgraded version of Stewart and Castano ... soft tossing lefty too, but doesn't walk anybody. Watson is struggling with the glove and over frisky on the bases, but he can definitely hit. Conine is looking like a LHB Duvall, which isn't all that bad. I could see him in the majors in a platoon situation. Just needs to keep working on contact. Soriano with 10 K in 5 IP. He seems to be progressing with his control, which bodes very well. At the least, he could be a very good reliever. Same goes for MD Johnson. I think we could see Luis Palacios in High A for the rest of the season. SLEEPER watch: Jeff Lindgren has been steadily improving at Pensacola. Over last two starts: 11 IP, 1 R, 14K and 1BB.

Peyton Burdick has surged to the top of the OF prospect list with a .400-.486-1.219 August.

[geemoney]

8/23

No games scheduled for today.

[Nick]

Fangraphs notes on Eury Perez:

Eury Perez, RHP, Miami Marlins
Level & Affiliate: High-A Beloit Age: 18 Org Rank: 8 FV: 45
Line: 5 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 6 K

Notes
The buzz in the crowd at Saturday’s game was likely due to it being the debut weekend for Beloit’s brand new ballpark, but it could just as easily have been thanks to the young righty making his debut on the mound for the Snappers against Peoria. Just 18 years old, Perez is the youngest player at High-A, but he’s already earned himself a reputation as one of the most exciting pitching prospects in the Marlins’ system. After standing out at Miami’s instructs, the righty put together a spectacular season at Low-A Jupiter; opposing batters hit just .163 against him in his 56 innings of work with 82 strikeouts, 21 walks, and just two home runs, good for a 1.61 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP.

Perez’s best performance came earlier this month, when he struck out 11 batters in 4.1 innings against Low-A Tampa, which boasts the best record in the division and a staggering +245 run differential this season. He held the Tarpons’ lineup hitless, posting a 50% whiff rate and a CSW% of 42%, and his velocity sat 93–96 mph. That is up from the 91–95 seen at instructs and more or less on par with where he sat throughout his time in Jupiter, though he’s touched 97 on a handful of occasions this season.

It’s one thing to read about Perez’s standout performance; it’s another to see it first hand. He stands a lean 6-foot-8, though his presence on the mound is far from what you might expect out of a lanky teen. He pitches from a high three-quarter arm slot with a loose arm action and a delivery more effortless than most pitchers at this level, let alone at his age. In his first inning on Saturday, Perez gave up two hits, a homer, and three runs, all unearned, but struck out the side. A double in the second would be the last Peoria baserunner on the righty’s watch; he retired the next 10 batters in order before exiting the game.

Perez’s fastball was the most prominently featured of his repertoire (no surprise there), but he showed command of all three of his offerings and was unafraid to work on the peripheries of the strike zone. Many of the biggest uncertainties regarding his future as a big leaguer depend on how he matures physically, but these early days have been about as promising as you could ask for.