Isiah Gilliam crushed the ball while in Chattanooga with the Lookouts, smacking 14 doubles, a triple, and 12 home runs in 62 games. Since being promoted to Triple-A he hasn’t gotten regular playing time, playing in just 10 games since joining the team on June 28th. On Sunday he made sure to announce his presence with authority, hitting a baseball over the scoreboard in right field and out of the stadium. It was estimated at 477 feet. That would make it the furthest Trackman estimated home run of the year on the farm that I’m aware of (though I will fight about it until the day that I die that Jose Torres hit a home run over 500 feet that Trackman somehow said was only 427 feet).
Jay Allen II
Sunday also saw the return of Jay Allen II down in Daytona. The outfielder had been on the injured list for nearly a month with a strained oblique. He was activated on Friday as the team returned from the All-Star break, but didn’t play that night or on Saturday. Here’s his first hit in nearly a month.
Jayvien Sandridge
We’ve got a bunch of video out of Daytona for today. In this one we get a look at a perfect inning thrown by Jayvien Sandridge. The 23-year-old reliever has been dominant for the Tortugas this season. His ERA is currently sitting at 1.50 through 16 games and 24.0 innings where he’s allowed 12 hits, no home runs, struck out 42 batters, and he’s walked 17. The walks are higher than you want to see, but everything else is near the top of the charts.
Chase Petty
Sunday afternoon saw Chase Petty take the mound for Daytona as their starter and he combined with Dennis Boatman and Owen Holt for a shutout in the Tortugas win. Petty, the 19-year-old who was acquired this spring from Minnesota in the Sonny Gray trade, lowered his ERA on the year to 3.18 in his 65.0 innings pitched. He’s given up 55 hits, just 5 home runs, walked 23 batters, and he’s picked up 60 strikeouts.
Dennis Boatman
Last year’s 17th round pick, Dennis Boatman has been in Daytona all season. He’s found success in the bullpen with the Tortugas and was a part of their shutout on Sunday, which you can see some of below. The outing lowered his ERA to 3.67 in his 27.0 innings where he’s picked up 42 strikeouts with 13 walks.
Owen Holt
Taken a round before Boatman, Owen Holt has also spent the entire season in Daytona this year. He’s been outstanding for the Tortugas and picked up his 3rd save of the season on Sunday as he completed the shutout. His ERA on the year is down to 1.71 in 31.2 innings where he’s allowed just one homer all year, walked 11 batters, and struck out 37.
To bad that 477 foot homer couldn’t actually translate into a half way decent prospect ?
Huh?
exactly
He is at least a 3/4 decent prospect. 162 games in AA over last couple years had 22 homers and 35 steals, obp around .350. If he was 22 and didn’t strike out 200 times in the same period, he’d be a better than decent prospect. As he’s 26, he would probably have a k rate of 35-45% in the majors unless something really clicks. He has mashed righties (.947 ops in 2022)..so realistic ceiling maybe platoon bat .265/.325/.475/.800 ops against rhp with speed in age 28-29 seasons. Floor is basically Aquino in 2022.
Doesn’t every player have an Aquino 2022 floor?
Jayvien Sandridge and Owen Holt are two 23 year old relief Pitchers in low A ball. Need to promote both and see how they do before getting too excited about either…
The reds have really done a great job drafting/acquiring pitchers from the last couple of drafts
From 2020 they drafted
Bonnin – 2.52 ERA before the injury in A+
Roa – 3.93 ERA in A+ with close to 13 k/9
Boyle – 1.59 ERA in A+ with close to 15 k/9
and traded for
Phillips – already in AA and starting to show up in top 100 prospect lists
From 2021 they drafted
Abbott – already in AA after overmatching A+ hitters
Farr – 5.88 ERA in A+ ball. One of the few that isn’t really impressing
Abel – 2.66 ERA overall this season.
Parks – 5.33 ERA in A ball this year. Still young for the league though
Benoit – 4.86 ERA out of the pen in A+
Guilliams – signed way over slot but hasn’t pitched. Anyone know why?
Aguiar – 3.44 ERA in A ball with 10.6 k/9
Raffield – also hasn’t pitched yet. Injured?
Holt – 1.71 ERA in A ball. He is older though
Boatman – 3.67 ERA 14 k/9 in A ball
Cardona – 3.68 ERA in A ball
Rivera – 3.06 ERA in A ball with 11 k/9
And traded for
Petty – 3.18 ERA in A ball as a 19 year old
Good scouting on the reds part. Especially the way they’ve seem to hit in the late rounds of the 2021 draft with Rivera, Cordona, Holt, and Boatman. Also Callahan as a hitter towards the end of that draft. Solid!
Thanks for pulling all of this together!
@Doug, perhaps this could be an offseason article series where you review the last 5 drafts, year by year, for a Monday through Friday when news is a little sparse.
Gilliam’s neck shimmy coming out of the batter’s box is an instant classic. That was major league ability, right there.
Still a mystery why Gilliam was promoted. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but he went from an everyday player doing very well at AA, to just straight riding the pine. Let the kid play, he might actually be on the Reds next year once all of the soon to be FA’s are gone.
Agreed. I get it why they have Fraley, Friedl, Schrock (some) and Acquino playing OF ahead of him, so they are ready for call-ups. But why bring him up to sit?
Sandridge is built like a classic power lefty. Long legs, large frame.
Petty’s fastball looks like i’ts got nice sink or boring action. I kept thinking it was a cutter or slider.
With Boatman and Holt, it looks like the fascination with very large bodied pitchers continues.
Minier still looks too thick in his frame (hips), if not his muscle mass, for SS. But one never knows. Seems like his hands are good.