The Cincinnati Reds haven’t had a good run of things on the farm system for much of the 2023 season. Between four of the top 10 prospects spending time on the injured list already this season, to the 23-33 combined record of the minor league teams…. there’s been more negative than positive. Edwin Arroyo, the team’s #4 rated prospect, is one of the guys who has seen time on the injured list already. He returned earlier this week after missing a week-and-a-half. And last night he picked up his first extra-base hit of the season in his 6th game, and it was a big one.
Edwin Arroyo's first homer of 2023 was DESTROYED @ZaedEdwin pic.twitter.com/FiiZYSNmzo
— Reds On The Rise (@RedsOnTheRise) April 22, 2023
Dayton was tied up with West Michigan in the 7th inning. Edwin Arroyo came to the plate with the go-ahead run in scoring position and he came through with a 2-run home run that gave the Dragons a 4-2 lead and a lead that they never relinquished. The homer also extended his hitting streak to four games, and extended his on-base streak to all six games this season and 12 games dating back to 2022.
Leo Balcazar’s impressive start
The Daytona Tortugas roster to start the year had about as loaded of an infield as one could imagine. There were five top 25 prospects on the roster that played infield but only four infield spots. That’s led to some lineup shuffling each night, but the designated hitter spot has been beneficial in getting everyone plenty of time on the field.
Leo Balcazar has seen action at shortstop, second base, third base, and designated hitter in his 10 games. And in those 10 games he’s been on base 22 times. The 18-year-old infielder has 10 hits – including two doubles and a home run – and he’s walked 12 times with 11 strikeouts. His 12 walks are tied for 3rd in the league. His on-base percentage of .458 is currently 7th in the league (teammates Victor Acosta and Carlos Jorge are also in the top 10). His .875 OPS is 11th in the league (Jorge and Acosta are also in the top 10 here, too).
Austin Callahan’s turning it around
To say that it was a tough start to the season for Austin Callahan would be an understatement. He went 1-25 over the first eight games of the season for Dayton. He drew a walk in six of those games, so he was still finding a way to get on base during that slump but the hits simply weren’t falling in. But last night he picked up his third multi-hit game in his last four contests. The corner infielder is now 6-16 in that span (.375) with two doubles, a walk, and he’s driven in four runs.
Hope springs eternal in A ball. These guys are fun to keep up with, I wish we could watch more Daytona games.
Has anyone heard what happened with Ascanio? I’m assuming he was injured, or maybe he got demoted?
Watching the Lookouts. Ilvin Fernandez is Billy Hamilton thin, 6’1″ 160.
His assignments have been odd. Last year, as something of a no name, he was bumped up to Daytona over other higher rated players. This year, he’s in AA, just a little more than a year removed from AZ Complex ball.
I’m guessing it’s due to advanced defense, and I haven’t really seen anything to counter that.
Carson Speirs pitching the 9th. This is another move I like. He was just attacking hitters and looked quite good doing it.