Yesterday I wrote about how May has been going very well for Taylor Trammell, so if you missed that, check it out. This afternoon, though, I want to talk about some other players that are performing well of late.
Alfredo Rodriguez has been struggling so far this year. Through the first 30 games of the year for the Daytona Tortugas he was hitting just .214/.264/.239 with seven walks and 21 strikeouts. That came in 125 plate appearances. That’s a 16.8% strikeout rate and 5.6% walk rate. The strikeout rate is solid, but the walk rate was a little low. The complete lack of power isn’t surprising. He’s never hit for power in the past, and he’s now in the toughest league in minor league baseball to hit for power in.
Manager Eli Marrero decided to switch things up for Alfredo Rodriguez on May 9th and put him in the leadoff spot despite his struggles. It’s been going well. In the five games he’s going 9-20 (.450) with two walks and two strikeouts. He’s also stolen three bases in that span. The one thing to watch as the season moves forward, is the breakdown of his batted ball type. Right now, Rodriguez is hitting the ball on the ground 60% of the time, which is extremely high.
Another Tortuga having a strong run is right handed reliever Robert Stock. At 27-years-old and still in Advanced-A ball, you would generally write him off as a prospect. Stock, however, isn’t your typical player. He was drafted as a catcher out of USC and played as a position player for several years before making the transition to pitcher. The switch isn’t recent, and he’s gone through two organizations as a pitcher before signing with the Cincinnati Reds. Ht also spent a year pitching in the Canadian-American Association.
Stock has historically struggled with his walk rate. He’s walked 147 batters with 181 strikeouts in 209.0 minor league innings. This season the walks are way down from his career rate. In 20.0 innings out of the Tortugas bullpen he’s walked just eight batters and one of those was intentional. He’s also struck out 20 of the 77 hitters he has faced to go along with a 2.25 ERA. The right hander throws hard, sitting in the mid-90’s and touching the upper 90’s with his fastball. Another bright spot of his season is that he’s been a huge ground ball pitcher, getting grounders at a 61% clip this year. The Reds have had some success taking chances on big arms in the minor leagues with histories of struggles throwing strikes and getting something in return. Perhaps this is the start of another turn around.
In Pensacola starting pitcher Austin Ross took the mound on Sunday afternoon for the seventh time to start the year. Things went much like they have in the previous six – he pitched extremely well. The right hander threw 6.2 innings with just two earned runs, a walk and five strikeouts. That outing bumped his ERA up to 1.13 on the season. He’s pitched at least 6.0 innings in all seven of his outings, totaling 48.0 innings on the year. Ross has walked 16 batters (two intentional) and he’s struck out 36 batters. He’s been a big time ground ball pitcher this year, generating grounders at a rate of 58%.