Aristides Aquino only got one trip to the plate when he was with the Cincinnati Reds in a recent call up. The outfielder was up for a week with the big league club before heading back to Pensacola to re-join the Blue Wahoos to make a push for the playoffs (it will come down to the next two games). Upon his return he got out to a slow start, going 1-15. That’s not too surprising, he faced one live pitcher in the entire week prior to that. Last night, though, he was feeling good and seeing the ball well. Taking on Tennessee he went 2-4 with a walk and he made both of those hits count, as both were home runs.
In the first inning he clobbered a 2-run homered off of the video board. He would do the exact same thing in the 8th inning. The cameraman in Tennessee missed tracking the ball to the video board in both instances. The announcer, however, made sure to note that the first home run was “likely the longest one hit in the park all year”. I can’t say for sure how accurate that statement is because I haven’t seen all of the home runs hit in that ballpark. What I can say is that both of the home runs had to be at least 410 feet, if not more, given the trajectory that they were on, and having struck the video board where they were described to have struck.
Mariel Bautista, Jose Garcia extend their hitting streaks
Another day and another hit for two of the Cincinnati Reds Top 25 Prospects. Jose Garcia, like the night before, saved his only hit of the game for his last trip to the plate. And on Saturday night it proved to be quite a big hit, too. With the Dayton Dragons tied at 4-4 and a runner on first base he doubled into the gap to put his team ahead 5-4. He would late score on a sac fly to extend the lead. That put his hitting streak at 16 games.
In Great Falls it wasn’t a good night for the Billings Mustangs, who lost 7-0. The Mustangs only managed two hits on the night. One of those hits, however, was a single by Mariel Bautista. His hit also came in his final trip to the plate, though it was only the final trip to the plate because half of the lineup was switched out later in the game as it was seemingly out of reach. The single in the 7th inning was an infield single to the shortstop. It was the second day in a row that he extended his hitting streak on an infield hit to shortstop. His streak now stands at 22 games. He’s now hitting .323/.374/.537 on the season with 13 steals in 16 attempts.
Rob Wooten returns from Tommy John surgery
On Saturday afternoon in Indianapolis Rob Wooten took the mound for the Louisville Bats. On the surface, there’s not much to that. But it was the first time he’s been on the mound outside of Arizona since May of 2017.
The 33-year-old right hander tore his UCL back in May of 2017 and had Tommy John surgery. He began to rehab with the AZL Reds in late June and pitched for the next month for the team in Goodyear. His last appearance, though, came on July 24th. He hadn’t pitched since then before showing up on the Louisville Bats roster on Friday and being activated.
It was a long road back for Rob Wooten, who was attempting to come back from his second Tommy John surgery of his career. He came out of the bullpen to pitch innings three through five for the Bats, and allowed just one run. The former big leaguer showed similar velocity that he was showing before the injury. He also showed all three pitches – throwing a fastball, slider, and a slow curveball.
Minor League playoff races
Only one team in the farm system has qualified for the playoffs thus far. The Daytona Tortugas won the first half title in the Florida State League North Division. They may not be the only team extending their season, though.
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos currently have a 1-game lead over the Mississippi Braves in the Southern League. Pensacola has two games left, while Mississippi has one game left. The Blue Wahoos can seal a playoff spot with a win in either game, or a loss by Mississippi on Monday – whichever comes first.
The Billings Mustangs are currently 3 games in front of Helena, and 4.5 games in front of Missoula in the Pioneer League North Division. Any combination of a win by Billings or a loss by Missoula would eliminate Missoula, as there are just 5 games remaining this season for both teams. Missoula is playing against Helena the remainder of the season. That makes all 5 games essentially “all-in” for both teams. There’s a little more work to do for the Mustangs to hold off the Brewers, though. The magic number is 3 for Billings. If the two teams tie at the end of the year, the Mustangs would hold the tie-breaker with a 9-7 record on the season.