Usually Monday is for the Minor League Team Progress Report, but that is pushed until tomorrow as there was a whole lot of things going on that weren’t covered between Friday and today. First thing to get to is the recent slew of transactions through the organization.
- Mike Costanzo – promoted to the Reds
- Miguel Rojas – promoted to Louisville
- Wirfin Obispo – promoted to Louisville
- David Vidal – promoted to Pensacola
- Curtis Partch – promoted to Pensacola
- Andrew Means – promoted to Pensacola
- Jon Matthews – promoted to Bakersfield
- Brooks Pinckard – promoted to Bakersfield
- Theo Bowe – promoted to Bakersfield
- Blaine Howell – placed on the DL
- James Ewing – sent to Bakersfield
- Josef Terry – sent to Dayton
- Daniel Tuttle – placed on the DL with a calf strain
- Lucas O’Rear – promoted to Dayton
- Jefry Sierra – activated from the Dayton DL
To touch on a few of those moves, most notably is the Mike Costanzo move. He had to be added to the 40 man roster, but the Reds had a spot open. He has struggled against lefties this year, but has just crushed right handed pitching. While I don’t see him getting more than a start or two at third base, he could be a guy off of the bench to provide some pop if Dusty shows some trust in him. David Vidal gets pushed up to Pensacola due to that chain reaction. It will be interesting to see how well he can do after a good start in Bakersfield. The last guy I want to mention is Wirfin Obispo. He has been intriguing this year for Pensacola. I want to see him a little more against the veteran types in Louisville, but I think he has a chance to help the MLB club in the future if given the chance.
JC Sulbaran made the Baseball America Hot Sheet on Friday.
The Scoop: There are times when it was fair to wonder if the worst thing that happened to Sulbaran’s career was his strong outing for the Dutch team against the Cuban national team before he ever threw a pro pitch. Sulbaran didn’t always show the same intensity throwing in minor league games. But he has the stuff to be a middle-of-the-rotation starter and in the past year he’s shown an improved ability to work out of jams. With a fastball that touches 95 mph, he’s on the short list of the Reds’ top pitching prospects. Sulbaran’s outing this week is his best of the season, but it’s not his season high for strikeouts. He struck out 11 in just 6 innings against Jackson earlier this year.
From the Hot Sheet chat with Matt Eddy:
Ben (Miamisburg, OH): Was Reds AA CF Ryan Lamarre considered for the list this week? He raised his batting average over 75 points, walks a ton, and runs the bases well (even if he is no Billy Hamilton, but who is?). Could he be a potential lead off hitter for the Reds in a couple years?
Matthew Eddy: Double-A CF Ryan LaMarre had a fantastic week, going 9-for-22 with eight walks and five steals in six attempts. The only thing keeping him off Hot Sheet was a lack of thump (one double), and if that trend continues it may limit his upside to outfield backup in the big leagues. That goes double with Billy Hamilton facing a likely shift to center field if he plays his way off shortstop.
While I can see where he would be kept off of the Hot Sheet for the lack of power output, suggesting his lack of power will limit him to a 4th outfielder then mentioning Billy Hamilton as a reason he could be looking over his shoulder, is a bit confusing given that LaMarre currently has power that Hamilton will never have. LaMarre is hitting .290 with good plate discipline, stole 55 bases last year and has strong defense in center. Just a strange way to go about saying what was said.
Milb.com has an article up on Kyle Lotzkar after his start yesterday. The article talks about the game, but also a bit about his injury history and how he has cleaned up his mechanics some. I have covered his improved mechanics in the past, if you want to see it in a bit more detail.
Ben Hill stopped by the new park down in Pensacola and has up a very detailed and in depth review of the stadium. If you are interested in seeing that kind of thing, go check it out. I can’t wait to get down and check it out in August.