Is Nathan Karns ready to make his mark on the organization? Photo perfectgame.org
Here are the daily links from NationalsProspects, for reference below:
- Wednesday 7/6 game reviews (Martin, Martis, Demny, Ray, Bates, Karns)
- Thursday 7/7 game reviews (Milone, Wang (rehab), Selik, Cole, Demmin, GCL off)
- Friday 7/8 game reviews (Stammen, Harrisburg rainout, Rosenbaum, Hagerstown rainout, Dupra, Baez)
- Saturday 7/9 game reviews (Maya, Davis/Roark, Olbrychowski, Grace/Jordan, Estevez, Medina/Encarnation)
- Sunday 7/10 game reviews (Gaudin rehab, Arneson, Solis, Applebee, Meza, McKenzie)
Good
- Tough loss for JD Martin on 7/6: He gave up 2 hits over 6 innings but both were solo homers in a 2-0 loss.
- Shairon Martis again dominated a AA team on 7/6 (on day 2 of Harper-mania); 7IP, 4H, ER, 2B, 6K. Byron Kerr featured this start on masnsports.com
- Another excellent start for Robbie Ray on 7/6: 6IP, 4H, 0R, 2BB, 7K.
- Nathan Karns put in his latest statement game in the GCL on 7/6: 4IP, 0H, 0R, BB, 6K. Its time to promote him.
- Fantastic Start for Tommy Milone on 7/7: 7IP, 2H, 0R, 2BB, 6K
- Another great re-hab start for Chien Ming Wang on 7/7: 5IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 2K.
- AJ Cole continues to impress as a youngster in low-A. 7/7 line: 6IP, 3H, 0R, 0BB, 7K.
- Erik Davis got 10 ks in 5 innings on 7/8 but still managed to lose: 5IP, 6H, 3R, 3ER, 0BB, 10K, HR.
- Taylor Jordan won the nightcap on 7/9 for Hagerstown with an excellent outing: 7IP, 4H, 0R, 0BB, 2K.
- Wirkin Estevez put in an excellent outing for Auburn on 7/9: 6IP, 4H, 0R, BB, 7K.
- Silvio Medina (who I thought had been promoted out of the GCL) was dominant on 7/9: 4IP, 3H, 2R, 0ER, 0BB, 7K.
- An excellent 2nd Potomac start for Sammy Solis on 7/10: 7IP, 4H, 0ER, 2BB, 5K. This is the pitcher we’ve been waiting for.
Bad
- Cameron Selik just can’t make the adjustment to high-A, taking another loss on 7/7: 5IP, 6H, 4R, 4ER, 3BB, 2K.
- Ryan Demmin took another bad loss for Auburn on 7/7: 5⅓ IP, 5H, 4H, 4ER, 0BB, 2K, 2HR.
- Brian Dupra got a spot start (?) for Auburn on 7/8 and got knocked around a bit: 4⅔ IP, 7H, 4R, 3ER, 0BB, 5K.
- Gregory Baez didn’t finish the third inning for the GCL on 7/8: 2⅔ IP, 4H, 4R, 4ER, 3BB, 4K, HR. But it wasn’t his fault the team lost; his bullpen gave up another 13 runs.
- Yunesky Maya threw another egg on 7/9: 5IP, 9H, 4R, 4ER, 0BB, 0K.
- Tanner Roark got battered around on 7/9 after returning from the inactive list: 3⅔ IP, 7H, 4R, 4ER, 3BB, 4K. Its his third such bad outing in a row but unless someone comes off the DL, it doesn’t seem like there’s a natural replacement for him.
- Adam Olbrychowski got scorched in Potomac on 7/9: 4⅔ IP, 11H, 7R, 6ER, 2BB, 2K
- Matt Grace didn’t have the best outing on 7/9 either: 1ip, 5H, 4R, 4ER, 0BB, 0K, 0HR. Yanked after the first, Steve McCatty came in and pitched long relief to get the win.
- Pedro Encarnation, who can’t seem to catch a break, got battered for the GCL Nats on 7/9: 3IP, 6H, 6R, 6ER, BB, 2K, 2HR.
- Not the best rehab start for Chad Gaudin on 7/10: 4IP, 7H, 4ER, 6K, 0BB. Seven hits and 6 Ks. At least he didn’t walk anyone.
- Christian Meza added more runs to his ERA on 7/10 in Auburn: 4⅓ IP, 8H, 6R, 5ER, 2BB, 3K.
- Christopher McKenzie seemed to get of the schnide for the GCL on 7/10: 5IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 7K.
Mediocre/Inconclusive
- A bit of an unlucky 7/6 start for Paul Demny: 7IP, 6H, 4R, 4ER, BB, 3K, HR.
- Colin Bates proved to be an escape artist on 7/6: 5IP, 8H, 1R, 0ER, 2BB, K. That’s 10 baserunners in 5 innings but only gave up one unearned run.
- Craig Stammen had a soso start on 7/8: 6IP, 5H, 3R, 2ER, 2BB, 4K, HR. A quality start for sure, but nothing dominant.
- Danny Rosenbaum didn’t pitch that badly on 7/8, but took the loss nonetheless. 5IP, 6H, 4R, 1ER, 3BB, 4K, HR
- Erik Arneson was pretty good for Harrisburg on 7/10: 6IP 7H, 3ER, 2BB, 8K. I’m a tough grader for guys who have pitched above the level they’re currently playing.
- Paul Applebee pitched a decent start for Hagerstown on 7/10: 5IP, 4H, 2ER, 0BB, 3K. He seems to have earned his way back into the Hagerstown rotation. At least until we figure out what happened to Bobby Hansen.
Relievers of Note and other Thoughts
- Its really hard to tell who is in the “rotation” in the GCL. As you’ll see, Baez “started” a game wednesday and then again saturday. King, Mieses and Karns all were skipped this time around.
- So far so good with the JC Romero experiment. He’s had several outings that have all gone pretty well.
- Tommy Milone got a well-earned International League all-star spot this week. See you in September!
- Brad Peacock‘s performance this year has vaulted him into the Baseball America mid-season top 50. Bryce Harper, now the youngest player in AA, is the new #1, overtaking Angels OF prospect Mike Trout. Peacock is still listed as having a #3/#4 starter ceiling; this coincides with concerns i’ve read over his 3rd and (lack of a) 4th pitch.
- Potomac, after being disappointed by the missing of Harper, may be making alternate plans to build a new facility. According to this Baseball America link, the owner Art Silber is announcing later this month a new site and new plans.
Trends
Top 3 starters deserving promotion: Karns, Ray, Milone
Top 3 starters whose jobs are in jeopardy: Roark, Selik, Meza