Clearwater Threshers Recap – 9/6/2018

Box Score Recap

The Clearwater Threshers (77-60) lost the deciding game of the North Division playoffs to Daytona, 5-3.  Once again, they built an early lead, and once again they couldn’t hold the lead.  Last night, the Threshers built a 3-run lead for Mauricio Llovera.  He squandered part of the lead on a 2-run HR in the seventh and gave way to Jake Hernandez who stranded an inherited runner and completed the inning without further damage.  Trevor Bettencourt came in at the start of the eighth and blew the save and lost the game.  Addison Russ was summoned too late to have an impact.

Llovera had a nice night even with the 2-run seventh.  He stymied the Tortugas for six innings on one hit and 2 walks.  He finished the night with 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K. 

The Threshers scored first with a run in the second inning on Edgar Cabral’s solo HR. They added a run in the fifth on Daniel Brito’s two-out, RBI double.  They scored again in the sixth on Grenny Cumana’s two-out, RBI single.

Llovera faced three batters in the seventh and was relieved after a post-home run walk. Jake Hernandez came on with a runner on base and nobody out.  He got an out, but fielding error and a walk loaded the bases.  A strike out and line out ended the inning.

Trevor Bettencourt started the eighth.  He went double, single, wild pitch to blow the save. A passed ball moved the runner to third from where he scored on a double.  After the second out, another wild pitch moved the runner to third.  He scored on a single and the Threshers were down by two.  Addison Russ entered and allowed a single before getting the last out.

Daytona’s bullpen out-performed the Threshers bullpen.  They retired the final 10 batters in order, six by strike out.

The Threshers struggled to protect leads all through this series.  The pitching staff was handed leads of 4-0 in the first inning and 6-2 in the fourth inning of game one, 4-0 in the first inning of game two, 3-0 after the sixth inning in game three.  Wild pitches, passed balls, and errors played a part in several Daytona runs.  The Tortuga’s bullpen was the key throughout.  They 12.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER. 1 BB, 15 K.  The one run was Grenny Cumana’s game winning HR in game one.

  • #1 Sixto Sanchez (4-3, 2.51) – placed on the 7-day DL in June, 2018
  • #3 Adonis Medina (10-4, 4.12)
  • #6 Mickey Moniak (.270) went 1-4 with a run scored, SB
  • #11 Arquimedes Gamboa (.214) went 0-4 with a K
  • #12 Daniel Brito (.250) went 1-4 with a double, RBI, 2 K
  • #16 Jose Gomez (.224)
  • #19 David Parkinson (3-0, 1.24)

Lehigh Valley (84-56) was shut out in the second game of their playoff series against Scranton, 3-0.  They were one-hit in the game.

Cole Irvin pitched well.  He gave up 2 runs on 6 hits and a walk in seven innings.  He struck out four.  Pedro Beato gave up a run in one inning of relief.  

Andrew Knapp had their only hit.  Mitch Walding drew a walk.

The IronPigs return home trailing 2 games to none for the completion of the series. Scheduled starters are Drew Anderson in game three, and Ranger Suarez and Tom Eshelman if necessary in games four and five.

  • #8 Ranger Suarez (2-0, 2.74) –
  • #9 Enyel De Los Santos (10-5, 2.63) –
  • #10 Cole Irvin (14-4, 2.57) – 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
  • #20 Drew Anderson (9-4, 3.87) –
  • #27 Tom Eshelman (2-13, 5.84) –

Lakewood (87-51) was scheduled off and continues their series against Kannapolis at home.  They won game one.  Spencer Howard and Damon Jones are penciled in for games two and three.

  • #7 Jhailyn Ortiz (.225)
  • #17 Kyle Young (3-3, 3.10)
  • #18 Spencer Howard (9-8, 3.78)
  • #29 Nick Maton (.256) 
  • #30 Simon Muzziotti (.263)

Prospects who have finished the 2018 season.

  • #1 Sixto Sanchez (RHP, Clearwater Threshers) spent most of the 2018 season on the DL.  He was sidelined on June 2018 with an elbow injury.  Up to that point he had posted a 4-3 record with a 2.51 ERA in 8 starts and 46.2 innings.  His 45 strikes gave him a career-best 8.7 SO9.  He also posted a 2.1 BB9 and a 1.071 WHIP.  The good news is that Sanchez was selected by the Phillies to attend the Arizona Fall League.
  • #2 Alec Bohm  (3B, Williamsport Crosscutters) finished the season with a .224 SVG. The Phillies first round pick saw limited action due to a knee injury he suffered when he was struck by a pitched ball on July 9th.  The 22-year old lost valuable development time and wasn’t activated again until August 20th.  He was hitting .192 when he went down.  He finished the season 14-55 (.255).
  • #4 Adam Haseley (OF, Reading Phils) batted .316 for the Phils.  He was promoted mid-season after posting a .300 AVG for the Threshers in High-A in 79 games (354 plate appearances).  He hit a combined 11 HR across both teams.
  • #5 JoJo Romero (LHP, Reading Phils) made 18 starts and tossed 106.2 innings before going onto the DL on July 20th.  He posted a 7-6 record and 3.80 ERA.  He struck out 100 batters (8.4 SO9).  Romero ended the season on the DL.
  • #13 Francisco Morales (RHP, Williamsport Crosscutters) showed marked regression after a promising 2017 campaign in the GCL.  He made 13 starts and pitched 15 more innings but stumbled to a 4-5 record and 5.27 ERA.  He was young for the league and his SO9 ticked up to 10.9, but his BB9 also ticked up to 5.3.  Morales problem in XST was consistency.  It was still a problem in Low-A.
  • #14 Luis Garcia (SS, GCL Phillies West) finished the season with a league best .369 AVG.  His .433 OBP placed third, his .488 SLG placed 13th, and his .921 OPS placed seventh.  These were not only team leading but also the best of both Phillies GCL entries.  Garcia’s 33 runs scored were fourth in the league following team mate Yerwin Trejo’s 40.  He led the league with 62 hits.  Placed second with 32 RBI.  Trejo’s 23 stolen bases led the league, Garcia had 12.
  • #15 Dylan Cozens (OF, Lehigh Valley IronPigs), at first glance, might have had an indifferent 2018 season.  He posted a  .246/.345/.529/.873 slash with 21 HR, 58 RBI, 46 BB, and 124 K in 348 plate appearances.  He also struggled to a .095 AVG when called up to the parent club during the season.  But, his Lehigh Valley slash is in line with his career norms, which are probably skewed by his time in Reading.  However, he’ll need to approve on his K% which is still around 35%, although his BB% ticked up to 13.2%.  Cozens was probably the first victim of the “feud” about development that we are just learning about.  I saw him progress in Clearwater while working with Charley.  But during spring training, the analytics/statcast/trakman group undid the changes that Charley made that Dylan had showed sucess with.  IMHO.  I’ll probably delete the portion in italics when I wake up tomorrow.  But, I believe it.
  • #21 Kyle Dohy (LHP, Reading Phils) zipped across 3 levels in his second season.  He posted a 0.80 ERA in 24 games and 16.8 SO9 in 33.2 innings for Lakewood.  He posted a 1.64 ERA and 14.7 SO9 in 11.0 innings for Clearwater.  In 22.2 Double-A innings, Dohy has a 5.56 ERA but still posted an 11.9 SO9.
  • #22 Cornelius Randolph (OF, Reading Phils) hit .241 as a 21-year old at Reading.  He struggled mightily for the first 3 months, hitting .187 on the last day of June.  But, he rebounded during the final two months (July 1st thru September 2nd) with a .314 AVG.  He posted a .352 AVG in July.
  • #23 Connor Seabold (RHP, Reading Phils) was promoted from Clearwater midway thru the season.  He posted a combined 5-8 record with a 4.28 ERA.  He struck out 132 in 130.1 innings (9.1 SO9) and walked 33 (2.3 BB9).
  • #24 Dominic Pipkin (P, GCL Phillies West) finished with a 1-2 record and 3.64 ERA in 10 appearances, 8 starts.  In limited action, he pitched 29.2 innings.  In a SSS, he posted a 1.180 WHIP, 2.4 BB/9, and 5.5 K/9.
  • #25 Kevin Gowdy (RHP, Williamsport Crosscutters) never made it off the DL as he spent the summer rehabbing from TJ surgery.  He has been throwing off a mound and should see action during Instructs.  Hopefully.
  • #26 Jhordany Mezquita (LHP, Williamsport Crosscutters) made 9 starts before being mysteriously shutdown on August 23rd.  He posted a 1-0 record and 3.60 ERA in 35.0 innings, striking out 41.  However,he spent the final days of the season on the GCL Phillies West roster.
  • #28 Colton Eastman (RHP, Williamsport Crosscutters) made 8 starts but was on an innings count and only pitched as many as three innings in his last two starts.  He went 0-2 with a 3.00 ERA, but struck out 23 in 18 innings.

The Reading Fightin’ Phils finished the season in fourth place in the Eastern League Eastern Division with 64-73 (.467) record.

The Williamsport Crosscutters finished the season tied for last place in the New York-Penn League Pinckney Division with a 32-44 (.421) record.

The GCL Phillies East finished in first place in the GCL North Division with a 30-24 record. They lost a one-game semifinal on the road against the Palm Beach Cardinals.

The GCL Phillies West finished in second place in the GCL Northwest Division with a 30-24 (.556) record.

The DSL Phillies Red finished the season 31-40 (.437) in fifth place in the DSL South Division.

The DSL Phillies White finished the season 39-33 (.542) in fourth place in the DSL San Pedro Division.

Here’s the affiliate scoreboard from MiLB.

The rosters and lists are up to date as of September 6th.

Transactions (newest transactions in bold text)
9/5/18–Kansas City claimed RHP Ben Lively off waivers from Philadelphia
9/5/18–Lehigh Valley placed RHP Tom Eshelman on the reserve list
9/5/18–SS Malquin Canelo assigned to Lehigh Valley from Reading
9/5/18–RHP Tyler Viza assigned to Lehigh Valley from Reading
9/5/18–RHP Ismael Cabrera assigned to Lakewood from Reading
9/5/18–RHP Luis Cedeno assigned to Lakewood from Reading
9/5/18–1B Matt Kroon assigned to Lakewood from Williamsport
9/5/18–LHP Kyle Young assigned to Williamsport from Lakewood
9/5/18–RHP Luis Ramirez assigned to Williamsport from Lakewood
9/5/18–RHP Tyler Fallwell assigned to Williamsport from Lakewood
9/4/18–Philadelphia sent 3B Jesmuel Valentin outright to Lehigh Valley
9/4/18–Philadelphia recalled SS J.P. Crawford from Lehigh Valley
9/3/18–Philadelphia activated RHP Jerad Eickhoff from the 60-day DL
9/3/18–Philadelphia designated RHP Ben Lively for assignment.
9/3/18–Ranfi Casimiro assigned to Lehigh Valley from Reading
9/3/18–Lehigh Valley activated 2B Trevor Plouffe from the 7-day DL
9/3/18–Luis Cedeno assigned to Reading from Lakewood
9/3/18–RHP Ismael Cabrera assigned to Reading from Lakewood
9/3/18–Keylan Killgore assigned to Lakewood from Williamsport
9/3/18–Lakewood activated LHP Kyle Young from the 7-day DL
9/2/18–Philadelphia activated 1B Justin Bour

32 thoughts on “Clearwater Threshers Recap – 9/6/2018”

  1. Tough loss for Clearwater. Their bullpen came up small after being such an asset all season. Llovera did a terrific job however and probably shouldn’t have even pitched the 7th inning. He may have changed peoples’ minds this year and May have to stay in the Reading rotation next year.

  2. Bettencourt is like pitching for Daytona for this series. He’s been good for the season, but given up 6 ERs in the 1st 2 games of the playoffs. He should not be pitching again until the next series.

  3. Jim – I hope you enjoyed the season down there with the great 2nd half. Lakewood carries the ball alone for the system I guess (unless LHV wins 3 straight).
    Time to start thinking about 40 man spots…

    1. Congratulations to the Threshers for a successful year even with the playoff loss. Hope to see many of them up at Reading next year.

  4. Jim – with the Threshers’ season ending I wanted to express my thanks for your tireless effort and attention to detail. You provide much needed filler for the gaps between ‘numbers’ in the boxscore – and makes the distance away seem smaller.

  5. Congrats to CLW, great season. Despite loosing power hitters Pujols, Hall and Listi, #5 prospect hitting .214 and somewhat shabby attitude, #1 prospect hitting .270 compared to Daytona’s .333 and .313 along with decision to pitch to League HR Leader. Llovera did awesome but decision to let him pitch 7? They overachieved . Yes looking forward to Reading👍

    1. matt13…..Gamboa I think he is referencing.
      Plus he may need to show a little more professionalism and restraint/ patience whenever an umpire makes a call not to his liking.

        1. I guess his strong passionate attitude can rub some folk the wrong way.
          He is still young, turns 21 this month, and probably will come around soon enough.
          Maybe the poor plate production this season affected him after finishing stron last season. I am sure the Phillies, in time, will get him to where they want him to be.

  7. Jim, I’d like to add my thanks for your time, labor, patience, self control, and insight throughout the year. I can appreciate how challenging it can be dealing with and responding to so many voices, personalities, “aliases”😏, and attitudes. And not always being at liberty to share what you know or even think. It’s a greater responsibility than most people can understand or not take for granted. We come and go at our leisure while you are tied to maintaining the integrity of this site, which is a gift to so many of us. Peace and health to you.

  8. Jim, I wanted to say thank you for all if your hard work and insight. You have a thankless job sometimes and you do a great job. Also wanted to tell everyone else I always enjoy this site and us only one I read. Everyone here is knowledgeable and adds to what Jim does. Have a great off season all! On way back to San Diego with Mickey. He is looking forward to working hard in the off season and next year. -Matt

    1. Matt (and Mickey), looking forward to seeing you prosper in Reading next season. Just keep the eye of the tiger, brother!

    2. Mr. Moniak, thank you for chiming in here and thanks for having the fortitude to see people who, like me, frankly barely know what we are talking about, “evaluate” your son. We hope he turns into the next Ted Williams – another San Diego native son.

    3. Yo Matt M, remember, G if you lookin to unload that cap, ball and the such with an autographed… I take the hook up & maybe we do further business. Be tight give Mick an FB from yours trueley… And hit me up at @possex2X on the Twit… late, g. Keep it gangtr

  9. JIm

    Thanks so very much for your diligence and hard work throughout the year, not just during the baseball season. This site is a real treasure due largely to your tireless efforts.

  10. Mr. Moniak, We wish you and Mickey all of the best. I don’t know if they plan to start him at Clearwater, but I fully expect to see him in Reading at some point, and I think we will see a break out season for him. Thank You for putting up with us “experts” and our opinions.

  11. Jim, as a longtime reader, (everyday), but infrequent commentor I would like to add my thanks for the exceptional job you do.

    1. Jim,

      With the close of the season it’s appropriate to share my thanks, too, for all the great information and effort you provide.

      I think a number of us — certainly me — had my awareness heightened about how important this site is to the families and young players pursuing the dream, and thus how important it is for us to be aware that there are people with real feelings that we comment on.

      That awareness is something that you clearly bring to this site along with the enormous and very valuable reports and other information. Thank you for all of that..

  12. Conratulations to SWorks14 on your son’s masterpiece/no-hitter tonight. Spencer Howard goes 9 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 9 K as Lakewood clinches their opening round playoff series with a 1-0 win.

          1. He’s got to be right up there among the top arms, maybe behind only Sixto and Medina….for now. Next stop, Clearwater.

  13. This is why I had Howard ranked my #6 prospect!
    Told ya all to have patience!!! He’s the real deal.

  15. I did not understand the Phillies decision to ‘add’ Dylan Cozens to their roster. He will/did not play during the Iron Pigs playoff series. They had Justin Bour back as a left-handed power bat. Cozens could have been a difference maker against SWB.

    1. Joe – I agree that Cozens could have helped the Pigs. If Bour hadn’t gotten injured, they probably wouldn’t have called Cozens up (or traded for Bautista), and Ben Lively would still be on the 40 man roster.

Comments are closed.