It’s been a nice month for several players on the Cincinnati farm. Two of the teams best prospects have been rolling through the month of August like they are wearing suits of fire. Top prospect Nick Senzel has been terrorizing Southern League pitching, hitting six home runs in 20 games so far. That’s come along with 12 walks, 13 strikeouts and a .329/.424/.640 line. That’s just been building on a torrid month of July where he posted a .989 OPS with Pensacola.
In Dayton another one of the teams top prospects, Taylor Trammell, has been saving the best for last, too. In 20 games played in August, the 19-year-old is hitting .324/.430/.577 with 14 walks and 15 strikeouts. Last night he hit his 4th home run of the month, giving him 12 total on the season. If he steals two more bases this year he’ll reach 40 on the season. Two weeks ago I spoke with him about his season up to that point and some of the things he’s learned. Go check that out if you haven’t already done so.
Notable performances
Jose Siri joined a very exclusive club this past week. The center fielder hit his 20th home run of the season and stole his 40th base of the season. He’s the first player since 1982 to reach the 20/40 club in the Midwest League. If he can hone in his strikeout-to-walk ratio just a little bit more moving forward he’s got a chance to be an incredibly impactful player down the road.
Brandon Dixon hit three home runs in one game on Sunday for the Louisville Bats. He missed a fourth home run by a few feet, doubling high off of the wall in left. It was the first time a Bat had three home runs in a game since Austin Kearns. Did that make you feel old? Because it made me feel old.
Mark it on your calendar
As long as things go as planned, Hunter Greene, the #2 overall pick in the draft by the Reds will make his professional debut on the mound on Sunday August 27th.. He’s played in a handful of games thus far with Billings as their designated hitter.
It’s too early for ANY opinion on Greene. This year is nothing. Rarely does a HS senior first half year tell us anything. If he throws a no-hitter or gives up 10 runs in 2 innings, it will tell us nothing at all.
I am almost not interested in Greene until April 2018. The only interest I have is seeing that he is healthy and being treated fairly by the Reds…that’s it. There is only a small glimmer of a chance that he is so lights out he is pitching on the MLB team at age 20. It’s more likely we’ll endure (and Greene) four or five long years in the minors.
My BIG concern (Doug might answer this) is if the Reds organization has done anything to change their abysmal record for pitching prospect development. I have been a fan since my elementary school youth in late 70s and I can’t think of more than Soto, Browning and Cueto as good SPs that made it through the Reds farm system and became SP1/SP2 types (Browning fringy SP2- I guess, same with Soto).
Doug, are the Reds overhauling how they instruct and exercise and train pitching prospects or are we doomed to a bunch of top 10 prospects that languish and fade away? We have more high prospects than ever, but until any of hte current AAA/AA/A arms actually come up to MLB and become even replacement-level SPs, I have no confidence in the Reds system. We need to poach some people from other systems for fresh looks.
It is amazing how bad they’ve been with homegrown pitching over the years and I’m older then you are? Jose Rijo came over from Oakland. Starters? They don’t even have any decent relievers either? John Franco came up with the Reds but they let him go. I can’t think of anyone else? That’s beyond belief?
Don’t forget about Aroldis Chapman and Raisel Iglesias.
I am all for hitting and pitching. Mainly because Greene may quickly show that he is more apt at one than the other and THEN, maybe in high A or AA, can he and Reds choose to focus on his higher upside avenue. We assume pitching, but many a draft day story noted he’d be a first round pick (maybe not top 10) as a high school SS…so he obviously has talent on both sides of the field.
My hope is by end of 2018 he has 350-400 plate appearances and 120 innings pitched, which would indicate good health and healthy amount of opportunity to improve in all areas.
What will set Greene apart is NOT if he focuses on hitting or pitching alone, but how he trains is the off-season. The best players simply work their tails off in a smart, efficient way. If he is busy touring around and eating poorly, his progress will stall or be less impressive.
I hope he is a tireless worker in off-season, like old school Nolan Ryan or Steve Carlton or new school Mike Trout, etc.
Going to the Wahoo’s game against the Jacksonville Suns er Jumbo Shrimp, stupid name, on Thursday night. Looking forward to seeing Senzel play for the first time!