After spending the majority of August on the 10 Day IL, David Price retuned to the Boston Red Sox active roster and made his first start since August 4th against the Angels. The VandyBoy, working on a limited workload, threw just two innings of one hit shutout baseball. Price struck out two, while issuing one free pass.
The VandyBoys other former #1 overall draft pick, Dansby Swanson, returned from the 10 Day IL on Monday against the Colorado Rockies. In his return to action the Atlanta Braves shortstop barely missed hitting two home runs at the hitter friendly Coors Field. In the National League East leading Braves two game set with the Toronto Blue Jays, Swanson couldn’t record a hit. Things got better for “Lieutenant Dans” over the weekend as he recored six base hits and three RBIs. For the season Swanson is hitting .260 with seventeen long balls and sixty RBIs.
Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher, Sonny Gray, continues his bounce back season. The former VandyBoy starting pitcher and Smyrna High School starting quarterback took the ball Monday against the lowly Miami Marlins and Saturday against the red hot St. Louis Cardinals and proceeded to throw six innings of two hit two run baseball (Monday) six and two thirds innings of five hit shutout baseball (Saturday). Sadly Gray got a no decision Saturday, after taking the loss Monday, as his bullpen couldn’t come through for him. His ERA for the month of August was a cool 0.90. Gray’s stats for the season remain a sparkly 10-6 with a 2.80 ERA.
After several less then stellar performances, Mike Minor, got back on track Monday with a dazzling performance versus the New York Yankees, in Yankee Stadium no less. Coming off a start versus the Los Angeles Angels where he allowed four runs in six and two thirds innings, Minor pitched seven shutout innings against a talented Yankees offense. Minor showed his best command in weeks as he only walked one while striking out five. After picking up the win, Minor’s record improves to 12-8 and his ERA shrinks to 3.12.
Much like Minor, Walker Buehler, had a very up and down week, however the VandyBoy went 2-0. While one start was almost flawless, the other one was one that Buehler would like to forget. On Tuesday Buehler took the ball for the LA Dodgers in pitcher friendly Petco Park, where he proceeded to silence the Padres offense, limiting them to four hits in six shutout innings. The VandyBoy only walked two and punched out eleven Padres. Monday was a different story for the Dodgers starter as he was shelled for six runs on eight hits in five innings. But with a potent offense like LA has, Buehler was bailed out of trouble and ended up being credited with the win. The All-Star picked up his ninth and tenth wins to run his record to 10-3 to go along with a 3.28 ERA.
In the words of Vanderbilt basketball great Shan Foster, “Mama, just look at that man!” It can be argued that if it wasn’t for former Florida baseball star Pete Alonso, VandyBoy Bryan Reynolds would be the favorite for the National League Rookie of the Year. The rookie left fielder is tearing the cover off the ball after a week in which he hit .412. The power was down a bit, as Reynolds only hit one long ball, but the average is video game like. For the season, Reynolds is batting a red hot .335 with fourteen dingers and sixty RBIs. His average is two points off the National League lead.
Mike Yastrzemski cooled off a bit this week. Yaz’s average plummeted from .264 last week to .188 this week. Yaz is still hitting a respectable .266 with an impressive eighteen long balls, and is still flashing the leather.
Curt Casali and Tyler Beede make their debut in the “VandyBoys in the Pros Weekly Update” series. Splitting time this season between the MLB Cincinnati Reds and the AAA Louisville Bats, the VandyBoy catcher drove in five runs and also recorded one home run. In 168 MLB at bats this season, Casali is batting .250. Former first round pick, Beede, took the ball for a Labor Day start, lasting only four innings after allowing three runs on five hits and only two strikeouts. Beede’s season record is pretty rough as he has a 3-9 record with a 5.61 ERA.
As we turn the calendar to September, MLB rosters are beginning to expand. One of the players that was called up from the AAA level was Ryan Flaherty. The veteran utility man hasn’t recorded any stats since his promotion, but he expects to be a factor in helping the Cleveland Indians return to the MLB playoffs. Flaherty becomes the 15th VandyBoy in the MLB in 2019.
Down on the farm, there are to many VandyBoys to mention in this report. Notable players that have made their presence known in the past week include Zander Wiel and Phil Pfeifer. Wiel had another productive week for the AAA Rochester Red Wings. The Twins farmhand batted .289 for the past week and is currently leading the International League in doubles (38) and extra base hits (64). Pfeifer continued his dominance for the AAA Gwinnett Stripers. The Braves pitching prospect threw three and one third scoreless innings on Wednesday and two and one third scoreless on Sunday. Over that span the VandyBoy struck out nine while only allowing one free pass. Wiel and Pfeifer could both be candidates to join the Twins and Braves respectively once rosters begin to expand this month.
Jason Delay and Jeren Kendall have both been selected to play in the Arizona Fall League.
The VandyBoys other former #1 overall draft pick, Dansby Swanson, returned from the 10 Day IL on Monday against the Colorado Rockies. In his return to action the Atlanta Braves shortstop barely missed hitting two home runs at the hitter friendly Coors Field. In the National League East leading Braves two game set with the Toronto Blue Jays, Swanson couldn’t record a hit. Things got better for “Lieutenant Dans” over the weekend as he recored six base hits and three RBIs. For the season Swanson is hitting .260 with seventeen long balls and sixty RBIs.
Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher, Sonny Gray, continues his bounce back season. The former VandyBoy starting pitcher and Smyrna High School starting quarterback took the ball Monday against the lowly Miami Marlins and Saturday against the red hot St. Louis Cardinals and proceeded to throw six innings of two hit two run baseball (Monday) six and two thirds innings of five hit shutout baseball (Saturday). Sadly Gray got a no decision Saturday, after taking the loss Monday, as his bullpen couldn’t come through for him. His ERA for the month of August was a cool 0.90. Gray’s stats for the season remain a sparkly 10-6 with a 2.80 ERA.
After several less then stellar performances, Mike Minor, got back on track Monday with a dazzling performance versus the New York Yankees, in Yankee Stadium no less. Coming off a start versus the Los Angeles Angels where he allowed four runs in six and two thirds innings, Minor pitched seven shutout innings against a talented Yankees offense. Minor showed his best command in weeks as he only walked one while striking out five. After picking up the win, Minor’s record improves to 12-8 and his ERA shrinks to 3.12.
Much like Minor, Walker Buehler, had a very up and down week, however the VandyBoy went 2-0. While one start was almost flawless, the other one was one that Buehler would like to forget. On Tuesday Buehler took the ball for the LA Dodgers in pitcher friendly Petco Park, where he proceeded to silence the Padres offense, limiting them to four hits in six shutout innings. The VandyBoy only walked two and punched out eleven Padres. Monday was a different story for the Dodgers starter as he was shelled for six runs on eight hits in five innings. But with a potent offense like LA has, Buehler was bailed out of trouble and ended up being credited with the win. The All-Star picked up his ninth and tenth wins to run his record to 10-3 to go along with a 3.28 ERA.
In the words of Vanderbilt basketball great Shan Foster, “Mama, just look at that man!” It can be argued that if it wasn’t for former Florida baseball star Pete Alonso, VandyBoy Bryan Reynolds would be the favorite for the National League Rookie of the Year. The rookie left fielder is tearing the cover off the ball after a week in which he hit .412. The power was down a bit, as Reynolds only hit one long ball, but the average is video game like. For the season, Reynolds is batting a red hot .335 with fourteen dingers and sixty RBIs. His average is two points off the National League lead.
Mike Yastrzemski cooled off a bit this week. Yaz’s average plummeted from .264 last week to .188 this week. Yaz is still hitting a respectable .266 with an impressive eighteen long balls, and is still flashing the leather.
Curt Casali and Tyler Beede make their debut in the “VandyBoys in the Pros Weekly Update” series. Splitting time this season between the MLB Cincinnati Reds and the AAA Louisville Bats, the VandyBoy catcher drove in five runs and also recorded one home run. In 168 MLB at bats this season, Casali is batting .250. Former first round pick, Beede, took the ball for a Labor Day start, lasting only four innings after allowing three runs on five hits and only two strikeouts. Beede’s season record is pretty rough as he has a 3-9 record with a 5.61 ERA.
As we turn the calendar to September, MLB rosters are beginning to expand. One of the players that was called up from the AAA level was Ryan Flaherty. The veteran utility man hasn’t recorded any stats since his promotion, but he expects to be a factor in helping the Cleveland Indians return to the MLB playoffs. Flaherty becomes the 15th VandyBoy in the MLB in 2019.
Down on the farm, there are to many VandyBoys to mention in this report. Notable players that have made their presence known in the past week include Zander Wiel and Phil Pfeifer. Wiel had another productive week for the AAA Rochester Red Wings. The Twins farmhand batted .289 for the past week and is currently leading the International League in doubles (38) and extra base hits (64). Pfeifer continued his dominance for the AAA Gwinnett Stripers. The Braves pitching prospect threw three and one third scoreless innings on Wednesday and two and one third scoreless on Sunday. Over that span the VandyBoy struck out nine while only allowing one free pass. Wiel and Pfeifer could both be candidates to join the Twins and Braves respectively once rosters begin to expand this month.
Jason Delay and Jeren Kendall have both been selected to play in the Arizona Fall League.
