It feels like Micker Adolfo is rivaling Hawk Harrelson for being part of professional baseball for eight decades even if his Baseball-Reference.com page only dates back to 2014, but thanks to his grisly injury history, he's never earned a midseason promotion. The lack of reps that dogged him throughout his career has made a struggle out of most attempts to start a season. The one exception was his 2018 in Winston-Salem, but that year was cut short by Tommy John surgery.
When the White Sox promoted Adolfo to Charlotte a few weeks ago, he lacked a personal precedent. He'd just never been simultaneously productive and healthy enough to complete a season. The lack of track record made it hard to know how Adolfo would handle a shift in the degree of difficulty, especially with a Double-A strikeout rate of 35 percent.
Through 18 games, the answer is "really, really well." Adolfo had a monster doubleheader against Norfolk on Wednesday, going a combined 5-for-6 with two homers, a walk and a strikeout. He's now hitting .290/.353/.581 over 68 plate appearances at Triple-A, superior in all categories to his .249/.318/.525 line over 242 PA at Birmingham. He's also striking out at a mere 31 percent clip.
Here's homer No. 1:
And here's No. 2:
Adolfo's first blast was part of a stretch of four homers over six batters, so I don't think you can go wrong in giving Truist Field a generous amount of credit. But Adolfo is also moving well a corner, as evidenced by his diving catch and leaping grab at the wall on consecutive plays. He can't control where he plays, and his credible performance in Birmingham suggests that he'd be capable of producing in tougher Triple-A environments.
He's playing his way into September consideration. If rosters weren't capped at 28, he'd probably be an easy "yes," given that he's in his last option year. Alas, teams are limited to 28 players in September, and Billy Hamilton will probably take one of the two spots, making it harder to see how Adolfo makes the cut. However it's resolved, congratulations to Adolfo for playing his way into a conundrum.
Charlotte 9, Norfolk 5 (Game 1, 7 innings)
- Blake Rutherford went 0-for-4.
- Yasmani Grandal came a triple short of the cycle while going 3-for-3 with an HBP. He also caught.
- Gavin Sheets went 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
- Jake Burger returned to the lineup, going 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
- Yermín Mercedes went 1-for-4 with a K.
- Micker Adolfo was 2-for-3 with a homer and a strikeout.
- Kade McClure: 4.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 2 HR
Charlotte 6, Norfolk 5 (Game 2, 8 innings)
- Blake Rutherford went 1-for-4.
- Gavin Sheets was 0-for-3 with a sac fly and two strikeouts.
- Jake Burger hit a sac fly and struck out three times.
- Yermín Mercedes went 2-for-3 with a double.
- Micker Adolfo had the best night of anybody: 3-for-3 with a homer and a walk.
Highlights:
*Grandal made this athletic play from behind the plate.
The Knights also shared his homer from the right side, his wall-ball single, and his double inside the line.
Tennessee 6, Birmingham 4
- Romy Gonzalez went 1-for-5.
- Yolbert Sanchez hit his first Double-A homer during a 1-for-4 night.
- Yoelqui Céspedes made his Double-A debut, doubling, singling and striking out twice.
- Lenyn Sosa was 0-for-4.
- The latest in Alec Hansen: 0 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 0 K, four of 16 pitches for strikes.
Winston-Salem 13, Hickory 2
- Jose Rodriguez went 1-for-4.
- Luis Curbelo went 2-for-5 with a double, two strikeouts and a stolen base.
- Luis Mieses threw down a full house: two homers and three strikeouts.
- Caberea Weaver went 2-for-5 with a double and a strikeout, and was caught trying to steal home.
Notes:
*WInston-Salem snapped a seven-game losing streak.
Down East 4, Kannapolis 3
- James Beard wore the silver sombrero during an 0-for-5 night.
- Bryan Ramos also went 0-for-5, but with two strikeouts.
- Harvin Mendoza went 2-for-5 with a double.
- Samil Polanco had one of his random big games: 2-for-3 with a homer, double and walk.
- Misael Gonzalez singled twice and struck out twiec.
- Chase Krogman went 3-for-4 with a strikeout.
- DJ Gladney was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.
- Wilber Sanchez singled, struck out thrice and stole a base.
Notes:
*Kannapolis has lost 13 in a row.
