The contraction and realignment of Minor League Baseball also affected the park factors for every affiliate, because all of the other ballparks on the schedule affect the context for production at a given level. Charlotte stands out in the International League, but if by some clerical error they were placed in the Pacific Coast League, it might look somewhat pitcher-friendly compared to all the teams situated at altitude.
Baseball America's Matt Eddy presented the new park factors and team run contexts for each of the 120 affiliates, and I was surprised to learn that Kannapolis has the highest team run context among the Sox affiliates, with Charlotte coming in a close second. Winston-Salem is in the middle third, while Birmingham, which has long been the pitching-friendliest park for the Sox, still brings up the rear.
When it comes to hosting homers, however, Charlotte still has no competition. It ranks sixth in home run context, surrounded by PCL and Texas League teams. The other three White Sox affiliates can be found in the bottom half.
Charlotte 15, Gwinnett 2
- Oscar Colás doubled, singled, walked and struck out twice.
- Carlos Pérez went 3-for-6 with a homer, a double and two strikeouts.
- Clint Frazier homered twice during a 3-for-4 night, also drawing a walk.
Birmingham 5, Chattanooga 3
- Alsander Womack went 0-for-5 with a K.
- José Rodríguez went 2-for-5 with a homer and a strikeout.
- Luis Mieses wore the collar and silver sombrero.
- Cristian Mena: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 11 K, 2 HR, 1 HBP, 54 of 80 pitches for strikes.
Greensboro 6, Winston-Salem 4
- Terrell Tatum drew three walks, got plunked and stole a base during an 0-for-1 night.
- Loidel Chapelli went 2-for-4 with a walk.
- DJ Gladney drove in another run while going 1-for-4 with a K.
- Wilfred Veras, 1-for-5 with a double.
- Wes Kath went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts.
- Jared Kelley: 2.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, 26 of 50 pitches for strikes.
Augusta 6, Kannapolis 2
- Brooks Baldwin went 2-for-4 with a stolen base
- The Chase Krogman pitching experiment still isn't going well: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HR, 7 of 19 pitches for strikes.
