In Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday night, Hagen Smith returned to the mound for the first time since showing diminished velocity in his two-inning start against the Columbus Clingstones on May 10.
He came up an out short of that against the Smokies, as he departed after 1⅔ innings and 33 pitches, but it appeared to be the result of a strict count. He opened with a 1-2-3, two-strikeout first before opening the second with a walk. Calvin Harris erased it by gunning down the runner at second on a stolen-base attempt, after which Smith recorded his third and final strikeout before giving up a bloop single that ended his night.
Knoxville's livestream didn't have the velocity displayed on its score bug, but the broadcast gave a velocity range of 96-98 mph, and it had the requisite hop that proved too difficult to square up.
Assuming that Guillermo Quiroz pulled Smith when instructed, Smith looked like he was supposed to look, and now it's a matter of seeing him hold that form for longer as he stretches back out.
Charlotte 9, Toledo 0
- Colson Montgomery came a homer shy of the cycle during a 3-for-5 night, striking out once.
- Tim Elko singled twice, walked once and struck out twice.
- Bryan Ramos was 2-for-5.
- Fraser Ellard: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 8 of 16 pitches for strikes.
- Peyton Pallette: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, 14 of 22 pitches for strikes.
Notes:
*Gus Varland retired the final batter of the seventh, but loaded the bases with nobody out in the eighth before leaving with an injury. Pallette left them loaded courtesy of some fine diving plays by Corey Julks and Dominic Fletcher.
Knoxville 5, Birmingham 1
- William Bergolla was 3-for-4 with a double.
- Ryan Galanie, 1-for-3 with a sac fly and a strikeout.
- DJ Gladney was 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
- Jacob Gonzalez was 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
- Hagen Smith: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, 20 of 33 pitches for strikes.
Greensboro 3, Winston-Salem 1
- Sam Antonacci was 1-for-4.
- Jeral Perez went 0-for-4.
- Braden Montgomery wore the collar and silver sombrero.
- Samuel Zavala, 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
Kannapolis 5, Fredericksburg 1
- Javier Mogollón was 1-for-5.
- Caleb Bonemer went 0-for-5.
- Lyle Miller-Green singled twice, walked and struck out.
- Ronny Hernandez was 2-for-4 with a double and a strikeout.
- George Wolkow, 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Ryan Burrowes went 1-for-4 with a stolen base.
- Abraham Nuñez went 0-for-4.
- Luis Reyes: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K, 56 of 82 pitches for strikes.
- Blake Shepardson: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 19 of 35 pitches for strikes.
ACL White Sox 4, ACL Mariners 2 (7 innings)
- Adrian Gíl went 2-for-4 with a strikeout.
- Jurdrick Profar was 1-for-3 with a K.
- Noah Syndergaard's org debut: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
DSL White Sox 5, DSL Pirates Gold 4 (7 innings)
- Christian Gonzalez went 2-for-4.
- Frank Mieses was 3-for-4.
- Eduardo Herrera went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
- Yordani Soto, 0-for-2 with a walk, strikeout and stolen base.
