Tuesday was a big day for Christian Oppor, and not just because he was named the Fortnight's Finest pitcher on Sox Machine.
Along with that prestigious honor, Oppor also was named the White Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Month (with Braden Montgomery receiving the nod for position players), and he landed on Baseball America's Hot Sheet with an interesting note about his elusive breaking ball.
Oppor has been carving up hitters in the final full month of the season, holding hitters to a .179/.250/.275 slash line in August. Oppor’s slider is one of the best in the Sally League when he lands it. No one has squared one up for an extra-base hit all season according to Synergy Sports data, and he has a 56% miss rate with it. But he’s only thrown it for strikes 48% of the time. If he can harness his slider just a little more often, the combination with his mid-to-upper 90s fastball will allow him to take off.
Oppor's breaking ball -- or lack thereof -- has been a work in progress throughout the season. The last time we checked in on it, Winston-Salem pitching coach Blake Hickman said that they were still looking for a slider they could land before going into the shape of it.
Perhaps Oppor's hot streak is a signal that the slider is becoming more viable, even if it's because hitters are already guarding against the fastball and changeup. Perhaps it's scouting off the stat line, and it's nowhere close to his meal ticket. These honors are typically associated with a corresponding Zoom call, so we should get yet another update on The Quest for the Pronator's Breaking Ball in short order.
Jacksonville 6, Charlotte 1
- Jacob Gonzalez was 1-for-3 with a strikeout.
- Duncan Davitt: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 2 HR, 61 of 99 pitches for strikes.
- Ben Peoples: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 12 of 16 pitches for strikes.
Chattanooga 4, Birmingham 3
- Rikuu Nishida was 0-for-3 with a walk.
- William Bergolla, 0-for-3 with a sac bunt.
- Sam Antonacci was 1-for-4.
- Wilfred Veras wore the collar and silver sombrero.
- Braden Montgomery mixed it up, going 1-for-3 with a triple, walk and strikeout.
- Ryan Galanie was 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- D.J. Gladne, 2-for-4 with homer and a double.
- Riley Gowens: 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K, 50 of 88 pitches for strikes.
Winston-Salem 1, Greenville 0
- Samuel Zavala was 1-for-4.
- Jeral Perez provided the only run with a solo shot, making the most of his 1-for-4 night.
- Kyle Lodise was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.
- Caleb Bonemer and Ryan Burrowes both were 0-for-3 with a strikeout.
- Gage Ziehl: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 41 of 61 pitches for strikes.
