UVA Baseball Alumni in the Pros: Update #3

As we approach the MLB all-star game, which is sort of the half-way mark of the baseball season, it's time to take another look at how all our former Wahoo baseball players are doing.

Javier Lopez, LHP, San Francisco Giants - Lopez had been on fire before his last two outings. He hadn't given up a run since May 12, but he gave up a run last Tuesday and then 3 on Saturday. His overall numbers are still very good, as he has a 3.31 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP in 16.1 innings over 31 games. He has a 1-1 record and 6 holds.

Ryan Zimmerman, 3B, Washington Nationals - Since returning from the DL at the beginning of June, Zimmerman has been struggling at the plate. He's lost his gig as the starting 3B, playing mostly LF now. He had been raking in April before his injury, but in 27 games since his return, he's batting just .212 with 1 HR and 14 RBI. He has a terrible .284 OBP and an equally terrible .337 SLG. He's also struck out in over 20% of his ABs (21 Ks in 104 ABs). On the season, he's now batting .248 with a .314 OBP and .409 SLG. Those numbers would play better at 3B than in LF.

Mark Reynolds, 1B, Milwaukee Brewers - Mark didn't have a great June. After hitting 12 HRs through the end of May, he hit just 1 in June. On the other hand, he cut down on the Ks, dropping to just 30% strikeout rate (still terrible, but better than the 37% rate he had prior to June. On the year, Reynolds is batting .213 with a .308 OBP and .402 SLG. Those numbers are 3^rd worst among MLB 1Bs. His 13 HRs are tied for 10^th, however.

Sean Doolittle, LHP, Oakland Athletics - Like Lopez, Doolittle was on a great run up until his past two outings. Unscored upon since April 26^th, Sean gave up a run on Saturday and then a walk-off grand slam last night. On the season, he is 1-3 with a 2.97 ERA and 0.69 WHIP. He's struck out 57 batters in just 39.1 innings. He's given up just 25 hits and walked just 2. Those numbers are outstanding. Sean also has 8 saves and 3 blown saves.
Twitter: @whatwouldDOOdo

Brandon Guyer, OF, Tampa Bay Rays - As a team, the Rays have struggled at the plate, and Guyer hasn't helped. On the season, Guyer has a .267 BA, with a .319 OBP and .371 SLG. He has 1 HR and 11 RBI in 105 ABs. He's scored 20 runs and stolen 3 bases. In the middle of June, Guyer spent a few days back in AAA. In 5 games, he raked to the tune of a .400 BA, .538 OBP and .700 SLG. He's back in the majors right now.
Twitter: @BrandonGuyer

Kyle Crockett, LHP, Cleveland Indians - Crockett is in the majors again, following a short stint in May. He spent a couple of weeks in AAA before his return. Based on his numbers, it seems likely he'll remain in the majors for the foreseeable future. In 12 games and 10.1 IP, he's 1-0 with 2.61 ERA and 1.35 WHIP. He's struck out 5 and walked three. He's been particularly effective against lefties, allowing just 5 hits and 1 extra base hit among 25 ABs. He's struggled a bit more against righties, which isn't surprising for a young lefty.
Twitter: @CrockPott3

That's it for the guys currently in the majors. Now we'll take a look at the guys in the minors. Most of these guys are prospects working their way towards the majors. A few are just organizational guys, just hanging on.

David Adams, 2B, Baltimore Orioles - Adams is going the wrong way. After spending much of last season in the majors, he's now spent the past two months at AA. And he's not exactly tearing it up, with a .253/.303/.359 slash line (BA/OBP/SLZ). At this rate, you have to wonder if there's some nagging injury that's causing his poor performances. At previous stops in AA, he's put up OPS of nearly 900, and now he's at 662. That shouldn't happen.

Stephen Bruno, 2B, Chicago Cubs - Bruno has had an interesting season in AA. He struggled in April, raked in May and struggled in June. For the season, he's at .290/.368/.433, which are very good numbers, especially for a second baseman. He has 3 HRs, 23 RBI and 37 runs scored. He also has 4 steals. If he starts hitting again in July, he may see AAA this season.
Twitter: @UvaBruno11

Andrew Carraway, LHP, Seattle Mariners - Carraway continues to struggle in AAA. Now, the Pacific Coast League is notorious for being a high-offense league. But Carraway's 4.88 ERA and 1.51 WHIP still don't really cut it. He's doing better than last year, but he strikes out just 6.3 batter per 9 innings and walks 2.6, neither of which are particularly good numbers. Carraway is almost 28 years old, so if he's going to make the majors, he's gotta pick it up soon.

Jeremy Farrell, 3B, Chicago White Sox - Farrell had a solid June, batting .310 with a .379 OBP and .397 SLG. This gives him a season line of .261/.326/.357. That's decent, but not good. Also nearly 28 years old, Farrell is basically just hanging on and is unlikely to reach the majors.
Twitter: @Jeremy_Farrell

Phil Gosselin, 2B, Atlanta Braves - Gosselin continues to hit in AAA Gwinnett. He's batting .325 on the season with a .358 OBP and .440 SLG. He has 3 HRs, 21 RBI, 45 runs scored and 5 steals (0 caught stealing.) The Braves would probably like to see him walk a bit more. Unfortunately for Phil, the Braves have young second baseman Tommy La Stella who they value over Gosselin. His best bet for a major league career at this point may be a trade.

Reed Gragnani, 2B, Boston Red Sox - Gragnani is impressing in his first season of High-A ball. He's currently sporting a .328/.424/.437 line. That is impressive, especially the OBP. If he can continue to get on base at a 42% clip, he'll move up quickly. I wouldn't be surprised if he saw AA this season.
Twitter: @ReedGrags

John Hicks, C, Seattle Mariners - Hicks is holding his own at AA Jackson, batting .287 with a .350 OBP and .388 SLG. The Mariners would like to see a bit more pop out of Hicks, but a catcher who can hit anywhere near .300 is valuable. The Mariners continue to be impressed with Hicks. Since he's already in his second season at AA, we're keeping our eye out for his promotion to AAA.
Twitter: @JohnHicks08

Danny Hultzen, LHP, Seattle Mariners - Nothing has changed with Hultzen, who is out for the season after having Tommy John surgery.

Branden Kline, RHP, Baltimore Orioles - Kline's season has been going downhill. He started off extremely well, but has struggled since. Coming off an injury plagued year, it could just be fatigue. He's not throwing enough strikes, although he's still got a 3.74 ERA and 1.32 WHIP. Those aren't bad numbers. He's a starter now, but his path to the majors may be as a relief pitcher.
Twitter: @BrandenKline16

Jeff Lorick, LHP, Chicago Cubs - Lorick isn't doing himself any favors, with a 5.21 ERA and 1.47 WHIP in 38 innings over 28 appearances in AA Tennessee. He's struck out 35 in those innings, but he's walked 20. He's 26 years old, which is old for AA. He's likely just playing out the string on his baseball career.

Greg Miclat, SS, St. Louis Cardinals - Miclat was placed on the disabled list on June 15. Hopefully, this injury explains his performance this year. He's batting just .174 with a .288 OBP and .188 SLG. Those numbers are terrible, and this is from a guy who was in AAA last year. He's had injuries in the past, so hopefully this is something he can come back from.

Robert Morey, LHP, Marlins - Morey spent almost 2 full months on the disabled list. He's now active again, but playing in Rookie ball. He's dominating there, with a 1.80 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in just 5 IP. He's struck out 6 and walked none. Sadly he wasn't putting up those kind of numbers in AA earlier this year. He was struggling, although the injury may have had something to do with that.
Twitter: @theRMorey

Matt Packer, LHP, Cleveland Indians - Packer has had two starts at AA Akron, and is 1-1 with a 8.68 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. He's struck out 7 and walked 4. He's dealt with injuries throughout his career, and didn't pitch this year until June, so I have to imagine there's an injury explanation for that, but I can't figure out what it is.

Jarrett Parker, OF, San Francisco Giants - Parker is pretty much doing the same thing he did last year in AA Richmond. He's got a .257/.356/.426 slash line with 7 HRs and 42 RBI. He' still strikes out too much (nearly 30% of his ABs), but he walks a fair amount and he has some pop. He's also a very good defensive OF. The Giants don't need any help right now, but Parker could see AAA this year.

Steven Proscia, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers - Proscia has turned it around after a slow start in High-A. He's up a .252/.307/.417 on the season, but his line in June was .310/.322/.583 and he hit 5 HRs during the month. He needs to walk more, and strike out less if he's going to advance. The Dodgers still appear to be high on his potential.
Twitter: @Prosh19

Will Roberts, RHP, Cleveland Indians - Roberts is pitching well in AA Akron, currently 8- 8 with a 3.64 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. He has a better than 3:1 K:BB ratio, which is fantastic. At just 23, the Indians aren't going to rush him. He might see AAA late this year, but more likely next season.
Twitter: @WRoberts25

Scott Silverstein, LHP, Toronto Blue Jays - Silverstein has had an up and down season. He struggled in April and June, but was wonderful in May. For the season he has a 4.23 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP in 38.1 innings of relief. He has an 8-3 record on the year. He is striking out nearly a batter an inning, though his walks are too high. Considering his injury past, his performance is promising.
Twitter: @silvertweet29

Kenny Swab, RHP, Kansas City Royals - Kenny hasn't pitched since May 11, after finally seeming to get his bearings as a pitcher. I don't know if he's back in instructional leagues, or if he's hurt or if he's simply hung em up.
Twitter: @kennswab

Chris Taylor, SS, Seattle Mariners - Taylor just continues to rake. He's batting .330 with a .403 OBP and .537 SLG in AAA Tacoma. He has 5 HRs, 6 triples and 18 doubles. He also has 11 steals. Those are tremendous numbers for a 23 year old SS in AAA. He could get a cup of coffee this year with the Mariners.

Tyler Wilson, RHP, Baltimore Orioles - Over 16 starts this year in AA Bowie, Wilson is 10-5 with a 3.72 ERA and 1.27 WHIP. Those numbers are similar to his numbers last year, except his K's are up and his walks are down. That's a great sign. Wilson has a shot at AAA this year if he continues to perform at AA.

Cody Winiarski, RHP, Chicago White Sox - Cody had a bad couple of weeks at the end of June after two pretty good months. In particular, he gave up 8 ER without retiring a batter last Tuesday. For the year, he's got a 7.20 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP in 35 innings. He does have 38 Ks and just 14 walks, which isn't bad. He's going to need to be more consistent though if he wants to move up.
Twitter: @cody_winiarski

You may be wondering about the status of Nick Howard, Derek Fisher, Mike Papi and the other 2014 draftees. Well, none of them have signed, which isn't surprising since they played deep into June. Most likely they'll all sign, although there's little chance of them playing competitive games this season. They'll work in instructional leagues and then head to fall leagues to begin their pro careers. We'll keep you updated as we know more.

We'll also try to keep you updated on any UVA guys playing in summer leagues, such as the Cape Cod league. Statistics for those leagues is sometimes hard to find, but we'll do our best.