Charlotte 4, Norfolk 2
Carlos Rodon did not disappoint in his first start of the 2015 season. The left-handed phenom struck out nine batters over five innings while only giving up one earned run, two walks, and two hits. At the end of his last season in college Rodon’s fastball velocity sagged to the low 90’s, possibly causing him to drop to the White Sox with the 3rd pick of the 2014 draft. During Saturdays outing he was reportedly hitting 97 into his last inning of work, erasing any doubts of his pure stuff. (For video and gifs of Rodon’s start, check out Jim Margalus’s post at South Side Sox.) The Charlotte bullpen of Maikel Cleto, Arcenio Leon, and Jairo Asencio relieved Rodon and threw four scoreless innings to preserve the win. Dan Black and Engel Beltre collected two hits apiece to lead the Knight’s offense.
Birmingham 2, Mobile 1
Another heralded White Sox pitching prospect made his 2015 debut in Birmingham, with Tyler Danish baffling Double-A batters. Danish worked five innings, striking out three and only allowing one earned run, scattering one walk and five hit. Danish was followed by Kyle Hansen and Nolan Sunburn, who combined to close the game with four scoreless and hitless innings. The strong Baron’s pitching performance received all the run support it would need from a 3rd inning Christian Marrero home run. Top hitting prospects Tim Anderson, Courtney Hawkins, and Jacob May finished the game 0-4, respectively.
Frederick 6, Winston-Salem 3
Dash starter Robinson Leyer struck out seven over five innings, but allowed five runs (two earned) and that was all the Frederick Keys would need for the victory. Powerful first baseman Keon Barnum doubled twice and Trey Michalczewski went 2-4 with a walk and two RBI’s. Jose Brito pitched two hitless innings in relief.
Lakewood 6, Kannapolis 3
The Intimidators could not hold an early 3-0 lead and drop a Saturday day game to the Lakewood BlueClaws. Starting pitching Yelmison Peralta was tagged for five runs over his four innings of work. Mason Robbins launched his first home run of the season in the 3rd inning and catcher Zach Fish added a two run shot in the 4th. Center Fielder Louie Lechich went 2-4 with a run scored in the losing effort.
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