With their first road trip of 2021 in the books, the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers still struggled as a team, losing five of six games to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, including getting no-hit the day before their first victory of the season. Amongst the trials and tribulations Kannapolis endured in Fayetteville, there were some new names, strong performances, and oddities across the team’s outings.
TOTAL ROAD STATS: W-L: 1-5
Team Hitting: .115/.299/.139, 12 R, 44 BB, 83 K, 21 H
Team Pitching: 6.57 ERA, 2.01 WHIP, .314 OPP BA, 48 K, 34 BB, 43 R
Jagger Rusconi, OF
As the new guy in town for Kannapolis, Rusconi had himself a solid week at the plate, mostly backing up hot bat Jose Rodriguez near the top of the order. The former Red Sox prospect slashed .250/.368/.313 across 16 at-bats, crossing the plate twice, including the winning run for the Cannon Ballers’ lone win on the year. While the switch-bat had 5 strikeouts amidst his four-game run, it’s a nice start for Rusconi as he gets acclimated to the White Sox system.
Jeremiah Burke, RHP
The opening homestand was not kind to Jeremiah Burke as he came into this road trip with a loss and a 7.94 ERA across 5.2 IP. Needing a solid rebound, Burke was able to come in and do just that. Similar to opening day, the 2019-draftee followed behind Andrew Dalquist, who exited the game early due to his pitch count. Burke was able to throw a solid outing, boasting a final stat line of 5IP, 4H, 2BB, 4K, and 0R. Not only did Burke have a nice bounce back game, he was credited with the win in that game. A performance like this can get the confidence back for the righty on the upcoming homestand.
Matthew Thompson, RHP
Another pitcher looking to have a strong start on the road was Matt Thompson. The No. 3 White Sox prospect impressed with a four-hit performance across five innings. Thompson was in-line to secure the win after Kannapolis got on top with a six-run 1st inning, but the team surrendered four runs in the 9th, resulting in the loss and Thompson a no decision. To start 2021, Thompson has seemed to be the strongest pitcher for Kannapolis. While the statistics don’t cast a favorable view on his season to-date, Thompson has seemed composed under pressure and able to get out of the tight jams when needed.
Odd Stretch for Gladney and Abbott
The road-trip to Fayetteville was one that saw mixed results at the plate for third-baseman DJ Gladney and first-baseman Sam Abbot. The two couldn’t muster a hit across the six-game stretch but were able to find their way on base by way of the walk. Both infielders contributed eight walks each, ending the series with a combined .357 OBP. If that wasn’t weird enough, they accumulated 17 strikeouts. While the walks showed the type of discipline the two have in the batter’s box, their ability to produce at the plate was missing on a week where the team offense lacked.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Cannon Ballers return home to Kannapolis Tuesday for another six-game stretch against the Columbia Fireflies, the Kansas City Royals affiliate, who come in to Kannapolis 6-6 on the year. The Fireflies have a few top-30 prospects on their roster: Ben Hernandez (RHP, #15), Brady McConnell (SS, #20), and Darryl Collins (OF, #23). Much like the Cannon Ballers, the Fireflies are on the lower end of most offensive and defensive statistical categories, but have been able to put more wins up on the board. This should be an interesting series to see if Kannapolis can get some momentum together after coming off a shellacking from the Woodpeckers.
Photo credit: Sean Williams/FutureSox
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