The Knights split a doubleheader tonight but the most significant news had to do with who was in the lineup — Jake Burger, after being pulled in last night’s game with a possible injury — and who was not — Luis Robert, who had a scheduled day off, according to a Knights source.
Manager Wes Helms said Burger came out of Wednesday’s game in the ninth inning with what turned out to be a cramp. He was fine and back in the lineup in the first game tonight.
Luis Robert didn’t play in either game today but a Knights source said that it was a regularly scheduled day off, dictated by the White Sox.
In terms of the on-field action, perhaps the biggest star was the newest Knight, John Parke, a pitcher who was promoted today from Birmingham and started the second game. Park went five innings and allowed just two unearned runs. It is just one start, but the possibility of another starter who can eat a lot of innings is huge.
Hitting stars tonight included Yermin Mercedes, who swatted the go-ahead homer in game two, and Mikie Mahtook, who had a homer, triple and two singles in the two games.
Game One
The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp won game one, 6-4, when Knights’ reliever Connor Sadzeck gave up a two-run blast in the top of the seventh.
The Knights out-hit the Jumbo Shrimp 9-7, but the Marlins affiliate made theirs count, going 3-13 with runners in scoring position, versus just 1-4 for Charlotte. The Jumbo Shrimp were helped by four stolen bases.
The Knights used four hurlers in this one, Tanner Banks, Lane Ramsey, Kodi Medeiros and Sadzeck. All four surrendered earned runs.
Jake Lamb had one of his best games yet as he continues to rehab in Charlotte. He had two singles, including a clutch hit in the third to drive in a run. Lamb also played third base and had two excellent defensive plays.
Mahtook hit his club-high 15th homer, a two-run blast in the first.
Game Two
Mercedes’ seventh home run of the season, a solo shot in the fifth, broke a 2-2 tie. Hunter Schryver pitched a scoreless sixth to earn his sixth hold of the season before handing the ball to Bennett Sousa for the seventh. Sousa was lights out, and came within one pitch of an immaculate inning — three strikeouts on nine pitches.
Zach Remillard added his ninth homer of the season, a solo shot in the first.
But it was Parke’s first start for the Knights that generated the most buzz. The 21st round draftee by the White Sox in 2017 has had a nice career, with a 1.24 WHIP, 3.37 ERA and .255 batting average against in 429.2 minor-league innings.
He is a pitch-to-contact guy, with a low 6.10 K/9 rate. But he keeps the ball in the park (with a miniscule 0.59 HR/9 rate) and doesn’t walk many batters (2.26 BB/9). What the future holds for this unranked FutureSox top-30 prospect is unclear but he was a breath of fresh air tonight.
Where’s The Offense?
The Knights are rolling out what looks like on paper should be a dynamite offense. But it hasn’t played out that way on the field this week against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp thus far, having scored just 13 runs in four games.
“These big-league rehab guys,” Helms said, “you see their names in the lineup, these guys are coming back from injury too, so they are not their normal selves, their timing is not there. They are probably still thinking about whether or not they should push it. You’ve got to take a step back and understand that these guys are still a little limited.”
Roster Moves
The White Sox dropped Knights reliever Tyler Johnson to make room on the 40-man roster for newly acquired Cesar Hernandez. Johnson, the FutureSox #26-ranked prospect, has struggled mightily this year. Part of his problems have been physical and Helms said Johnson had minor hip/knee surgery today.
“Hopefully he will sign back with us,” Helms said. “We love him to death and we hope we can get him back and get him on track.”
Another Knights’ reliever who also has had a rough 2021, Danny Dopico, was released today.
Mike Wright’s Non-Appearance Last Night
Manager Wes Helms took responsibility for last night’s mix-up. Mike Wright entered the game after Jimmy Lambert pitched just the first two innings, which is part of a plan to ensure Lambert is fresh late in the season if the White Sox need him. But the umpire escorted Wright off the field when his name was not on the daily roster.
Typically, Helms generates the line-up card automatically from a spreadsheet that lists all the starters in a separate section. But this was the first game of the season when a starting pitcher was used in relief, along with an opener, and Helms neglected to allow for that.
“I pulled Mike in the office after the game and apologized to him and told him it wouldn’t happen again,” Helms said. Wright will take the mound on Friday, followed by Jonathan Stiever and Alex McRae over the weekend.
Photo credit: Laura Wolff/Charlotte Knights
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