Ferraro, Clarke Lead Peoria; Palm Beach Wins Again
THE CARDINAL CHRONICLE
Morning Farm Report: Ferraro, Clarke Lead Peoria; Palm Beach Wins Again
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur
The Cardinal Chronicle Farm Report is your most complete daily look at the Cardinals’ minor league system — from box scores and standings to standout performances, prospect notes and the daily Top 30 Prospect Watch.
Wednesday was a split night on the farm.
Memphis was hit hard in a lopsided loss to Durham. Springfield was shut out at Corpus Christi. Peoria answered with a strong win over Quad Cities, and Palm Beach stayed hot with another win over Daytona.
The Cardinals’ full-season affiliates finished 2-2.
Caden Ferraro earned Hitter of the Day honors after going 1-for-4 with a home run, two RBIs, a run scored and a walk for Peoria. Brandon Clarke, the MLB Pipeline No. 7 prospect, earned Pitcher of the Day honors after striking out six over 3.2 innings for the Chiefs.
Memphis Redbirds — Triple-A
Overall Record: 72-62
Second Half: 25-34, 9th in the International League West, 9.0 GB
Streak: L1
Durham 16, Memphis 1
Memphis had a rough afternoon at AutoZone Park.
The Redbirds fell 16-1 to Durham, with the Bulls scoring five runs in the fourth, four in the fifth, three in the sixth, one in the seventh and three more in the eighth. Memphis was held to one run on four hits.
Noah Mendlinger drove in the only Memphis run and reached base three times, going 1-for-1 with a double, an RBI and two walks. Graysen Tarlow doubled and scored, while Ramon Mendoza and Trey Paige added the other Redbirds hits.
On the mound, Brandt Thompson allowed seven runs, but only two were earned, over four innings. He gave up eight hits, walked one and struck out five. The bullpen had trouble stopping the inning after that, with Durham finishing with 16 runs on 16 hits.
Takeaway: Memphis had a tough day all around, managing four hits while Durham broke the game open in the middle innings.
Springfield Cardinals — Double-A
Overall Record: 70-57
Second Half: 39-20, 1st in the Texas League North, 5.0 games ahead
Streak: L1
Corpus Christi 4, Springfield 0
Springfield’s offense went quiet Wednesday night.
The Cardinals were shut out 4-0 by Corpus Christi, managing only two hits in the loss. The Hooks scored twice in the first, added one in the third and one more in the fourth.
Josiah Ragsdale, the MLB Pipeline No. 10 prospect, and Cade McGee had Springfield’s only hits. Rainiel Rodriguez, the MLB Pipeline No. 1 prospect, walked once, and Deniel Ortiz, the MLB Pipeline No. 27 prospect, walked twice.
Daniel Eagen, the MLB Pipeline No. 17 prospect, started and worked five innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out six. The bullpen was excellent from there. Darlin Saladin, Christian Worley and Domenic Picone combined for three scoreless innings, striking out six.
Takeaway: Springfield was held to two hits, but the Cardinals still remain in first place in the Texas League North by five games.
Peoria Chiefs — High-A
Overall Record: 61-66
Second Half: 29-32, 5th in the Midwest League West, 9.5 GB
Streak: W1
Peoria 7, Quad Cities 2
Peoria had the best all-around night in the system.
The Chiefs beat Quad Cities, 7-2, scoring once in the first, six times in the third and letting the pitching staff handle the rest. Peoria finished with 14 hits and held the River Bandits to two runs on five hits.
Caden Ferraro had the biggest swing, going 1-for-4 with a home run, two RBIs, a run scored and a walk.
His final line: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, R, BB
Peoria had traffic all night. Andrew Williamson went 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI, two runs scored and a walk. Jalin Flores went 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI. Yordalin Peña added two hits and an RBI, while Anyelo Encarnación had two hits and drove in a run.
On the mound, Brandon Clarke, the MLB Pipeline No. 7 prospect, earned Pitcher of the Day honors. Clarke worked 3.2 innings, allowing three hits, two earned runs and one walk while striking out six.
His final line: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
The bullpen did the rest. Nelfy Ynfante, Trey Pooser, Liam Best and Patrick Galle combined for 5.1 scoreless innings, allowing only two hits while striking out six.
Takeaway: Peoria got 14 hits, a Ferraro homer, six strikeouts from Clarke and 5.1 scoreless innings from the bullpen.
Palm Beach Cardinals — Low-A
Overall Record: 64-64
Second Half: 31-31, 2nd in the Florida State League East, 5.5 GB
Streak: W2
Palm Beach 5, Daytona 3
Palm Beach keeps pushing back toward respectability in the second half.
The Cardinals beat Daytona, 5-3, scoring four runs in the sixth inning and adding one more in the eighth. Palm Beach finished with 13 hits and no errors.
Owen Henne had the big night, going 2-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and two runs scored. Miguel Hernández went 3-for-4 with a triple and a stolen base, while Gabe Camacho added two hits and an RBI.
Alexander Frias, the MLB Pipeline No. 4 prospect, went 1-for-4 with an RBI. Matthew Miura and J.P. Cabrera also drove in runs.
The bullpen made it hold. JR Fordham worked two scoreless innings with three strikeouts, and Jesús García finished with 3.1 scoreless innings, allowing no hits and no walks while striking out two.
Takeaway: Palm Beach had 13 hits, rallied late and got 5.1 scoreless innings from Fordham and García to beat Daytona.
Top 30 Prospect Watch
Rainiel Rodriguez, MLB Pipeline No. 1, went 0-for-3 with a walk for Springfield. His live season line is listed at .314 with a .961 OPS, 24 home runs and 77 RBIs.
Alexander Frias, MLB Pipeline No. 4, went 1-for-4 with an RBI for Palm Beach. His live line is listed at .317 with a .915 OPS, 10 home runs and 73 RBIs.
Brandon Clarke, MLB Pipeline No. 7, earned Pitcher of the Day honors after working 3.2 innings, allowing three hits, two earned runs and one walk while striking out six for Peoria. His live line is listed at 3.86 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 37 strikeouts over 25.2 innings.
Josiah Ragsdale, MLB Pipeline No. 10, went 1-for-4 for Springfield. His live line is listed at .306 with a .993 OPS, 24 home runs and 62 RBIs.
Daniel Eagen, MLB Pipeline No. 17, worked 5.0 innings, allowing seven hits, four earned runs and two walks while striking out six for Springfield. His live line is listed at 4.72 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 146 strikeouts over 116.1 innings.
Jesús Báez, MLB Pipeline No. 21, went 0-for-3 for Springfield. His live line is listed at .274 with an .898 OPS, 36 home runs and 98 RBIs.
Ryan Mitchell, MLB Pipeline No. 24, went 1-for-4 with a run scored for Palm Beach. His live line is listed at .228 with a .751 OPS, 13 home runs and 51 RBIs.
Deniel Ortiz, MLB Pipeline No. 27, went 0-for-1 with two walks for Springfield. His live line is listed at .260 with an .830 OPS, eight home runs and 36 RBIs.
Chen-Wei Lin, MLB Pipeline No. 29, remains listed at 4.80 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 114 strikeouts over 99.1 innings for Springfield.
Jack Gurevitch, MLB Pipeline No. 30, went 0-for-4 for Springfield. His live line is listed at .281 with an .885 OPS, 27 home runs and 84 RBIs.
Quick Hits: 10 Players, 10 Stats
1. Caden Ferraro, Peoria: 1-for-4, home run, two RBIs, run scored, walk.
2. Brandon Clarke, Peoria: 3.2 innings, three hits, two earned runs, one walk, six strikeouts. MLB Pipeline No. 7
3. Andrew Williamson, Peoria: 3-for-4, double, RBI, two runs, walk.
4. Jalin Flores, Peoria: 3-for-5, two doubles, RBI.
5. Owen Henne, Palm Beach: 2-for-4, two doubles, RBI, two runs.
6. Miguel Hernández, Palm Beach: 3-for-4, triple, stolen base.
7. Jesús García, Palm Beach: 3.1 innings, no hits, no runs, no walks, two strikeouts.
8. Noah Mendlinger, Memphis: 1-for-1, double, RBI, two walks.
9. Daniel Eagen, Springfield: 5.0 innings, seven hits, four earned runs, two walks, six strikeouts. MLB Pipeline No. 17
10. Peoria bullpen: 5.1 scoreless innings, two hits, two walks, six strikeouts.
Cardinal Chronicle Player of the Day
Caden Ferraro, LF, Peoria Chiefs
Ferraro supplied the biggest swing of the day.
His final line: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, R, BB
A home run.
Two RBIs.
A walk.
A Peoria win.
That is a Player of the Day performance.
Cardinal Chronicle Pitcher of the Day
Brandon Clarke, Peoria Chiefs
MLB Pipeline Ranking: No. 7
Clarke gave Peoria swing-and-miss in a winning effort.
His final line: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
Six strikeouts.
One walk.
Three hits allowed.
A Chiefs win.
That is a Pitcher of the Day performance.
The Final Word
Peoria and Palm Beach carried the night.
The Chiefs beat Quad Cities behind 14 hits, a Caden Ferraro home run and a strong pitching effort led by Brandon Clarke. Palm Beach beat Daytona for its second straight win, getting 13 hits and 5.1 scoreless innings from the bullpen.
Memphis had one of its roughest days of the season in a 16-1 loss to Durham. Springfield was shut out at Corpus Christi, though the Cardinals still hold a five-game lead in the Texas League North.
The affiliates finished 2-2.
Peoria answered.
Palm Beach kept winning.
Memphis got hit hard.
Springfield was shut out.
That is the farm report.
The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Brandon Clarke, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB