Having reviewed the other Kannapolis players I'd gotten my first glimpse of besides Matthew Thompson on Saturday morning, here are my initial impressions of the Winston-Salem Dash of note besides Jose Rodriguez, who got his own post.
Luis Mieses (above): He's hitting .292/.337/.562 this August since rejoining Winston-Salem, so you get an idea of what the White Sox were thinking by having him start the season with the Dash in the first place, even if he needed to reboot in Kannapolis. He's got some loft in his swing, and while I saw him playing left, he made a tremendous throw for an outfield assist at second. He's been rotating between the corners, but if he ends up in the lesser one, it's probably not because of his arm.
Caberea Weaver: He didn't quite earn his promotion to the Dash -- he hit .209/.305/.340 -- but he got shoved upward in part because James Beard need reps in Kannapolis. He's hanging in there, hitting .200/.229/.333. He has added power to a frame that was described as "wispy" on draft day, and with his triple off the batter's eye in center field, I also got to see the speed that's allowed him to go 4-for-5 stealing bases in just 13 games.
Harvin Mendoza: His lone single was a bunt to the vacated left side, which shows that it's a tool in his bag and helps explain the high average that's been his trademark since joining the White Sox. The lack of power from a first-base-only profile is his less flattering defining characteristic, as he has just four homers over 92 games. He's hitting .298/.373/.401 between Kannapolis and Winston-Salem this year. That qualifies as a successful year for the 22-year-old, but that last gap is a big one for his position.
Durham 4, Charlotte 0 (Game 1, 7 innings)
- Billy Hamilton went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk.
- Blake Rutherford was 1-for-3 with a strikeout.
- Jake Burger, 0-for-3.
- Gavin Sheets, 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.
- Yermín Mercedes split the difference between the two.
- Romy Gonzalez was 1-for-3 with a strikeout.
Charlotte 5, Durham 4 (Game 2, 7 innings)
- Blake Rutherford went 1-for-3.
- Jake Burger was 1-for-3 with a strikeout.
- Gavin Sheets went 2-for-3 with a homer.
- Romy Gonzalez, 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.
- Micker Adolfo singled and struck out twice.
- Yermín Mercedes walked in a pinch-hitting appearance.
- Jimmy Lambert: 5 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 1 HR
Highlights:
*Charlotte scored all five of its runs in the bottom of the seventh, the last three via a Danny Mendick walk-off homer.
Birmingham 5, Montgomery 1
- Yolbert Sanchez went 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
- Carlos Pérez went 1-for-4 with a double and a strikeout.
- Lenyn Sosa wore the collar and silver sombrero.
- Jason Bilous: 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 2 HBP
Hudson Valley 9, Winston-Salem 4
- Jose Rodriguez went 0-for-4 with a walk.
- Luis Mieses came a homer short of the cycle during a 3-for-5 night, striking out once.
- Harvin Mendoza also went 3-for-5 with a strikeout, but he just doubled.
- Luis Curbelo went 1-for-4 with a homer, HBP and two strikeouts.
- Caberea Weaver went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts and a stolen base.
- Taylor Broadway's High-A debut: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Lynchburg 6, Kannapolis 1
- James Beard went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Bryan Ramos went 1-for-4 with his 20th double.
- DJ Gladney struck out all three times.
- Shawn Goosenberg pinch-hit for him and struck out as well.
- Wilber Sanchez was 0-for-3 with a strikeout.
ACL White Sox 4, ACL Dodgers 1
- Colson Montgomery went 0-for-4.
- Wilfred Veras was 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
- Wes Kath singled, walked and struck out twice.
- Logan Glass was 0-for-3 with an HBP and two strikeouts.
- Jefferson Mendoza went 1-for-4 with a strikeout.
- Cam Butler is on the board after going 1-for-3 with a double, walk and strikeout.
DSL Nationals 2, DSL White Sox 1 (7 innings)
- Manuel Guariman went 0-for-3.
- Carlos Jimenez struck out all three times.
- Victor Queada doubled, singled and struck out.
- Yohemy Nolasco: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
