Earlier this year, the Winston-Salem Dash were sold to Diamond Baseball Holdings, a company that also owns the Birmingham Barons and 30 other minor league baseball teams. While I've heard nothing but good things about DBH's stewardship at the individual franchise level so far, any Fanatics customer will tell you to be naturally suspicious when one entity controls so much of the industry.
The Athletic published the story I've been wanting to read, as Chad Jennings, Evan Drellich and Sam Blum teamed up to assess DBH's current and potential impact on the minor league landscape.
Basically, what's known is OK: Minor league clubs are benefiting from national corporate sponsorships and the ability to bulk-purchase items like video boards and grounds-crew equipment, yet DBH has pretty much retained all local management and staffers, so they're not run from afar. The deeper pockets and connections could help teams use minor league ballparks for non-baseball events, which is something that most teams and towns don't tap into.
What's unknown is the long game, and it's unnerving if you're naturally suspicious of private equity (DBH is backed by Silver Lake) or Major League Baseball. DBH could be in a position to benefit if MLB decides to contract the minor leagues further, and Silver Lake could be interested in selling the teams in bulk, and either course could put the squeeze on individual owners.
Charlotte 5, Syracuse 1
- Oscar Colás went 0-for-3 with a sac fly and two strikeouts.
- Zach DeLoach was 1-for-4 with a strikeout and a stolen base.
- John Brebbia opened his rehab stint as an opener: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
- Prelander Berroa: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Winston-Salem 2, Bowling Green 1
- Samuel Zavala wore the golden sombrero.
- Loidel Chapelli went 0-for-3 with a walk.
- Jacob Gonzalez went 0-for-3 with a walk.
- Juan Carela: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 37 of 52 pitches for strikes.
Notes:
*Shawn Goosenberg's two-run homer was the Dash's only hit, but the Hot Rods only had two themselves.
Kannapolis 4, Myrtle Beach 1
- Rikuu Nishida went 0-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base.
- Seth Keener: 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 1 WP, 1 HBP, 48 of 82 pitches for strikes.
