Farm to Fountains: Daily Digest (4/13/24)

Preston Farr April 13, 2024 in Minor Leagues Tagged Blake Mitchell, Carter Jensen, Henry Williams, Hunter Patteson - 4 Minutes

The Royals minor league affiliates finished 4-1 on Saturday, outscoring opponents a combined 29 to 11. Behind a handful of stellar pitching performances, it was a strong day for pitching in the farm system. Here’s today’s daily digest:

Omaha Storm Chasers

Final: Omaha 13, Gwinnett 6

The Storm Chasers’ offense stayed strong, churning out their third game this week with at least 10 runs. William Fleming was on the mound for Omaha but struggled in his second Triple-A start. Fleming allowed five earned runs over 4.1 innings pitched. Two Omaha runs scored off a balk and a wild pitch in the first inning. CJ Alexander and Nate Eaton widened the lead with home runs in the third and fourth innings. The Omaha lead stood at six entering the fifth.

The fifth inning was a struggle for Fleming and he allowed all five of his runs in the inning. Walter Pennington allowed another run in the same inning bringing the game to a 6-6 score. From there on, the Omaha bullpen was outstanding. After the fifth, Pennington and Will Klein combined for four scoreless innings allowing just two hits while striking out five. Omaha put up four more runs in the home fifth, then added to their lead with a seventh-inning run and two more in the eighth.

Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Final: Northwest Arkansas 3, San Antonio 4

Chandler Champlain started the game for Northwest Arkansas. After a rough start to the season, he got back on track Saturday. Champlain allowed just two runs on the day over five innings. A San Antonio run scored in the first on a fielding error by the pitcher. The Naturals responded with runs off of a Peyton Wilson triple and a Gavin Cross double in the third inning. The Missions answered with two of their runs in the bottom of the inning and the score would remain 3-2 until the top of the sixth.

With a man on second and third, Diego Hernandez grounded out to score Dillan Shrum from third, tying the game at three. The score would remain there until the bottom of the ninth. With a man on first and third, Jacob Wallace allowed Connor Hollis to score from third, securing the walk-off win for San Antonio.

Quad Cities River Bandits

Final: Quad Cities 2, West Michigan 1

Final (double-header): Quad Cities 2, West Michigan 0

The River Bandits had a scheduled double-header following Wednesday’s postponed contest. Game one saw Steven Zobac get the start. He was sharp all day, allowing just a single earned run over five innings of work. Carter Jensen gave Quad Cities the lead with an RBI single in the top of the third. West Michigan answered to tie the game in the home fourth. The game would remain tied until Trevor Werner scored Carson Roccaforte with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 8th. Thanks to a lights-out effort by the Quad Cities’ bullpen, the game wrapped up with a 2-1 win. Chase Wallace and Brandon Johnson combined for three scoreless innings.

In game two, the River Bandits sent Henry Williams to the mound. Williams was masterful, allowing just two hits over five scoreless innings. Ryan Ramsey slammed the door shut with two more scoreless innings in relief. He struck out five hitters on 22 total pitches — 20 for strikes. Brett Squires and Carter Jensen provided the offense, securing the win. Squires hit an RBI double in the top of the third and Jensen singled in Dustin Dickerson to score a second run in the fourth. Quad Cities moves to 5-3 on the season.

Columbia Fireflies

Final: Columbia 9, Myrtle Beach 0

Despite strong outings by Steven Zobac and Henry Williams, the best pitching performance on the day belonged to Columbia starter Hunter Patteson. After four perfect innings in his first outing of the season, Patteson made his first start of the season on Saturday. He was nearly as dominant this time around. Over five full innings, Patteson allowed just one hit and no walks while striking out seven. The Pelicans’ offense couldn’t get anything started against him.

Felix Arronde was strong in his own right, pitching four scoreless innings in relief. He allowed just one hit of his own. On offense, Jhonny Perdomo doubled in two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Chris Brito had three RBI of his own off a sacrifice fly in the fifth and a home run in the bottom of the seventh. Perhaps the most notable news of the day belonged to Blake Mitchell. The 2023 first-round pick hit his first Low-A home run.