Lewis goes yard for first spring hit
Royce Lewis' hitless start to Grapefruit League play ended Sunday, and the proof of how nearly vanished with it.MLB.com's No. 9 overall prospect skied a two-run homer to left field off 16th-ranked Rays prospectJoe Ryan that came close to exiting Charlotte Sports Park in the second inning of the Twins'
Royce Lewis' hitless start to Grapefruit League play ended Sunday, and the proof of how nearly vanished with it.
MLB.com's No. 9 overall prospect skied a two-run homer to left field off 16th-ranked Rays prospectJoe Ryan that came close to exiting Charlotte Sports Park in the second inning of the Twins' 8-2 loss. After ending his 0-for-11 skid to begin Spring Training, Lewis grounded out to third base in his only other at-bat.
Heads up on the left-field berm!
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) March 1, 2020
No. 9 overall prospect Royce Lewis' first homer of the spring is a towering two-run shot for #MNTwins. pic.twitter.com/Fnp1StMcY9
Lewis had trouble finding consistent results at the plate in 2019. The 20-year-old shortstop hit .236/.290/.371 in 517 at-bats between Class A Advanced Fort Myers and Double-A Pensacola, his lowest numbers since Minnesota drafted him first overall in 2017. The top Twins prospect earned MVP honors in the Arizona Fall League after batting .353/.411/.565 with three homers in 22 games with Salt River.
Aside from Lewis' blast, Ryan allowed two hits in two innings. He struck out two and didn't walk a batter.
Red Sox 4, Braves 2
Fourth-ranked Braves prospect Kyle Wright handled the middle third of the game, giving up one hit while striking out five over three innings. No. 12 Patrick Weigel followed with a hitless seventh. Fifth-ranked Shea Langeliers grounded out in his only at-bat but worked a bases-loaded walk in the ninth. For the Red Sox, No. 2 prospect Jeter Downs reached on an infield single in the second for his first Grapefruit League hit. Sixth-ranked Tanner Houck threw three scoreless frames, working around two hits and a walk by fanning three. Box score
Tigers 10, Yankees 4
Four top prospects collected hits as the Tigers rolled late. No. 3 Riley Greene scored in the seventh and eighth innings, and his single in the latter frame plated 15th-ranked Sergio Alcántara, who doubled. Alcantara also led off the seventh with a single and scored the first of six runs that inning. No. 25 Andre Lipcius and No. 29 Derek Hill added RBI singles. Yankees No. 4 prospect Oswald Peraza doubled and walked in two plate appearances, while 26th-ranked Brandon Lockridge singled in his lone at-bat. Box score
Astros 5, Cardinals 4
No. 16 prospect Ronnie Dawson hit a two-run triple to right field in the sixth inning to put Houston on the board, then scored the tying run on a wild pitch. Tenth-ranked Brandon Bielak and No. 13 Enoli Paredes each threw two innings of one-hit ball for the Astros. No. 47 overall prospect Nolan Gorman doubled in the fourth for his second extra-base hit of the spring and Cardinals No. 5 Elehuris Montero went 1-for-4 for his first Grapefruit League hit. No. 9 Junior Fernandez and No. 14 Kodi Whitley both tossed scoreless frames, with the former striking out the side and the latter working a 1-2-3 eighth. Box score
Marlins 7, Mets (ss) 1
Twelfth-ranked Marlins prospect Lewin Diaz doubled home Magneuris Sierra in his only at-bat as part of a three-run seventh inning, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on an errant pickoff attempt. No. 18 Jordan Holloway threw two perfect innings. Box score
Orioles 3, Phillies 2
Top Baltimore prospect Adley Rutschman caught the game's final three frames but struck out in his only at-bat. No. 10 Zac Lowther allowed a walk and a hit in an inning and was among five players assigned to Minor League camp. Phillies No. 14 prospect Nick Maton drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth, while No. 20 Damon Jones and No. 24 Kyle Dohy each tossed a scoreless inning. Jones didn't allow a hit and whiffed two. Box score
Pirates 13, Blue Jays 9
No. 8 overall prospect Nate Pearson pitched the fourth and fifth innings for Toronto and did not allow a baserunner. He fanned three and reached triple digits on the radar gun. No. 20 Anthony Alford led off the third with a triple and scored on Bo Bichette's homer. Third-ranked Pirates prospect Oneil Cruz crushed a two-run homer to center off No. 16 Blue Jays prospect T.J. Zeuch in the seventh, just after No. 17 Lolo Sanchez hit a solo shot to left. Fifth-ranked Cal Mitchell went 1-for-2 with a single and has three hits in his last two games. Box score
Mets (ss) 3, Nationals 1
Fourth-ranked Nats prospect Wil Crowe took the ball for the final two innings and did not allow a hit in his second Grapefruit League outing. The right-hander walked two and struck out one. Top Washington prospect Carter Kieboom went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts, while third-ranked Mets prospect Andrés Giménez was 1-for-3 with a single off Sean Doolittle. Box score
Indians (ss) 10, D-backs 6
Indians No. 6 prospect George Valera crushed a solo homer, walked twice and scored three times, while 10th-ranked Brayan Rocchio went 3-for-3 with a three-run jack and three runs scored. Raynel Delgado (No. 28) knocked in a run with a base hit in his only at-bat for Cleveland. Box score
Cubs 7, Mariners 3
Cubs No. 2 prospect Miguel Amaya roped a two-run single and 30th-ranked Trevor Megill worked around two hits to post a scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout. Top M's prospect Jarred Kelenic went 0-for-1 with a walk, while second-ranked Julio Rodriguez notched a base hit. Jake Fraley (No. 8) walked and scored, Kyle Lewis (No. 10) singled and walked, and Braden Bishop (No. 14) singled in a run and scored. Right-hander Sam Delaplane (No. 30) yielded three walks and fanned one in a hitless third for Seattle. Box score
Rockies 6, Angels (ss) 3
Tenth-ranked prospect Yonathan Daza singled and scored in the Rockies' two-run eighth inning. No. 2 prospect Ryan Rolison allowed one hit in a scoreless frame, while Tommy Doyle (No. 21) picked up the save with a 1-2-3 ninth. For the Angels, fifth-ranked prospect Jahmai Jones hammered a leadoff homer in the eighth. Michael Hermosillo (No. 22) went 1-for-2 to raise his Cactus League average to .455. Box score
Brewers 5, Reds 4
Fourth-ranked Milwaukee prospect Corey Ray stroked a two-out solo dinger in the fourth inning to cap the Brewers' scoring. No. 29 Bobby Wahl issued a walk in a hitless frame. Seventh-ranked Reds prospect Tyler Stephenson drew a bases-loaded walk in two-run ninth. No. 8 prospect Michael Siani singled, walked and scored a run, while 17th-ranked Alfredo Rodriguez was 1-for-3 with a run scored. No. 22 Joel Kuhnel worked a spotless seventh for Cincinnati. Box score
Athletics (ss) 10, Royals 6
A's No. 9 prospect Luis Barrera provided insurance with a two-run single in the seventh inning. Jeremy Eierman (No. 15) homered and scored twice, while Mickey McDonald also went deep for the A's. Brady Singer had a rough outing in relief for Kansas City. The No. 2 Royals prospect retired two batters and allowed three runs on three hits and three walks with one strikeout. No. 4 Jackson Kowar and No. 28 Tyler Zuber fared better, combining for a strikeout over 1 1/3 scoreless frames. No. 13 prospect MJ Melendez doubled home his fifth run of the spring and 17th-ranked Jeison Guzman singled in his lone plate appearance. Box score
Rangers 8, Dodgers 6
Sam Huff got into the hit column in a big way for Texas. The second-ranked Rangers prospect cracked a solo homer to snap an 0-for-7 start to his Cactus League campaign. Eli White doubled, singled and scored a run to lift his slash line to .364/.417/.727 in 11 Spring Training at-bats. Twelfth-ranked Dodgers prospect Edwin Ríos hit a two-run homer and walked, while No. 24 Cristian Santana stroked an RBI triple and scored in four at-bats. Victor Gonzalez made his second spring start for Los Angeles and struck out two in two perfect innings. Box score
White Sox 8, Angels (ss) 7
Andrew Vaughn and Nick Madrigal -- the second- and fourth-ranked White Sox prospects -- both singled and drove in a run, with Madrigal scoring once at Tempe Diablo Stadium. No. 25 prospect Yermin Mercedes added a double, an RBI and a run scored in three at-bats. White Sox No. 20 prospect Bernardo Flores struck out four in two perfect innings, while No. 27 Codi Heuer fanned one in a scoreless sixth. Box score
Padres 7, Giants 5
Padres No. 24 prospect Javy Guerra allowed two hits but struck out a batter to work out of trouble in an inning of scoreless relief. Two-way player Jake Cronenworth, ranked 17th in the San Diego system, went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored, putting his early spring average at .364. Top Giants prospect Joey Bart singled in two trips to the plate. Box score
Athletics (ss) 8, Indians (ss) 5
No. 12 overall prospect Jesus Luzardo got the start for Oakland and worked three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out three. Eighth-ranked Sheldon Neuse singled twice for the A's before giving way to No. 15 Jeremy Eierman, who smacked a solo homer and scored twice. Royals No. 13 prospect MJ Melendez hit an RBI double, but top-ranked Brady Singer recorded two outs and surrendered three runs on three hits and three walks with a strikeout. Box score
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