2017 Nashville Sounds Season in Review
Nashville Sounds fans flocked to First Tennessee Park in record numbers in 2017, the 40th season in franchise history. The ball club concluded the season with 68 wins and 71 losses to finish in second place in the American Southern Division. Nashville spent 131 days out of 160 in second
Nashville Sounds fans flocked to First Tennessee Park in record numbers in 2017, the 40th season in franchise history. The ball club concluded the season with 68 wins and 71 losses to finish in second place in the American Southern Division. Nashville spent 131 days out of 160 in second place.
593,679 fans came through the gates in 2017 to set a new ballpark record and the 8,861 fans per game paced the Pacific Coast League. Seven of the ten largest crowds in First Tennessee Park history occurred in 2017 including the largest ever on July 3 against Oklahoma City when 11,764 fans came out to watch the Sounds and the Dodgers. There were 22 sellouts out of 67 openings after 33 sellouts in 2015 and 2016 combined.
64 players donned the Sounds colors this season, 25 position players and 39 pitchers. Seven of them were called up by the Oakland Athletics to make their MLB debuts. Infielders
Nuñez continued to mash in the second half of the season en route to PCL postseason All-Star honors and was selected as the Sounds Team MVP. The native of Venezuela batted .249 (118-for-473) with 27 doubles, 32 home runs, and 78 RBI. His 32 home runs are tied for fifth on the Sounds single season home runs list and second in all of MiLB. His 55 career home runs for the Sounds are fourth in franchise history.
Pitcher
Sounds catcher
Three Sounds garnered Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week honors. Daniel Gossett took home the award for the week of May 22-28. On May 22 the right-hander tossed eight shutout innings against the Sacramento River Cats while allowing just four hits with no walks and six strikeouts. Then on May 27 against Colorado Springs he threw six more shutout innings while yielding just a pair of hits with no walks and eight punch outs.
Chris Smith was honored with the award after hurling six no-hit innings at Omaha on June 7. Smith along with Healy, rehabbing
The Sounds boasted one of the most powerful lineups in MiLB in the early part of the season prior to Chapman's call up to the big leagues in mid-June. Chapman along with Nuñez and
Chapman excelled during his tenure with the Sounds as he showed why scouts view him as an elite defender at third base. He showed his power at the plate as well, belting 16 home runs and driving in 30 in just 49 games before making his MLB debut.
23 different pitchers started a game for the Sounds led by
Second baseman
21-year-old Franklin Barreto made his presence felt for the Sounds in his first full season at Triple-A. He earned his first ever call up to the big leagues in late June and was promoted again when the rosters expanded in September. The A's top prospect appeared in 111 games for the Sounds and hit .290 (136-for-469) with 63 runs scored, 19 doubles, seven triples, 15 home runs, 54 runs driven in, and 15 stolen bases. His 15 home runs set a new career-high.
Strikeouts were an offensive epidemic for the Sounds in 2017. Barreto and Nuñez each struck out 141 times, which is tied for eighth in Sounds single-season history. Overall Nashville was fanned 1,217 times to set a new franchise record.
The Sounds made 180 transactions during the 2017 campaign including one prior to the first game. Pitcher
Nashville walked-off eight times at First Tennessee Park over the course of the 2017 season. Seven different players recorded walk-off hits and one came in to score on an error.
The month of May was prosperous for the Sounds in 2017. The offense crushed 46 home runs, more than any team in all of professional baseball and the pitching staff posted a PCL-best 3.38 ERA while also leading the league with five shutouts. The 46 home runs were the most a Sounds team hit in a single month since 2005. Chapman led the way with 11, which were the second most for any Sounds player in a month in that same time.
The Sounds were consistent for the entirety of the season as they never had an extended winning or losing streak. The ball club never won more than four games in a row and never dropped more than five in a row. They were swept once and completed one series sweep themselves, the final series of the season against New Orleans.
Seven different players recorded hitting streaks of at least ten games. Wendle and
The Sounds were noticeably better away from First Tennessee Park for the second straight season. Nashville went 37-33 on the road as opposed to 31-38 at home. On the road the team hit .277 with 382 runs, 122 doubles, 20 triples, and 103 home runs compared to a .244 batting average with 273 runs, 104 doubles, 15 triples, and 56 home runs at First Tennessee Park.
A franchise milestone was achieved this season at home against the Oklahoma City Dodgers. The very last hit recorded by the Sounds in June was the 50,000th in team history.
Taylor joined the Sounds midway through the season after spending parts of the last six seasons in Double-A. The catcher appeared in 41 games for Nashville and batted .289 (41-for-142) with six doubles, three home runs, and 17 RBI.
Just two Sounds players spent the entire season with the ball club and never went on the disabled list. Nuñez and McBride earned that distinction although McBride broke a bone in his wrist in the final home game of the season. Despite the injury he was not placed on the disabled list for the final four games of the season. McBride, in his second season with Nashville, appeared in 79 games for the Sounds. He played first base 23 times, catcher 27 times, and in the outfield 21 times. He batted .231 (58-for-251) and with 19 doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, and 49 RBI.
Most Starts by Position
C - Ryan Lavarnway, 56
1B - Matt Olson, 71
2B - Joey Wendle, 81
SS - Franklin Barreto, 83
3B - Matt Chapman, 49
LF - Renato Nuñez, 47
CF - Jaff Decker, 42
RF - Mark Canha, 61
DH - Renato Nuñez, 30
Batting Leaders
Pitching Leaders