Fagalde posts eight zeros in Double-A debut
Alex Fagalde had no trouble finding success in his first Double-A start Monday. It was getting to it that was the hard part.The right-handed St. Louis prospect made the longest start of his career in his first appearance with Springfield, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out four
Alex Fagalde had no trouble finding success in his first Double-A start Monday. It was getting to it that was the hard part.
The right-handed St. Louis prospect made the longest start of his career in his first appearance with Springfield, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out four over eight innings in a 3-0 win over Midland.
Fagalde was called up from Class A Advanced Palm Beach less than 48 hours before he took the hill at Security Bank Ballpark, and by the time he'd arrived, he'd been through the ringer. Flying from Palm Beach to Dallas to Midland, he experienced multiple flight cancellations and delays as a result of the weather. He spent a total of 12 hours in the airport and over five in the air.
Once the hurler arrived in town, he got just a few hours of much-needed sleep. Then upon returning to the airport in the morning to retrieve his luggage, there was heart-dropping news -- the airline had lost one of his bags. The lone silver lining was that it wasn't the one carrying the gear he needed to play later that day.
Finally putting all the travel concerns finally behind him, Fagalde took the one bag he did have and headed to the stadium to begin the next chapter of his career. Taking the hill hours later, he felt physically and mentally wiped out, with the perhaps expected case of nerves that comes with such a momentous moment.
Gameday box score
That only aided Fagalde's cause apparently.
"Definitely had some jitters at the beginning of the game, but I think it helped me out a little bit," Fagalde said. "Had a tough travel day yesterday, so I think the nerves kind of leveled me out a little bit."
Once the game started, the 25-year-old was nothing short of dominant. He faced the minimum the first time through, then surrendered a single to left field to Athletics No. 13 prospect Luis Barrera to open the fourth and a walk to No. 20 Tyler Ramirez two batters later. Neither would score, however, as Barrera was caught stealing and Ramirez was stranded on a flyout from No. 30 Dairon Blanco, who later delivered the only other hit allowed by Fagalde in the seventh.
The recipe for success for the UC Riverside grad was thriving early in counts. He threw 80 total pitches, as he was able to quickly sit down many of the RockHounds he faced. Of the 23 outs he recorded, 10 came within his first two offerings.
"I threw a lot of strikes," Fagalde said. "I was in the zone a lot, and they're an aggressive team. They were swinging early in the counts. I was just trying to keep them from hitting it too hard. They definitely got pitches to hit there in the strike zone and just missed the barrels a lot."
The 2017 30th-round pick premiered with Springfield after going 6-3 with a 1.99 ERA with Class A Advanced Palm Beach to open the season. Over 13 starts, he held opponents to a .188 batting average. In 2018, he finished the season 10-5 with a 2.16 ERA between Palm Beach and Class A Peoria.
Over that time, he crossed paths with many of the Springfield teammates he joined Monday. The fact he already had some friends and familiar faces to celebrate with made his performance that much more memorable.
"I know a lot of these guys, and obviously, I've gotten to play with them before," he said. "So they were excited to see me, I was excited to see them. ... By the end of the game, yeah, it was cool to see them react. They kind of flipped out in the clubhouse and were making some jokes when I got back in. So we had a lot of fun today at the ballpark."
So after all the disruptive delays, lost luggage and scarcity of sleep, Fagalde was just happy to have arrived in the Texas League -- not to mention that it happened in such impressive fashion.
"I made it," he said. "I made it here, so happy to say that much."
Jordan Wolf is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @byjordanwolf.
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between
Prospect Peña quietly drawing raves in Brewers' farm system
PHOENIX – Jesús Made was at the top of the Brewers’ lineup for Sunday’s 9-7 loss to the Reds in the finale of MLB’s four-day Spring Breakout, a fitting perch when you consider that the 17-year-old infielder is under a bright spotlight as MLB Pipeline’s No. 55 prospect. Made could
Brecht -- in 1st outing since '24 Draft -- wows at Spring Breakout
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Sunday's Spring Breakout showcase was the perfect unveiling for Rockies No. 5 prospect Brody Brecht. A right-handed pitcher from the University of Iowa whom the Rockies selected 38th overall last summer, Brecht had a nice collegiate resume, an interesting backstory as a former wide receiver for the
Braves prospects show promise in Spring Breakout
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have
Yanks' Lagrange flashes triple-digit heat in Spring Breakout
SARASOTA, Fla. -- There was an audible “Ooh” from the crowd at Ed Smith Stadium, and Carlos Lagrange quickly glanced beyond the right-field wall, checking the velocity of the pitch he’d just thrown in Saturday’s 5-4 Spring Breakout loss to the Orioles. It had registered in the triple digits, and
Bradfield dedicates Spring Breakout performance to late friend
SARASOTA, Fla. -- It was about more than playing in the national spotlight. More than the dinner bet placed with an old college teammate earlier in the month. More than a game. As Enrique Bradfield Jr. slid home to score a run during the first inning of Saturday night’s Spring