Feb. 29: The rise and fall of guys named Almonte
Winners and losers from Spring Training action on Saturday.
A couple of fellows named Almonte stood out during Spring Training games Saturday, — one for all the right reasons and one for all the wrong ones. Baltimore’s Chris Davis continued to appear rejuvenated from what has basically been a four-year slump.
Finally, the Yankees – in need of rotation certainty – got some from the most certain guy in baseball, Gerrit Cole.
Winner: Gerrit Cole, New York Yankees pitcher
Cole’s second spring start went exactly like his first…superbly. Facing the Detroit Tigers, Cole faced 10 batters and retired eight of them, two on strikeouts. The only two hits off him came on a looping fly ball and a seeing-eye grounder.
In his first 3.2 spring innings, Cole’s stats are impressive: a .154 opponents batting average, a 0.82 WHIP and a highly efficient 1.86 pitches per opponent.
Winner: Carlos Martinez, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher
As questions swirl around the composition and health of the team’s rotation, the Cardinals increasingly need Martinez to come through. Facing the Nationals in his second spring start, Martinez was as calming as announcement of a vaccine against coronavirus.
Against the Nationals, he delivered three hitless innings, striking out four. The only hiccups were three bases on balls. But two came with two out and the last was offset by a double play grounder.
That performance was reassuring, coming as it did in the wake of a shaky debut in which he gave up two runs in one and one-third innings.
Winner: Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles first baseman
The resurrection of Chris Davis continues. Hoping to overcome the negative juju from back-to-back sub. 200 batting averages, Davis hit his third spring home run against the Miami Marlins, and ran his spring batting average to .714.
Davis’ home run came with two runners on base and highlighted a five-run Baltimore second inning. He also drew his fourth spring base on balls.
Davis is now batting .714 for the spring with a nifty 2.000 slugging average.
Winner: Eduardo Rodriguez, Boston Red Sox pitcher
The Red Sox lost 5-2 to the Yankees, but they did get good news in the form of a strong spring debut by Eduardo Rodriguez.
Coming off a 19-6 2019 season, Rodriguez pitched three solid innings. He did allow two base hits, but offset that with six strikeouts.
Rodriguez’ only rough spot came in the second, when Clint Frazier led off with a double and Erik Kratz singled him to third. Rodriguez responded by striking out Thairo Estrada, then got a double play ball out of Estevan Florial to quell that threat.
Winner (and non-roster player of the day): Abraham Almonte, San Diego Padres outfielder
Almonte is a seven-year journeyman whose resume includes stints with the Mariners, Padres, Indians, Royals and Diamondbacks. He and his .239 career batting average are in camp this spring trying to win a job in the Padres outfield.
Padres manager Jayce Tingler gave Almonte a long look in the leadoff position against the Cincinnati Reds Saturday. Almonte sent the game’s second pitch into left field for a triple, singled in the second, and delivered another single in a four-run Padre fifth inning.
Collectively, it was a performance that had to help Almonte’s chances with the Padres.
Loser: Sandy Alcantara, Miami Marlins pitcher
Davis’s win had to be somebody else’s loss, and that somebody else turned out to be Alcantara. That’s a big deal because on paper at least Alcantara is the ace of the Marlins staff.
In his second spring appearance, Alcantara faced 13 batters and retired just five of them. The home run he gave up to Davis was one of five hits he allowed, and he also walked four batters.
His spring ERA now sits at 17.18, which even early in the spring is a bit high for an ace.
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Loser: Taylor Clarke, Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher
Following up on his brief 2019 major league experience, Clarke is a longshot to win a rotation spot either as a starter or – more likely – a long reliever. His performance Saturday does not help Clarke’s case.
In two and two-thirds innings against the Dodgers, Clarke took a consistent pounding. In the first inning, he gave up a single, a triple and a home run. The second inning produced two more singles, two doubles and three more runs.
That performance drove Clarke’s spring ERA for two appearances to 18.69.
Loser: Colorado Rockies offense
The Rockies hope to dethrone the Dodgers this summer. They got their chance against rising ace Walker Buehler Saturday, and did not appear up to the task.
In a 14-2 beat-down, Rockies regulars – who comprised most of the starting lineup – went hitless in 15 at bats. David Dahl is now off to a .182 start, Trevor Story and Nolan Arenado are batting .222, Charlie Blackmon is hitting .111 and Ian Desmond remains hitless.
Against Buehler, the Rockies went six-up-and-six-down with two strikeouts.
Loser, Yency Almonte, Colorado Rockies pitcher
It was hard to tell whether the Rockies offense had a worse day than Almonte, a fringe Rockies pitcher for two seasons who’s like to improve that standing in 2020.
Almonte entered the game in the fifth inning with one run in, one out and two Dodgers on base. At that moment the Dodgers led Colorado 2-0. But not for long.
The first batter Almonte faced, Corey Seager, walked to load the bases. Enriquez Hernandez followed with a two-run double, and before help arrived there followed two home runs, two doubles, a walk, a wild pitch and a single.
In one-third of an inning, Almonte was charged with six hits and eight runs, all of them earned. By the time he got to the dugout, Almonte’s 30.86 ERA was substantially higher than his chances of making the team.
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Loser: Tanner Anderson, Oakland Athletics pitcher
A turbulent contest between the A’s and visiting Cleveland Indians didn’t turn on Anderson’s desultory sixth inning performance, but it sure could have.
Anderson is a non-roster invitee who’s had two brief major league stints, neither of which produced an ERA under 6.00. He entered Saturday’s game with Oakland carrying a 4-1 advantage into the top of the sixth.
Anderson faced seven hitters, six of whom slapped him around for a double and five singles. By the time Anderson was relieved, Oakland’s 4-1 lead had become a 6-4 Cleveland lead.
The A’s did come back to win 8-7, but that could have been very small consolation to Anderson.