MLB Spring Training: Travis Demeritte states his case

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Travis Demeritte and Abraham Almonte are among the fringe players making a positive MLB spring training impression. Here’s what else we learned around the world of baseball yesterday.

Trying to make the Detroit Tigers outfield, Travis Demeritte enjoyed a headliner-type day Monday. in Padres camp, non-roster invitee Abraham Almonte continued to show big. The Braves, meanwhile, savored the blossoming competition at third base between Austin Riley and Johan Camargo.

But veteran pitcher Edwin Jackson‘s hopes of extending his major league career into an 18th season took a serious hit. And nobody’s hopes may have taken a more damaging hit than Reds outfielder Aristides Aquino. Here are the winners and losers from Monday’s games.

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Winner: Rangel Ravelo, St. Louis Cardinals, first baseman

Rangel Ravelo is the backup to Paul Goldschmidt. He’s also a rookie with only 29 games of major league experience to his credit. That means his predicted 2020 playing time in St. Louis is essentially nil. Still, Ravelo is giving Cardinal fans – and potential trade partners looking for some sock – plenty to think about.

Facing the Twins Monday, Ravelo’s second-inning leadoff double set the stage for a three-run Cardinal rally. He added an eighth-inning base hit

In 19 spring plate appearances, Ravelo now has six hits, translating to a .316 batting average. Throw in his four bases on balls and you’re looking at a .458 on-base average and .827 OPS. Numbers of that kind may not steal at-bats from Goldschmidt, but they should catch somebody’s attention.

MLB Spring Training Recap: March 2

Loser: Aristides Aquino, Cincinnati Reds outfielder

A bad MLB spring training got significantly worse for Aquino, who not long ago figured to be a centerpiece of the Reds’ push for the NL Central flag.

Aristides Aquino went 0-for-2 with a strikeout against the Dodgers in Monday’s 6-2 Reds victory. He is now hitless in 14 spring at-bats. But that wasn’t the worst of it for Aquino.

In the fifth inning, Aquino took a Josiah Gray fastball off his fists and had to leave the game. The Reds and Aquino will both have to sweat out the medical reports and hope the injury is not serious.

Winner: Asher Wojciechowski, Baltimore Orioles pitcher

Obviously there are opportunities aplenty on the Orioles mound staff, but Asher Wojciechowski is one guy the O’s are counting on.

Coming off a 4-8 season in which he made 16 starts, Wojciechowski is projected to take a regular turn in 2020. Against the Tampa Bay Rays Monday, he worked a solid three innings, allowing just one baserunner, that on a base on balls.

Through five spring innings now, Wojciechowski has allowed just one run and just two hits. He has more strikeouts (four) than baserunners allowed (three). The game ended in a 3-3 tie.

Winner: Travis Demeritte, Detroit Tigers outfielder

Demeritte is competing for a backup outfield spot, so he needs days like he enjoyed Monday against the Red Sox.

Inserted into the sixth inning of Monday’s game against the Red Sox as a pinch hitter, Demeritte homered with a runner on base, reducing a 7-1 Tiger deficit to 7-3.

He flew out in the eighth in what appeared at the time to be his final at-bat. After all, the Tigers still trailed 11-5 at that point. In the ninth, however, Detroit cobbled together a late rally founded on three singles and a pair of walks. With two out, runners at first and second and Boston’s lead reduced to 11-8, Adam Lau was summoned to the mound to face Demeritte.

Demeritte launched another home over the left-field wall, this one tying the game at 11-11. When Lau retired the next batter, that’s the way the game ended.

MLB Spring Training Recap: March 2

Loser: Pittsburgh Pirates offense

On Sunday, the Pittsburgh offense broke out of a spring-long slump with a 13-run, 15-hit attack that made us all wonder whether the Pirates had found their batting eyes.

The answer came during Monday’s meeting with the Toronto Blue Jays. In a word: nope.

Matt Shoemaker and five relievers did what pitchers everywhere have been doing most of the spring; they gave the Pirates virtually nothing. In the 4-0 Toronto win, Pittsburgh batters collected just three hits, all singles.

The Pirates are now hitting .221 as a team for a spring in which they have won just two of 10 starts.

Loser: Cam Bedrosian, Los Angeles Angels pitcher

Another day, another dent to Joe Maddon’s bullpen plans. On Sunday, non-roster pitcher Neil Ramirez gave up eight earned runs in one-third of an inning against the Chicago White Sox. On Monday, facing the Cubs, the Angels were nursing a 2-1 lead through five and one-half innings when Maddon summoned Cam Bedrosian in to start the bottom of the sixth.

In short order, Bedrosian jeopardized that lead, walking the first two hitters he faced and surrendering a Javier Baez single that loaded the bases. The next Cub hitter, Kyle Schwarber, sent a fly ball over the head of the center fielder Brennon Lund for a bases-clearing double.

When Victor Caratini doubled one out later to score pinch-runner Trent Giambrone, Bedrosian’s mound tenure was finished. In one-third of an inning, he had allowed three hits, two walks, and five runs, all of them earned.

Winner and non-roster player of the day: Abraham Almonte, San Diego Padres outfielder

Almonte is a journeyman non-roster invitee who is making waves in Padres camp. Against the Cincinnati Reds Saturday, Almonte sent the game’s second pitch into left field for a triple, singled again in the second, and delivered the third single in a four-run Padre fifth inning.

Monday facing White Sox veteran Dallas Keuchel, Almonte was back at it. He opened the game with a ground-rule double, eventually scoring the game’s first run. He singled again off Keuchel in the third, but this time was erased in a double play. He also walked.

Almonte is carrying a .500 batting average and a 1.42 OPS. He’s not yet considered likely to make the major league roster, but he’s giving the Padres something serious to think about.

Loser: Minnesota Twins offense

Last year Twins hitters set an all-time record for home runs. Through eight games this spring, they’re performing like an entirely different cast.

The batting slump continued during Monday’s 6-1 defeat at the hands of the Cardinals. Presenting a lineup larded with reserves and minor leaguers, the twins managed just four base hits in a 6-1 defeat.

This is how bad Minnesota’s offense has been so far in the spring. They rank dead last among the 30 teams in batting average, hitting only .197. They’re also 29th in on-base average.

As befits their reputation, the Twins are tied for fifth overall in long balls. That sounds pretty good until you consider that their 13 home uns represent nearly 20 percent of all their base hits so far this season. Of the Twins five most frequently used hitters so far this MLB spring training, four are batting below .200.

Johan Camargo of the Atlanta Braves in action during MLB spring training (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

MLB Spring Training Recap: March 2

Winners: Braves third base competition

In Braves camp, much of the attention has been focused 0on the battle between Johan Camargo and Austin Riley to succeed Josh Donaldson at third base.