By “DZ”. Filed 11 Aug. 2021.
In the last fortnight, two European minor leaguers have stood out. Sem Robberse (Netherlands) is in the midst of a dominant streak of starts, earning a promotion to High-A. Samuel Aldegheri (Italy) continues his success in full-season ball, stretching his scoreless outings since his promotion to four. Meanwhile, eight of Europe’s pro baseballers are currently on the injured list, with six out for the year.
Previous updates in this year’s series:
May 3 (Introduction) [link]
May 27 [link]
July 7 [link]
July 28 [link]
MLB (2)
Didi Gregorius, Philadelphia Phillies. Netherlands.
The shortstop for the first-place Phillies continues to battle elbow pain, missing a few days last week. He hit two home runs within his eight hits (for a .250 average) in the last two weeks. Gregorius has 10 home runs and three stolen bases and a .265 OBP in 2021.
Max Kepler, Minnesota Twins. Germany.
The outfielder from Berlin and the Regensburg Academy has seven hits and one home run in the last two weeks. He has 14 home runs and eight stolen bases with a .289 OBP this season.
Triple-A (2)
Martin Cervenka, New York Mets. Czech Republic.
Syracuse Mets. The Triple-A catcher has five hits in five games played over the last two weeks, including two home runs. He has six homers and five doubles in 122 at bats, hitting .221 for the year, with 15 walks and 39 strikeouts.
Markus Solbach, Los Angeles Dodgers. Germany.
Oklahoma City Dodgers. Solbach made two starts since we last checked in; he pitched 11 innings, allowed 15 hits and 6 runs, and struck out 9 while walking 2. He is 0-6 with a 6.95 ERA in 13 games this season.
High-A (1)
Sem Robberse, Toronto Blue Jays. Netherlands. Fangraphs No. 30, Prospects 1500 No. 35.
Vancouver Canadians. Robberse won his last three starts in overpowering fashion, allowing one, one, and zero runs – the latest being a one-hit, one-walk outing in five innings. Robberse was just promoted to High-A Vancouver, and is likely to make his debut there later this week. For the year in Low-A Dunedin, the Dutch righty had a 5-4 record, 3.90 ERA in 14 games and 57.2 innings. He walked 20 and struck out 61.
Single-A (8)
Samuel Aldegheri, Philadelphia Phillies. Italy.
Clearwater Threshers. The left-handed pitcher threw in two more games, accumulating six shutout innings with three hits, three walks, and nine strikeouts. He’s now pitched ten innings across four games in A-ball without allowing a run. For the season, split between the complex league and Single-A, Aldegheri has an 0.96 ERA in 18.2 innings with 30 strikeouts and 8 walks.
Yoan Antonac, Philadelphia Phillies. France.
Clearwater Threshers. The 6’9” (2.06m) Montpelier native was promoted to Single-A Clearwater last week. He recorded two quick outs in his full-season debut, and allowed five runs in 1.2 innings in his second outing at the higher level. He hadd allowed four hits in five innings in his five games in the complex league. Across both levels, he has pitched 7.1 innings, allowed 8 hits and 8 runs while walking 7 and striking out 7.
Darryl Collins, Kansas City Royals. Netherlands. Prospects 1500 No. 17, MLB.com No. 22, Fangraphs No. 23.
Columbia Fireflies. Collins was presumably dealing with a minor injury, as he’s played the last two nights (walking five times, with three runs scored and three RBI despite no hits) after a two-week break from game play. His season batting line is .250/.379/.347.
Omar Hernández, Kansas City Royals. Spain.
Columbia Fireflies. Hernández is in the midst of a slump, accruing one hit across 32 at bats in the past two weeks. That hit was in his latest game, however, and he scored two runs in the contest. The catcher’s season line sits at .181/.242/.293.
Anton Kuznetsov, Philadelphia Phillies. Russia.
Clearwater Threshers. Since we last checked in two weeks ago, Kuznetsov has not pitched and has been placed on the 60-day injured list, bringing his season to a premature end. He pitched 12 innings in 6 games.
Shervyen Newton, New York Mets. Netherlands.
St. Lucie Mets. Newton is also out for the season.
Ernesto Wilson Martínez, Milwaukee Brewers. France.
Carolina Mudcats. Martínez has an active seven game hitting streak, but he last played on Aug. 4. He was placed on the 7-day injured list a few days later. The outfielder is hitting .271/.373/.507 in 207 at bats with 26 extra base hits and 24 stolen bases.
Leonardo Seminati, Cincinnati Reds. Italy.
Daytona Tortugas. Seminati has eight hits in 31 ABs over the past two weeks, including two doubles and a home run. The San Martino native is hitting .215/.302/.392 in 158 at bats.
Complex Rookie Leagues (8)
Jiorgeny Casimiri, Toronto Blue Jays, Netherlands.
FCL Blue Jays. Casimiri received his second promotion to Single-A in late July, but after three outings he returned to the Florida Complex League. He’s pitched 10 games across the two stints for Dunedin and 6 for the FCL team. Between the two, he has a 2-3 record and 9.15 ERA in 19.2 innings with 26 hits, 15 walks, and 22 strikeouts.
Marc Civit, Toronto Blue Jays. Spain.
FCL Blue Jays. Civit pitched once in the last two weeks, with two hits and four walks entering the ledger without the southpaw recording an out. He has appeared in 7 games for 9.1 innings with 8 hits, 14 walks, and 6 strikeouts.
Darnel Collins, Kansas City Royals. Netherlands.
ACL Royals Gold. Collins, a 17-year-old left-handed hitter, had five extra-base hits in 65 at bats in July to go with 9 walks and only 13 strikeouts. He did not play from July 31 until Aug. 10, when he returned with two hits. He is hitting .253 with a stolen base in 75 ABs.
Daniele Di Monte, Detroit Tigers. Italy.
FCL Tigers West. Di Monte has four appearances totaling 6 innings over the past two weeks. He has walked 9 and hit two more batters during that time while allowing 5 hits. In 8 games total in 2021, he has an 0-5 record and 8.53 ERA in 19 innings.
Alessandro Ercolani, Pittsburgh Pirates. San Marino/Italy.
FCL Pirates Gold. Ercolani pitched once since we last checked in, throwing two innings with one hit and four strikeouts. In his three career outings (four innings), the 17-year-old has allowed one baserunner and struck out seven.
Arij Fransen, Cincinnati Reds. Netherlands.
ACL Reds. Fransen made two extended appearances in August, allowing 14 hits and 7 runs in 8.1 innings. He walked only one and struck out ten. Through six games and 22.1 innings, he is 2-1 with a 5.24 ERA with 27 hits, 3 walks (and two hit batters), and 31 strikeouts.
Ettore Giulianelli, St Louis Cardinals. Italy.
FCL Cardinals. The 18-year-old pitched three times in the last two weeks, including a two-inning start with one hit and four strikeouts. He has given up runs in only two of his eight appearances for an 0-1 record and 3.24 ERA. In 8.1 innings, Giulianelli has allowed 8 hits and 6 walks with 14 strikeouts.
Nicolo Pinazzi, Cincinnati Reds, Italy
ACL Reds. The Milan lefty has three hitless games in the past two weeks, allowing only one hit in his five pro appearances to date. He’s walked seven hitters and struck out ten in five innings.
Niklas Rimmel, Minnesota Twins. Germany.
FCL Twins. Rimmel, from Berlin, is on the 60-day injured list and has yet to pitch in 2021.
Foreign Rookie Leagues (3)
Eduardo Domínguez, Los Angeles Dodgers. Spain.
DSL Dodgers Bautista. Domínguez has pitched in two more games, totaling four innings with four hits, two runs, two walks, and a strikeout. Through 6 appearances on the year, he is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA in 12 innings with 5 walks and 7 strikeouts.
Delson Guzmán, Milwaukee Brewers. Spain.
DSL Brewers 1. After Guzmán made his first two professional appearances, he was placed on the 60-day injured list, ending his 2021 season.
Frank Hernández, Chicago Cubs. Spain.
DSL Cubs Blue. Hernández has hits in 11 of his last 14 games. In 19 games and 66 at bats for the season, he’ Is hitting .258/.324/.364. The outfielder from Barcelona is 19 years old.
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