Thoughts from spring training games I attended

[Going Underground]

2 hours ago, waroriole said:

Grayson seems to have a bad habit of cruising for a few innings and then imploding. Possibly a byproduct of always being yanked after 4-5 IP. 

Red Sox split squad and they  had zero regulars and not sure  any will be on their Opening Day roster  Grayson was fine and dominated for three innings. Three more starts ,looks like before the season starts. Lined up as the fifth starter 

Edited March 12, 2023 by Going Underground

[AlbNYfan]

Grayson should have cruised through the Sox line up today, and through 3 he did. Not complaining, he got more work in. By contrast Voth yesterday faced a much more difficult task with the Jays line up. Too many BB and not helped by error by Gunnar. I'm not really trying to compare the two, one is supposed to be a potential ace, the other a #5. Trying to size up which had a better performance considering their supposed roles this year.

[Frobby]

Red Sox at Orioles, 3/12 in Sarasota

I’ll need to circle back to the 3/10 Twins game later.   Here’s some observations from today.

Grayson looked very sharp through the third inning.   He was throwing 95-96, touching 97 and mixing in his breaking stuff effectively.  In the 4th, he allowed a leadoff ground single and then walked a batter after being ahead 0-2.   The next guy hit a chopper up the middle that ticked off Frazier’s glove for a run scoring single.  Honestly, it was close to being a DP grounder and I thought Frazier should have gloved it, but I didn’t get a real good look and there was no replay, so I can’t excoriate Frazier too badly.  Grayson walked the next guy and was clearly getting gassed.  The following hitter hit an opposite field duck fart that neither Frazier nor Mazara could reach that plopped in for a run scoring single and that was the end of Grayson’s day.  McSweeney came in and walked in a run and then got a grounder deep behind 1B that Mountcastle could only play by stepping on the bag, allowing another run to score.  So, 4 runs were charged to Grayson on 3 hits and 2 walks that inning.   There was definitely some bad luck involved, and at the same time, you could see him getting tired as the inning progressed.   Losing the second hitter of the inning after being ahead 0-2 was a big factor.  The second walk included a couple of pitches that looked like strikes to me, but hard to tell from my angle.

In the bottom half, Adley got the 4 runs back with a wind-sided grand slam to LF.   He hit what looked like a routine high fly ball, but the wind was blowing out that way and carried it just far enough. 

Akin pitched the 5th and 6th, and was throwing 94-95 and looking very sharp.  He also looks like he’s lost about 10 pounds.  I wouldn’t call him thin, but less portly than before.  

Mateo knocked in the other two runs with a sharp line single in the 2nd and a double to RCF in the 4th a couple of batters ahead of Adley’s grand slam.   Mateo looked good up there today.  

After defensive substitutions, the O’s had a possible 5-4-3 DP opportunity but both Mayo and Norby were a tad deliberate and the batter was safe at 1B by an eyelash.  Holliday had two grounders come his way, one of which he had to charge, and handled both very smoothly.

Yennier Cano pitched the 8th and was throwing 97-98.   Nolan Hoffman threw the 9th and benefited from two very nice plays.   First, Lewin Diaz grabbed a chopper heading for the 2B hole, and from a tricky position, made an accurate throw to Hoffman, who was still a step or two short of 1B when he caught it - very nice play by both players.  The next hitter hit a chopper up the middle that Norby grabbed and threw while his momentum was still carrying him away from 1B, and the throw was both strong and accurate.   That’s a play I didn’t know he was capable of making.

The only other notable play was in the 6th, when Ryan McKenna was robbed of a homer at the LCF fence by a leaping catch.  That ball was much better hit than Adley’s grand slam and the catch was truly outstanding.

Overall, I was a bit disappointed to see Grayson tire in the 4th, but it was an enjoyable game.  

[Frobby]

Twins at Orioles, 3/10

Circling back to this game, it was all about Bradish, who struck out 8 in 4 innings while allowing only two hits and a walk.   He really had everything working, and it definitely felt like he could have kept pitching if that had been the plan.  The Twins couldn’t touch his breaking stuff, and he was hitting 95-96 on the stadium gun.  Really impressive outing.   Other than the solo homer, he allowed two hard-hit balls: a liner to short RCF that was snagged by a well-positioned McKenna, and a long fly out to RCF caught on the run by Stowers near the wall.   Stowers got a bit of a tentative jump but ultimately made a fairly difficult play.  

The game was marked by some questionable and sometimes stupid defense.  One of the O’s runs scored on a bases loaded swinging bunt where the catcher pounced on the ball maybe 3-4 feet in front of home plate and threw to first, rather than simply tagging home plate for a force out.  Later, it started raining and the Twins RF slipped while tracking a routine fly ball, got bat up and lunged for the ball and fell short.  A couple of batters later, a hitter hit a one-hopper that caromed off the shortstop’s glove and allowed two runners to score.  

Most maddeningly, the O’s were winning 5-4 in the 9th, and with two outs and runners on 1st and 3rd, Kolozsvary threw through on a steal of 2B, and the runner on 3B came in to score the tying run on a delayed double steal.   Absolutely an idiotic decision by Kolozsvary, who had everyone in the stands screaming at him.  The game ended in a 5-5 tie.  

The only other play of note was a nice running catch by Kjerstad in RF, the second time in three days where he showed that he’s not just some slow slug with some power.   

Otherwise, Cade Povich pitched a couple of innings and was shaky at first, allowing two walks and a double in his first 4 batters, but struck out the next two and had a decent second inning of work that was aided by a batter’s interference call on a strike three stolen base attempt.   

One last thing: I really enjoyed the pace of these games.   The three I attended were 2:39, 2:45 and 2:22.   I don’t think there was a pitch clock violation in any of the three games, so the players are adjusting quickly.   

[Ohfan67]

Frobby: attending todays home game? 

[Frobby]

32 minutes ago, Ohfan67 said:

Frobby: attending todays home game? 

No, I’m off doing other stuff today.  I may try to get to one more game before I leave on Friday, but I’m not sure I’ll have time.  

[CharmCityHokie]

3 hours ago, Frobby said:

No, I’m off doing other stuff today.  I may try to get to one more game before I leave on Friday, but I’m not sure I’ll have time.  

How has the attendance been at the games you've gone to? I haven't been able to see any of the televised games so I'm always curious about how the crowds are.

Thanks for all the reports, really awesome stuff to read!

[Frobby]

16 hours ago, CharmCityHokie said:

How has the attendance been at the games you've gone to? I haven't been able to see any of the televised games so I'm always curious about how the crowds are.

Thanks for all the reports, really awesome stuff to read!

The games I attended were 7,414 (in Clearwater), 6,897 and 6,959.   Both BayCare Ballpark and Ed Smith have an 8,500 capacity.   I heard from my brother-in-law that the earlier spring crowds at the two games he attended at Ed Smith were much smaller.