Orioles minor league recap 5/19: Rutschman and Henderson both go deep...again

Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 8, Charlotte (White Sox) 7

Three different Tides went deep in this win. Adley Rutschman and Jacob Nottingham both hit two-run dongs while Robert Neustrom’s was a grand slam. Rutschman added a single and a walk, raising his OPS at Triple-A this season to .837. Richie Martin added a double, a walk, and two runs scored atop the lineup.

Zac Lowther started and saw his rocky season continue. Over 5.1 innings the southpaw allowed four runs on seven hits, two walks, three strikeouts, and two home runs. Isaac Mattson did well to strike out two of the three batters he faced. Kevin Smith had a tough night out of the bullpen, serving up three runs on six hits over 1.2 innings. Diogenes Almengo and Rico Garcia combined for 1.1 scoreless innings to wrap up the victory.

Double-A: Hartford (Rockies) 6, Bowie Baysox 3

Dean Kremer returned to the mound for a rehab outing and dominated the Double-A opposition. Over his two innings, the righty struck out five and allowed just one hit. Antonio Velez followed and had some struggles on the stat sheet: four innings, seven hits, five runs (three earned), six strikeouts, two home runs. But he was also hurt by a throwing error from third baseman Jordan Westburg in the sixth inning. Adam Stauffer struck out three across his two innings of work.

Bowie mustered only three hits, but one of them was a two-run homer from Gunnar Henderson, of course. He added a walk and now has an OPS of 1.025 on the year. Zach Watson doubled for the fourth time this year. Joey Ortiz worked two walks. Hudson Haskin took an 0-for-4, but he did have an outfield assist, helping to nab a runner at home in the fifth inning.

High-A: Rome (Braves) 2, Aberdeen IronBirds 1

Aberdeen had no problem getting runners on base as they had eight hits and three walks, but they went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position, plating their lone run on a Colton Cowser solo shot. John Rhodes had a nice night, going 2-for-2 with a walk and two stolen bases. Billy Cook also swiped two bags. Shed Long Jr. continued his rehab with a 2-for-2 night, including a triple. Coby Mayo went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts.

It’s tough to complain about the pitching effort from the IronBirds. Justin Armbruester tossed five strong frames, allowing just one run on two hits, two walks, and two strikeouts. His ERA is down to 2.87. Jake Lyons followed with three scoreless innings, striking out four in the process. Xavier Moore took the loss, allowing a run in the ninth inning that featured two wild pitches.

Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 5, Fredericksburg (Nationals) 3

Conor Grady had himself a day on the mound. He worked six innings without an earned run and struck out five. The two unearned runs he allowed came in the fifth inning when he balked to move runners up to second and third base, and then an error by first baseman Josue Cruz allowed both of them to score. Daniel Lloyd closed things out with three innings in he allowed one run on three hits and three strikeouts.

Creed Willems led the Delmarva offense with two hits, including a triple, and two RBI. Suddenly, the catcher is on a four-game hitting streak after a slow start out of the gate. He also threw out two would-be base stealers from behind the plate. Davis Tavarez added two singles, and Mishael Deson had a double and a walk. Luis Valdez stole his 16th base of the season.

Box scores for Wednesday’s games can be found here.

Thursday’s Scheduled Games

• Triple-A Norfolk: at Charlotte, 7:04. Starting pitcher: Denyi Reyes (0-1, 8.25 ERA)
• Double-A Bowie: vs Hartford, 6:35. Starting pitcher: Conner Loeprich (0-1, 8.80 ERA)
• High-A Aberdeen: vs Rome, 7:05. Starting pitcher: Connor Gillispie (3-1, 3.60 ERA)
• Low-A Delmarva: vs Fredericksburg, 7:05. Starting pitcher: Shane Davis (1-3, 3.64 ERA)