Orioles minor league recap 6/17: D.L. Hall keeps fanning batters, top of the order leads the way

Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 6, Syracuse Mets 2

D.L. Hall delivered again. The top lefty prospect struck out 11 batters over just 4.1 innings against Syracuse. Hall allowed four hits, one run and walked two, but double-digit strikeouts will always jump off the page. Hall threw 61 of his 89 pitches for strikes, and Marcos Diplán added two scoreless innings of relief.

Jordan Westburg picked up his third Triple-A home run with a two-run shot in the fourth inning. Westburg and Gunnar Henderson both doubled, and Henderson took a pair of walks. Rylan Bannon launched his seventh homer of the year, and Jacob Nottingham finished 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Terrin Vavra led the team with three hits from the leadoff spot. The top four batters (Vavra, Westburg, Henderson, and Nottingham) combined for eight of Norfolk’s 11 hits.

Double-A: Bowie Baysox 7, Binghamton Rumble Ponies (Mets) 6

Cesar Prieto matched Terrin Vavra with a 3-for-5 performance from the leadoff spot. Maverick Handley doubled twice, and Joey Ortiz recorded two hits in five trips. Andrew Daschbach smacked a two-run homer, and Greg Cullen drove in two runs.

Ryan Watson struggled at times but still moved to 4-1 on the season. Watson allowed six hits and five runs over five innings. Conner Loeprich limited Binghamton to one run over three innings and struck out three.

High-A: Jersey Shore BlueClaws (Phillies) 10, Aberdeen IronBirds 4

Aberdeen held a 4-2 lead early in the game before the bats went to sleep. Justin Armbruester allowed five runs (four earned), and the IronBirds hurt themselves with three errors.

Colton Cowser finished 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles. Jacob Teter and Collin Burns both recorded two hits and TT Bowens added a double. Coby Mayo went 1-for-4 with a run scored.

Low-A: Salem Red Sox 8, Delmarva Shorebirds 5

Delmarva outhit their opponent 9-to-8 but came up short where it mattered most. Heston Kjerstad singled up the middle in his first at bat and eventually scored a run. Trendon Craig worked three walks in a 1-for-2 effort, and Isaac De Leon finished 2-for-4 with a double.

Dan Hammer allowed only one hit and one run in four innings of relief. Hammer struck out six and walked two.

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

Friday’s Scheduled Games

• Triple-A Norfolk: vs Syracuse, 12:05 Starting pitcher: Spenser Watkins (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
• Double-A Bowie: vs Binghamton, 7:05. Starting pitcher: Drew Rom (2-1, 3.71 ERA)
• High-A Aberdeen: at Jersey Shore, 7:05. Starting pitcher: Connor Gillispie (3-1, 3.00 ERA)
• Low-A Delmarva: at Salem, 7:05. Starting pitcher: Shane Davis (1-5, 4.06 ERA)