A late comeback attempt from the Tides fell just short on Tuesday night, as they were defeated by the Indianapolis Indians (the Pittsburgh Pirates’ AAA affiliate) 10-8. A 10-run second inning doomed Norfolk starting pitcher Chris Lee, who exited after 1.2 innings pitched having given up seven runs (four earned).
Reliever Jhan Marinez gave up three runs in 3.1 innings of relief, though none were earned. The Tides scored eight unanswered runs between the 3rd and 7th innings, but failed to push home any more in the 8th or 9th. Center fielder Mike Yastrzemski went 3-4 and finished a home run shy of the cycle in his 2018 Tides debut after a promotion from AA Bowie. Third baseman Drew Dosch had three hits, including a pair of doubles.
TUESDAY’S TIDES PLAYERS OF NOTE
Chris Lee, LHP
Lee showcased a fastball with good sinking action, which sat 88-89 mph and occasionally touched 91 as well as a slider that sat in the low-to-mid 80’s. He works quickly with an athletic delivery and uses a deceptive leg kick out of the stretch. Lee struggled to keep his sinker and off-speed pitches down in the zone, walking three batters and hitting another. He appeared comfortable using his off-speed in disadvantage counts, even throwing a 3-0 changeup at one point.
Lee is rated the Orioles’ No. 12 prospect by MLB.com.
Mike Yastrzemski, OF
Yastrzemski had three hits and a walk in his first game with the Tides in 2018, finishing a home run shy of the cycle. The Indians utilized a traditional infield shift on the left-handed hitting Yastrzemski (as well as on teammate Alex Presley) with nobody on base. He showed plus speed on the basepaths and got two good jumps from first base on attempted hit and runs (one was fouled away and the other was a lazy fly ball to left field). The Orioles drafted Yastrzemski, the grandson of Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski, in 2014 out of Vanderbilt University.
Drew Dosch, 3B
Dosch, Norfolk’s 2018 team leader in doubles, hit two more on Tuesday night and also added in a single. Drafted out of Youngstown State by the Orioles during the 7th round of the 2013 draft, he hits significantly better against right-handed pitching than against southpaws. Dosch’s combined 39 doubles in 2017 at Norfolk and AA Bowie ranked 7th in all of Minor League Baseball.
Joely Rodriguez, LHP
Rodriguez worked four scoreless innings in relief of Jhan Marinez, retiring the first eleven batters he faced. His fastball consistently sat between 92-94 mph during all four innings (touching 96) and he effectively mixed in a sweeping curveball at 82-83 mph to left-handed batters and a cutter/slider to righties at 89 mph. The 26-year-old Rodriguez was originally signed out of the Dominican Republic by the Pirates in 2009 and spent time in the major leagues with the Phillies in 2016 and 2017.
NEXT UP FOR THE TIDES
6:35 p.m. Wednesday, 5/16 vs. Indianapolis
Probable Pitchers:
IND: J.T. Brubaker (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
NOR: Yefry Ramirez (1-2, 4.54 ERA)*
*Rated the Orioles’ No. 17 prospect by MLB.com
