AFL Week 1 Recap: Gordon And Garver Come Out Hitting

Read on to check out how all the Twins prospects fared in the first week of the 2016 Arizona Fall League season!

(links provided to each player’s overall stats by clicking their name)

Stephen Gonsalves – 1 Start, 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H’s, HR, 0 BB’s, 1 K.

Gonsalves made the start in Thursday’s 5-4 loss, but Surprise was up 3-1 when he left after three innings. He was efficient, throwing just thirty-four pitches, with twenty-four going for strikes.

In the first inning he struck out the first hitter he faced, and then got a fly out and grounder around a single for clean inning. In the second, he again faced just four hitters, but the third hitter of the inning took him deep for a home run, and his only run allowed. In the third inning, it was again four batters Gonsalves faced, but his aggressiveness in the strike zone kept hitters behind in the count. In his eleven pitches in the frame, just two went for balls.

In his next start, look for Gonsalves to go a little deeper in the game, provided he has the same type of success, but his first AFL appearance was definitely a strong one coming off his spectacular 2016 season.

Nick Gordon – 3 games, 7-13, 4 R’s, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K’s, 2 SB’s.

Gordon came out hot, going 3-4 with two runs scored, an RBI, walk, and stolen base in the AFL season opener that Surprise won 11-2 over Mesa. He scored on a Mitch Garver groundout after his single in a three-run third inning, and again after another single in the four-run seventh. In the top of the eighth Gordon picked up his RBI, driving in Yoan Moncada who had led off the frame with a double.

After a day off on Wednesday he stayed hot against Glendale on Thursday, collecting another three hits in five at-bats with a run scored, RBI, and his second stolen base in a 5-4 loss, but was a catalyst to some early scoring.

Batting second to open the game, Gordon got the Surprise scoring started with a single for the team’s first hit and later scored their first run from second on a single. In the second inning, his two-out-RBI single gave them a 3-0 lead, but it wouldn’t last.

He picked up another two-out single in the seventh, but was left stranded and Glendale tied it at three in the bottom half. In the top of the ninth, Gordon reached base on an error, then stole second to put insurance runners at second and third with nobody out, but both runners were left stranded and Surprise was unable to close the door in the ninth.

He finished his week with a 1-4 effort in Saturday's 8-1 win against Scottsdale. He also scored a run and drew a walk so he has reached base multiple times in each game played so far.

It did take until the sixth inning for Gordon to reach base with a single, but he and a mate would come around to score thanks to another one of his organizational teammates.

After week one, Gordon sits near the top of the AFL leaderboard in average (.538, 3^rd), on-base percentage (.600, 4^th), and hits (7, 2^nd). Not a bad first week out of the two-hole in the Saguaros lineup.

Mitch Garver – 3 games, 4-9, 3 R’s, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 5 BB’s, 2 K’s.

Garver made the start at catcher in two games during the week and DH in another while having an impressive week from the cleanup spot in the lineup.

In the season opening win on Tuesday, Garver was 1-2 with a run scored, but also walked three times. His single in the third inning drove in Gordon, and it was all walks after that. On defense Garver had an error on a throw and allowed three stolen bases, but also got in the boxscore for a caught stealing at third when the runner with two of those steals got greedy.

He was the DH in Friday’s 10-4 loss, and reached base only via a walk in an 0-3 effort with two strikeouts, but would make up for it on Saturday.

Behind the dish again, Garver led the Surprise offense with a 3-4 night including two runs scored and three RBIs in the 8-1 win.

He doubled in the bottom of the first to put runners on first and second, and they both scored when the next hitter ripped a single to right field. He added a walk in the third inning, and his big hit came in the fifth as a solo home run to make the score 4-0.

With the bases loaded in the sixth, Garver delivered a two-run single to make it 7-0, but was thrown out at home later in the inning.

Garver sits near the top of AFL leaderboards in on-base percentage (.643, 1^st), slugging (.889, 3^rd), and OPS (1.532, 4^th) after a week of play.

Tanner English – 3 games, 3-12, 2B, RBI, BB, 4 K’s.

English played CF in all three of his appearances on the week, batting ninth, sixth, and leadoff in each of his appearances, respectively.

He didn’t start out immediately hot like Gordon, but finished with two solid games to end his first week.

In the opener, English was 0-4 with two strikeouts, but contributed in a big way with his defense with a diving catch that caught the eye of those in attendance.

In Thursday’s loss, English picked up a single in the eighth inning for his first hit, and finished his day 1-4.

Batting leadoff on Friday, English was one of three Surprise hitters with multiple hits on the day. He led off the game with a ground-rule double, but was left stranded on third when the next three hitters went down easily, including Garver on a K, to end the inning.

He drew a walk in the fifth but was stranded again, before singling in the ninth to drive in a run and make the final just a little closer in the loss.

Mason Melotakis – 2 games, 2.0 IP, 0 R’s, 2 H’s, 0 BB’s, 3 K’s, 0.00 ERA.

Left-handed reliever Melotakis made two appearances on the week, pitching the sixth inning in the season opener, and the seventh in Friday’s loss to Mesa.

On Tuesday, Melotakis got the first two hitters he faced out on groundouts before allowing a single to Bradley Zimmer, the top prospect in Cleveland’s system and one of the best in Arizona, before picking up a strikeout to end the inning and pick up a hold.

He again got a groundout to start the seventh on Friday before allowing a single, but struck out the next two hitters in another scoreless frame and will look to continue that K-rate and the control he’s displayed so far (21 of 26 pitches for strikes) moving forward.

Randy Rosario – 2 games1.2 IP, 2 ER’s, 4 H’s, 2 BB’s, 2 K’s.

Like Melotakis, Rosario saw action in two games on the week, both coming out of the bullpen.

In Wednesday’s 7-7 tie, Rosario was partially to blame for the game ending up as such after eleven innings.

He came into the game to start the sixth inning with the score 4-3 in favor of Surprise but two walks, two singles, and a run allowed later, he was replaced by John Curtiss with the score tied 4-4. He did strike out the last hitter he faced before being lifted, but an inherited runner also later scored.

In Saturday’s 8-1 win, Rosario pitched the seventh inning and though it wasn’t clean, came through with a scoreless frame. He allowed two singles but picked up a strikeout and got some help on a play at the plate with a runner trying to take advantage of an error to end the inning.

Rosario will have to look to keep his pitch counts down this week, as he threw thirty-three (18 for strikes) and sixteen (9 for strikes) in his 1.2 innings on the week.

John Curtiss – 2 games started, 2.0 IP, 3 ER’s, 6 H’s, 2 BB’s, 4 K’s.

Like his fellow bullpen mates, Curtiss also made two appearances on the week.

On Wednesday, he came in for Rosario with two outs in the sixth, and allowed one of his inherited runners to score on a wild pitch, and give the Javelina’s a 5-4 lead. In the seventh, it was three singles to load the bases and two walks that led to his two runs allowed on the game. He recorded two outs, one via strikeout, before he was removed.

On Saturday he got the sixth inning, and again had some trouble keeping runners off the bases. He struck out the first hitter, but was tagged for a solo home run by the next. A ground ball out was followed by two singles before he struck out another to end the frame and his appearance.

The four K’s in two innings pitched look nice in his line for the first week, but Curtiss would be the first to tell you it’s the hits and runs allowed that he’d like to improve.

Please feel free to ask questions and discuss the performances during the week!