[jksander]

June 6, 2025: Mike Clevinger (4-2, 1.31 ERA, 41.1 IP, 36 K’s, 0.92 WHIP) made his first start of the season, facing Kris Bubic (4-4, 3.68 ERA, 71.0 IP, 75 K’s, .18 WHIP) in our first of three against the Royals. They scored in the top of the first off a sac-fly by Bobby Witt Jr., and they tacked on three more in the second, piling on as our bats took the night off. Trailing by six as we went into the bottom of the ninth, Lenyn Sosa hit a two-run double to cut into their lead but not by enough. We lost this one 7-3, and we were neer in the game at all once the Royals hit us early. Clevinger lasted 3.2 innings but allowed nine hits and five earned runs, walking one and striking out five, and we were outhit 13-6 ... Sosa, as a pinch hitter, had a hit and two RBIs, leading the team with minimal opportunity.

Heading into the draft combine, I’ve gotten together with scouting director Mike Shirley and we’ve put together a list of our top 25 players of interest, to see if we can build up a strong relationship with them through this multi-day “speed dating” setup. Here are the top players we’re monitoring along with their initial interest levels.

SP Jamie Arnold, 21 -- Florida State University (2.0/5.0) -- Very Weak
SP Folger Boaz, 20 -- East Surry College (1.5/4.5) -- Weak
3B Ethan Holliday, 18 -- Stillwater (OK) HS (0.5/4.5) -- Very Weak, committed to Oklahoma State
SP Ryan Reich, 21 -- Seton Hall University (1.5/4.5) -- Weak
SP D.J. Newman, 21 -- Bowling Green State University (1.5/4.0) -- Very Weak
SS Kayson Cunningham, 18 -- Johnson (TX) HS (0.5/4.0) -- Very Weak, committed to Texas Tech
SP Aiden Stillman, 18 -- St. Francis (FL) Catholic HS (1.0/4.0) -- Very Weak, committed to University of Virginia
SP Minjae Seo, 19 -- John Paul II (TX) HS (1.5/4.0) -- Very Weak, committed to University of Florida
3B Xavier Neyens, 18 -- Mt. Vernon HS (0.5/4.0) -- Very Weak, committed to Oregon State
CF Cam Cannarella, 21 -- Clemson University (1.5/3.5) -- Weak
SP Scott Reinguette, 21 -- Clemson University (1.5/3.5) -- Average
SP Kolten Smith, 21 -- University of Georgia (1.5/3.5) -- Weak
SS Dean Curley, 21 -- Northview (CA) HS (1.0/3.5) -- Very Weak, currently playing JuCo baseball
 
June 7, 2025: Noah Schultz made his MLB debut today, facing Cole Ragans (9-4, 2.36 ERA, 76.1 IP, 81 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). The Royals got on the board with an RBI single by Nelson Velasquez in the top of the first, and Salvador Perez batted in another with an RBI single in the top of the third. But Chase Meidroth got us on the board with a sac-fly that scored Lenyn Sosa from third in the botom of the third, and we tied it in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Otto Lopez! Schultz confidently pitched through the sixth inning, maintaining the tie, and in the bottom of the inning Lopez reached on an E9 error, allowing Miguel Vargas to score the go-ahead run! Michael A. Taylor hit a single that drove in two more, and Schultz got two outs in the seventh before Martin Perez came out to relieve him. Lenyn Sosa added on with a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth, completing the rout as we bested the Royals 8-2. Schultz pitched 6.2 innings with three hits, seven strikeouts and two runs, only one of which was earned, starting his career out with a 1-0 record and a 1.35 ERA while throwing 89 pitches. Perez then came out to pitch the rest of the game for a save, allowing three hits with three strikeouts as we outhit the Royals 10-6 ... Sosa led the way, hitting twice with two runs and three RBIs, while Lopez added two hits, two runs and two RBIs.

Folger Boaz has shown a significant bump in interest, up to average after day one of the combine, as has Kayson Cunningham.

June 8, 2025: Ryan Weber (2-5, 3.22 ERA, 58.2 IP, 39 K’s, 1.24 WHIP) pitched in our final game of the series against the Royals, facing Thomas Hatch (0-0, 9.00 ERA, 3.0 IP, 0 K’s, 2.33 WHIP), who just got called up from AAA Omaha where he was 5-1 with a 3.09 ERA. Once again the Royals got started quickly, Dairon Blanco hitting a solo homer in the top of the first to go up 1-0. But we answered with an RBI single by Miguel Vargas in the bottom of the inning. They answered with a solo blast by Vinnie Pasquantino in the top of the second, but in the bottom of the third Tauchman hit a two-run homer to get the lead, Vargas followed him immediately with a solo homer, and we held a two-run lead heading into the fourth inning. Incredibly, that lead held the rest of the way, and we were able to completely shut the Royals down as we won this one 4-2 for back-to-back series wins. Weber lasted 5.2 innings, allowing three hits, a walk and two runs with four strikeouts as he improved to 3-5 with a 3.22 ERA. Kimbrel and Perez each had their fourth hold of the year, and Eisert held tough in the ninth to save his 13th, improving his ERA to 2.30 through 15.2 innings. We outhit the Royals 6-2, led by Vargas who had two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs, including his ninth homer, while Tauchman had a hit, a walk, a run and two RBIs behind HIS ninth of the year as well.

Our record improved to 27-39, and we’ll have a week of road games upcoming, including three against the Athletics (26-39, 5th AL West) and three against the Rangers in Texas (46-20, 1st AL West) after a day off tomorrow. Guillen is off to a 5-2 start as a manager, and we’re starting to build real buzz on the south side even with us still trailing our closest competitor in the Central by five and a half games.

No big news out of the combine, though Scott Rienguette is starting to build some serious interest in our organization. He has a four pitch mix with a quality slider and changeup, with plenty of movement though his control may never be great. We’re intrigued by his stuff and potential, and he shows promise as a guy who could set up camp in the middle of the rotation with ease. He’s done well at Clemson, but it’s not likely he’d be our first round pick -- might have to keep an eye on him and see if we can snag him in the second or third round. His bonus demand is expected to be significantly under $500,000, so he’s definitely a guy to keep an eye on.

June 9, 2025: We’re starting to draw interest from Jamie Arnold, though Ethan Holliday remains completely disinterested ... Holliday would be a risk, as he wants at least $10.5 million as a bonus and has suggested he’s going to be hard to sign even then, as he’d be able to make good NIL money playing for Oklahoma State. I really like Arnold, though ... he’ll command a high bonus (at least $11 million) but he’s already developed his pitches while at Florida State, where he went 10-4 this year with a 2.96 ERA and 129 K’s in 134 innings. He has a four pitch mix with a killer slider and changeup, and while his stuff is solid, his potential control is even better -- potentially elite. If we can win him over (and get him to drop somehow to #10 overall) he’s our guaranteed pick ... but with a ton of interest in him, I can’t imagine we’d ever get that lucky.