Jhonkensy Noel blasts off for three home runs and Jose Devers hits two more

Cleveland Guardians minor league recap for Thursday, May 23, 2024

Columbus Clippers 8, Omaha Stormchasers 9 (F/10)

Box Score · Clippers fall to 19-27

Have yourself a day Jhonkensy Noel. The slugging prospect hammered not one, not two, but three prodigious blasts on Wednesday. These homers were Statcast beauties, all with exit velocities of over 105.5 mph and all traveling at least 424 feet. If Noel can make more consistent contact, he may force Cleveland’s hand. He currently is batting .240 on the season with an .843 OPS.

Noel wasn’t the only member of the Clippers who had a monster game. A total of five players reached base safely three times, starting with Jose Tena, who went 3-for-5 with a double, a home run and a stolen base.

Myles Straw also went 3-for-5 with a stolen base, while Bryan Lavastida went 3-for-4 with a home run.

Juan Brito also went 2-for-4 with a walk as his bat continues to heat up. Somehow, in all the offensive fun, Daniel Schneemann had a rare 0-fer on the day in five plate appearances.

Starting pitcher Conner Gillespie was knocked around for four runs (three earned) on seven hits with six strikeouts and a pair of walks in four innings.

The bullpen did its job except for one person, Doxakis, who allowed four runs on two hits and two walks in 1 ¹⁄₃ innings pitched.

Nick Mikolajchak tossed a scoreless inning, Randy Labaut allowed an inherited runner to score but did no further damage in ²⁄₃ of an inning a rehabbing Eli Morgan added a scoreless frame. Tanner Burns allowed the ghost runner to score with two outs in the 10th inning without giving up a hit or walk for the tough-luck loss.

Akron RubberDucks 5, Harrisburg Senators 6

Box Score · RubberDucks fall to 25-16

Trailing 4-0, Akron rallied for five runs in the top of the eighth inning to take the lead, but it only lasted half an inning as the bullpen gave it right back in a gutwrenching 6-5 loss on Wednesday.

Kahlil Watson had an impressive day at the plate, going 3-for-5 with his sixth home run of the season. He also stole a base. He’s starting to heat up as a 21-year-old in Double-A.

Alexfri Planez went 2-for-5 while Aaron Bracho and Joe Lampe both singled and walked and Joe Naranjo and Micael Ramirez both walked twice. Planez and Naranjo also stole a base.

Starting pitcher Doug Nikhazy finally had his first outing where he looked human. He gave up three runs on five hits with two walks and a strikeout in 4 ²⁄₃ innings. It was the first time he’s given up any runs all year.

Lenny Torres Jr. continued his perfect 2024 season with another scoreless appearance out of the bullpen in 1 ¹⁄₃ innings with a pair of strikeouts.

Unfortunately, Ross Carver blew the lead, giving up one run in the bottom of the seventh, then was sent back out for the eighth, where he gave up two more.

Lake County Captains 12, West Michigan Whitecaps 3

Box Score · Captains improve to 23-18

At this point, I think Lake County should just permanently change its name to Rake County.

The Captains were on point Wednesday, blasting off for 12 runs on a ridiculous 18 hits.

Nate Furman led the way, going 4-for-5 with a home run and four runs scored. He’s now hitting .349 and has raised his OPS to an impressive .922 on the season.

Jose Devers also had a monster game, going 3-for-5 with two home runs.

The contributions didn’t end there, however. C.J. Kayfus went 2-for-5, Maick Collado went 2-for-5 with a double, Jake Fox also went 2-for-5 with a double, Johnny Tincher went 2-for-5 and both Cooper Ingle and Tyresse Turner went 1-for-4 with a walk.

The pitching was spectacular as well. Starting pitcher Trenton Denholm was extremely efficient, lasting into the ninth inning, when he finally was pulled after 91 pitches. His final line was 8 ¹⁄₃ innings pitched with three runs allowed on five hits, one walk and zero strikeouts.

Zane Morehouse closed out the game with the final ²⁄₃ of an inning and the only strikeout of the game for Lake County pitching.

Lynchburg Hillcats 6, Fredericksburg Nationals 10

Box Score · Hillcats fall to 21-20

It’s hard to win a game when the starting pitcher can’t get out of the second inning. Prep prospect Jackson Humphries had a rough day, failing to get an out in the second inning before he was pulled.

His final line was six runs allowed (all earned) on three hits, four walks, two hit batsman and three wild pitches in one inning.

That was a pretty big hole for the Lynchburg offense to dig itself out of, but it didn’t stop the Hillcats from trying.

Jaison Chourio went 2-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base while Wuilfredo Antunez went 1-for-3 with a walk. Robert Lopez doubled and both Juan Benjamin and Angel Genao singled and stole a base, but it wasn’t enough.

Lynchburg would have been able to tie the game if six runs had been the extent of the damage, but all three members of the bullpen allowed at least one more run to score in a 10-6 loss.