The Bowie Baysox started their 2023 campaign, and with the way this team looks, this year could be a fun one to watch.
The Baysox went 2-1 against the Hartford Yard Goats in their first series of the season, which included streaky offense and unstoppable pitching.
The Baysox slashed .231/.448/.356 with a .804 OPS in the three games. They had a big struggle with having 28 total strikeouts and 13 total walks but carried a run differential of 18-9, which included an Opening Day shutout and being walked off in the final game.
As for key players, one position player and two pitchers really stood out as the MVPs of the series. Let’s get into it.
César Prieto – INF
Prieto enters his second season in Double-A Bowie after being called up during the 2022 season from Aberdeen. Prieto came into the series with an unfortunate 0-for-5 start on Opening Day, but that would not impact his skill level in the other two games.
Prieto went 6-for-9 in the final two games, which included three RBIs, as the young Cuban infielder carried an average of .429.
Justin Armbruester – RHP
Armbruester got the Opening Day start this year, and he was nothing less than fantastic to start the season. The 24-year-old righty threw a solid five innings of work with five hits given up, no runs allowed, one walk and four strikeouts.
Armbruester also picked up the win in this game. He was the only starter in the series to grab a shutout performance on the mound.
Chayce McDermott – RHP
McDermott had an interesting 2022 season in the way of being traded at the deadline. While it’s currently unknown if McDermott is a bullpen piece or starter, he showed out on Opening Day out of the pen.
McDermott tossed four innings of no-hit baseball with two walks and six strikeouts. The young right-hander also picked up the save on Opening Day.
Biggest Takeaway: RISP & LOB
The Baysox had a huge issue this series with runners in scoring position and players being left on base. Bowie went 8-for-36 (.222 AVG) when they had runners in scoring position and had a total of 24 runners left on base.
Bowie has an offense that can score runs and have big innings. It all comes down to executing on offense and scoring those runs when the opportunities present themselves.
The Baysox begin their first home series against the Akron RubberDucks on April 11 at 6:35 p.m. EST at Prince George’s Stadium.
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