For the second week in a row, the Delmarva Shorebirds have split a six-game series with three wins a piece. This week was against the Lynchburg Hillcats, the Low-A affiliate for the Cleveland Guardians.
The best part about the Low-A team for an organization like the Orioles is the way they just seem to breed talent out of all levels of the minors, even their lowest. The latest player to fill this criteria is Matthew Etzel.
Among the big-name players drafted in 2023, Etzel certainly is at the bottom of the household name list. However, he is showing he belongs at the pro level. In this series, Etzel recorded six hits and added two RBIs to his season total that now sits at 17.
Like I said in the Delmarva recap for last week, some players who sometimes struggle with consistency will have those moments that make the minor leagues beautiful.
Stiven Acevedo had one of those moments in game one of this series when he collected four hits and four RBIs, including his 10th home run of the season. He contributed to six of the team’s eight runs scored in that game. Now, on the season, Acevedo sits at a .239 average with a decent .701 OPS.
First overall pick Enrique Bradfield Jr. had a down week this series, netting just two hits in four games. He did add one steal to his season total.
Overall, the offense for the Shorebirds wasn’t at its best. Outside of the eight-run effort in game one, the lineup struggled to put together runs.
The pitching for the Shorebirds is really what kept them in all of these games this week. The series started off with a shutout performance that was highlighted by Juan Rojas’ five-inning start that saw just four hits and two strikeouts.
And 2020 draft pick Carter Baulmer continued to look good in his return from shoulder surgery. His outing in this series saw three innings pitched with just one run scored and two strikeouts. He also earned his first win of the season in this one.
Another name out of the most recent draft that has been shining is Teddy Sharkey, a 22 year-old right-handed pitcher out of Coastal Carolina. Sharkey appeared in his second outing, going two innings while giving up his first hit at this level. He did strike out five batters.
The next action for the Delmarva Shorebirds comes on the road against the Columbia Fireflies, the Low-A affiliate for the Kansas City Royals. This series kicks off on Tuesday evening at 7:05 p.m. EST.
Who stood out to you for Delmarva this week? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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