Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
April 13, 2022 Scoreboard
Triple A Oklahoma City 3, El Paso 4
Double A Tulsa 13, Amarillo 11
High A Great Lakes, Peoria – PPD
Low A Rancho Cucamonga 7, Inland Empire 6
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Michael Busch is heating up for Tulsa, and on Wednesday night he put on a show, going 2/5 at the plate with a pair of homers, and he drove in six. His big flies were both impressive in their own right:
Busch, a UNC Tarheel whom the Dodgers picked in the 1st round of the draft back in 2019, had a strong 2021 campaign interrupted by a hit by pitch to the wrist that tanked his June (.558 OPS), lowering the profile of his offensive performance in an otherwise standout season (.944 OPS in May, .949 from July thru the rest of the season). Busch possesses one of the more advanced bats and approaches in the system, and is playing exclusively at 2B thus far.
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The other side of the coin in a wild night for runs is that some pitchers had to fight the good fight. Enter: Michael Grove. Grove kept a cool head when things went haywire, and his final line reflected the craziness a bit:
It has been a long road back from Tommy John surgery for the 2018 2nd round pick out of West Virginia, but the stuff is there, and as he was added to the 40-man roster last offseason, he has an outside shot to contribute at some point this season.
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Luis Yanel Diaz also hit a grand slam tonight:
What a pimp job, and considering it followed a pair of HBPs, why the hell not. It was the second homer of the season for Diaz, whom the Dodgers signed all the way back in 2016 out of the Dominican Republic.
FanGraphs has described him in the past as a toolsy lottery ticket, and as one of the most explosive rotators in the system. At 22, he’s a bit old for Low A, but with tools like that, he’ll get a bit of run.
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Lastly, old friend Trayce Thompson is looking pretty pretty strong down in AAA:
Another loud EV from a healthy-looking Trayce Thomspon – 113.8 mph 👀 pic.twitter.com/yMdR2EzVNJ
— Josh Thomas (@jokeylocomotive) April 14, 2022
Thompson, who is in his 6th organization since he was with the Dodgers, didn’t play in 2020 and was limited to 107 games between Triple A and MLB combined in 2021. Currently in the Padres’ organization, Thompson has posted several 110+ EVs this season, and is currently running an OPS of 1.221.
