Double-A Erie SeaWolves (8-13) Run Diff: -51 5.5 GB in EL Southwest
The bullpen woes continue for Erie. After winning the series opener, the SeaWolves lost five in a row to the Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox). Their bullpen has the league's worst ERA at 6.60 and have allowed the most home runs with 19. They are also the most used of any time in the Eastern League as the SeaWolves starters, minus Sawyer Gipson-Long have been pitching a max of four innings per start. As a result, the bullpen has already thrown 117.1 innings.
However, there were several standout performances to highlight. Brant Hurter did not allow a run in his start this week. It marked the third time in four starts in which he did not allow a run. What was a big takeaway this week was this was the first start of the season in which Hurter did not allow a walk.
Wilmer Flores's velocity was down, however, he was using his third pitch he has been working on, a changeup as he got nine swings and misses in his start on Saturday. He finished the day with five strikeouts
Wilmer Flores has been working on his changeup. He throws a pretty good one here to get the strikeout and end the inning. @Greg_Gania on the call. pic.twitter.com/EpZOe2XuRV
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 29, 2023
On the offense side, the SeaWolves got production from several players that are not named Colt Keith. Trei Cruz, who went hitless in the first two games of the series, finished the week strong by going 8-for-19 with a double, three home runs, driving in six. He finished the week with a slash line of .421/.450/.947
Outfielder Daniel Cabrera went 5-for-17 with a pair of doubles and finished the week with a slash line of .294/368/.412
Trei Cruz blasts a home run to left field to put Erie up 2-0. @SamLebo14 on the call 🚀 pic.twitter.com/NuNioldFDD
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 30, 2023
Daniel Cabrera singles the opposite way to score Wenceel Perez and give Erie a 6-5 lead in the 10th. pic.twitter.com/bhLKE4hxEh
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 23, 2023
Grant Witherspoon, the outfielder the Tigers acquired from Tampa, also performed well at the plate, going 7-for-25 with a pair of home runs and driving in seven. He recently sat down with Chris Brown of Tigers Minor League Report to talk about his experience in the minors and how he found out about the trade to Detroit.