Modesto has been weak defensively, with 13 errors on the homestand. 13. That's not funny at this point. After watching their awful, awful 11-8 game against Visalia as their last game before a road trip, the holes in the defense showed.
Here's the thing about the Nuts: they have the potential. They've got a roster that has top prospects, so there's no reason they shouldn't succeed eventually. But a slow start shouldn't be something to worry about, unless it carries over into July. Allowing 38 runs over seven games, on the other hand, is not pretty.
A couple of observations:
Pitching is weak to start the season
Like I said above, 38 runs over seven games is not pretty. Johendi Jiminian, in that Wednesday afternoon showdown, threw a lot of strikes down the middle. On the other hand, only three of the six runs he gave up were earned. So that shows the bigger problem of the homestand.
Defense needs a lot of work
I know it's the California League and the ground at most Cal League parks makes the ball bounce more, but that becomes a better test of abilities. It's still early, but, man, it was just an ugly game. Correlle Prime had a really bad throw that escaped Wilfredo Rodriguez, who also had a bad throw that landed in the outfield. It was almost if they were trying too hard to reign in the score of the game, and giving up runs in the process.
Raimel Tapia
Tapia went 3-for-5 with a stolen base. He would go first-pitch swinging at times, but that would be driven up the middle for a hit. He appeared to have good pitch recognition and made a lot of loud contact. On the base paths, he had above average speed.
Rosell Hererra
Hererra went 0-for-2 with a sac fly and two walks. Very patient approach at the plate and showed a lot of discipline early in the count. He waits for a hitter's count to start swinging, I noticed.
Upcoming road trip
The Nuts are on the road this week, in hitting-friendly Lancaster and High Desert parks. While their record is currently at a 6-11 on the season, now would be a good time to test that defense.