The TinCaps suffered a frustrating defeat Tuesday to the Peoria Chiefs, who have the worst record in the Midwest League. Peoria twice cut down Fort Wayne runners at the plate on infield grounders, including in the decisive 10th inning, and won 6-5. It was the TinCaps' league-leading 20th one-run game of the season and their Minor League Baseball-high 11th extra-inning contest.
Tonight, Fort Wayne will try to bounce back and restart its momentum at Parkview Field, where it won 9 of 12 games during a two-week homestand in May.
On the mound for the TinCaps on what looks to be a warm, gray night that might be interrupted by rain, will be lefty Jagger Haynes, who has been arguably Fort Wayne's best pitcher over the last month. Haynes has three quality starts in his last five outings and has lowered his ERA to 5.01 after giving up 11 earned runs in 4 2/3 innings over his first three starts.
Haynes, 21, the No. 18 Padres prospect according to MLB.com, has gone at least 5 1/3 innings in three straight starts and has given up no more than two runs or five hits in any of his last five. The last time he pitched at Parkview Field, against Lansing on May 22, he turned in his best start of the campaign, going seven innings and giving up one run on four hits while striking out five and walking three. His strikeout numbers haven't been off the charts and it would be a step forward if he could miss a few more bats, but it's difficult to argue with the progress he's made from his early-season struggles.
Jagger Haynes had an incredible May, posting a 2.09 ERA. Haynes capped it off with 5.1 innings of 1 run ball. pic.twitter.com/ebhCkR909d
— Danny (@TatisMVPszn) May 29, 2024
The Chiefs will counter with another left-hander, No. 20 Cardinals prospect Quinn Mathews, who was a fourth-round pick in the draft last summer out of Stanford. He didn't pitch after getting drafted in 2023, but has gotten off to a flying start in pro baseball this year, dominating to the tune of a 1.47 ERA in 30 2/3 innings at Low-A Palm Beach to start the season and then posting a 2.84 ERA and a 24/3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first three starts at High-A. Across his first nine professional appearances, the 6-foot-5, 188-pound Mathews has struck out 76 in 49 2/3 innings with only 14 walks and a .140 opponent batting average. His most recent start was one of his best: six shutout innings, no walks, two hits against Lansing. He has struck out double-digit hitters three times already, including once at High-A.
Fangraphs is even higher on Mathews than MLB.com, ranking him its No. 11 Cardinals prospect, and had this to say about him in May:
"He has come out of the gates this season looking as sharp as any pitcher in the lower levels of the minors, and as of list publication, he is among the minor league strikeout and strikeout rate leaders. Mathews has seen a velocity bump on his fastball so far this season. He sat in the low 90s as a senior but has been sitting 92-96 mph and touching 97 mph through his first six starts of 2024, and the offering has consistently showed above-average carry through the zone, which has been effective at generating whiffs.
"He reliably throws his fastball for strikes, but it’s a control-over-command approach at present, perhaps evidence that Matthews is throwing with greater effort than in college. Mathews’ changeup is a legit bat-missing offering. It plays very well off his fastball, and his solid arm speed sells the pitch before creating late bottom action on it, which causes it to frequently disappear under bats. He also has two breaking balls; the slider is the sharper of the two, while the curveball projects to be more of a get-me-over strike stealer."
Quinn Mathews has entered the Baseball America top 100 — ranking 98th overall and 3rd in the Cardinals organization pic.twitter.com/Scb6mNcFgW
— Jacob (@JacobE_STL) June 5, 2024
The lineup set to face Mathews for Fort Wayne is highlighted by first baseman Griffin Doersching in the No. 7 spot. Doerschingleads all of Minor League Baseball in home runs (4), total bases (18), slugging percentage (1.636), and OPS (2.219) over the last three games. In addition to those gaudy stats, he hit a mammoth shot to left in Tuesday's game that curved a few feet foul. He's seeing the ball as well as anyone in the MWL right now and is tied for sixth on the circuit in homers with eight. Mathews will be a terrific test for Doersching's recent approach, which has featured a slightly wider stance and a focus on hitting pitches to the right-center gap, helping him stay back on off-speed offerings.
Homer Bush Jr. (leading off) and Lucas Dunn (hitting ninth) are also back in the lineup after homering Tuesday. The TinCaps are coming off a game in which they went 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and left nine on base, knocking a bevy of hard-hit line drives directly at Peoria outfielders. A similar performance in the box tonight should yield better results.
