Vizcaino delivers seven zeros for Pulaski
A little more than a month into his season, Alexander Vizcaino is still looking to settle in and establish some consistency on the mound. But after working tirelessly in side sessions with Rookie-level Pulaski pitching coach Gerardo Casadiego, he turned his best performance of the year.The Yankees prospect gave up
A little more than a month into his season, Alexander Vizcaino is still looking to settle in and establish some consistency on the mound. But after working tirelessly in side sessions with Rookie-level Pulaski pitching coach Gerardo Casadiego, he turned his best performance of the year.
The Yankees prospect gave up one hit and one walk over seven innings, striking out six, as Pulaski blanked Danville, 4-0, at Dan Daniel Memorial Park. In the longest start of his professional career, he delivered his first scoreless outing since last July 31.
Gameday box score
Vizcaino made 12 appearances, including 11 starts, for Pulaski last season but dealt with an elbow injury through the first part of this year. Back in game action, he's at full strength and starting to put things together, Casadiego said.
"He was really good, he was really good throwing strikes," Casadiego said. "He moved the ball well to both sides of the plate. He got his confidence and he feels recovered from the injury from the first half of the year. I think he's fully recovered, he's got his fastball back -- 95-to-97 [mph] -- with a great changeup. He mixed pitches well and had a good outing."
Through his first four outings in the Appalachian League, the right-hander had a 5.95 ERA and 1.63 WHIP in 19 2/3 innings. Against Greeneville in his last turn, Vizcaino allowed four runs on six hits with nine strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. The 6-foot-2, 160-pound starter has worked with Casadiego on staying straight toward the plate and making his delivery repeatable.
"He might have felt good, his arm might have felt good, but having a feel for his pitches in the strike zone and control of the delivery are the main things," the pitching coach said. "It's about repetition and getting more consistent with the delivery. He's in a good spot right now."
Taking the mound in Danville, the 21-year-old kept the ball down, recording 10 groundouts against three flyouts. He threw 54 of 78 pitches for strikes, his highest percentage in the zone all season. He faced two batters over the minimum and retired 11 Braves on three pitches or fewer.
More comfortable with his delivery, Vizcaino worked in a high-90s fastball with a formidable changeup to keep the Braves guessing. Although Casadiego said Vizcaino's breaking ball has been a work in progress, the pitch was more effective Wednesday than it had been in previous starts.
"He's got a great changeup," Casadiego said. "His changeup can be used in any count, especially to put hitters away. And with his fastball being 95-97, it was about locating with his fastball and putting away with his secondary pitches, with the changeup being a putaway pitch."
Perfect through two innings, Vizcaino (1-2) had to work from the stretch quickly in the third when Carlos Baerga smacked a leadoff double to center field. Even with a runner in scoring position, the native of the Dominican Republic stayed composed, getting Zack Soria on a comebacker, fanning Nicholas Shumpert and inducing a groundout from Justin Dean to end the inning.
CJ Alexander Jr. reached on an error in the fourth and Dean walked in the sixth, but neither got past first base. Back for the seventh for the first time this season, Vizcaino finished with a flourish, striking out Alexander and Brett Langhorne to end the night.
"As the game went on, he was feeling more strong. He finished really well," Casadiego said. "I see that he can go deep into games and stay strong. It's a great sign for us as an organization, and he did really well today."
After Vizcaino lowered his ERA by more than a full run to 4.39 and trimmed his WHIP to 1.28, Ron Marinaccio fanned three over the final two frames to earn his second save of the year. As far as the next step for Vizcaino, Casadiego said it's about making sure he uses his entire repertoire and that his delivery stays strong.
"He's at level that he needs to work in everything," the pitching coach said. "He needs to make sure he's consistent on a daily basis. He can go from there. He's a kid with a great arm, he just needs to be consistent day in and day out. He'll take off from there."
Backing up the pitching staff, Nelson Gomez smacked his fifth homer of the season, a solo shot in the ninth.
Andrew Battifarano is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter, @AndrewAtBatt.
Debating best Minor League home caps on podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
The Omaha Storm Chasers' 'Take Meow-t' cat night included a Litter Box Sundae
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Boston's Triple-A affiliate throws birthday bash for Roman Anthony
With all the hype that has surrounded Roman Anthony over the past two seasons, it’s easy to forget how young he really is. MLB's No. 1 prospect played 70 games at the highest level of the Minors before he could order a beer. But he can now. Roman Anthony turned
Friendly foes, 2024 first-rounders Moore and Caglianone trade first Triple-A homers
For years, Christian Moore and Jac Caglianone laced up their cleats against one another in the SEC. A rivalry that spanned Florida, Tennessee and other landmarks across the South moved to Salt Lake City this week as the Royals and Angels' top prospects got simultaneous Triple-A promotions. So it was
Phillies' Moore, Fausnaught join MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition: