After Division Crown, Record Wins, Blue Wahoos Stars Align In Futures Game
Not far apart in their rising path, lefthander Patrick Monteverde and infielder Nasim Nunez are among several leaders of the Blue Wahoos runaway claim to their first half Southern League division win. They are now connected in another special way. The two Top 30 prospects in the Miami Marlins organization
Not far apart in their rising path, lefthander Patrick Monteverde and infielder Nasim Nunez are among several leaders of the Blue Wahoos runaway claim to their first half Southern League division win.
They are now connected in another special way.
The two Top 30 prospects in the Miami Marlins organization were named this week to play in the SiriusXM All Star Futures Game on July 8 in Seattle. The event is part of activities with the 93rd annual Major League Baseball All-Star Game being held this year at T-Mobile Park, home of the Seattle Mariners. That game will be July 11.
Monteverde, 25, a Pittsburgh native and eighth round pick by the Marlins in 2021, has compiled a 7-1 record with 2.13 earned run average, which makes him the best pitcher in Minor League Baseball right now with those combined statistics. He’s tied for the most wins throughout all levels of MILB.
Nunez, 22, a Bronx, New York native, was the Marlins second-round pick in 2919. His four home runs are already a career high and his 33 stolen bases are the most in the Marlins organization. He’s shown he can play both shortstop and second base with several sensational defensive stops at both positions.
They join Eury Perez, who played in the Futures Game last year, and Max Meyer and Jake Eder, who did so in 2021, as Blue Wahoos players represented in the three recent Futures Games.
This year’s game will be at 6 p.m. (CDT) on July 8 from Seattle and can be watched on MLB TV or live streamed on MLBTV.com
The Blue Wahoos wrapped up the first half with a 41-26 record that equates into their best winning percentage of any half-season in franchise history. The 41 wins match the franchise best for most wins in a half. The Blue Wahoos were 41-29 in 2016 as a Cincinnati Reds affiliate and during a period when the Southern League played 70 games each half.
Pensacola took four of five games last week on the road against the Tennessee Smokies – the same place where they won the 2022 Southern League title. The sixth game of the series on Sunday was rained out, part of a week of inclement weather that altered two other games in the series.
Following Sunday’s rainout, the team traveled back to Pensacola. It gave the team Monday off in Pensacola, plus most of Tuesday, following a light workout and meeting. The Blue Wahoos will leave Wednesday morning via bus to Montgomery for a six-game series to start the second half against the Montgomery Biscuits.
The Blue Wahoos last home game was on Father’s Day (June 18). Their next home game is July 4 against the Biloxi Shuckers, which will be a 16-day gap between home games.
The Shuckers will feature two players that week in the Futures Game with outfielder Jackson Chourio and catcher Jeferson Quero. Both are top three prospects in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. They will likely play the first two games of the series in Pensacola before departing for Seattle and the Futures Game.
WAHOOS NOTABLES
EURY FURY – How good has Eury Perez been in the Major Leagues? Consider that in his nine starts with the Miami Marlins, the 20-year-old phenom has compiled an astonishing 5-1 record with a 1.34 earned run average. He has compiled 21 consecutive scoreless innings which makes him the youngest pitcher since at least 1901 (when these kind of feats began getting kept) to throw three consecutive games of six or more innings of shutout baseball.
In his six starts this season with the Blue Wahoos, he was 3-1 with a 2.32 ERA. He has 54 strikeouts with the Marlins against MLB hitters with 15 walks. With the Blue Wahoos he had 42 strikeouts in six starts with nine walks allowed.
Perez rose to No. 6 on the MLB Pipeline Rookie Power Rankings released Tuesday.
The Blue Wahoos are honoring Perez on Sept. 1 with a Eury Perez Bobblehead Night during a Friday home game in a promotion that was decided prior to the 2023 season.
JUST MARRIED – Blue Wahoos president Jonathan Griffith and wife Amber were married last Saturday at home plate under a postcard blue-sky setting that night. The couple had their wedding reception at the Hancock Whitney Club and it included a fireworks show at the ballpark. After official pronouncement of marriage, the couple walked through a line of Griffith’s friends holding bats in a salute through the third base visitors tunnel. Guests received Koozies which read, “We interrupt this baseball season for a wedding…”
HANGOUT CHAMPS – In the only baseball game played at Blue Wahoos Stadium in the past two weeks, the first-ever Hangout League Collegate Championship game occurred last Sunday. The Dauphin Island Sea Ducks ralled from an 8-4 deficit in the late innings to beat the Gulf Shores Seahorses 10-8 in 10 innings.
The start-up league began play in late May with four-games per-week in the five-week period. The players ranged from high school seniors to college seniors. While the league was sponsored by Hangout in Gulf Shores, Alabama, the regular season games were played at Pensacola State College.
The Sea Ducks had players mostly from Louisiana and were led by head coach Noah Bailey, a former Niceville High star who went on to play at Northwest Florida State and South Alabama before finishing his career in May at the University of New Orleans.
“I’ve been to this stadium and few times before (Blue Wahoos) games, but for the guys it was their first time,” Bailey said. “I think it means a lot to a lot of the players.
“Just the nature of baseball, not everybody gets drafted, not everybody gets to play in the big leagues and play in this kind of ballpark. This gives them a chance to do something like it and play in same lights as big leaguers.”
As winning team, the Sea Ducks received a surfboard trophy.
HOLIDAY PLANS – The Blue Wahoos will have back-to-back events around the July 4 holiday. On July 3, while the team is in Montgomery to finish up the two-week road trip, the Blue Wahoos will have a community celebration event from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Cost is $5 general admission and $35 for an upgraded experience on the Hancock Whitney Club level with a food buffet, soft drinks and cash bar. There will be a water slide, bounce houses, obstacle course other inflatables and Kazoo to meet kids, followed by an 8:30 p.m. fireworks show. Tickets are now available at www.bluewahoos.com.
On July 4, the Blue Wahoos will play a 4:05 p.m. game to begin a homestand against the Biloxi Shuckers. This game, however, will not have a post-game fireworks show. Rather, fans will be able to take in the Pensacola downtown activities and fireworks show put together by the Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce and Pensacola Young Professionals. The city show will be put on by Pyro Shows, the same company in Tennessee that has produced the Blue Wahoos fireworks shows each time since the inaugural 2012 season.
THIS WEEK: This will be the fourth meeting between the teams this season and second in Montgomery. The Blue Wahoos have won 10 of the previous 15 games against the Biscuits, the Tampa Bay Rays affiliate. Most recently they won a series 4-2 in Pensacola on June 11 that helped push the Blue Wahoos to a big first-half division lead.
The Biscuits are led by third baseman Austin Shenton, 25, who has surprised so far this season by leading the Southern League with a .323 average that includes 14 home runs and 46 RBI. Shenton was originally a fifth-round pick by the Seattle Mariners in 2019 and was not listed among the Rays Top 30 prospects when this season began.
Catcher Logan Driscoll is also having a strong season, batting .301 in 50 games. The Biscuits pitching has been the struggling part with an ERA of 4.55, ranking fifth in the league. The Biscuits are having their season’s fireworks show following the game on July 3.
WANT TO FOLLOW?
WHO: Blue Wahoos vs. Montgomery Biscuits
WHERE: Riverwalk Stadium, Montgomery, Alabama
WHEN: Wednesday through July 3.
GAMETIMES: Wednesday through Friday games begin at 6:35 p.m., Saturday (July 1) at 6:05 p.m., Sunday at 3:30 p.m. and Monday July 3 at 6:05 p.m.
LIVE AUDIO: A live broadcast of each game will begin five minutes before first pitch on www.bluewahoos.com and the MiLB First Pitch App.
LIVE VIDEO STREAM – A live video broadcast is available through Bally Live and MiLB TV (subscription required).
NEXT HOMESTAND – Begins on July 4 with a 4:05 p.m. game vs. Biloxi Shuckers.
SOUTHERN LEAGUE STANDINGS
Final First Half Standings
NORTH DIVISION
Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds) – 38-30
Tennessee Smokies (Chicago Cubs) – 36-32
Rocket City Trash Pandas (LA Angels) 31-38
Birmingham Barons (Chicago White Sox) – 25-44
SOUTH DIVISION
Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Miami Marlins) 41-27
Montgomery Biscuits (Tampa Bay Rays) 36-33
Biloxi Shuckers (Milwaukee Brewers) 34-35
Mississippi Braves (Atlanta Braves) 33-35
NOTE: Chattanooga and Pensacola have qualified for the divisional playoffs which begin Sept. 19. The second half of the Southern League season begins on Wednesday (June 28) to determine the other two playoff teams.