Patriots Notebook: News and Notes Before a Battle with the Baysox
Bridgewater, New Jersey – The Patriots (19-20) have drawn to a game under .500 and sit just four games off the Northeast Division lead after taking four-of-six from Binghamton last week. Somerset hopes to get over .500 for the first time since Opening Day when it treks nearly 200 miles
Bridgewater, New Jersey – The Patriots (19-20) have drawn to a game under .500 and sit just four games off the Northeast Division lead after taking four-of-six from Binghamton last week. Somerset hopes to get over .500 for the first time since Opening Day when it treks nearly 200 miles south this week to Bowie, MD for the Patriots’ first meeting of the season with the Chesapeake Baysox (15-23) at Prince George’s Stadium.
The Orioles affiliate has dropped seven of its last eight games while Somerset will look to win their first road series of the year as the team is just 6-12 away from TD Bank Ballpark this season.
Here are some news, notes and tidbits surrounding the Patriots heading into this week’s action.
Jace Avina (@Yankees No. 19 prospect) has been named the Eastern League Player of the Week!🎖
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) May 18, 2026
Avina went 10-for-24 (.417 AVG) with 2 HR, 5 XBH, 4 RBI and 10 R during this week's home stand. pic.twitter.com/RW1YtRSLNX
Player of the Week: Patriots outfielder Jace Avina was named the Eastern League Player of the Week by MiLB on Monday afternoon for his dominant performance against Binghamton last week.
The Yankees No. 19 prospect went 10-for-24 with five extra base hits and two homers while scoring 10 runs and driving home four on the week. The 22-year-old Avina notched at least one hit in each game of the series and extended his season-high on-base streak to 17 games, which is the second-longest active streak in the Eastern Leauge entering play on Tuesday.
Avina has emerged as an impact hitter in a potent Somerset offense that has blasted the most home runs in Double-A this season. After hitting just .198 out of the gate in April, Avina has slashed .339/.406/.694 in May. He currently leads the Yankees minor league system in doubles and XBH while his 11 HR are tied for second.
“Me and Soso [Hitting Coach Mike Fransoso] have been working heavily on swing path, trying to think more down to it to create more backspin to give myself more time in the zone” Avina said. “I felt like before I was kind of rushing my swing, I was late and I was cutting across so for me it was just slowing everything down and just work the barrel path through the zone a little bit longer.”
Ben Hess is back! 🥳
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) May 14, 2026
The @Yankees No. 5 Prospect dials up the high fastball for his first strikeout of the night! pic.twitter.com/HX3ekboVeK
Hess Truck is Back: The Patriots got a big boost to their rotation last week when they activated right-hander Ben Hess from the IL on Thursday. The Yankees No. 5 prospect, who was on a pitch limit as he slowly gets built back up, allowed a run on three hits over 1.1 IP before being pulled at the 25-pitch mark. Manager James Cooper said the organization is going to be cautious with the 2024 first round draft selection as he makes his way back from a long shutdown period.
"I think he just had some inflammation. We just wanted to get him checked out - they went and got the MRI, and all of the imaging came back clean,” Cooper said. “The fact that he had the shutdown, he's just being built back up. It's been a quick turnaround for the most part, not quick for him because he lost all of those innings."
Bash Brothers: Infielders Tyler Hardman and Coby Morales have combined for 18 homers this season and enter action on Tuesday tied for the Eastern League lead in RBI with 33 apiece. No Somerset player had ever posted 33 RBI in the first 39 games of a season prior. The pair are the first Somerset duo to combine for 66 RBI in that same period.
Kyle Carr (@Yankees No. 11 prospect) shoved in his seventh start of the season😤
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) May 16, 2026
📈5.0 IP+ | 3 H | 1 ER | 5 BB | 3 K | 1 HR pic.twitter.com/nKwfEHT71y
Driving the Carr: After an uncharacteristically tough April in which he posted a 9.56 ERA in four starts, Yankees No. 11 prospect Kyle Carr has now quietly posted three consecutive strong starts in May and appears to have turned a corner after some early struggles.
The southpaw has posted a 2.12 ERA this month and has held EL opposition to a mere .206 batting average. Over his last three starts, Carr has whiffed 18 batters and allowed four earned runs in 17 innings of work.
Knowing the Opponent: The Baysox are one of two teams in the Eastern League that the Patriots have not lost a series to (5-0-3, 30-18 overall) since the team joined the affiliated ranks in 2021.
The headliner prospect featured on the current iteration of the Baysox is southpaw Luis De León, the Orioles No. 3 prospect. Baltimore inked De León out of the Dominican Republic during the 2021 international signing period and the long and lean lefty has evolved into the organization's top pitching prospect.
De León has electric stuff but has struggled with command over the first seven starts of the season for Bowie (1.71 WHIP). The 23-year-old has posted a 5.47 ERA but over his last two starts has allowed just two earned runs and has a 2.57 ERA in the month of May.
Orioles No. 7 prospect Aron Estrada is the top position player featured on the Bowie roster and the 21-year-old enters action on Tuesday as one of the hottest hitters in the Eastern League. After getting off to a sluggish start, Estrada has slashed .349/.391/.372 in May and has hit safely in six straight.
Probable Pitchers
Tuesday 5/19: LHP Luis De León (1-2, 5.47 ERA) vs. RHP Trent Sellers (1-1, 7.82 ERA)
Wednesday 5/20: RHP Juaron Watts-Brown (0-1, 5.11 ERA) vs. RHP Ben Hess (1-0, 4.00 ERA)
Thursday 5/21: RHP Evan Yates (1-2, 5.34 ERA) vs. LHP Xavier Rivas (2-2, 4.94 ERA)
Friday 5/22: TBD vs. RHP Jack Cebert (2-0, 3.94 ERA)
Saturday 5/23: LHP Sebastian Gongora (1-1, 4.21 ERA) vs. LHP Kyle Carr (3-4, 5.73 ERA)
Sunday 5/24: LHP Luis De León (1-2, 5.47 ERA) vs. RHP Chase Chaney (1-2, 5.19 ERA)
Matt Kardos | SomersetPatriots.com Senior Writer
Matt Kardos has covered the Yankees minor league system for over a decade and will spend his 14th season on the beat covering the Patriots for SomersetPatriots.com. Throughout his career, Matt has contributed to MLB.com, YES Network and Pinstriped Prospects. When he’s not at the ballpark, Matt enjoys traveling with his wife Kimberly, watching Jets football and collecting sports cards.