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Future Colorado Rockies: Modesto Nuts August 13 Update

By BobDeMuro |
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Modesto Nuts logo [Image via Twitter/Colorado Rockies]

The Colorado Rockies’ California League affiliate is shaping up to hold some of the organization’s better and more exciting prospects in 2015.

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The Modesto Nuts may be in the hard-hitting California League, but as of late, they’ve been extremely pitching-focused — and their starters are beginning to fill out some very solid years.

Unfortunately, though, by that same token they’ve been completely held in check on offense, which is rare for the advanced class-A level.

Remember, though: the Nuts are in a playoff hunt, with a team that primarily were the guys who won the South Atlantic League in 2014 with the Asheville Tourists, having now moved up one level to try again in Modesto.

The last week (0-6): That was a tough week for the Nuts, eh? They only scored 12 runs in their six losses, with the bats completely disappearing (though considering the pitching staff only allowed 21 runs, and endured 1-0 and 2-1 losses during the stretch, all was not lost).

Either way, the oh-fer (four or which were on the road) really killed the Nuts, who were in first place in their division before the streak, and are now in second place again behind the Visalia Rawhide. There’s still about three weeks left to win the second half in the division, though.

Next: Trending Up And Down For The Nuts

Aug 12, 2013 Denver, CO, USA; General view of Coors Field before the game between the San Diego Padres and the Colorado Rockies. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Trending up (Raimel Tapia): Tapia is hitting .325 over his last ten games, and is 7-for-16 in his last four games alone with a homer, five RBIs, and no strikeouts.

All told, Tapia is sixth in the league in hitting (at .313), though considering the leader is 30 points ahead of the field, it’s unlikely Tapia is going to be able to earn that crown.

Either way, he’s having a monster year: 142 hits in 107 games (which leads the California League by far), and 30 doubles, 5 triples, 10 home runs, and 23 stolen bases to go along with his .313/.342/.468 slash line.

Trending down (Correlle Prime): Prime has a lot of power — he hit 21 homers in Asheville last year and slugged another 47 doubles in just 127 games — but this year has been a challenge for him, to say the least. In his last ten, Prime is just 5-for-39 (.128) with 17 strikeouts and only one home run.

All told, he’s slashing just .237/.273/.381 in Modesto this year, and most alarming, he’s struck out 135 times in 109 games (438 at-bats).

The 12th round pick from 2012 is just 21 years old, and considering his size (6’5″) and position (first base), you’d have to imagine with his power profile that he’s got a shot in Denver three years or so from now. But, 2015 has no doubt been a very difficult season for Prime, and it’ll be interesting to see if he continues his development path in AA next year.

Next: Nuts 'n' Notes

Jul 3, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; A general view during a fireworks show after the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. The Dodgers won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

One to watch (Kyle Freeland): After suffering an injury that knocked him out of much of the start of the year, and then making a couple starts at rookie level Grand Junction to get his feet back under him, Kyle Freeland has now started twice in Modesto.

In two games, he’s allowed just two earned runs in nine innings of work, and while he’s allowing a lot of hits (13), he’s walked only two hitters while striking out five.

He’s due to start again Thursday night against Stockton, as he attempts to halt the Nuts’ losing streak and help retain first place in the California League’s Northern Division.

Obviously, considering his prospect profile, if the lefty starter finishes the year as strongly as he’s shown in a very small sample thus far, and he stays healthy, Freeland could have a shot at starting 2016 at AA Hartford, with Colorado just a little bit closer in his future.

Quick hits: The Nuts are now 26-19 in the second half of the season, two games back of the Visalia Rawhide for first place in their division … Overall, the Nuts are 59-56, which is the second best record overall in the division. That’s important because Visalia won the first half and earned an automatic playoff berth; should they win the second half, too, the other playoff position will revert back to the team with the best overall record, which would be the Nuts if the season ended today … Including Thursday night, the Nuts have just 11 home games remaining this year. They finish their season with a week-long road trip the first week of September … Matt Carasiti has converted saves in nine of his last ten games, throwing 10.1 scoreless innings, while allowing just three hits and four walks, and striking out twelve batters … Konner Wade is 5-1 with a 3.15 ERA in his last ten starts, and leads the Nuts in games started, innings, and complete games. He’s 7-7, 3.96 overall in 22 starts this year.

Socials:
ModestoNuts.com
@ModestoNuts
FB.com/ModestoNuts

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