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Alumni Update: May 1, 2023
By Chris Rogers
The 2023 Major League Baseball season is one month old, and plenty of Cal Ripken Sr. League alumni are making their marks across the bigs. Let’s recap how each of them has fared thus far. All stats through Sunday, April 30.
Starting out in Southern California, a pair of former CRSCBL MOPs are off to hot starts. James Outman (Big Train 2017) leads all rookies with seven homers and a .991 OPS, cementing himself as a fixture in the Dodgers’ lineup. He made a national name for himself with a pair of two-homer games at Wrigley Field including a go-ahead ninth-inning grand slam.
Down the highway in Orange County, Hunter Renfroe (Big Train 2011-12) boasts seven homers of his own to go with an .844 OPS and a dazzling defensive play in right field on Opening Day.
Outman’s teammate Chris Taylor (Braves 2009) continues to rake as a super-utility man, ranking third on the Dodgers with five homers while appearing at four different positions across 22 games thus far.
Another former league MOP, Brandon Lowe (Big Train 2014), has been central in the Tampa Bay Rays’ scorching hot start to the season. The Tampa second baseman is slashing .233/.333/.523 with a team-high seven homers through his first 25 contests. His teammate, Kevin Kelly (Aces 2017), has made ten appearances out of the Rays’ bullpen, striking out 13 over 16 innings and posting a 3.94 ERA.
Rookie right-hander Hunter Brown (Big Train 2018) has slid into the Houston Astros rotation seamlessly, tossing at least seven innings in three of his five starts, including seven shutout innings last time out against the Rays. His 2.37 ERA leads all American League rookies, and he’s struck out 32 hitters in 30.1 innings of work.
Elsewhere in the Lone Star State, Rangers’ first baseman Nathaniel Lowe (River Dogs 2015) owns a .798 OPS and a team-best ten doubles through his first month of the season.
Through 18 games for the Chicago White Sox, Gavin Sheets (Redbirds 2014-15) owns a solid .277/.352/.404 slash line with two homers, including a mammoth three-run shot against his hometown Baltimore Orioles.
San Francisco Giants first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. (Redbirds 2012-13) has been an on-base machine. His 21 walks and .442 OBP rank fourth in baseball and he leads the Giants with a .977 OPS.
Across the bay, Oakland left-hander Ken Waldichuk (Big Train 2017) has made six starts for the Athletics, striking out 25 hitters across 31 frames.
Up the coast in the Emerald City. Seattle right-hander Logan Gilbert (Big Train 2016) has struck out 34 hitters across 27.2 innings of work, and has completed six frames in three of his five starts. Infielder Ty France (Big Train 2013) leads the Mariners with nine doubles and ranks third in RBIs (15) and OBP (.339).
Arizona Diamondbacks reliever Joe Mantiply (Big Train 2010) has made five appearances totaling 4.2 innings. He’s pitched to a 3.86 ERA with five strikeouts and no walks allowed.
Outfielder Stuart Fairchild (Redbirds 2015) has become a mainstay on the Cincinnati Reds, boasting an impressive .371 OBP to go along with his .764 OPS and five extra-base hits.
Alec Burleson (Big Train 2018) has made his mark on a crowded St. Louis outfield, smashing three homers and posting a .436 SLG across 87 plate appearances for the Cardinals.
Finally, back in the mid-Atlantic, Chad Kuhl (Orioles 2011) has made five starts in the Nationals’ rotation, striking out 18 across 22 innings of work thus far. In Baltimore, Joey Ortiz (Dodgers 2017) became the first Baltimore Dodger to make the bigs, debuting for the Orioles over the weekend. He’s gone 2-for-8 thus far, picking up three RBIs in his first MLB game on Friday in Detroit.
