Jampacked Blog

After a hot start, the Jammers have fallen quite hard over the past few days and have scored just nine runs in their past five games — and six in their last four. Not much of a coincidence that Jamestown is 0-5 in that stretch.

So why the power outage? Well, it’s Angel Espada’s duty to get everyone at bats and with 15 active hitters, that’s not the easiest task. While Jamestown does have five guys hitting over .300, they have the same amount hitting under .200. In addition, Jamestown has just four homeruns, all of which are solo shots.

Perhaps the most surprising stat, though, is Jamestown is batting .263 with runners in scoring position. That’s really not a terrible number and has a handful of guys doing pretty well in that situation. For whatever reason, they’re not scoring. The main reason may be their slugging percentage, which is just .322, fourth last in the league.

CATCHERS — Jose Behar (6), Sharif Othman (2), Brian Dice (2)

Behar started last night. My guess is Othman gets it tonight. He hasn’t started since Saturday. Back to Behar on Friday. Dice or Behar on Saturday.

Who should be playing — Behar. I like him defensively and he’s hitting .318/.375/.408. While he’s only played back-to-back days twice, Espada’s done a pretty good job settling on one guy so far.

FIRST BASE — Viosergy Rosa (6), Felix Munoz (4)

It’s been on-and-off here, but both players are fairly similar. They’re lefties without a whole lot of power and neither showed they were too much better than the other defensively. I suppose I’d prefer Rosa with the glove though. He’s also shown a great eye at the plate. But, Munoz is hitting .353/.389/.529. Rosa is .150/.250/.207.

Who should be playing — Looking at those offensive numbers and Jamestown’s mighty struggle at the plate lately, it should be Munoz.

SECOND BASE — Anthony Gomez (5), Yefri Perez (3), Yeison Hernandez (2)

This has been my headscratcher. Granted Gomez has DH’d a couple of times, but I’d like to see him out at second more often that 50 percent of the time. I really like Hernandez, who is hitting .290, and like what Espada is doing with him, moving him around the infield and getting him at bats. But to me, Gomez has a future at second. Get him more at bats.

Who should be playing — In an ideal 10-game stretch, I’d probably have Gomez start six or seven with Perez and Hernandez splitting the rest.

SHORTSTOP — Austin Nola (5), Hernandez (3), Rony Peralta (2)

Nola has played everyday, but has moved around which is somewhat OK in my book. Again, I like Hernandez playing this amount and him getting a few starts at shortstop every 10 games is great. Nola at .143/.262/.143 has been a hole in the middle of the lineup this year.

Who should be playing — Well, with Nola struggling as much as he is, this is a decent rotation. Ideally, I’d like to see him more at just short and give his at bats at third base to Peralta.

THIRD BASE — Matt Juengel (5), Nola (4), Peralta (1)

At this point, Jamestown/Miami is trying to figure out if Nola can play shortstop at the major league level. Thus, he’s getting a ton of work at third. It’s possible with Nola going back-and-forth that he is struggling so much at the plate. Whatever the case, I like Juengel. He’s hitting .267 with a .371 OBP. No extra-base hits yet, but they’ll come.

Who should be playing — The conundrum in whether or not Nola can play short. If he can’t, then Nola should be here, which I guess DH’s Juengel (unless he can play first against lefthanded starters?). If Nola can play short, then have Juengel here everyday with Peralta backing up both positions.

LEFT FIELD — Kentrell Dewitt (6), Jesus Solorzano (4)

Dewitt started 4-for-7. He’s 0-for-16 since. Coincidence or not, there were three days off in between those two numbers. Nobody said he was injured, but that’s a bit strange. Solorzano looks like a player and with his versatility in the outfield, he has a great chance to keep moving through the system.

Who should be playing — Dewitt unless he continues to really struggle. I’d rather see Solorzano in right.

CENTER FIELD — Juancito Martinez (8) Solorzano (2)

The MVP of the season so far has been Martinez. He has a team-high 10 hits and three stolen bases, while hitting .333 with three RBI and three runs. He does have an error, but he’s been fine to me defensively when I’ve seen him. Again Solorzano backing him up twice every 10 games is ideal.

Who should be playing — Martinez. He’s been great.

RIGHT FIELD — Cameron Flynn (7) Solorzano (3)

Flynn, a rookie out of Kentucky, has struggled so far. He’s just 5-for-28 with five singles. He is batting 3-for-8 with RISP and is tied for the team lead with four RBI.

Who should be playing — Well Jamestown only has four outfielders and if Solorzano is the utility man, I suppose it’s Flynn. The outfield rotation has actually been great so far so no real complaints here.

DESIGNATED HITTER — Juengel (3), Hernandez (2), Gomez (2), Dice (1), Rosa (1), Nola (1)

This is all about getting guys more ABs and there is no real reason to complain about any of the choices here. Again, once we know what they’re going to do with Nola, shortstop and third base will clear up more. I like Hernandez getting opportunities here.

Who should be playing — Any of the infielders. They’ve got plenty of them.