The fourth week of the Arizona Fall League is now in the books! As a reminder, the Yankees’ representatives this year for the Mesa Solar Sox (11-11) are Bryce Cunningham, Cade Smith, Brady Kirtner, Coby
Morales, Hueston Morrill, Manuel Palencia, Adam Stone, and Enmanuel Tejeda. Here’s how they performed in their fourth week in the desert:
October 28th – Solar Sox 11, Desert Dogs 6
The Solar Sox began their week with a resounding victory, as the offense poured it on for 11 runs thanks to a complete performance up-and-down the lineup. Cade Smith started the game for Mesa, and even though he didn’t fan as many batters as in his last performance, he was still effective and kept the Desert Dogs off the scoreboard with three shutout innings.
Smith allowed a double to Atlanta’s Nacho Alvarez Jr. in the first inning and a single in the second, but worked around both baserunners. His only strikeout in the game was of Braden Montgomery, who was drafted by Boston in the first round in 2024 and traded to the White Sox in last offseason’s Garrett Crochet deal. The only Yankee in the lineup was Enmanuel Tejeda, who went 1-for-4 with a double, a stolen base, and a run scored in the second inning.
October 29th – Solar Sox 4, Desert Dogs 6
The Solar Sox dropped a seven-inning game on Wednesday 6-4, after a disastrous fourth inning put them in a hole they couldn’t dig their way out of. Bryce Cunningham started the game on the mound, and allowed two earned runs in three innings of work while experimenting with new pitches and grips.
Cunningham worked around a walk to Sam Antonacci in the first inning and set the Desert Dogs down 1-2-3 in the second, but walked Graysen Tarlow and allowed a single to Jose D. Hernandez in the third before Jim Jarvis drove in both runners with a double. The 2024 second-rounder induced a double play to get out of the inning and end his day, coming away with a no-decision. Manuel Palencia was the only Yankee prospect in the lineup, and he went 1-for-3 with an RBI single in the seventh inning.
October 30th – Solar Sox 6, Rafters 4
Tejeda was back in the lineup for the Solar Sox on Thursday as the lone Yankee representative in the starting nine, and he launched his first home run of the Fall, a two-run shot off Pirates prospect Jaden Woods. The eighth-inning blast turned out to be the game-winner, and per Statcast, the ball traveled 404 feet, leaving the bat at 105.9 MPH. Brady Kirtner took the mound in the eighth inning and earned a hold by tossing a scoreless frame, striking out Nelly Taylor and Jared Thomas.
October 31st – Solar Sox 8, Saguaros 7
The Solar Sox celebrated Halloween by scaring Logan Martin off the mound in the first inning with a six-run outburst, and an early 8-0 lead was enough to withstand a valiant comeback effort as they held on for a one-run victory. Tejeda and Palencia were both in the lineup, albeit with so-so results. Tejeda went 0-for-2 with an RBI walk, a hit-by-pitch, a stolen base, and two runs scored; Palencia went 0-for-4 with a run scored after reaching base on a fielder’s choice. Adam Stone pitched the sixth inning, and worked around a leadoff single by Dylan Campbell to complete a scoreless frame.
November 1st – Solar Sox 10, Desert Dogs 9
An offensive outburst by both teams resulted in a walk-off win for the Solar Sox, as Ed Howard drove in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth after the Desert Dogs tied the game with three runs in the top of the inning. No Yankees prospects took an at-bat in the win, but Hueston Morrill earned the win despite allowing three runs in two innings of work. Morrill worked around a walk and a single in the eighth, but was punished in the ninth by a leadoff double by Alvarez, a single by Antonacci, a two-run triple by Montgomery, and a wild pitch to tie the game. The walk-off in the ninth bailed him out and earned him a victory.
November 2nd – Solar Sox 6, Rafters 5
Tejeda and Palencia were back in the lineup after a day off, as the Solar Sox earned another narrow victory. Tejeda went 2-for-4 with two RBI, singling in the fifth inning and picking up a two-run double in the seventh; Palencia went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Kirtner picked up the save, working around a single by Charlie Condon and a walk to Johanfran Garcia to keep the Rafters off the board and the game tied.
Note: There are no reports of an injury to Coby Morales, but it seems highly unlikely that he would be off the field for two consecutive weeks if healthy. His status is something to monitor going forward.
Here are the stats for the Yankees prospects in the Arizona Fall League:
Enmanuel Tejeda: 9-51, 3 2B, 1 HR, 10 R, 11 RBI, 12 BB, 14 SO, 8 SB
Coby Morales: 5-16, 1 HR, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 6 SO, 1 SB
Manuel Palencia: 6-35, 4 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 BB, 10 SO
Bryce Cunningham: (0-3) 11 IP, 15 H, 15 R (11 ER), 8 BB, 7 K
Brady Kirtner: (0-1, 1 SV) 6 IP, 13 H, 9 R (5 ER), 4 BB, 6 K
Adam Stone: 4 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
Hueston Morrill: (1-0, 1 SV) 6.2 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
Cade Smith: (1-0) 9.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 11 K
