Matias exits with injury after home run
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SURPRISE, Ariz. – The Surprise Saguaros showed strong pitching and received a scare on the bases in Saturday’s 10-6 victory against the Peoria Javelinas at Surprise Stadium.
Royals outfield prospect Seuly Matias appeared to injure himself while jogging around the bases after crushing a monstrous solo home run in the fifth inning.
“So far, we think it is a cramp,” said Surprise manager Mario Lisson. “We’ll get more information. For right now, he came back [into the dugout] and said he felt good, so we will find out a little later.”
Here’s what we know:
The Royals need to see Matias, who finished 1-for-3 Saturday, in action. He fractured his hand in 2019 and missed a significant amount of time in 2021 after he injured it again. He came into Saturday’s matchup with four hits in 21 at-bats during his first six Arizona Fall League games. He scored one run and struck out eight times during that span.
Here’s what we saw:
The Saguaros’ pitching staff dominated the Javelinas, limiting Peoria to seven hits and carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning.
Despite the Matias scare, the Royals should feel good about Saturday night’s game. Left-handed pitcher Asa Lacy, the club’s No. 3 prospect, turned in a solid performance on the mound. The fourth pick in the 2020 Draft struck out five and walked one batter in two innings. Of his 30 pitches thrown, 21 were strikes.
“He was really good, a little bit better than last time,” Lisson said. “He was able to locate his fastball a lot better. Once you get your fastball in control, you can get your secondary stuff to work better. The slider is always a good pitch for him. He used his changeup, too.”
Royals third base prospect Nathan Eaton finished 4-for-5, including a triple to lead off the bottom of the first to set the stage for a three-run inning and an early lead the Saguaros would not relinquish. Cincinnati's No. 16 prospect Ivan Johnson hit a home run in the opening frame. No. 11 Reds prospect Michael Siani stole home in the second inning to increase Surprise’s lead to 4-0 and Matias’ home run was the fifth run of the game.
Cincinnati’s James Marinan was equally impressive in three shutout innings in relief after taking over for Lacy. The right-hander struck out six and needed only 39 pitches, 28 of which were strikes.
“[Pitching] has been great so far,” Lisson said. “All of them have been doing a great job. They’ve been pitching ahead in the count and not afraid of contact. That’s been great for us. They are coming out to work and that’s a great thing.”
Bryson Stott, Philadelphia’s No. 2 prospect, broke up the combined no-hitter with a single off Yankees right-hander Harold Cortijo to lead off the seventh inning. Logan O’Hoppe, the club’s No. 11 prospect, followed with a two-run home run to cut Surprise’s advantage to 6-2.
The Javelinas tacked on four runs in the ninth inning, three on a home run by Atlanta outfielder and 17th-ranked prospect Jesse Franklin, but it was not enough to complete the comeback.