The Arizona Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces, have quickly become the hottest team in all of baseball, embarking on a 10-game winning streak.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!While the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, the Houston Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, won the first half of the Pacific Coast League, securing a spot in the championship in September, the Aces have started the second half of the season on a scorching hot streak. With a 10-1 record, they hold a three-game lead over the Space Cowboys for the best record in the second half.
During their 10-game winning streak, which started on June 26 against the Oklahoma City Baseball Club, the Aces have outscored their opponents by 30 runs. Four of these 10 wins have been decided by just one run.
Leading the offense over the past 15 days has been 25-year-old Andres Chaparro, who has compiled 23 hits, 4 home runs, and 16 RBIs, posting a .511 batting average over his last 12 games. Zooming in further, to start the month of July, Chaparro has gone 14-20 at the plate, including a couple of home runs and 12 runs driven in.
Pavin Smith, who has spent plenty of time with the Diamondbacks, has also played a major role in the Aces’ offense. Smith has 19 hits in his last 44 at-bats, recording an OPS of 1.224.
And you cannot forget about MiLB home run leader Deyvison De Los Santos. On June 30, De Los Santos drove in all eight of the Aces’ runs in a game where he hit a grand slam and a three-run bomb. The 21-year-old has five home runs and 20 RBIs over his last 13 games.
But while the offense has been incredible, the pitching staff deserves their flowers. With 122 strikeouts over the last 116 innings, the Aces’ pitching staff has held their opponents to an average of 3.5 runs during their 10-game winning streak.
Yilber Diaz, the Diamondbacks #16 prospect playing in his first stint with the Aces this year, has compiled a couple of impressive starts. Diaz recently struck out 13 batters in a six-inning shutout on July 1. Logan Allen also deserves a shoutout. Allen was optioned to Triple-A by the Diamondbacks in mid-June. Over his last two starts, he has tossed 11.1 shutout innings, striking out 11 batters while allowing just four hits.
The Reno Aces will look to continue their win streak and wrap up a six-game sweep of the Sacramento River Dogs with the first pitch at 6:35 PDT on July 6
