The Braves received some good performances from the minor leaguers today, including a top 10 pitching prospect.
Arodys Vizcaino pitched two scoreless innings on the back end of the 6-1 win over the Red Sox. He got Ryan Lavarnway and Juan Carlos Linares on a flyout and groundout to start the eighth. His one out hit allowed came with two outs when Jose Iglesias hit a soft grounder to second that he beat out. That was followed by a flyout to end the inning.
Vizcaino received a groundout by Drew Sutton for the first out in the ninth, which was followed by a flyout and groundout to end the game. He was hitting mid-to-upper 90s with the fastball, showing good command, and mixed in a few breaking pitches. He seemed to impress everyone who saw him.
That was preceded by a little bit of a shaky inning by Anthony Varvaro, who gave up a single and two walks before getting out of a two-out, bases loaded jam. He was able to pitch around an error by inducing a double play, but Varvaro showed a little shakiness with the control, which he is bound to do at times.
Cristhian Martinez pitched two scoreless innings, including a perfect fifth. He gave up a single to David Ortiz and a walk to J.D. Drew in the sixth, but he got out of it with a groundout by Jed Lowrie. He faced the top and middle of the Boston order and looked good. He continues to impress.
Brandon Hicks replaced Alex Gonzalez and played third in the later innings, committing an error in the process. He made things worse with an infield popout. Not the best day.
Matt Young replaced Jordan Schafer after Schafer left from rolling his ankle. Young grounded into a weird double play in the seventh but singled off Tommy Hottovy in the ninth.
Jose Constanza walked in the seventh to bring home a run, earning himself a RBI. He grounded into a fielder's choice in the ninth.
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If it is possible, Vizcaino opened even more eyes with his hard fastball in two solid innings. Martinez also did well in facing the regular top and middle of the Red Sox lineup over two innings. It's encouraging to see him facing such a strong lineup and coming out fine.