Crescenta Valley High graduate Trevor Bell stays perfect in Pensacola
The following are updates on local baseball players at the minor league level.
Trevor Bell (Crescenta Valley High, 2005) pitcher, Pensacola Blue Wahoos: Maybe it will keep on getting better for the former Falcon.
After picking up his first save of the year since signing with the Cincinnati this season, Bell pitched a spotless inning for the first time with the Tigers double-A affiliate Sunday.
While he didn’t get the save, Bell is showing he’s a reliable late-inning arm, as he pitched the final inning of the 4-0 Pensacola win. It took Bell all of 11 pitches to end the game.
The Crescenta Valley High graduate was called on to throw two more innings Friday night in a 9-3 win over the Montgomery Biscuits. Bell was spectacular again, as he allowed just one walk and struck out two batters to keep his earned-run average spotless this season.
Through seven innings, Bell has struck out more batters (nine) than base runners allowed (five — three walks, two hits) for a tidy 0.71 WHIP.
Pensacola isn’t fairing as well as Bell with a 27-45 record on the year. The Wahoos placed last in the Southern League South Division’s first half of the season with a 25-44 record. They’re up near the top of the second-half race with a 2-1 record that has them tied for second place.
Fernando Valenzuela, Jr. (St. Francis High, 2000) designated hitter/first baseman, Leones de Yucatan: After having his five-game hitting streak snapped in the first part of a doubleheader Wednesday, it didn’t long for Valenzuela Jr. to get back in the swing of things.
The former Golden Knight and Glendale Community College slugger bounced back with a one-for-three game Wednesday night. After a day off, he started another hitting streak with a one-for-three game with a run batted in in a 6-4 win against the Broncos de Reynosa Friday night.
Valenzuela’s recent hitting streak was more impressive considering it was a four-game, multi-hit streak.
He went two for four with two singles and two runs batted in a 9-5 win over the Vaqueros de la Laguna June 11. He was three for three with an RBI in an 11-6 loss to the Vaqueros the next day, before going two for four with two doubles in an 8-3 loss to the same team on June 13. He capped it off with a two-for-four game that included a double and three runs in an 11-3 thumping of Acereros del Norte on June 14.
In 67 games, Valenzuela Jr. is batting .331 (81 for 245) with 31 runs, 30 RBI and 20 doubles that has him slugging .441. He’s been struck out 26 times to 19 walks.
Leones de Yucatan is in fourth place in the Mexican League South Division with a 36-38 record.
Christian Bergman (St. Francis High, 2006) pitcher, Tulsa Drillers: Coming off a loss, Bergman may go into the Texas League All-Star game with something to prove on Tuesday.
Bergman picked up his sixth loss of the season after receiving no run support in a 3-0 defeat to the Springfield Cardinals. The former Knight allowed six base runners (four hits, two walks) and three runs over six innings.
The former All-Area Baseball Player of the Year, who struck out three batters, gave up all three runs on a homer from Xavier Scruggs in the bottom of the third inning. The Cardinals launched a two-out rally with a walk and Chris Swauger single, which set the table for Scruggs.
Bergman, 25, is 3-6 with a 3.20 earned-run average and 1.14 WHIP in 14 starts. The right-hander has struck out a team-best 57 and allowed 42 runs (30 earned) in 84 1/3 innings.
The Drillers won the first half of the Texas League North Division season with a 34-34 record. They started the second half of the year with three straight losses before getting a win over the Northwest Arkansas Naturals Friday, 2-0.
Ryan Sherriff (Glendale Community College, 2011) pitcher, Springfield Cardinals: After going head-to-head with Christian Bergman and picking up a no-decision against the Tulsa Drillers, Sherriff exacted some revenge when he got the win when Tulsa came to Springfield Wednesday.
The former Vaquero danced out of trouble in doing so, as he allowed nine base runners on seven hits and two walks in five innings. He only gave up two runs in the process to secure the 6-2 win and struck out a season-high five batters.
Sherriff is 2-1 with the Cardinals — the double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals — through five starts. In 27 innings, he has batters hitting .318 against him but has only allowed 10 runs, all earned, for a 3.33 earned-run average. He has double the strikeouts (18) to walks (nine) and a 1.59 WHIP on the year.
Springfield will play through the weekend before taking a one-day break before the Texas League North vs. South Division All-Star game Tuesday. The Cardinals are an even 36-36 after a walk-off win, 5-4, over the Arkansas Travelers Friday night.