This Week In Kannapolis Cannon Ballers Baseball (August 15-21)

Record
1-3 (last week)
58-51 (overall)
17-26 (second half)

During this seven-game stretch, Kannapolis faced the Charleston RiverDogs, an affiliate of the loathed Houston Astros, and the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, an affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. The Dogs currently occupy first in the Carolina South Division and the Woodpeckers fourth, while the Ballers remain in fifth.

The Cannon Ballers desperately sought a winning streak this week, but it remained elusive. Despite a lineup capable of scoring runs, they’ve struggled to string hits together. This month, Alec Makarewicz, Jeral Perez, and Lyle Miller-Green have been bright spots at the plate. On the mound, Jesús Méndez and Tyler Davis have been solid contributors.

August 15: Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 6, Charleston RiverDogs 2
The offense awakens from its slumber! The Ballers clobbered RiverDogs pitchers for 12 hits and six runs as they snapped their three-game losing streak. Catcher Ronny Hernandez had the night of his life, knocking the ball around like it was sitting on a tee. Notching a career-high four hits, he smacked three doubles and a single.

T.J. McCants, who hit a dinger in his professional debut a week ago, had another one tonight. This was only his second game since being selected in this year’s MLB draft. Over those two appearances, he’s 3-for-7 with the two long balls. Get this guy some more at-bats, please.

Drake Logan also continued to pile up the hits, going 1-for-4 with two RBIs on a double in the sixth, giving Kanny a 4-1 lead. He’s been terrific in August, slashing .342/.375/.737 with a 1.112 OPS.

Righthander Jake Peppers continued his dominance on the mound, securing his second straight victory. The righty has now fired off five consecutive solid starts. Over five innings in this one, Peppers yielded just one run on four hits while fanning two. The bullpen duo of Hale Sims and Carson Jacobs seamlessly picked up where Peppers left off, combining for four scoreless frames. The pair allowed only one run on four hits while striking out five, preserving the win.

Game MVP
Ronny Hernandez 4-for-4, 2 R, RBI

August 16: Charleston RiverDogs 5, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 3 (10 innings)
This was a tough loss for the Ballers. With the game tied 3-3 from the fifth through the ninth innings, the offense couldn’t come through in extras. McCants kicked off the scoring early in the bottom of the first with a triple that drove Burrows home to put Kanny up, 1-0. George Wolkow also had an extra-base hit with a leadoff double in the fourth, eventually crossing the plate on a wild pitch and throwing error. Kanny scored their third and final run of the contest in the bottom of the fifth on Jeral Perez’s first round-tripper of the season.

Frankeli Arias made his sixth start of the season. Despite fanning six in the game, the southpaw had a rough go of it in the third, surrendering two runs on seven hits. Mark McLaughlin entered in relief and added two strikeouts of his own but still allowed a run. Tyler Davis tossed two innings, blanking the Dogs. The loss ultimately fell to Luke Bell, who surrendered two runs in the 10th inning.

Game MVP
T.J. McCants 2-for-5, RBI

August 17: Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 4, Charleston RiverDogs 3
After the Dogs scored two in the top of the first, the Ballers answered quickly with two of their own in the bottom half. Illinois native Sam Antonacci led off the inning with a double. The Sox selected the 21-year-old in Round 5 (No. 140) of this year’s MLB Draft. He’s struggled a bit since being assigned to Kannapolis on August 8, with only five hits while slashing .185/.290/.222, but it was good to see him with his first extra-base hit. After a fly out by Jeral Perez moved the runner, third baseman Alec Makarewicz reached on a throwing error, and Antonacci came around to score. A two-out single by Drake Logan drove home Markaewicz, knotting the score, 2-2.

The offense went radio silent until the red-hot Makarewicz doubled home Antonacci and Perez, who had both walked. Makarewicz, a 2024 free-agent signing out of NC State, is hitting .412/.474/.647 with a 1.121 OPS over the past seven days.

Alec Makarewicz was the big hero of tonight’s Starry Night WIN! SO THAT MEANS THE POST GAME ICE BATH! pic.twitter.com/0M7BxXGH3T

— Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (@Kcannonballers) August 18, 2024

Ricardo Brizuela had another nice start, as it was his third straight game with five innings pitched. The righty had a shaky first inning where he surrendered two runs on three hits, but he settled in after that, allowing only a walk in the second and one in the fifth. Jesús Méndez secured the win for his two innings of one-run ball while Connery Peters earned his third hold and Carson Jacobs his second save with an inning of work apiece.

Game MVP
Alec Makarewicz 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI

August 18: Charleston RiverDogs 4, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 2 (Game 1) (7 innings)
The RiverDog pitchers were just too much for the Ballers in Game 1 of the doubleheader. Charleston held Kannapolis scoreless with only three singles through the first six innings. Kanny made it interesting in the seventh when Miller-Green walked with two outs, and Luis Pineda hit a two-run shot to left-center. Unfortunately, Mason Dinesen struck out looking on four pitches to end the contest.

Righthander Tanner McDougal dropped to 0-3 after his third straight loss in August. He had a tough first inning, giving up two tallies on four hits. The 21-year-old didn’t do himself any favors either with two hit batsmen. He was tagged with one more run in the fifth after departing with men on first and third as reliever Hale Sims threw a wild pitch. Daniel González gave up the final run in the seventh.

Game MVP
Luis Pineda 1-for-3, 2 R, RBI, HR

August 18: Charleston RiverDogs 5, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 4 (Makeup PPD 7/26) (Game2) (9 innings)
This one was only supposed to be seven innings, but with the score tied at 2-2 at the end of the seventh, it kept on going and ultimately resulted in a Ballers loss. Makarewicz hit his first professional bomb in the top of the second. The undrafted free agent spent four years at East Carolina University and transferred to NC State as a graduate student for a fifth season. He had an incredible year, hitting .378 with 98 hits, 84 RBI, and 24 home runs. He became the first player at NC State to have 25 doubles and 20 dingers in the same season. He’s been fantastic since joining Kannapolis, slashing .295/.354/.409 with a .763 OPS.

The Ballers scored again in the top of the fourth when George Wolkow’s RBI single drove in Perez, who had doubled. All was quiet on the offensive front until they struck first in extras when Ryan Burrowes drove in the ghost runner with a double. Unfortunately, the Dogs answered with a tally in their half of the inning. On to the ninth, Kanny pushed the ghost runner across on two wild pitches by Samuel Mejia, but that was all they could muster. Sadly, Charleston walked it off with two runs, only one earned, in the bottom of the ninth due to a Perez throwing error on the first play of the inning.

Starter Manuel Veloz struggled a bit during his 3 2/3 innings of work, giving up two runs on six hits. The Sox signed Veloz as a free agent out of Venezuela when he was 19. This season, he’s had difficulty finding his footing while ping-ponging between Winston-Salem and Kannapolis. This was only his fourth start, as he’s primarily pitched out of the pen in 2024. Tyler Davis had another solid relief appearance, surrendering no runs on one hit over 2 1/3 frames. Davis hs performed well for the Ballers that this was his farewell game, earning a Winston-Salem promotion on August 20. Patrick Maybach took the loss as his record dropped to 0-2.

Game MVP
George Wolkow 2-for-4, R, RBI

August 20: Fayetteville Woodpeckers 6, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 5
Despite a strong start, the Ballers fell victim to another close loss. Makarewicz’s timely single in the first brought in Perez, giving them an early lead. Although Kanny drew multiple walks, they struggled to capitalize on those opportunities. Miller-Green’s two-run oppo taco in the fourth extended their advantage, but the Woodpeckers fought back. A series of hits in the fifth put the Ballers ahead, 5-2, but the Woodpeckers rallied with a three-run bottom of the inning to tie the game. A single run in the seventh ultimately sealed their victory, leaving the Ballers with another heartbreaking defeat.

Carlton Perkins made his eighth start of the 2024 season, lasting 3 2/3 innings on the mound. The 21-year-old righthander, drafted in the 15th round (pick No. 449) out of Cowley Community College in 2023, has struggled to find his rhythm in professional baseball, posting a 3-6 record over 20 appearances. Despite avoiding a loss in this outing, Perkins’ command was shaky, surrendering two runs on seven hits and two walks. Reliever Connery Peters also faced control issues, allowing three runs on two hits and four free passes. A 2024 draft selection, Aaron Combs, made his professional debut and tossed 1 1/3 innings, surrendering a hit with two walks and a strikeout. Ultimately, Méndez took the loss, giving up the decisive run in the seventh inning.

Game MVP
Lyle Miller-Green 1-for-3, 2 RBI, BB

August 21: Fayetteville Woodpeckers 7, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 3
The Woodpeckers wasted no time going on the offensive, pecking at Kanny’s starter, Jake Peppers, for six runs in the third inning. The righty saw his record slip to 6-6 after surrendering seven runs on seven hits in four innings. Despite not issuing a walk and striking out five, the six hits and a wild pitch in the third inning proved to be his downfall. Fayetteville added a solo home run in the fourth for good measure, but the seven-run outburst was more than enough to secure the victory. González and Clete Hartzog both tossed two innings of no-run ball in relief.

The Cannon Ballers managed to muster up three runs on the offensive side. They took their only lead of the game, 1-0, early in the top of the second when Ronny Hernandez singled home Makarewicz, who had walked. They added on another run when Wolkow launched one deep to right field, his 11th long ball of the season. This big lefty can MASH the baseball.

The final tally came in the top of the eighth when, yep, you guessed it, Makarewicz came through with another RBI single. Let’s hope this guy can keep up this level of production. Give me an on-base RBI machine, please. He has 10 RBIs over 13 games. Impressive.

Game MVP
Alec Makarewicz 2-for-3, R, RBI, BB

Seven-Day Pitching

Seven-Day Hitting

Please support our White Sox writing and podcasts by clicking our Patreon link.

Ronny Hernandez photo: Ronny Hernandez Instagram