Local flavor in minors
Former Orange Coast College outfielder Zach Nehrir is off to a blazing start in professional baseball, while former UC Irvine pitcher Matt Esparza had a less-than-auspicious debut on Thursday.
Nehrir, who signed on June 12 after being drafted in the 16th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier in June out of Houston Baptist University, was 11 for 21 through five games as of Wednesday for the Hillsboro Hops of the Class A short-season Northwest League. He had three doubles and three runs batted in.
Esparza, who was 8-2 with a 3.38 earned-run average as a junior in his only season at UCI in 2015, signed on June 18 after being selected in the 14th round by the Cleveland Indians.
In his first appearance for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers of the Class A short-season New York-Penn League on Thursday, Esparza surrendered a home run to the first batter he faced.
State College’s Leobaldo Pina took Esparza, who entered in relief in the sixth inning, over the center-field wall to begin an outing that spanned two-thirds of an inning. Esparza allowed two hits and the one run, while walking two.
Additional local products who have signed and are competing now include former UCI catcher Jerry McClanahan, OCC product Chris Iriart, and former UCI pitcher Evan Manarino.
McClanahan, a 19th-round pick by the Baltimore Orioles, was four for 15 through for four games with the Aberdeen Ironbirds of the New York-Penn League. He had one RBI.
Iriart, a 12th-round pick by the Oakland A’s out of the University of Houston, for which he hit 15 home runs and earned all-conference honors as a first baseman in 2015, was two for 16 with four RBIs and one double. Iriart is playing for the Vermont Lake Monsters of the New York-Penn League, for which he had played five games through Thursday.
Manarino, drafted in the 25th round by Oakland after completing his eligibility at UCI, signed on June 12 and has thrown three innings, spanning two outings through Thursday with Vermont. He had allowed no runs on one hit and has struck out three, while not walking a batter.
Kyle Dowdy, a former OCC pitcher who also played at Houston in 2015, has signed with the Detroit Tigers, who selected him in the 12th round after he went 9-2 with a 2.45 ERA for Houston. As of Thursday, Dowdy had yet to be assigned.
OCC Coach John Altobelli said former Pirates pitchers David and Jacob Hill, both of whom were drafted out of the University of San Diego, had not signed as of Thursday. Altobelli said David Hill, the West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year who was taken in the fourth round (No. 107 overall) by the Colorado Rockies, was still negotiating with the team.
Jacob Hill, taken in the 32nd round by Cleveland, planned to return to USD next season, Altobelli said.
— Barry Faulkner