St. Louis Cardinals Prospect Report: Marco Gonzales throws a scoreless start; Luke Weaver and Austin Gomber combine for 15 strikeouts in their starts; Charlie Tilson draws three walks and swipes two bags

The system was 4 and 3, with Memphis and Palm Beach shutting out their opponents, Peoria hanging on for a 2-1 victory, and State College winning 7-5. Johnson City's game was postponed.

By Cardinals645 Aug 12, 2015, 10:31am EDT

Marco Gonzales provided the bulk of a shutout, in his fourth start for Memphis since returning from injury.

Yesterday's Scores

Marco Gonzales kept Omaha off the board for six innings in his fourth start after returning to Memphis, and was helped by three relievers, including Miguel Socolovich and Sam Tuivailala in maintaining the shutout. Springfield lost 10-6 after giving up four runs in the 8th; a two-run ninth wasn't enough to salvage the game. Luke Weaver pitched seven innings in a shutout of the Charlotte Stone Crabs. With the help of three double plays, he faced just 25 batters, four over the minimum. Austin Gomber, recently profiled in a Q&A by our own Joe Schwarz, wasn't able to sport a spotless ERA on the night like his colleagues Gonzales and Weaver, but arguably had the best night by peripherals, and allowed just one run in a game that provided no further margin for error (despite Paul DeJong's two hits). State College won 7-5, the DSL Cardinals were routed 8-0, and the GCL Cardinals surrendered four runs in the bottom of the ninth to lose 6-5.

Highlights

Marco Gonzales, SP, Memphis; 6 IP, 3 Ks, 3 BBs, 2 Hits, 0 Runs

At just 61 IP on the season, it might not be appropriate to draw many conclusions from Gonzales' results, and that total includes his rehab starts. That said, he hasn't struck batters out at the same rate this year; his K% is down to a pedestrian 17.6% from a more respectable 23.5%. Those numbers are across all levels for both years, but if you look at just his Memphis numbers that comparison becomes 16.8% this year to 20.7% last year. Again, there's no statistical reason to think that anything is different, but given his injury and rehab, it'll be important to watch his peripherals going forward -- even moreso than usual.

Charlie Tilson, CF, Springfield; 1-for-2, 3 BBs, 2 SBs

Tilson came to the plate five times, and reached base in four of those PAs. Tilson's numbers are down just a bit since I last highlighted him in a DFR, but his .288/.344/.372 line is still good for a 100 wRC+ in the Texas League. His BB% and K% are far better than they've been in either of his previous full seasons, and his SBs yesterday put him at 41 for the season, nearly triple his previous best season total, and at a ~75% success rate -- also a career best. He's had better offensive numbers at various stops before, but those were all buoyed by a wildly high BABIP, while this season has been supported by solid peripherals. He'll still need to show a smidge more power to be a solid batter in the majors, but this is the closest he's ever looked.

Luke Weaver, SP, Palm Beach; 7 IP, 6 Ks, 2 BBs, 5 Hits, 0 Runs

Weaver has been laying waste to the Florida State League all year, with a 1.95 ERA and 2.34 FIP entering yesterday's game. Weaver proceeded to lower his already quite neat ERA, by striking out nearly 25% of the batters he faced, and starting a double play. His K% is now 21.3% and BB% is 4.6%. Those are some pretty impressive numbers for a guy in his first full season and who won't be 22 for another week or so. Those rates aren't the sort that are so bonkers that you expect Weaver to be in the Top 10 or 20 of MLB prospects, by any means, but they're very solid numbers that point toward Weaver giving the Cardinals some value in the relatively near future.

Austin Gomber, SP, Peoria; 7 IP, 9 Ks, BB, ER, 5 Hits

In the previously mentioned Q&A with Joe, Gomber shrugged off the idea that he was not getting much attention as a prospect. He seemed confident that he could advance in the organization by getting success. Well, he's certainly putting that theory to the test. He is now striking out just under a quarter of opposing batsmen, and his walk rate is similarly just under 6%, for a ratio of over four strikeouts for every walk. Gomber is a bit older than Weaver, so he should be tearing through the low minors a bit, but mid-round picks are no sure thing, so it's good to see another Cardinal draftee getting some success.

Today's Games

A handful of interesting starters today, including compensation rounder Jack Flaherty, Zach Petrick, and Arturo Reyes: a "first" rounder, an undrafted FA, and a 40th round pick.