Ogden catcher Tim Susnara has contract purchased by Cubs; Raptors win streak ends
One of the first players the Ogden Raptors lined up for this independent, 2021 season will no longer be with the team, but it’s good news.
Ogden catcher Tim Susnara had his contract purchased by the Chicago Cubs, Raptors team president Dave Baggott told the Standard-Examiner.
Susnara is the third player from the Pioneer League to sign into affiliated baseball. The Raptors had a player signed by the Los Angeles Angels during preseason camp, and the Cubs purchased the contract of Missoula Paddleheads first baseman Matt Warkentin on June 2.
Such was the hope when, after the teams were cut out of affiliated baseball, the Pioneer League relaunched as in independent, MLB “partner league” that gives major league teams access to advanced statistics as they continue to scout players.
As of Thursday night, no Cubs minor league affiliate had listed Susnara’s signing on their respective leagues’ transactions list. Based on recent movements, Susnara seems likely to land with Chicago’s low-A club, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the Carolina League.
Susnara hit .280 with three homers, seven doubles and 16 RBIs in 13 games, striking out and walking nine times each.
WIN STREAK ENDS
Ogden’s franchise-record win streak of 14 games came to an end Thursday as the Raptors lost 11-6 to the Rocky Mountain Vibes in Colorado Springs.
At 15-2, Ogden’s lead in the Pioneer League South Division will still be at least eight games entering Friday, depending on other results from around the league.
The Vibes (6-11) strung together five singles off Ogden starter Gavin Weyman to take a 3-0 lead after one inning, and the Raptors couldn’t recover.
Weyman settled in and threw three scoreless innings as Ogden scuffled at the plate.
In the fifth, Myles Denson doubled and Sean Skelly singled him in, appearing to give the Raptors life with a 3-1 deficit, but the Vibes racked up five runs on Bradley Gonzales in the bottom half of the fifth. That made it 8-1, and Ogden survived worse damage by recording two outs at the plate.
Manny Olloque made it 9-1 in the sixth with a leadoff homer for Rocky Mountain.
The Vibes committed five errors in the top of the seventh alone, but the Raptors only managed to cut the score to 9-4 when Josh Broughton doubled in a pair of runs and later scored on an error.
Rocky Mountain got two of them back to put the game away in the bottom of the seventh, using a leadoff triple to start a small rally in which the Vibes singled in a pair of runs.
Ogden tacked on a pair in the ninth when Jakob Goldfarb tripled in a run and scored on a sacrifice fly, but it wasn’t enough to spark a comeback.
The matchup continues at 6:30 p.m. Friday in the series’ third game.