Wahoos Weekly: Weather, Big League Guests, Five Wins In Wahoos Home Series

Paul McIntosh wondered if he had a future in professional baseball, after the 2021 Major League Baseball draft ended without his name being called.

He had gone undrafted, following his senior season at West Virginia, despite being a honorable mention selection as a catcher on the All-Big 12 Conference team and helping the West Virginia Mountaineers to an NCAA regional appearance in 2019.

Unexpectedly, he got a phone call soon afterward from Miami Marlins scout Alex Smith, who handles the Mid-Atlantic region.

“He said, ‘Hey are you upset?’ I was like, yeah I guess so. Then he said, ‘Do you want to come play for the Miami Marlins?’ McIntosh said, relating the memory.

“I said yes sir, I’ll see you whenever you want me there. So that was really nice to get the opportunity to start my professional career,” he added.

Now, a year later, he continues to make the best of that opportunity.

McIntosh went 3-for-4 Sunday and scored three runs as the Blue Wahoos wrapped up a big homestand with a 7-5 victory against the Chattanooga Lookouts and won for the fifth time in the six-game series.

Last Week's Wahoos Weekly: After Sunday Win, Wahoos Back Home For Event-Filled Week

Soler makes a visit: In brief Pensacola stop, Miami Marlins outfielder and World Series star Jorge Soler connects

It was the perfect way for the Blue Wahoos to head into a break this week for the Major League Baseball All-Star week. They won’t play until Friday in a three game series at Biloxi.

McIntosh helped ignite a five-run rally in the fifth inning that became decisive. His one-out single, was followed by Griffin Conine’s walk to load the bases. With two outs, Bubba Hollins hit a wind-affected fly ball that bounced off the glove of Lookouts rightfielder Jacob Hurtubise as he ran toward the foul line. The ball bounced fair for a double and three runs scored.

“Our mantra has been to work the counts, work the at-bats and we are really resilient,” said McIntosh, who produced his 16th multi-hit game this season and is batting .261 with eight home runs this season. “We score runs late in a lot of the games we play. Whenever we score the runs later, we usually win those games.”

The Blue Wahoos, who evened their second-half record to 9-9 after winning the first half division race, started fast as well on Sunday.

They got a pair of runs on Griffin Conine’s two-run double, then had another quality outing from A.J. Ladwig, who was making his second start tfhis week. He worked five innings to earn his fourth win.

The bullpen sealed the game in the eighth and ninth innings with Sean Reynolds (hold) and Eli Villalobos (save) both pitching scoreless innings.

“They went out there and attacked with their best stuff,” said McIntosh, 24, an Atlanta native, who then moved to Miami where he graduated from Dade Christian High School. “They both came out with everything they had and executed their pitches and did really well.”

Since being part of the Blue Wahoos since the start of the 2022 season, McIntosh has been the primary catcher. This week will allow a brief respite he welcomes. He has climbed three levels in the Marlins’ minor league system since that initial disappointment of last year’s draft, which ended on July 13, 2021.

“I am going to appreciate it a lot,” he said of the upcoming break. “I’ve been catching four to five times a week and that has taken a pretty big toll, both  offensively and defensively.

“This is my first full season, so I’m still learning, still trying to make adjustments. I didn’t really know what to expect coming into this, but it’s a pretty decent start to my first full season.”

Sunday wrapped up another eventful week for the Blue Wahoos

A quick recap

July 12 – A.J. Ladwig worked into the seventh inning without allowing a run and gave up only one walk in the Blue Wahoos 2-1 win to open the homestand against the Chattanooga Lookous.

He had six strikeouts en route to earning his third win. Relievers Jefry Yan and Eli Villalobos pitched the final three innings of scoreless relief. Before the game, the Blue Wahoos honored Pensacola Catholic grad and Ole Miss outfielder T.J. McCants, who helped lead the Rebels to the College World Series championship. His younger brother Jordan, 20, was drafted in the third round by the Marlins in 2021 and is spending his first full season with the Marlins Rookie League team in Jupiter.

July 13 – Zach McCambley followed a no-hit bid in his last outing with a two-hit gem, complete with a career-high 11 strikeouts in the Blue Wahoos 7-3 win. Jorge Soler supplied the power show before a post-game fireworks display by hitting two mammoth home runs, driving in three runs and scoring two runs.

July 14 – Another 7-3 win for the Blue Wahoos, this one with all seven runs scored in the first two innings.  Ray-Patrick Didder began the early surge with a one-out single. With two outs, the next four batters reached. Griffin Conine singled and Bubba Hollins delivered a two-run single. J.D. Orr walked and Cobie Fletcher-Vance hit a two-run double.

In the second inning, Jan Mercado and Jose Devers started the rally with singles, followed by Troy Johnston's two-run double. Devers, Didder, Johnston and Hollins all had two hits apiece in the game, as part of the Blue Wahoos' 11 hits.

July 15 – The Lookouts took their only game in the series after jumping to a five-run first inning, then tacked on four more runs in the fifth en route to a 9-3 win at Blue Wahoos Stadium.

The game was delayed nearly an hour by rain – the fourth consecutive night where weather was a factor. It was Giveaway Friday at the ballpark with fans received a bobblehead of WEAR-3 TV news anchor Sue Straughn, who began at the station in 1973 and worked her way into local fame as evening news anchor and community leader.

July 16 – Blue Wahoos manager Kevin Randel won his 100th game with the Blue Wahoos in a 2-1 win. Edward Cabrera started the game with three scoreless innings, then Cody Mincey took over with a superlative outing for his his fifth win. Mincey, who was undrafted out of college at South Carolina, worked 4.2 innings, allowed four hits, a run, struck out six and walked only two.

The Blue Wahoos got a solo home run from Victor Victor Mesa and an RBI single from Jose Devers. Colton Hock earned his ninth save after coming on with two outs in the eighth and making big pitches to seal the win in the ninth.

July 17 – The Blue Wahoos used a five-run surge in the fifth inning for a 7-5 win to close out the six-game homestand with Chattanooga and head into the All-Star break with a good feeling.

WAHOOS NOTABLES

EURY DOES IT – Blue Wahoos star pitcher Eury Perez shined in his appearance at the SiriusXM Futures Game played Saturday in Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium, as prelude to the 92nd MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday. He threw just 10 pitches while easily retiring the three batters he faced in the second inning of the seven-inning game.

He struck out one of the three batters and wowed people who had not seen him with his smooth motion and fastball approaching 100 mph. The 6-foot-8 Perez, 20, was the lone Miami Marlins representative in the game.

Perez, who recently climbed to No. 1 in MLB Pipeline’s ranking of the Miami Marlins Top 30 prospects, is scheduled to start one of the three games the Blue Wahoos will play in Biloxi in the upcoming weekend series.

ALUMNI DEBUTS – Max Meyer, who pitched for the Blue Wahoos most of the 2021 season, made his MLB debut Saturday in Miami during the Marlins’ loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. After cruising through the first three innings, Meyer allowed a two out, two-run homer in the fourth inning to J.T. Realmuto, who was once part of the Marlins organization and played against the Blue Wahoos in Pensacola while in Double-A.

On Sunday, former Blue Wahoos catcher Caleb Hamilton, who played in Pensacola in 2019 while the team was a Minnesota Twins affiliate, made his MLB debut with the Twins in the eighth inning. He had his first at-bat and grounded out. He became the 30th player from that 2019 Blue Wahoos roster to advance into a MLB debut.

MOVIE NIGHT – The Blue Wahoos are hosting a Community Movie Night on Saturday, featuring the Walt Disney animated movie “Princess and the Frog.” The movie begins at 7 p.m. Gates will open at 6 p.m.

Tickets are $5 and seating will be available in the stands or on the field. People will be allowed to bring blankets and sit on the field, but no fold-up chairs and no food or beverages will be permitted on the field.

Concessions will be open on the stadium concourse serving food and beverages.

BIG LEAGUE PRESENCE – Jorge Soler left a memorable impression with his two days playing for the Blue Wahoos last week. In addition to blasting two home runs and collecting three hits, the 2021 World Series MVP with Atlanta Braves, signed autographs for fans before each game.

Soler, signed as a free agent by the Marlins in March, also purchased a massive steak and lobster dinner, plus desserts from Pensacola’s Outback Steakhouse to feed the entire team, coaches and training staff after last Wednesday’s game before he left. He greeted each player in the clubhouse before departing back to Miami.

On Saturday, pitcher Edward Cabrera from the Marlins returned to Blue Wahoos Stadium where he pitched for a portion of the 2021 season. Cabrera worked three perfect innings and is expected to make another rehab start for the team in Biloxi.

THIS WEEK 

Minor League Baseball is on a break that coincides with Major League Baseball and the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday in Los Angeles. This is the first year in history that both MILB and MLB have the same schedule breaks. Under the new arrangement, there won’t be minor league all-star games, but the breaks will be the same.

The Southern League teams will resume playing on Friday with the Blue Wahoos traveling to Biloxi for a three-game series. The Blue Wahoos will have a workout Thursday before leaving on Friday for the short trip to Biloxi.

WHAT’S NEXT?

WHO: Blue Wahoos vs. Biloxi Shuckers

WHEN: Friday-Sunday (July 22-24)

WHERE: MGM Park, Biloxi, Miss.

TICKETS: Available online www.biloxishuckers.com. Or purchase at stadium box office.

RADIO: ESPN-Pensacola (99.1 FM and 1330 AM and WYCT 98.7 HD4).

TV: YurView (check provider) and MILB.tv (streaming) through www.milb.com/live-stream-games with subscription discount using BLUE WAHOOS.

NEXT HOMESTAND: July 26-31 vs. Mississippi Braves.

NOTE: All levels of Minor League Baseball will have a four-day schedule break from July 18-21 in conjunction with the Major League Baseball All-Star break.

SOUTHERN LEAGUE STANDINGS

SECOND HALF

(Through Games On July 17)

North Division

Birmingham Barons -- 10-8

Rocket City Trash Pandas – 9-9

Tennessee Smokies – 9-9

Chattanooga Lookouts – 4-14

South Division

Mississippi Braves – 14-4

Montgomery Biscuits – 11-7

Pensacola Blue Wahoos – 9-9

Biloxi Shuckers – 6-12

Bill Vilona is a retired Pensacola News Journal sports columnist and now senior writer for Pensacola Blue Wahoos. He can be reached at bvilona@bluewahoos.com.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Wahoos Weekly: Pitching leads Pensacola Blue Wahoos to 5-1 Week