Today was the Frisco RoughRiders media day and I was fortunate enough to be a part of it. Opening Day for the 2021 Frisco RoughRiders season is tomorrow where the Riders will play a 6-game series with the Oakland Athletics affiliate, the Midland RockHounds.
You might expect that Cole Winn or maybe even Tyler Phillips would be taking the mound for the Riders but that is not be the case. Tim Brennan will be the one taking the mound for the RoughRiders. This is the current planned rotation:
- Tuesday, May 4th: Tim Brennan, RHP
- Wednesday, May 5th: Jake Latz, LHP
- Thursday, May 6th: Tyler Phillips, RHP
- Friday, May 7th: Cole Winn, RHP
- Saturday, May 8th: Yerry Rodriguez, RHP
- Sunday, May 9th: TBD
Manager, Jared Goedert, was the first to address the media who confirmed the starting rotation. Things will be fluid starting out. We can expect some tandem starts as players get stretched out. Goedert told media, “especially early on when we’re still getting guys stretched out, we have our starter paired up with somewhat of a long-relief guy.”
So just as we see in the Major-Leagues, we can expect to see the pairing of guys. It doesn’t really come as a surprise as a whole season of development was lost for every player. Each player needs to get in work and stay healthy.
Goedert, 35, is a young manager and that was a topic during media day but his main expectation is what takes place starting at 7:05.
There is a number of things especially in today’s game that take place prior to the game off the field, whether its video, advanced analytics that all have their place in this game and are all important. They just are. But sometimes with that we can lose the focus that at 7:05, is what really matters and making sure that we get it done at that time.
Jared Goedert
The fact that he has experience in professional baseball himself, is likely to go a long way with this group of prospects. Through 9 seasons in the Minor Leagues, he hit a line of .269/.349/.446/.795 with 123 home runs and 522 RBI.
Cole Winn
Winn, 21, is the # 5 ranked prospect on our list. As mentioned above, he is due to take the mound on Friday. His current repertoire includes a fastball, curve, slider and change-up. He admitted to feeling pretty comfortable throwing all for strikes.
He was asked how many pitches he thinks he’d be able to throw in a game right now and his answer was: “85-90”. I’d bet the Rangers don’t let any of the guys throw that many pitches especially during the first couple of weeks of the season.
When asked if he intended on pitching in the big leagues before this year is out, Winn admitted, “that is a goal of mine, yes”. Is it in the cards? We will see.
Steele Walker
Steele Walker, 24, is a local kid who was born in Prosper. The Rangers acquired him from the White Sox in the Nomar Mazara trade. Let me say that I Steele Walker is an easy guy to cheer for. He has a confidence that doesn’t come across as arrogant. Every prospect is going to be one to watch this year but Walker is one that I think Riders fans will have no problem cheering for.
He is likely going to get starts in right field and center field with maybe a few more of them being in right than center. Either way, we’re going to see plenty of highlights from Walker.
The RoughRiders opening day 2021 is tomorrow and this is definitely a team to be excited about and we’ll have you covered every step of the way.