Hard throwing Luis Guerrero hits 99 mph twice in perfect ninth inning
The WooSox were just five outs away from tossing a no-hitter on Monday afternoon against the Syracuse Mets. Jason Alexander was terrific over six scoreless and hitless innings and after Jorge Benitez tossed two scoreless frames, WooSox skipper Chad Tracy turned to flamethrower Luis Guerrero in the ninth inning.
Guerrero tossed a clean ninth inning, facing the minimum of three batters and striking out one, Mark Vientos, to end the game.
The native of the Dominican Republic threw 15 pitches; he was slider-heavy during his out, throwing the pitch 47% of the time, getting five swings and two whiffs.
Guerrero pounded the zone with his slider, living on the inside part of the plate.
In the ninth, five sliders were slung into the zone. Outside of his only strikeout, he forced the Mets to make contact, getting two pop outs in the final frame.
The right-hander has now appeared in three games for the WooSox this season; he has three strikeouts, a 0.00 ERA, and a 0.30 WHIP over 3 1/3 innings of work.
Guerrero’s stock has been rising in the Red Sox system, offering the organization a hard-throwing righty for the bullpen. Last season, he made 49 appearances split between two levels; he struck out 68 batters while holding opponents to a .157 batting average.
He also opened the eyes of people up and down the organization while recording a career-high 19 saves. The righty was also named to the Futures Game in Seattle during the All-Star festivities.
“[Guerrero] has some of the best raw stuff of any relief arm in the system,” wrote SoxProspects on their scouting report for Guerrero, “but needs to improve command, control, and consistency.”
Guerrero finished last season with the WooSox, making six appearances. He now starts the season in Worcester and is earning the trust of Tracy.
