Brett Ludwiczak
Guest
July was a crazy month for former Ohio State baseball player Dominic Canzone
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
After making his MLB debut early in July with Arizona, Canzone was traded to Seattle at the end of the month.
2023 has been quite a year for former Ohio State outfielder Dominic Canzone. Not only did Canzone make his MLB debut with Arizona last month, but earlier this week he was traded to the Seattle Mariners a day prior to the trade deadline. Now the former Buckeye will get to line up in the outfield next to one of baseball’s young stars, Julio Rodríguez.
Canzone attended Walsh Jesuit High School in the Akron area, where he earned All-Ohio honorable mention honors as a senior. After going undrafted in the 2016 MLB Draft, Canzone came to Ohio State, where he hit .343 and drove in 36 runs in 49 games as a freshman in 2017, resulting in Canzone being an unanimous selection to the All-Big Ten freshman team.
Following a strong freshman season, Canzone saw even more time on the field as a sophomore, playing in 60 games and getting over 100 more plate appearances than he did in his first year with the Buckeyes. Even though Canzone’s average was a little lower and his home run and RBI numbers were nearly identical in his second season at Ohio State, the biggest increase came with the 18 doubles he recorded.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24826726/965622312.jpg "NCAA BASEBALL: JUN 01 South Carolina v Ohio State")
Photo by Greg Thompson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The 2019 season is where Canzone really broke out. Not only was Canzone named a team captain prior to the season, he went on to be named first team All-Big Ten after leading the conference in hits, runs scored, slugging percentage, and total bases. For the season, Canzone hit .345 with 16 home runs and 43 RBIs in 63 games. Canzone broke a school record by reaching base in 59 consecutive games.
Following his outstanding career at Ohio State, Canzone was drafted in the eighth round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 242nd overall pick. The outfielder would sign for $170,000, and shortly thereafter would make his professional debut in rookie ball with Missoula in the Pioneer League. In 25 games with the Osprey, Canzone hit five homers and drove in 26 runs, earning him a promotion to the Hillsboro, Arizona’s A-ball affiliate in the Northwest League. Canzone would close out 2019 with a .261 average in 21 games.
Then 2020 happened. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an abbreviated MLB season, and no minor league baseball. Even though minor leaguers were able to get back on the field in 2021, Canzone only appeared in 79 games due to injuries. While he had trouble staying on the field at times, Canzone made the most of his at-bats when he was healthy, hitting .302 with 14 homers and 52 RBIs. 44 of those games in 2021 came at Hillsboro before he was promoted to Arizona’s AA affiliate in Amarillo.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24826723/1412896906.jpg "Corpus Christi Hooks v Amarillo Sod Poodles")
Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images
Canzone started the 2022 season with Amarillo, but it didn’t take the outfielder long to move one step closer to the majors, as Arizona promoted him to AAA Reno after just a handful of games in the Texas League last year. Had it not been for an injury he suffered in June with the Aces, Canzone’s MLB debut might have come last season instead of this year. In 103 combined games with Amarillo and Reno, Canzone hit .301 with 22 home runs and 88 RBIs.
The 2023 season started with more of the same for Canzone, as he tore up AAA with a .354 average, 16 home runs and 71 RBIs in 71 games for Reno. On July 7, Canzone was promoted to the majors, and would make his debut the following day against Pittsburgh, going hitless in four at-bats. Even though he would have to wait for his first hit in the majors, Canzone did score the game-tying run in the 10th inning after starting the inning on second base.
The first hit of Canzone’s MLB career came on July 18 against the Atlanta Braves in a wild 16-13 win for the Diamondbacks. Canzone’s hit came in the eighth inning when Arizona was trailing 13-12. The line drive single to right field by Canzone drove in Christian Walker. The Diamondbacks would go on to score three more runs the next inning to secure the win.
After notching his first hit, it didn’t take Canzone long to hit his first big fly in the majors. Two days later, Canzone hit a three-run home run off NL Cy Young candidate Spencer Strider to give Arizona a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning. Even though the Diamondbacks would end up losing to the Braves, the performance showed that Canzone has the skills to hang with the best hurlers in the big leagues.
Just as Canzone was getting comfortable with the Diamondbacks, the outfielder was dealt to Seattle on Monday. Arizona was looking to upgrade their closer, resulting in the team dealing Canzone and Josh Rojas to the Mariners for Paul Sewald. In his first game with Seattle on August 1 against Boston, Canzone ripped a double for his first hit with the team.
Unlike Arizona, who had a plethora of talented outfielders in the big leagues, as well as in the minors, Seattle doesn’t have quite the same depth. After making the playoffs last year, it is looking unlikely the Mariners will make the postseason this year, unless they are able to go on a run in the last two months of the season. This will allow them to take a long look at Canzone to see where the talented prospect stands with the organization heading into next season, and also determine where he might best help the team on the field.
Continue reading...
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
After making his MLB debut early in July with Arizona, Canzone was traded to Seattle at the end of the month.
2023 has been quite a year for former Ohio State outfielder Dominic Canzone. Not only did Canzone make his MLB debut with Arizona last month, but earlier this week he was traded to the Seattle Mariners a day prior to the trade deadline. Now the former Buckeye will get to line up in the outfield next to one of baseball’s young stars, Julio Rodríguez.
Canzone attended Walsh Jesuit High School in the Akron area, where he earned All-Ohio honorable mention honors as a senior. After going undrafted in the 2016 MLB Draft, Canzone came to Ohio State, where he hit .343 and drove in 36 runs in 49 games as a freshman in 2017, resulting in Canzone being an unanimous selection to the All-Big Ten freshman team.
Following a strong freshman season, Canzone saw even more time on the field as a sophomore, playing in 60 games and getting over 100 more plate appearances than he did in his first year with the Buckeyes. Even though Canzone’s average was a little lower and his home run and RBI numbers were nearly identical in his second season at Ohio State, the biggest increase came with the 18 doubles he recorded.
The 2019 season is where Canzone really broke out. Not only was Canzone named a team captain prior to the season, he went on to be named first team All-Big Ten after leading the conference in hits, runs scored, slugging percentage, and total bases. For the season, Canzone hit .345 with 16 home runs and 43 RBIs in 63 games. Canzone broke a school record by reaching base in 59 consecutive games.
Following his outstanding career at Ohio State, Canzone was drafted in the eighth round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 242nd overall pick. The outfielder would sign for $170,000, and shortly thereafter would make his professional debut in rookie ball with Missoula in the Pioneer League. In 25 games with the Osprey, Canzone hit five homers and drove in 26 runs, earning him a promotion to the Hillsboro, Arizona’s A-ball affiliate in the Northwest League. Canzone would close out 2019 with a .261 average in 21 games.
Then 2020 happened. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an abbreviated MLB season, and no minor league baseball. Even though minor leaguers were able to get back on the field in 2021, Canzone only appeared in 79 games due to injuries. While he had trouble staying on the field at times, Canzone made the most of his at-bats when he was healthy, hitting .302 with 14 homers and 52 RBIs. 44 of those games in 2021 came at Hillsboro before he was promoted to Arizona’s AA affiliate in Amarillo.
Canzone started the 2022 season with Amarillo, but it didn’t take the outfielder long to move one step closer to the majors, as Arizona promoted him to AAA Reno after just a handful of games in the Texas League last year. Had it not been for an injury he suffered in June with the Aces, Canzone’s MLB debut might have come last season instead of this year. In 103 combined games with Amarillo and Reno, Canzone hit .301 with 22 home runs and 88 RBIs.
The 2023 season started with more of the same for Canzone, as he tore up AAA with a .354 average, 16 home runs and 71 RBIs in 71 games for Reno. On July 7, Canzone was promoted to the majors, and would make his debut the following day against Pittsburgh, going hitless in four at-bats. Even though he would have to wait for his first hit in the majors, Canzone did score the game-tying run in the 10th inning after starting the inning on second base.
The first hit of Canzone’s MLB career came on July 18 against the Atlanta Braves in a wild 16-13 win for the Diamondbacks. Canzone’s hit came in the eighth inning when Arizona was trailing 13-12. The line drive single to right field by Canzone drove in Christian Walker. The Diamondbacks would go on to score three more runs the next inning to secure the win.
After notching his first hit, it didn’t take Canzone long to hit his first big fly in the majors. Two days later, Canzone hit a three-run home run off NL Cy Young candidate Spencer Strider to give Arizona a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning. Even though the Diamondbacks would end up losing to the Braves, the performance showed that Canzone has the skills to hang with the best hurlers in the big leagues.
Just as Canzone was getting comfortable with the Diamondbacks, the outfielder was dealt to Seattle on Monday. Arizona was looking to upgrade their closer, resulting in the team dealing Canzone and Josh Rojas to the Mariners for Paul Sewald. In his first game with Seattle on August 1 against Boston, Canzone ripped a double for his first hit with the team.
Unlike Arizona, who had a plethora of talented outfielders in the big leagues, as well as in the minors, Seattle doesn’t have quite the same depth. After making the playoffs last year, it is looking unlikely the Mariners will make the postseason this year, unless they are able to go on a run in the last two months of the season. This will allow them to take a long look at Canzone to see where the talented prospect stands with the organization heading into next season, and also determine where he might best help the team on the field.
Continue reading...