The Dynasty Digest: April 9, 2025

Welcome back, and happy Wednesday, folks. We had our first full-six-game series kick-off last night across the minors, and there was a ton to discuss. I was live in Columbia for a Single-A matchup between the Columbia Fireflies and Charleston Riverdogs(Royals and Rays) and I will have a live look report out soon.

But first, let’s recap what happened across the entire landscape of pro baseball yesterday. If you are unfamiliar with the Dynasty Digest, it is a daily newsletter covering the previous days’ action. While the main focus is usually Minor League Baseball, I will also be hitting on MLB performances to know as well. 

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Each day, I will pick a hitter and pitcher who stands out and deserves the top spot on the sheet. Those player’s reports will be free for all to read. The rest will be paywalled for Dynasty Dugout Subscribers. The article is around 3000 words, giving you detailed player reports to encapsulate everything you need to know.

Eric Bitonti, CI, Milwaukee Brewers, 19, A

We will cover quite a few Carolina Mudcat hitters today because when you collect 22 hits and score 14 times, there are sure to be a ton of notable performers. Bitonti gets the lead today because he was the only player in the minors yesterday to collect five hits. While he did not homer, Bitonti singled twice and added three more doubles, while driving in five. He even reached base a sixth time on a walk.

Bitonti’s first three batted balls were all smoked line drives. His sixth-inning double was a grounder in the gap that turned into a hustle two-bagger for the slugger. In Bitonti’s final trip to the plate in the eighth inning, he smoked another line-drive double to right.

While he does not yet have a home run on the ledger in 2025, Bitonti is swinging it well, and the power will come. The strikeout rate is something to watch, and even after reaching base in every plate appearance last night, he still sits at a 30 percent clip with a 63 percent contact rate on the year.

Hopefully, Tuesday’s game is a catalyst for more contact as there is 30 home run upside to dream on from the 19-year-old.

Will Watson, RHP, New York Mets, 22, A

Hello Will Watson! Shoutout to Matt Ahern, who has talked about and hyped Watson since last year’s draft. So far, the call looks good.

I was in the stands at the Columbia Fireflies and Charleston Riverdogs game while texting with Geoff Pontes, who was watching approximately 20 games at once. We were chatting about players, and I got a “holy ****” with Watson’s pitch data from last night. I knew I had to go back and watch the start after I got home.

Watson dominated with a deep arsenal of pitches, not allowing a hit or a walk, but strangely allowing an unearned run. Woody Hadeen reached base on a fielding error in the first at-bat of the game and wound up scoring on another fielding error later in the first.

Striking out seven batters, Watson generated just nine whiffs, but watching the start, it was much better than the box suggested. Mixing five pitches, Watson led with a four-seam fastball(despite what Savant tells you), that averaged 94.7 mph and topped at 96.2. He touched 21 inches of IVB and averaged 18 from a 5’1” release height(outlier stuff). While some of the fastballs were classified as sinkers, they still had high IVB, so I see them more as running four-seamers.

The cutter sat 90 mph with high carry and a few inches of horizontal movement. Watson’s changeup was devastating. Working in the 85-89 mph range, they had late depth and up to 22 inches of fading action. Is there a breaking ball, too? Yep, Watson’s mid-80s slider showed high spin rates, up to 2600 rpm, with anywhere between four-to-eleven inches of sweep.

Watson threw strikes at a 64 percent clip and repeated his delivery well. What an electric start to 2025 for the 2024 seventh-rounder. The Mets got a good one here.

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