Inexperience shows early on, but it's clear the Fisher Cats have talent

May 16—FIRST-YEAR New Hampshire Fisher Cats manager Cesar Martin sees an abundance of talent on his young roster. As his players gain more experience and confidence at the Double-A level, Martin expects the wins will follow.

New Hampshire, with 14 players 24 years old or younger on its 29-man roster, went 4-6 over its first 10 games. The Fisher Cats' 5.00 team ERA and .249 team batting average over that span ranked seventh and eighth, respectively, in the 12-team Double-A Northeast.

"I have a bunch of players that didn't even play High-A in 2019 and there's a bunch of young players getting used to playing again," Martin said. "The more they play, the better we're going to be."

New Hampshire, the Toronto Blue Jays' Double-A affiliate, opened the season with an 11-2 triumph at Portland on May 4 before the Sea Dogs won the last five games of the series. Fisher Cats infielder Jordan Groshans, 21, said he and his teammates tried to do too much as that series went on.

"I think we were just trying to be too perfect — hitting, pitching and defense," said Groshans, who went 2-for-4 with two RBIs — his first multi-hit game of the season — in a 7-3 home win over Somerset on Friday. "First series of the year, you've got to get the jitters out. You're in Double-A now. A lot of us haven't been here before. It's a new environment, new teams, new pitchers, everything. It's all about us getting settled in."

The Fishers averaged six runs per game with 22-year-old catcher Gabriel Moreno leading the offense over their first 10 games. Moreno, Toronto's No. 7 prospect according to MLB.com, led the league in batting average (.500) and ranked third in on-base-plus-slugging percentage (1.29) over that span. He also posted a home run, nine RBIs and six runs scored.

"He's a player that you get excited to watch him play," Martin said of Moreno. "What he can do with his bat, with his defense and even with throwing, he's fun to watch. ... He's been the best hitter on the team, no doubt, so far and catching-wise every pitcher wants to throw (to) him."

Despite the high team ERA through 10 games, Martin said he considers pitching a strength for his club, especially the starters. Maximo Castillo, 22, (1-1, 4.5 ERA) and Zach Logue, 25, (1-0, 4.66 ERA) were the only New Hampshire pitchers with wins over that stretch.

One area the team does not need to work on is its chemistry, Groshans said. Most players have been teammates within the Toronto system for a while and they all experienced what it was like losing a season to the COVID-19 pandemic last summer, he said.

"Everybody in here loves each other, we've got each other's backs, we're here for each other and I think that's why we're going to be very successful," Groshans said.

Martin's approach to developing the talent he has is to have lots of conversations with his players and nurture their confidence throughout the season.

"It's just a team that we have to let them play and the more they play, I think the better we're going to get," Martin said.

ahall@unionleader.com