Goodwin and Nieto guide Mesa past Scottsdale 7-6

Nationals prospect Brian Goodwin had two doubles and a run scored as Mesa held off Scottsdale 7-6 to remain unbeaten in Arizona Fall League on Monday. Goodwin played center field and batted second for the Solar Sox, improving his average to .357 after going 2-for-4. He also reached base on a hit by pitch. Catcher Adrian Nieto picked up two hits in four at-bats with a run scored, a walk and one strikeout. He is batting .500 on the AFL season. The Solar Sox again smacked double-digit hits with 12, but went just 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base. Every player in the lineup, including designated hitter Taylor Lindsey, had at least one base hit. Mesa raced out to 4-0, 6-3 and 7-5 leads before hanging on, thanks to six Scottsdale errors. Starting pitcher Michael Roth (1-0) notched his first win in Arizona, going 2 2/3 frames, allowing three unearned runs on one walk with two strikeouts. Ryan Dull had a two-inning save, surrendering two hits and one run but holding on to the lead for the win. I tweeted before the game Monday that it seems every year the team the Nationals prospects play for can always hit, score a ton of runs and pitch well enough to usually the top spot in the AFL or close to it. For several years, whether it is Salt River or Phoenix or Mesa, that team makes it all the way to at least the AFL crown. It is way too early this season to speculate, but this team appears to be no exception. The Nationals' minor league front office personnel is on hand in Arizona to watch Mesa play, so I will be able to get their take on this team later on in the week. Left-hander Sammy Solis (1-0) seeks his second straight win in AFL play Tuesday afternoon when Mesa hosts Scottsdale (1-4) at 3:35 p.m. ET. Mesa (4-0-1) remains the lone unbeaten team in AFL play and maintains a 2 1/2-game advantage atop the East division.