by Tyler Radecki, Staff Writer
Syracuse Chiefs, AAA International League (27-40)
Pitching Report:
Ross Detwiler: A disastrous May seems to be behind him, as he has a 2.79 ERA in three starts. This week, he gave up three runs in seven innings (seven hits, one walk, five strikeouts). Hopefully he’s put May (8.70 ERA) behind him completely and he’ll be back to normal production.
Brad Meyers: He bounced back from his last start to go seven strong innings Thursday, giving up two runs while striking out four. He’s had some bumps in the road (a couple of five-plus ER starts), but overall, he still seems to be developing into a nice prospect.
Tom Milone: He gave up four earned runs in 5 1/3 innings on Friday night, but also had six strikeouts. It is a little troubling to see that he’s given up four runs in three of his last five starts, but he’s rebounded after each “bad” start.
Yunesky Maya: In his first start since returning to Syracuse, Maya gave up six runs on ten hits in five innings on Sunday. It’s worth keeping an eye on Maya and how he adjusts after his struggles in D.C.
Josh Wilkie: After a tough week last week, Wilkie rebounded by pitching three scoreless innings this week with no hits or walks and five strikeouts. He now has 34 strikeouts in 31 innings and his ERA is 2.32.
Collin Balester: He got called up to the majors this week.
Hitting Report:
Chris Marrero: Michael Morse is playing fantastic first base in Washington, but you have to love what Marrero is doing in Syracuse, as his overall line is up to .287/.345/.431 with 14 doubles, eight home runs and 34 RBI. It’s not the greatest line, but it’s solid and he’s hitting .325 in his last ten games. He also has just two errors on the year, so his all-around game is developing nicely.
Matt Antonelli: He came back down to earth this week, hitting .237 in his last ten games – though he has a .341 OBP during that time. I’d say he’s worked himself into the discussion of potential call-ups should another position player go down.
Jesus Flores: His average has dropped every month so far, from .256 in April to .244 in May and .217 so far in June. He doesn’t draw any walks, so he needs to raise that average up.
Corey Brown: Brown had a huge day on Sunday, going 3-for-4 with a walk, two home runs and three RBI. He went 6-for-18 (.333) last week, raising his average to .216 on the season. Let’s hope he builds off this week and gets into a groove and works his way back into a potential call-up in September.
Harrisburg Senators, AA Eastern League (39-29)
Pitching Report:
Brad Peacock: He continues to dominate AA, pitching seven innings with four hits, three runs (one home run), one walk and seven strikeouts this week. He picked up the win to improve his record to 8-2, and his ERA is 2.46. The most impressive stat is his strikeout to walk ratio, which is 108:17 (in 80 1/3 innings).
Hitting Report:
Steve Lombardozzi: He had six multi-hit games in his last ten games (.357 average during that span) and has brought his average up to .309. He’s still drawing walks (four this week) and has three extra-base hits in the last week as well. He also has 16 SB on the year and has been caught just three times. He had a slow start but is now hitting .365 in June.
Derek Norris: Baseball Prospectus had a discussion about catching prospects and included Norris. They wrote that he has “room to improve” but projects to be a good starter in the majors provided he can continue to hit for power and draw walks at the rate he is now. His contact is still not great (.138 average the last ten games) but he makes up for it with his OBP and SLG.
Tyler Moore: After a strong May, Moore has slumped, hitting just .243 in June and .158 in his last ten games. He turned it around this week a little bit, going 6-for-24 (.250) with four extra-base hits. He’s still driving in runs as well (five RBIs this week).
Potomac Nationals, High-A Carolina League (29-40)
Pitching Report:
Daniel Rosenbaum: He gave up four runs (three earned) in 5 2/3 innings in his start this week. He’s had five strikeouts or more in four straight starts, and his June ERA is 1.66 (with just three walks in 21 innings).
Josh Smoker: He had two innings this week, giving up one walk and one hit with three strikeouts. His transition to a reliever has been smooth other than a rocky start to June, but he seems to have bounced back.
Cameron Selik: He had a great start this week, giving up four hits and one run in seven innings on Tuesday. In three June starts, he’s got a 0.86 ERA.
Hitting Report:
Eury Perez: Perez had a solid week, racking up six hits in 21 at-bats (.285) with three RBI. He hasn’t drawn a walk in the last ten games, but is hitting .324 in his last ten games. He has 19 stolen bases on the year (one this week), but has been caught stealing eight times total – a number that is far too high.
Destin Hood: After being named Potomac’s only All-Star, Hood found himself on the disabled list with a knee injury. Hood apparently just needs some rest, so hopefully he’ll be back soon. He was having a great year so far, hitting .276/.374/.476 with five home runs and 37 RBI.
Jeff Kobernus: Kobernus will replace Hood on the All-Star team. He’s hitting just .266 on the year, but he’s hitting .405 in his last ten games (11 hits this week) and .299 overall in the month of June. He had five stolen bases this week to bring his total to 28 on the year, an impressive total that leads the Carolina League.
Hagerstown Suns, Low-A South Atlantic League (40-30)
Pitching Report:
Robbie Ray: Ray wasn’t his sharpest this week, but his start was still solid as he pitched five innings of one-run ball. He gave up seven hits and a walk, but also had four strikeouts. Ray has been extremely good in Hagerstown, giving up three runs in just one start on the year (and either zero or one in every other start).
Taylor Jordan: He started two games this week, giving up three runs in five innings on Monday and two earned runs in six innings on Saturday. He is now 7-3 on the year with a 2.86 ERA.
A.J. Cole: Cole has been pretty consistent this year, and his last start was June 11 (5 IP, 2 ER, 9 K).
Sammy Solis: Solis got the start on Sunday, giving up three hits, two walks and two runs in four innings. He’s pitched well in Hagerstown so far (3.62 ERA, 29 K in 27 innings), so he may be close to a promotion too, even if Sunday’s start wasn’t his best.
Christopher Manno: Manno gave up two runs in an inning Sunday and he’s been struggling in June (5.40 ERA), but he still has just a 1.13 ERA and 50 K in 32 IP on the year.
Hitting Report:
Bryce Harper: He didn’t play on Sunday and got some other time off this week, but that’s just in preparation for the SAL All-Star game this week. In his three games this week, he had three hits in ten at-bats with two runs batted in and two walks. I wonder if we’ll see Harper get a promotion after the All-Star game because his line on the year is remarkable: .330/.429/.586 with 14 doubles, 14 HR, 45 RBI and 13 SB.
David Freitas: He had four multi-hit games this week and is riding an eight-game six streak that has raised his average to .317 on the year. He’s got a line of .459/.512/.703 in his last ten games and definitely deserves his All-Star berth. Other than Harper, he’s the best offensive player on the year.
Blake Kelso: Kelso has been fantastic in his own right, hitting .330 this season. He has 26 walks to 29 strikeouts and while he doesn’t hit for a ton of power, his average and batting eye makes up for it. The biggest problem: 12 errors on the season.
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Pitcher to Watch: Tom Milone, Syracuse. In my opinion, he’s next in line for a call-up should a starting pitcher get injured. He’s been the most consistent pitcher in Syracuse, has an incredible strikeout to walk ratio and has a minor league resume that tells me this isn’t just a hot start to the year. Does he have the best stuff? No, but he doesn’t walk anyone and finds ways get tons of strikeouts. I’m a believer.
Hitter to Watch: Jeff Kobernus, Potomac. The 2009 second-round pick has hit .405 in his last ten games and will represent Potomac in the Carolina League All-Star game, mainly because of his league-leading 28 stolen bases.
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