Feb 26, 2014; Tempe, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Angels infielder Alex Yarbrough poses for a portrait during photo day at Tempe Diablo Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The Colorado Rockies are currently second in the NL West, just three games out of first and two games ahead of the big spending Los Angeles Dodgers. Despite the excellent start, they are still 22nd in team ERA in the big leagues. Lucky for the Rockies, they have a pair of difference making pitchers tearing through the Texas League.
Jon Gray has yet to put up the strikeout numbers you would expect from a guy with a fastball that can touch triple digits and a power slider, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t put together impressive outings. He put in six innings while giving up just two hits and a single run in his last outing, lowering his ERA to 2.98.
His teammate, Eddie Butler, put together seven scoreless innings in his last outing. His season ERA is also 2.98, but is more of a ground ball pitcher than the natural strikeout guy of Gray. Butler’s last couple outings have seen more fly ball outs than ground outs, so he will need to correct that trend before he gets a chance to pitch in Coors Field.
Arkansas’ second baseman, Alex Yarbrough, has hit all three of his home runs in the past four games, including a pair of three run shots against Northwest Arkansas on Thursday. The Los Angeles Angels prospect has a seven game hit streak going and a batting average of .314 this season.
The San Diego Padres have made it be known that catcher Nick Hundley is on the block, and defense first catching prospect, Austin Hedges, has really turned it up with the bat. He has hits in his last eight games, including back-to-back days with home runs on Wednesday and Thursday. He is hitting over .400 in his past ten games, raising his average for the year up to .287.
San Antonio is the only team in the league currently on a winning streak, but they are tied for the second worst record in the league. They are also the team furthest out of first place, seven games back of the team with the best record in the league, the Frisco RoughRiders.