Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
In this week’s High-A recap, power prospects dominate in the California League and Florida State League.
The Florida State League North in once again being led by the Clearwater Threshers. They lead the division by 3.5 games after winning the division in the first half of the season. The Daytona Threshers and Tampa Yankees are tied for second at 12-11. In the South, the Palm Beach Cardinals have sprinted to a 17-7 record in the second half and lead the division by two games over the Bradenton Marauders. First-half division winners Charlotte sit in fifth place and are eight games back.
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Kansas City’s High-A affiliate Wilmington leads the Carolina League Northern Division with a 12-11 record. The lead is slim, as the Frederick Keys and Potomac Nationals are only a half game behind. Wilmington was the first-half champion. The Southern Division is being led by the Winston-Salem Dash, who are up 1.5 games over first-half champion Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach is 8-2 in its last 10 games.
California League North first-half champion Visalia once again leads the division at 17-6 and maintains a two-game lead over Modesto and San Jose in a very stout division. All three teams have won at least six games out of its last 10, with San Jose playing particularly well, as it’s won four straight and nine of 10. The South is not nearly as deep, with the Lancaster JetHawks leading the division with a 12-11 record.
Let’s begin in the California League…
Next: California League
Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
California League
North
Visalia Rawhide (Diamondbacks)—17-6
Modesto Nuts (Rockies)—15-8
San Jose Giants (Giants)—15-8
Stockton Ports (Athletics)—11-12
Bakersfield Blaze (Mariners)—8-15
South
Lancaster JetHawks (Astros)—12-11
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Dodgers)—10-12
High Desert Mavericks (Rangers)—9-11
Inland Empire 66ers (Angels)—9-12
Lake Elsinore Storm (Padres)—6-17
Notable performances:
A.J. Reed was mercifully promoted this past week, meaning Kevin Cron, Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman and the rest of the league have a chance to win the California League home run race. Reed’s 23 home runs were five more than Cron, who is in second place. Chapman, who hit his 17th homer Saturday, is likely to win the contest, as his 14.1 at-bats-per home run is well ahead of either Cron’s (20.2) or Bellinger’s (20.2). Chapman is also hitting .364 his past 10 games, while Bellinger and Cron are both hitting well under .200. Bellinger also leads the league in strikeouts and Chapman has the highest slugging percentage of the three.
Chapman’s teammate Franklin Barreto is having a noteworthy season as well. Barreto homered twice Sunday and is hitting .299/.330/.497 with 12 homers on the season. Only 19 years old, Barreto is one of the Athletics’ best prospects and is hitting .348 over his last 10 games. He slashed .311/.384/.481 in A-Short Season in 2014, and his K-rate and walk-rate have held steady. As a future table-setter, Barreto will need to learn how to draw more walks, especially with Billy Beane as the franchise’s general manager.
Even pitching in the hitter-friendly California League, 20-year-old Antonio Senzatela is having a standout year. Pitching to a combined 2.48 ERA from 2012-14, Senzatela is now 6-5 with a 2.60 ERA and 1.06 WHIP, which are second and first among qualified starters, respectively. In his latest start Saturday, he went eight innings and allowed three runs on six hits. His command is his most promising tool, as he’s only walking 2.04 batters per nine innings this season and has never allowed more than 2.8 at any level in the minors.
Next: Carolina League
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Carolina League
Northern
Wilmington Blue Rocks (Royals)—12-11
Frederick Keys (Orioles)—12-12
Potomac Nationals (Nationals)—11-11
Lynchburg Hillcats (Indians)—10-14
Southern
Winston-Salem Dash (White Sox)—14-9
Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Cubs)—13-11
Salem Red Sox (Red Sox)—11-13
Carolina Mudcats (Braves)—11-13
Notable performances:
Expect Pirates outfield prospect Austin Meadows to be promoted soon. Since the calendar turned to July, he has nine multi-hit games, a .333 average and is now slashing .300/.361/.389 on the season. Meadows is the Pirates most highly-rated prospect after pitcher Tyler Glasnow, and there is little more that Meadows needs to prove at this level. Entering play Sunday, he had a .348 batting average on balls in play and had struck out on only 13.4 percent of his plate appearances. The lack of discernible power numbers is a minor concern, as Meadows, 20, is projected to grow into more power.
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Phillip Ervin, another outfield prospect, is not having trouble displaying his power. Ervin is 23, so he has physically maturity on his side over Meadows, but that doesn’t diminish the fact he leads the Florida State League in home runs. He hit his 12th of the season Sunday in a 5-3 win over Dunedin. Ervin’s .251/.334/.413 line is among the best in the power hitters in the FSL, and if it weren’t for the oppressive environment the FSL creates for offenses, Ervin would be having an even more impressive season: even before the home run Sunday, his average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, walk rate and weighted on-base average all were higher than in 2014, and he has cut his strikeout rate by over three percentage points.
Ervin’s teammate, pitcher Amir Garrett, had a very eventful week. Last Sunday, he picked up the win in the All-Star Futures Game, and on Thursday, Garrett picked up his fifth win in a 9-4 triumph over Jupiter. Garrett now has a 2.90 ERA and 1.31 WHIP on the season. Issuing walks is still a slight concern, as his 3.90 BB/9 innings pitched is elevated from 3.44 in 2014, but his K-rate is also up to 9.40 from 8.57. He’s also allowing fewer home runs—pitching in the Florida State League helps—allowing only 0.10/9 IP after allowing 0.74 last season.
Next: Florida State League
Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Florida State League
North
Clearwater Threshers (Phillies)—16-8
Daytona Tortugas (Reds)—12-11
Tampa Yankees (Yankees)—12-11
Dunedin Blue Jays (Blue Jays)—11-13
Brevard County Manatees (Brewers)—10-13
Lakeland Flying Tigers (Tigers)—6-17
South
Palm Beach Cardinals (Cardinals)—17-7
Bradenton Marauders (Pirates)—15-9
Fort Myers Miracle (Twins)—13-11
St. Lucie Mets (Mets)—13-11
Charlotte Stone Crabs (Rays)—9-15
Jupiter Hammerheads (Marlins)—8-16
Notable Performances:
Clint Frazier, the Indians’ first round pick in the 2013 Draft, has steadily developed some pop in his bat this season. He didn’t hit his first home run until May 6 and was slugging under .390 as late as May 29. Now, Frazier is slashing .271/¬¬.361/.423 after going 1-for-3 Sunday against Winston-Salem. He’s also now tied for third in the league in home runs with recently promoted teammate Bradley Zimmer and homered on Thursday and Saturday. Entering play Sunday, Frazier’s Isolated Power was .155, up from .146 in 2014.
Sean Manaea, one of the Royals’ best prospects, finally started pitching late in June. He hadn’t pitched since August 29 of last season, when he had a 7-8 record with a 3.11 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. He’s made five starts this season, four in the Carolina League, and is 1-0 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.32 WHIP. The pitcher from Indiana State has a tidy 1.83 BB/9 and dominant 10.07 K/9, showing the effectiveness from 2014 that made him a top prospect. Bad luck has been on his side, as opponents hit a blistering .407 on balls in play. He has since been promoted to Double-A Northwest Arkansas and is expected to contend for a rotation spot in 2016.
Nationals pitching prospect Austen Williams has had a very interesting 2015. The 2014 sixth-round pick started the season in Single-A Hagerstown, pitching nine games to a 1.65 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Then, he got one start all the way up in Triple-A Syracuse, where he got shelled for five runs in four innings. The Nationals then sent him back to Hagerstown for four more starts, and now he’s pitched for the Potomac Nationals the past two games. Combining the two starts, he’s pitched 11 innings, given up three runs, two earned, struck out five and walked three. Control was Williams’ biggest asset in Single-A, as he walked only 14 batters in 73 innings.