Dominican Summer League (DSL) Indians
by Joseph Coblitz
The Dominican Summer League Indians started up on June 4th and have since went 5-6. While this may look unimpressive, they have won their last three in a row by a margin of 17-2, mostly due to a 6/17 victory of 12-0 against the DSL Yankees. In this short span of a season, there have been two players who have particularly stuck out, pitcher Luis Oviedo and second baseman Wilbis Santiago.
Oviedo has made three starts and been simply dominant, allowing just one earned run in 14 innings while striking out 16. He has only walked three as well and given up 12 hits as his complete control has kept opponents from crossing the plate against him. As for Santiago, he leads the team with three doubles and has only struck out three times, batting .333 with a .433 slugging percent. Besides him, Henry Pujols has one of the DSL Indians only two home runs and a triple as well, but is only batting .167. I expect him to turn things around quickly as he looked like a more advanced bat when he was playing in Extended Spring Training earlier this year.
Lynchburg Hillcats (45-23)
by Mike Melaragno
The Hillcats scored 46 runs on 79 hits in the eight-game home stand against Myrtle Beach and Carolina. Lynchburg went 6-2 in the home stand and clinched the Northern Division title and a spot in the playoffs. The ‘Cats offense hit .312 during the week long home stand. Mark Mathias went 9-21 with five RBI and six runs scored, including a homer. Taylor Murphy returned to Lynchburg during the home stand and went 10-24 with six RBIs, five runs and an on-base percentage of .512.
Lake County Captains (39-29)
by Justin Lada
Akron Rubber Ducks (39-29)
by Gavin Potter
After getting out to a scorching hot start to the season, the Akron RubberDucks have struggled mightily recently. For the second straight week, the Ducks went 1-6, and their win Friday night against New Hampshire prevented them from reaching an Akron-worst 13 game-losing streak. Even with their 12 straight losses over the past two weeks, the Ducks still hold a three game lead in the Eastern League Western division.
One positive thing out of an otherwise terrible week for Akron was the play of Bradley Zimmer. While strikeouts have been a big issue for the 23-year old, he showed signs of improvement last week, only recording one strikeout in five games last week in 18 at bats. Further, Zimmer is 8-18 in that stretch, including a home run, a triple, five walks, and four steals.
On a less positive note, recent promotions Luigi Rodriguez (.476 OPS) and Mike Papi (.624 OPS) have both struggled in their AA debuts, and their performances played a part in Akron’s recent losing streak. Shaky starts from Rob Kaminsky (4 ER in 4 IP on Tuesday) and Michael Peoples (4 ER in 5.2 IP on Saturday) didn’t help matters either.
Still, with their win Friday night, Akron’s losing streak is over, and they can look to start a winning streak with two more home games this weekend vs. New Hampshire.
Columbus Clippers (36-32)
by Kevin Gall
The Clippers biggest bright spot, in a relatively dim week, was the Cuban native Yandy Diaz. Over the last week Diaz has accumulated 7 hits, including a 5 game hitting streak. Diaz has split his time at third base, DH, and the outfield, since arriving in Columbus after being promoted from Akron. Diaz has worked his way into the forefront of the discussion regarding the Tribe’s future third base options in just his third year with the organization. It’s not certain who will man the position in the future but Diaz will certainly get an honest look when the time comes.
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