Eric Aguilera Leads This Week’s Prospect Hotlist & Bees to Postseason (June 9 – June 15, 2014)‏

By Adrian Noche, AngelsWin.com Staff Reporter – 

Eric Aguilera, who was named the starter at first base for the Midwestern League All-Stars earlier this month, showed just how deserving he was of the honor this week. Aguilera is currently riding a 6-game hitting streak where he is batting an average of .400. Aguilera isn’t just flashing a high batting average in this streak, he is also displaying his power with 3 home runs, 2 doubles and a triple (.833 SLG for the week). The left-handed hitting first baseman was touted by Baseball America as the top power-hitting prospect of the 2013 draft, and is currently in the top-10 in home runs, slugging percentage RBIs.

Outfielder Mike Fish had a strong showing at the plate. Fish recorded multi-hit games in 5 of his eight games this week, with an average of .419. He also slugged 5 doubles and a home run, raising his slugging percentage to a healthy .498 on the season. Another encouraging sign for the outfielder is his 4 walks, as he only took the base-on-balls only 9 times up to the beginning of the week. Fish also chipped in 2 stolen bases and patrolled an error-free outfield, flashing his many tools that made him an intriguing prospect after upon being drafted 967th overall in the 2013 First-Year Player Draft.

Michael Roth was named the Texas League Pitcher of the Week as well as a representative of the Travelers in the Texas League All-Star Game. The southpaw fired an amazing 11th straight quality start this week, going 7 innings without giving up a run while striking out 5 and giving up 1 walk and 6 hits. Even though Roth faced some adversity in his last couple starts (13 hits allowed), he fought through and managed to keep his team in both games. Roth has been utterly dominant since being removed from the 40-man roster in late April, posting 2.57 ERA and a WHIP of 1.24 on the season.

Ryan Etsell was taken in the 16th round of the 2013 First-Year Player Draft. Etsell has a nice frame for a starting pitcher, standing tall at 6’5 inches. The tall right-hander is still a raw pitcher, being taken from Hillborough Community College. Etsell had the strikeout pitch working for him in his last few starts, as he struck out 24 batters and only allowed 3 earned runs in his last 18 innings. 

Chad Hinshaw continued to be an on-base machine for the Burlington Bees, as the outfielder boasted an on-base percentage of .483 in 8 games this week. The last time the outfielder was kept off base dates back to the 29th of May. It is surprising how Hinshaw fell to the Angels in the 15th round, as Hinshaw possesses many solid tools that can make him a solid prospect in the organization. Hinshaw has hit for average with a .282 AVG, power (.461 SLG), speed (25 stolen bases) and a solid eye at the plate with a walk-rate of 11%. 

The Bees boasted a winning record this week (4-3) and brought their overall record to 28-43, which is 12.5 games behind the first place Las Vegas 51s. Shortstop Tommy Field has been leading the way this week with an average of .391 along with 3 doubles and 2 triples. Efren Navarro continued his solid hitting, with 8 hits and a home run. Outfielder Zach Borenstein went deep on Sunday, his first home run in the PCL. Relief pitcher Ryan Chaffee allowed his first earned run since May 18th, ending his scoreless inning streak at 10.0 innings. Kyler Newby, a pitcher acquired from the Indy League Somerset Patriots, has pitched well since signing with the Angels. The relief pitcher currently has an ERA of 0.87 with 9 strikeouts and no walks in 10.1 innings pitched.

Arkansas split 8 games this week with a record of 4-4, bringing their overall record to 34-35 (eliminated from becoming first half Texas League North Champions). Six Travelers were chosen to represent the North Division squad; infielders Brian Hernandez and Alex Yarbrough, outfielder Adam Melker, starting pitchers Michael Roth and Orangel Arenas, and relievers David Carpenter and Cam Bedrosian. Yarbrough hit 4 doubles this week to add to his league leading total, which currently stands at 23. Third baseman Kaleb Cowart began showing signs of life with the bat, with an average of .287 for the week. Starting pitcher Drew Rucinski followed his June 7th complete game shutout with another solid line; 2 earned runs in 7.0 innings pitched with no walks and 5 strikeouts. Nate Smith pitched well in both starts this week, earning a victory and no decision in 13.0 innings pitched. The southpaw only allowed 3 earned runs to go with 15 strikeouts and 4 walks. Kramer Sneed threw 7.0 innings of shutout baseball in his start on June 11th, only allowing 1 walk to 6 strikeouts. Orangel Arenas continued his strong pitching in AA, pitching 6.0 innings of 1-run ball on June 13th. 

The 66ers went 3-2 this week, ending the first half of the season with a an overall record of 25-45 (last place in the California League South). Sherman Johnson reached base safely in every game this week, collecting 7 hits and 2 walks. Johnson was also a perfect 2-2 in stolen bases. Outfielder Mark Shannon hit for an average of .411 this week (7-17) with a home run, double and 3 stolen bases. Elliot Morris only pitched 4.0 innings in his start on June 12th, but didn’t allow a run and also struck out 8 batters to 3 walks. Mike Clevinger pitched 4.2 innings in his first start since being activated from the disabled list, only allowing 2 hits and no runs while striking out 6 and walking 1. Relief pitcher Eduard Santos extended his scoreless inning streak to 6.2 innings with 2 scoreless appearances.

The Burlington Bees had a great week (6-2) and were able to clinch the first half Western Division wild card on Friday with a win over Cedar Rapids. Second baseman Kody Eaves hit two doubles and two home runs this week, bringing his slugging average up to .473 on the season. Starting pitcher Alfonso Alcantara pitched a pair of quality starts in his two starts. Harrison Cooney went 7 complete innings in his start on June 10th, allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs to go along with 2 strikeouts and 1 walk. Relief pitchers Joey Krehbiel, Alan Busenitz and Brian Loconsole did not allow a single earned run in a combined 14.0 scoreless innings pitched for the Bees this week.