AAA Columbus Clippers
9-13 – 2nd place International League West – 2-5 this week
By Mike Melaragno
The Clippers stand 9-13 on the season, tied for second in the International League West Division with Louisville, 2.5 games behind the Toledo Mud Hens
AA Akron RubberDucks
9-12 – 5th place Eastern League West – 3-3 this week
After starting the season 6-9, the Akron RubberDucks again struggled with consistency last week, going 3-3 in games vs. Altoona, Bowie, and Binghamton.
Center fielder Greg Allen had a big week for Akron, going for 7-21, with a walk, two stolen bases and a home run. To boot, he made a few stellar plays in center, the same week he was awarded a minor league Gold Glove award. On the year, Allen is now hitting .289/.368/.382 with eight stolen bases.
Another Duck outfielder, Mike Papi, had a big week, going 6-18, including five walks, a double, and a home run. Papi’s had an excellent start to the year, slashing .279/.416/.393. As always, his on-base ability remains his strongest asset at the plate.
Akron’s best pitcher from the week may have been David Speer. The lefty picked up his first save of the season on Monday, and pitched 4.1 innings, only allowing one run on three hits. Meanwhile, Speer struck out four hitters without walking anyone.
Akron will actually play all the same teams next week as they faced this week: The Ducks wrap up their weekend series vs. Bowie on Sunday, then will head to Binghamton for a three game set. Following that, the team will return home for a four-game series against Altoona.
A+ Lynchburg Hillcats
10-10 – 4th place Carolina League North – 2-3 this week
By Caitlin Boron
As of right, now the ThrillCats are 10-10 on the season, after playing only three games since last week. They lost the series to Potomac after taking a 4-3 loss on Sunday, and split the series against Salem with a win, loss and postponement.
In Wednesday’s win on the Salem Red Sox, Lynchburg put up 13 runs on 16 hits but it was the 6-run seventh inning that put them up and over into the win column. It started on a homer from catcher Claudio Bautista to score two, a double from SS Willi Castro to score RF Jodd Carter, and an Andrew Calica single (who made it to third on a fielding error) to scored two more. When these kitties get locked in they have no trouble piling on the runs, but so far getting locked in has been hit or miss.
The stand-out player for this week would have to be Czech born catcher Martin Cervenka. In his three games played since the last update, he’s impressive with a hefty .454 BA, with 8 total bases, 3 RBI, 1 HR and only 2 strikeouts. If you haven’t noticed, a catcher who can make a good backstop and hold a solid bat are hard to come by, yet in the Indians minor league system there are a few who have a knack for both. He might not make the hard contact one would expect from a sturdy catcher, but Cervenka can put the ball in play and get guys home. For the season, he has 9 RBI with men in scoring position, yet struggles with men at second and third. He’s had good seasons in the minor league system and a solid year-to-date, definitely someone to keep an eye on.
Low-A Lake County Captains
9-13 – 6th place Midwest League East – 1-6 this week
By Justin Lada
It was rough sailing for the Captains offense this week as they endured a 25 1/2 inning scoreless streak from the fifth inning of a 7-1 loss at Great Lakes on Monday until the fourth inning of a 10-5 win over West Michigan on Thursday.
After shining the first few times through the pitching staff has also hit a rough patch with Aaron Civale, Shane Bieber and Brady Aiken all having rough weeks. Aiken did allow just one run in six innings on Saturday but walked four and didn’t strike anyone out. He only 37 of 71 pitches for strikes. Civale allowed just three runs in five innings. Ohio State lefty Tanner Tully has been piggybacking to start the year and threw another 4 2/3 scoreless innings. He has 17 strikeouts in 16 2/3 innings and has allowed just one run.
The bullpen between LHP Ben Krauth, RHP Ryder Ryan, Tully as a piggyback pitcher Justin Garza and power arms that are starting to gain consistency in Dalbert Siri and Henry Martinez has shown some promise.
OF Todd Isaacs had five hits this week including two homers, coming on back to back nights. He also stole another base, making him nine of 10 this year in swiping bags. 1B Emmanuel Tapia finished the week strong with a hit in three straight games including homers in back to back games. C Logan Ice had five hits and has a .390 OBP on the year. C/DH Li-Jen Chu was on base 10 times this week and had a three walk game. He’s hitting .309 but also has the fifth best OBP in the league at .440.
The Captains will take a trip to visit the Midwest League West division this week with a series at Cedar Rapids and Quad Cities. They return home May 8 and host six straight games between Beloit and Wisconsin.
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