DSL Indians
By Joe Coblitz
The Indians of the Dominican had a rough week, sandwiching a five game losing streak with a win on either end. Offense was the primary part of the struggle as they scored just 12 runs during the first six games before bringing across five in their win on Friday.
It seems his name is mentioned every week in the DSL report, but Luis Araujo continues to separate himself from the rest of the rotation. In his one start this week, he pitched five shut out innings, lowering his season ERA to 1.01 in 35.2 innings, striking out 33 and walking just five. In Saturday’s start he allowed just one hit, walked one and struck out seven.
As mentioned, there hasn’t been much offense to speak of, but left fielder Pablo Jimenez did have four hits across two games from July 25th to July 26th. He now has seven doubles on the season while batting .289/.331/.426 and leading the team in total bases.
AZL Indians
By Joseph Coblitz
The AZL Reds put to end the Indians seven game winning streak on Wednesday, dropping them to 21-9 before winning their Friday night game against San Diego 11-6. On an individual note, Randy Marte made his first start in the U.S. after playing in the DSL last year and allowed one hit and a walk in a scoreless inning. In the bullpen, Ben Krauth and Cesar Ventura continue to be a devastating tandem for opposing hitters, now with ERAs of 0.00 (14 IP) and 0.75 (24 IP) with 20 and 17 K’s respectively. Both have quick deliveries and excellent command and should be promoted soon as they have had little issue with the aggressive youngsters in the AZL.
On the rehab front, Dorssys Paulino returned to the AZL this week for the first time since 2012 when he was just 17. He is recovering from hamate bone surgery and looks ready to return to Lynchburg after three steals and 11 hits in 26 at bats. Two middle infielders that have caught my eye with their defense hit particularly well this week as second baseman, Samad Taylor, and short stop Elvis Perez, both looked good. Perez in particular had five hits across two games and is now hitting .319 on the season with 13 RBI. Taylor is currently hitting .322 in his first season after being drafted in June.
Mahoning Valley Scrappers
By Caitlin Boron
With another week in the books, the Scrappers continue to chug along away from the bottom. Yes, they have a way to go yet from first, but with six straight wins this week (save for the loss of the second game Friday), their 17-22 record is a big improvement from where they were headed earlier in the season.
It looks like all the cylinders are going full speed (not exactly full speed Mustang, more like Honda Civic) for this scrappy bunch of ball players. The starting pitching has kept teams at bay, while the bats have given MV an edge. Following that lead, the bullpen has emerged as a trusted piece to the Scrappers arsenal, giving support when called upon. There are positive adjustments all over the place, and it’s showing.
Normally, I would pick standout players for the week, but everyone has had a part or two in the currently collection of W’s. It’s as if a switch had been clicked on, and the focus defensively is more tuned in. At the plate, guys are finding themselves in rally situations, not letting opportunities go lightly (or at all), and the pitching continues to lean towards the dominant side starting and from the pen. They’ve made baseball exciting in little Mahoning Valley. If the Scrappers make this their norm, the sky is the limit with them. I’m excited to see what they can do in the next week, and confident they’ll chip away at the standing again as they have the last two weeks.
Lake County Captains
By Justin Lada
The Captains managed to rattle off three wins in a row earlier this week. Willi Castro had three hits and two doubles while David Armendariz homered in a 6-2 in Sunday, which also proved to be Esparza’s last start at Lake County (4 1/3, 2 ER).
Lynchburg Hillcats
Akron Rubberducks
By Gavin Potter
The current minor league team in Akron has very few similarities to the team that was playing in April and May. At one point this season, the Akron RubberDucks undoubtedly had the most exciting prospects of any of the Indians’ affiliates. Further, by record the Ducks had one of the best teams in all of professional baseball. However, Clint Frazier and Bradley Zimmer were promoted to Columbus last week, meaning Akron currently has no prospects in the Indians’ organizational top ten. To make matters worse, the Ducks went 1-6 last week, bringing their record to 19-38 since June 1.
One of the only bright spots in Akron from Frazier and Zimmer being promoted was that 23 year-old Greg Allen was finally promoted to AA. After slashing .298/.424/.402 at High A+ with 38 steals in 92 games, Allen has batted .261 in his first five games with Akron. Though he has yet to record a walk or a steal, Allen will be a prospect to keep tabs on going forward. Meanwhile, Rob Kaminsky allowed five earned runs on Tuesday, the first time he has given up more than two earned runs since June 14. Outfielder Mike Papi was another prospect who had a hard time last week, going 1-16, lowering his season average to .190.
Akron will continue to try to right the ship next week, as they will face Bowie and New Hampshire.
Columbus Clippers
By Michael Melaragno
The International League named Yandy Diaz the batter of the week this past week. He led the league during that span with a .519 batting average and 14 hits along with eight RBI, six runs, five walks and led the league with a .576 on-base percentage. He is currently on a 17-game hitting streak (tied for the longest in the league) and he’s only had a single hit twice during the streak. He had eight hits and six RBI in the Clippers four-game sweep over Pawtucket.
According to the Clippers media relations staff, Diaz is the second player from the Clippers to receive batter of the week honors this year as Giovanny Urshela was named to the same award for April 25-May 1.
On the bases, the Clippers have just one steal since the All-Star break (Eric Stamets on July 14) and have been passed by Norfolk to drop to 13th in the league with 43 stolen bases (four ahead of Louisville for last place). On the active roster, only Stamets and Ronny Rodriguez have a steal since June 30 (one each). The current streak of 13 games without a steal is a season high.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
