Wednesday's top prospect performers

May 9th, 2019

Here's a look at Wednesday's top Minor League performers from each team's Top 30 Prospects list:

AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST

Blue Jays: Alejandro Kirk, C (No. 26) -- 2-for-3, 2 2B, R, BB (Class A Advanced Dunedin)
After hitting .299 through 12 games with Class A Lansing, Kirk was promoted to Dunedin, where he has continued to hit. Kirk is 5-for-12 over three games with Dunedin and is hitting a combined .315 this season. Last year Kirk hit .354 over 58 games in Rookie ball.
Blue Jays prospects stats »

Orioles: DJ Stewart, OF (No. 16) -- 3-for-3, 2 HR (5), 2B, 7 RBI, 3 R, BB (Triple-A Norfolk)
Stewart racked up a career-high seven RBIs via a pair of home runs. He hit a three-run shot in the fourth inning followed by a grand slam in the sixth. He later added a double to finish the game with 10 total bases. After getting off to a slow start, the 25-year-old has three multihit performances, including a pair of three-hit efforts, and 11 RBIs his last five games.
Orioles prospects stats »

Rays: Shane Baz, RHP (No. 9) -- 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K (Class A Bowling Green)
Making his full-season debut as well as his 2019 debut, Baz allowed a solo home run in the first inning but settling in to retire 14 of the final 16 batters he faced, ultimately striking out seven with no walks in five innings. Acquired last summer as the PTBNL in the Trade Deadline deal for Chris Archer, Baz was the Pirates’ first-round pick in the 2017 Draft out of the Texas prep ranks. With a deep arsenal of power pitches and physical projection remaining, the 19-year-old right-hander is a breakout candidate in 2019.
Rays prospects stats »

Red Sox: Kutter Crawford, RHP (No. 20) -- 6 1/3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 11 K (Class A Adv Salem)
Crawford, 23, piled up a career-best 11 strikeouts and induced 17 swinging strikes before completing a season-high 6 1/3 innings of two-hit ball. A 16th-round pick from the 2017 Draft, he’s struck out 45 batters while recording a 2.38 ERA in 34 innings (seven starts) on the season.
Red Sox prospects stats »

Yankees: Deivi Garcia, RHP (No. 4) -- 5 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K (Double-A Trenton)
Garcia, a 19-year-old who has been with the Yankees' organization since he signed in 2015, followed up back-to-back double-digit strikeout performances with one of his more complete performances this season. Garcia struck out 21 batters over his past two starts, but also gave up five earned runs and eight hits in 9 2/3 innings. Control was still a bit of an issue for Garcia as he threw 68 of his 92 pitches for strikes, but he did complete five innings for the second time this season and the scoreless outing was his first of the season.
Yankees prospects stats »

AMERICAN LEAGUE CENTRAL

Royals: Nicky Lopez, SS (No. 8) -- 3-for-3, HR, 3 RBI, 2 B, BB, SB (Triple-A Omaha)
After back-to-back two-hit games, Lopez upped the ante with his fifth three-hit performance of 2019. The 2016 fifth-round pick hit his third homer of the year, a two-run blast in the first, and added an RBI single in the second, giving him a season-high three RBIs. Lopez hit a career-high .308 across two levels last season and has seemingly carried that momentum into 2019 as he’s raking at a .358 clip through 28 games.
Royals prospects stats »

Indians: Nolan Jones, 3B (No. 2, MLB No. 61) -- 3-for-3, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, 2 BB (Class A Advanced Lynchburg)
Jones broke out for 19 homers last season, but has yet to hit one in 2019. While he did fall a homer shy of the cycle, Jones still put together a pretty productive afternoon offensively. The 21-year-old, a former second-round Draft pick (2016), hit his first triple of the season and is hitting .311 through 30 games after his second three-hit game of the year. Jones split the 2018 season across two levels, but did hit .298 over 30 games with Lynchburg and perhaps that experience has paved the way for his strong start.
Indians prospects stats »

Tigers: Alex Faedo, RHP (No. 10) -- 6 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K (Double-A Erie)
Faedo, the Tigers' first-round pick from the 2017 Draft, was stuck with a no-decision, but still spun his third straight quality start for Erie. The 23-year-old threw 60 of his 90 pitches for strikes and lowered his ERA to 3.09 through six starts (35 innings). Faedo made 12 starts with Erie at the end of 2018 and posted a 4.85 ERA.
Tigers prospects stats »

Twins: Brusdar Graterol, RHP (No. 3, MLB No. 62) -- 5.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K (Double-A Pensacola)
Graterol put together another strong start and has pitched to a 1.91 ERA through seven starts this season. However, the right-hander was reportedly lifted in the sixth inning because he was experiencing trapezius tightness. The injury isn't believed to be serious and Graterol is expected to make his next start, but it's certainly something to monitor moving forward. Graterol, 20, is 4-0 this year and has held his opponents to one earned run or less in five of his seven starts.
Twins prospects stats »

White Sox: Steele Walker, OF (No. 11) -- 3-for-3, 2 BB (Class A Advanced Winston-Salem)
Walker entered the game 0-for-9 over his past two games, but broke out of that mini-slump with a perfect day at the plate as he reached base in all five plate appearances. Walker, a second-round pick from last year’s Draft, was regarded as one of the best college hitters available. Walker hit just .209 in his pro debut, but is batting .337 through 26 games this season.
White Sox prospects stats »

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST

A’s: Jorge Mateo, SS (No. 8) -- 3-for-5, 3B, HR, 3 RBI (Triple-A Las Vegas)
Mateo extended his hitting streak to seven games and boosted his average to .340 with his sixth three-hit game of the season. The 23-year-old, acquired via a 2017 trade with the Yankees, hit just .230 over 131 games last season but has really impressed offensively early in 2019.
A's prospects stats »

Angels: Kevin Maitan, 3B/SS (No. 14) -- 2-for-4, HR, RBI (Class A Burlington)
Maitan’s numbers haven’t been impressive since he signed with the Angels in 2017, but its important to remember that he’s still just 19 years old and often playing against older competition. However, Maitan may be starting to turn a corner. After hitting .169 through 21 games in April, Maitan has hit .265 through nine games in May.
Angels prospects stats »

Astros: Yordan Alvarez, OF (No. 3, MLB No. 40) -- 2-for-5, HR, 2 RBI (Triple-A Round Rock)
Alvarez’s attack on Triple-A pitching continued as he boosted his average to .391 and hit his 14th homer of the season, good for second in the Minors. The 21-year-old hit a career-high 20 homers last season and seems poised to shatter that mark this year.
Astros prospects stats »

Mariners: Shed Long, 2B (No. 12) -- 2-for-4, 2B, HR, 5 RBI (Triple-A Tacoma)
Long, a 12th-round pick from the 2013 Draft (Reds), used a grand slam and an RBI groundout to set a career high with five RBIs. The 23-year-old, hitting .277 this season, is hitting .391 over the past six games. Long hit .261 in Double-A last season before the Reds traded him to the Yankees, who then flipped him to Seattle over the offseason.
Mariners prospects stats »

Rangers: Sam Huff, C/1B (No. 21) -- 3-for-4, HR (15), 2 RBI (Class A Hickory)
Huff leads all Minor League hitters in home runs this season after he went deep for the 15th time in 30 games on Wednesday. His two-run shot was one of three hits he collected in the contest, as the 21-year-old improved his season slash line to .333/.368/.796. He’s also leading the South Atlantic League with 29 RBIs.
Rangers prospects stats »

NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST

Braves: Austin Riley, 3B/1B (No. 5, MLB No. 35) -- 3-for-4, 2 HR (12), 3 RBI, BB (Triple-A Gwinnett); Drew Waters, OF (No. 8, MLB No. 79) -- 3-for-5, 2 2B (Double-A Mississippi)
Riley made the first start of his 458-game Minor League career at left field and responded to the challenge by hitting a pair of home runs for his third multihomer performance in eight games. The 22-year-old has been crushing the ball over his last 10 games, hitting .459 with seven homers and 16 RBIs. Waters’ hot streak continued with his second three-hit performance in as many days. The 20-year-old has hit well since the Braves grabbed him in the second round of the 2017 Draft, and that trend has certainly continued this season. Waters, playing in Double-A for the first time, is hitting .349 through 30 games.
Braves prospects stats »

Marlins: Zac Gallen, RHP (No. 18) -- 7 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K (Triple-A New Orleans)
The 23-year-old righty completed at least seven innings for a fourth time in seven starts, continuing his terrific start to the season. His Pacific Coast League-leading ERA increased from 1.12 to 1.14 with Wednesday’s outing, and he added seven more punchouts to his circuit-leading total of 55 strikeouts. He also paces all PCL hurlers in WHIP (0.57), having allowed 19 hits and eight walks in 47 1/3 innings.
Marlins prospects stats »

Mets: Luis Carpio, 2B/SS (No. 29) -- 2-for-4, RBI (Class A Advanced St. Lucie)
Carpio has boosted his season average to .333 with three straight multihit performances. The 21-year-old, who signed with the Mets in 2013, got off to a 2-for-18 start this season, but has picked up the pace since then and is looking to build off last year’s .219 average. While Carpio was impressive, he wasn’t the only Mets prospect to stand out as a pair of pitchers -- Harol Gonzalez and Ryder Ryan -- threw a combined no-hitter for Binghamton.
Mets prospects stats »

Nationals: Joan Adon, RHP (No. 21) -- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K (Class A Hagerstown)
Adon put together another strong start as he threw 53 of his 86 pitches for strikes in the longest outing of his career. The 20-year-old has surrendered one run in four of his six starts this season. Adon pitched out of the bullpen last season and while his stuff was impressive, he issued 6.5 walks per nine innings. Now pitching in the rotation, Adon has given out 13 free passes over 29 2/3 innings.
Nationals prospects stats »

Phillies: Mickey Moniak, OF (No. 9) -- 2-for-4, 2B (Double-A Reading)
Moniak, the No. 1 overall pick from the 2016 Draft, has struggled offensively since entering pro ball. The 20-year-old did hit .270 last year, but has seen his average dip again in 2019. Moniak is hitting .220 through 26 games this season, but is hitting .281 in the month of May.
Phillies prospects stats »

NATIONAL LEAGUE CENTRAL

Brewers: Payton Henry, C (No. 10) -- 2-for-4, 2B, 3B (Class A Advanced Carolina)
After hitting .284 in April, Henry has cooled off in May (.174 through six games). However, Henry just turned in his first two-hit game of the month and perhaps that’s just what he needs to get back on track. The 21-year-old, a 2016 Draft pick, hit .234 over 98 games last year and is a career .243 hitter.
Brewers prospects stats »

Cubs: Paul Richan, RHP (No. 18) -- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 8 K (Class A Advanced Myrtle Beach)
Richan, the 78th overall pick from last year's Draft, set a career with eight strikeouts and lowered his ERA to 3.64 in the process. The 22-year-old from San Diego put together one of his best starts of the season. Not only were the six innings a career best, but it was also the first time this season that Richan didn't issue any walks.
Cubs prospects stats »

Cardinals: Andrew Knizner, C (No. 2) -- 2-for-4, solo HR (3) (Triple-A Memphis)
Knizner connected on a game-tying home run in the bottom of the third inning and was the only Redbirds player to finish with multiple hits in their 2-1 win over Iowa. He’s hit all three of his home runs in the past seven games, during which he also has a trio of two-hit performances. The recent hot streak has helped the 24-year-old catcher lift his season batting line to .326/.389/.477 through 23 games. Defensively, Knizner has cut down 10 of 19 attempted basestealers.
Cardinals prospects stats »

Pirates: Steven Jennings, RHP (No. 13) -- 5.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 3 K (Class A Greensboro)
Jennings, who began the night with a 6.75 ERA, put together his best start of the season and was rewarded with his second win. The right-hander, the 42nd overall pick from the 2017 Draft, hasn’t particularly well in pro ball, but the Pirates are still confident in his four-pitch mix.
Pirates prospects stats »

Reds: Alfredo Rodriguez, SS (No. 29) -- 4-for-5, RBI (Double-A Chattanooga)
Rodriguez, 24, extended his hitting streak to five games with his first four-hit game since 2017. Rodriguez is hitting .323 this season and has been particularly hot lately, hitting .368/.368/.447 over eight games this month. The offensive surge could be the beginnings of a breakout season for Rodriguez as he hit just .210 last season, albeit in just a 46-game sample size.
Reds prospects stats »

NATIONAL LEAGUE WEST

D-backs: Drew Ellis, 3B (No. 15) -- 3-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI (Double-A Jackson)
Not only did Ellis hit his first homer of the season, but he also put forth his first three-hit effort of 2019. The 2017 Draft pick (second round) hit a career-high 15 homers last season, but he has gotten off to a slow start during his first taste of Double-A ball. Ellis is hitting .256 through 28 games, but he may be turning a corner as he's hitting .333 through eight games this month.
D-backs prospects stats »

Dodgers: Will Smith, C/3B (No. 5) -- 3-for-4 (Triple-A Oklahoma City)
Smith hit .138 over 25 games with Oklahoma City late last season and although he’s not off to a blazing start this year, he has improved upon that mark. The 24-year-old, a first-round pick from the 2016 Draft, is hitting .244 through 25 games.
Dodgers prospects stats »

Giants: Sean Hjelle, RHP (No. 6) -- 5 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 8 K (Class A Augusta)
Hjelle, a 6-foot-11 righty whom the Giants took in the second round of last year’s Draft, notched his first pro win after striking out a season-high eight in five innings. He threw 80 pitches in the outing, 57 for strikes, as he lowered his ERA to 2.84 through seven starts in the South Atlantic League.
Giants prospects stats »

Padres: Luis Campusano, C (No. 16) -- 1-for-4, 2B (Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore)
A night after his four-game hitting streak came to a close, Campusano (hitting .323 this season) picked up his eighth double of the year to get back on track. The 20-year-old, a 2017 Draft pick, hit .288 over 70 games in 2018.
Padres prospects stats »

Rockies: Peter Lambert, RHP (No. 3) -- 7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 4 K (Triple-A Albuquerque)
A solo homer was the extent of the damage against Lambert, who spun his longest start of the season. The 22-year-old threw 62 of his 97 pitches for strikes and picked up his second win of the season. Lambert spent the bulk of 2018 in Double-A, but he did get some Triple-A experience late in the season and posted a 5.04 ERA over 55 1/3 innings.
Rockies prospects stats »