Outstanding nights in the Minor Leagues came from a wide variety of sources and across almost every level on Wednesday. While Phillies top prospect Andrew Painter racked up a season high in strikeouts at Triple-A, a High-A prospect found the seats not once, not twice, but three times. Meanwhile out in the California League, a 2024 D-backs first-round pick still shy of his 19th birthday flirted with a cycle in just his 37th professional game.
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Andrew Painter, RHP, Lehigh Valley (PHI No. 1/MLB No. 5)
Painter had the strikeout pitch working in his third Triple-A start, racking up a season-high seven punchouts while pitching into the fifth inning for the IronPigs. Baseball's No. 2 RHP prospect pitched three hitless innings before running into a little trouble in the fourth, when he surrendered a run on two hits. Painter allowed a leadoff triple in the fifth and exited after tossing 71 pitches (49 for strikes). The 22-year-old has a 2.25 ERA and 15 K's in 12 innings since moving up to Lehigh Valley. Gameday
Lazaro Montes, OF, Everett (SEA No. 2/MLB No. 35)
Montes’ second straight night with a homer for High-A Everett -- in rarified air over the batter's eye -- helped him claim the Northwest League home run lead (nine), and he also paces the circuit in OPS (.970), extra-base hits (21), total bases (83) and ISO (.297). A veritable RBI machine (105 in 2024, tied for third in the Minors), the 20-year-old also added a two-RBI single later in the contest. Full story | Gameday
Carson Williams, SS, Durham (TB No. 1/MLB No. 23)
It's been a frustrating start to 2025 for Williams, but perhaps his most recent performance will be the one that ignites him. The 21-year-old punctuated a three-hit night with a go-ahead three-run jack in the 10th inning that proved to be the decisive hit for Triple-A Durham. It was the first three-hit night of the season for Williams, who has six homers after going deep 20 times last year. Gameday
Kevin Alcántara, OF, Iowa (CHC No. 5/MLB No. 73)
Alcántara came through with his second big game for Triple-A Iowa in less than a week, clocking a pair of homers, driving in three runs and reaching base three times in four plate appearances. The 22-year-old has gotten off to a slow start this year but has gone deep three times and collected eight RBIs in his past four games. Alcántara has already driven in more runs (12) and hit more long balls (three) than he did in April. Gameday
Slade Caldwell, OF, Visalia (AZ No. 2/MLB No. 98)
The D-backs' most recent first-rounder is off to a solid start in his pro debut, but he took things up a notch in his latest game. Caldwell fell a triple shy of the cycle, drove in a pair, scored twice and walked in five plate appearances for Single-A Visalia. It was the second time in five games the 18-year-old had three hits, lifting his slash line to .297/.481/.500 with 16 extra-base hits and 37 walks. Gameday
Robby Snelling, LHP, Pensacola (MIA No. 3/MLB No. 93)
Coming off three starts in which he surrendered 13 earned runs, Snelling rebounded with one of his best outings of the season for Double-A Pensacola. The 21-year-old allowed a pair of hits and nothing else over six innings while racking up eight strikeouts during his 85-pitch outing. Snelling, who did not walk a batter after issuing nine free passes in his previous two starts, has a 50-to-16 K/BB ratio in 38 innings. Gameday
Walker Janek, C, Asheville (HOU No. 3)
Janek's torrid month continued with his first four-hit game as a professional. The Sam Houston product has hit safely in seven of his past eight games after notching a pair of doubles and driving in two runs for High-A Asheville. Janek has lifted his average to .292 and his OPS to .808 on the strength of a .306/.364/.551 slash line in May. Gameday
Keiner Delgado, 2B/SS, Greensboro (PIT No. 26)
Delgado entered the game with four long balls in his first 36 games and nearly equaled that total in six plate appearances. The 21-year-old homered three times, including a go-ahead two-run tater in the ninth, and racked up four RBIs during his first four-hit game in nearly three years. All seven of the switch-hitter's roundtrippers have come in May. Gameday