Friday's best: Guerrero goes deep again for Dunedin

August 19th, 2017

Now into his second month playing in the Florida State League, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is finding his power stroke.
Guerrero, MLBPipeline.com's No. 6 overall prospect (Blue Jays' No. 1), connected on his second home run in as many games on Friday, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs as Class A Advanced Dunedin blanked St. Lucie, 4-0.
He pushed across runs with both of his hits in the contest, tallying an RBI single in the third inning and then lacing a solo home run to left field in the sixth. The homer was the 18-year-old third baseman's third with Dunedin, for whom he's batted .322/.444/.455 with 21 runs scored, 20 RBIs and more walks (26) than strikeouts (22) over 34 games. Overall, Guerrero has now homered 10 times this season while slashing .318/.420/.472 in 105 games between Dunedin and Class A Lansing. He's also tallied 74 runs scored and 65 RBIs, as well as a 66-to-56 walk-to-strikeout ratio that belies his age.
The rest of the best performances from top prospects Friday
No. 18 overall prospect (Rays' No. 2) recorded three run-scoring hits and a sacrifice fly en route to a career-high five RBIs to lead Triple-A Durham past Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, 10-6. The 21-year-old shortstop has posted back-to-back three-hit games for the Bulls, continuing a strong month of August that's seen him slash .339/.433/.500 with five extra-base hits and nine RBIs in 15 games.

MILB Video - Title: Adames plates two - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1743552283

No. 58 overall prospect (Padres' No. 4) had another big game out of the leadoff spot for Class A Fort Wayne, as the 18-year-old shortstop went 1-for-3 with three runs scored, two RBIs and three walks. He also swiped a bag in the contest, his 29th of the season. Ever better than Tatis was Hudson Potts (No. 23), who connected on a three-run homer, his 15th this season, and scored four runs while finishing 3-for-3 at the plate.
Royals No. 2 prospect Khalil Lee collected a career-best four hits and plated five to power Class A Lexington in a 14-3 rout of Asheville. Three of his hits went for extra bases, as the 19-year-old outfielder tallied a pair of doubles as well as his 15th home run. He's hitting .244/.348/.440 on the season, with 42 extra-base hits and 19 stolen bases through 106 games.

MILB Video - Title: Lee delivers a two-run homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1743672983

Blue Jays No. 8 prospect Nate Pearson registered six strikeouts over three hitless frames for Class A Short Season Vancouver, extending his career-opening scoreless streak to 13 innings. The 20-year-old righty has been dominant in his first five pro starts, allowing just four hits and one walk while racking up 16 strikeouts.
• Starting opposite Pearson for Spokane, Rangers No. 6 prospect Cole Ragans tossed six innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits with three walks and a career-best 10 strikeouts. The 19-year-old southpaw has impressed this season during his time in the Northwest League, posting a 3.55 ERA with a circuit-leading 76 strikeouts in 51 innings.
Indians No. 14 prospect Conner Capel went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and four RBIs for Class A Lake County. The 20-year-old outfielder has put himself on the map in his full-season debut by posting an .810 OPS with 20 homers, 21 doubles and 14 steals. He's been on fire of late, too, with a .487 average, 11 runs scored and 12 RBIs over his last nine games.
• By hitting a home run and going 3-for-4 on Friday, Nationals No. 14 prospect has now homered while recording multiple hits in five of his last six games for Double-A Harrisburg. The 23-year-old catcher is hitting a robust .522 with seven runs scored and seven RBIs in that span, during which he's raised his season slash line from .259/.304/.424 to .276/.322/.470.

MILB Video - Title: Watch: Read smashes solo shot - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1745322883

Tigers No. 16 prospect tied his career high with 11 strikeouts and tossed a season-high 7 2/3 scoreless innings to lead Class A Advanced Lakeland in a shutout over Daytona. He allowed four hits and one walk in the performance. Though he struggled early in the season, the 23-year-old righty has rebounded to post a 3.86 ERA with 92 strikeouts and 24 walks in 88 2/3 innings (17 starts) in the Florida State League.
"He just really had a good mix," Flying Tigers pitching coach Mark Johnson told MiLB.com. "He was able to expand the zone nicely. Instead of trying to be a power pitcher, he was able to change speeds with his changeup and his slider."
A's No. 23 prospect 's Minor League-leading 32nd home run proved the difference in Triple-A Nashville's 8-7 win over Memphis. He also turned in his fourth multi-hit performance in his last six games, finishing 2-for-5 with three RBIs and two runs scored.

MILB Video - Title: Nunez clobbers two-run blast - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1744079183

Astros No. 26 prospect Rogelio Armenteros carried a no-hit bid into the seventh inning for Triple-A Fresno before finally allowing a two-out single -- the lone hit he'd allow over seven scoreless frames. The 23-year-old righty allowed two walks and struck out nine, marking his fourth straight start with eight or more strikeouts. He's posted a 2.26 ERA with 125 strikeouts in 103 2/3 innings across two levels in what has been a breakout 2017 campaign.

MILB Video - Title: Armenteros finishes six hitless - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1745093483