There were many standout performances by pitchers across the Minor Leagues on Wednesday, but none of them impressed quite like Class A hurlers Merandy Gonzalez and Cody Reed.
Gonzalez, the Mets' No. 14 prospect, scattered five hits over 7 2/3 innings for Columbia to extend his season-opening scoreless-innings streak to 28 1/3 frames. He walked a pair and struck out five, also generating eight ground-ball outs, as the Fireflies shutout Asheville, 5-0.
Gonzalez is now 4-0 through his first four starts in the South Atlantic League, and the 21-year-old righty has completed at least seven innings in three straight turns, en route to pacing the circuit in innings pitched. He's posted a 23-to-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio during that stretch, all the while limiting opposing hitters to a .160 clip.
Meanwhile, in the Midwest League, Reed fired six no-hit innings and matched his career high with 11 strikeouts to pace Kane County in a shutout of Wisconsin. It marked the first win of the season for the D-backs' No. 19 prospect, who issued one walk (with two outs in the second inning) while throwing 55 of his 81 pitches for strikes.
"I was locating my two-seam fastball on the outside part of the plate. I was able to keep it down and threw it for a lot of strikes. I'm just getting the ball to the plate, that's all there is to it. You just need to compete and throw strikes," Reed told MiLB.com.
MILB Video - Title: Watch: Reed strikes out 11th batter - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1326838483
Reed, a second-round pick in 2014, has been excellent so far this season in his return to Kane County, posting a 1.35 ERA with 27 strikeouts 20 innings. In his 2016 full-season debut, the 20-year-old left-hander went 5-2 with a 1.82 ERA in seven starts before advancing to the Class A Advanced California League.
The rest of the best performances from top prospects Wednesday
• No. 32 overall prospect Kyle Tucker (Astros No. 2) recorded multiple hits in both games of Class A Advanced Buies Creek's doubleheader sweep to extend his hitting streak to seven games. The 20-year-old outfielder went 4-for-7 with four RBIs on the day, going 2-for-4 in Game 1 before driving in three with a 2-for-3 performance in the nightcap. Through 19 games, Tucker is hitting .319/.375/.597 with 12 extra-base hits and 21 RBIs.
MILB Video - Title: Tucker's two-run triple - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1327174883
• No. 92 overall prospect Cal Quantrill (Padres No. 4) worked a career-high six innings en route to his third win for Class A Advanced Lake Elsinore. The 2016 first-rounder (No. 8 overall) allowed one earned run on five hits with five strikeouts and two walks before he departed the game after 81 pitches (56 strikes).
• Astros No. 19 prospect Ronnie Dawson hit his third homer in four games for Class A Quad Cities to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. The 21-year-old outfielder now has gone deep four times (all in his past eight games) in 19 games, during which he's hitting .270 with 12 runs scored and 13 RBIs.
• Blue Jays No. 9 prospect Bo Bichette went 2-for-5 to improve his average to .383 for Class A Lansing. Both of the 19-year-old shortstop's hits went for extra bases, as he connected on his second homer in the first inning -- a solo shot off of left-hander Jose Paulino (Cubs No. 14) -- and then added a double in the ninth.
• Dodgers No. 29 prospect A.J. Alexy fired 3 2/3 scoreless innings in his fourth straight dominant start for Class A Great Lakes. The 19-year-old righty, an 11th-round Draft pick last June, threw 37 of his 53 pitches for strikes, allowing one hit and striking out seven. He owns a 0.71 ERA and a 0.39 WHIP, with 19 strikeouts and one walk, in 12 2/3 innings, during which he's allowed just four hits while holding opposing hitters to a .095 average.
• Giants No. 6 prospect Sandro Fabian went 4-for-5 with a pair of home runs, a double and five RBIs for Class A Augusta in what was a career day at the plate for the 19-year-old outfielder. The home runs were his first of the season, and he boosted his average from .227 to .268 with the four-hit showing.
MILB Video - Title: Fabian's second homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=1326494683
• Pirates No. 7 prospect Will Craig recorded a career-high five RBIs and went 2-for-4 to help power Class A Advanced Bradenton past Fort Myers, 16-2. It was the fifth multi-hit performance in 10 games for the 2016 first-rounder, who's hitting .294/.388/.353 through 18 games. On the mound for the Marauders, left-hander Taylor Hearn (No. 12) tossed six innings of one-run ball, allowing four hits and striking out six, to record his second win in four starts.
• Rays No. 7 prospectJesus Sanchez paced Class A Bowling Green to an 11-3 win over Dayton with his first career multi-homer game. The toolsy 19-year-old outfielder went deep in the seventh and eighth innings, ultimately finishing 3-for-5 with three runs and four RBIs. Garrett Whitley (No. 11) also had a big game for the Hot Rods, going 3-for-4 with a triple, a double and two RBIs from the bottom of the order.
• White Sox No. 10 prospectDane Dunning was dominant in his third straight scoreless start for Class A Kannapolis, striking out seven in six innings. Acquired with Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez during the offseason in the Adam Eaton trade, Dunning, 22, is now 2-0 with a 0.35 ERA through four turns in the South Atlantic League. He's compiled 33 strikeouts against just two walks, while holding opposing hitters to a .143 average (13 hits) in 26 innings.