Kyle McGowin came within three outs of a seven-inning no-hitter before settling for a one-hit shutout in Game 2 of Double-A Arkansas' doubleheader against Frisco on Monday. He walked one and struck out nine. The right-hander tossed 63 of his 86 pitches for strikes.
The Angels' No. 16 prospect, turned in six hitless innings before surrendering a leadoff single in the seventh inning, though he quickly erased that baserunner by inducing a ground-ball double play. He ultimately generated nine ground-ball outs and faced a total of 22 hitters, one over the minimum.
"I mean, no matter what it was a great outing," McGowin told MiLB.com. "I was happy with what I had done. He put a swing on a good pitch and he beat me on that one."
After allowing five earned runs in 1 1/3 innings in his season debut for the Travelers, McGowin has rattled off back-to-back seven-inning starts, during which he's combined to allow one run on five hits, with 16 strikeouts.
McGowin, a fifth-round Draft pick in 2013 out of Savannah State, scuffled over a full season in the Texas League in '15, when he recorded a 4.38 ERA in 154 innings across 27 starts. The 24-year-old righty, who lowered his ERA to 3.52 with Monday's gem, is off to a much better start this year in his second tour of the Texas League, having held opposing hitters to a paltry .170 average while posting a 20/5 K/BB ratio in 15 1/3 frames.

MILB Video - Title: Cordell breaks up McGowin's no-hit bid - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=599459983

The rest of the best performances from top prospects Monday
• Fresh off a three-steal performance on Sunday, No. 5 overall prospect Yoan Moncada swiped two more bags and reached base four times (2-for-3, 2 BB) in Class A Advanced Salem's win over Carolina. The Red Sox's No. 1 prospect is a perfect 12-for-12 on the basepaths to begin the season, while the multi-hit performance raised his average to .359 through 12 games.
• No. 37 overall prospect Anderson Espinoza (Red Sox's No. 4) picked up his first win for Class A Greenville with five innings of one-run ball against Hickory. The 18-year-old right-hander allowed three hits, walked a pair and struck out seven, giving him a 15/2 K/BB ratio through his first 15 frames (three starts). Red Sox No. 10 prospect Michael Chavis provided plenty of offense in the win, going 3-for-5 with four RBIs and his second home run of the season.
• No. 43 overall prospect Manny Margot (Padres' No. 1) went 2-for-5 with his first home run and triple as a member of the Padres' organization as Triple-A El Paso rolled past Reno, 14-4.

MILB Video - Title: Margot hits his first Triple-A homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=599965583

• No. 49 overall prospect Dominic Smith (Mets' No. 2 prospect) hit a game-tying solo homer off of Adam Plutko with two outs in the top of the seventh for his first long ball of the season. The homer accounted for Double-A Binghamton's lone run in a loss to Akron.

MILB Video - Title: Smith hits first Double-A homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=599282483

• No. 59 overall prospect Josh Hader fired four no-hit innings in a no-decision for Biloxi, but his three walks and seven strikeouts resulted in an elevated pitch count and his early departure. The Brewers' No. 4 prospect has been outstanding in his first three starts, with a 0.69 ERA, .136 opponents' batting average and 19 strikeouts through 13 innings.

MILB Video - Title: Hader records 7th strikeout - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=600026283

"All my stuff was working and it was nice to bring all my pitches together," Hader told MiLB.com. "But one thing as a starter is, you have to go deep through the game so you save the bullpen a little bit. So one of my main goals is to get contact early and save that pitch count."
• No. 74 overall prospect Ian Happ (Cubs' No. 3) set career highs with four hits and a pair of home runs in Class A Advanced Myrtle Beach's win over Winston-Salem. The 21-year-old second baseman drove in four runs and has 11 RBIs through his first 12 games to go along with a .313 average
"I'm feeling comfortable at the plate," Happ told MiLB.com. "Settling into the rhythm of the season and even into the first road trip is helping a lot. I'm just trying to stick with the process and trust in what I have to do every day to be successful."

MILB Video - Title: Happ hits second homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=599640583

• No. 96 overall prospect Reese McGuire hit a three-run homer, his first of the season, as part Double-A Altoona's eight-run second inning in a win over Harrisburg. The Pirates' No. 5 prospect is off to a solid start in his first taste of the Double-A level, hitting .308 with seven walks against just one strikeout through eight games.

MILB Video - Title: McGuire hits his first Double-A homer - Url: http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=600097483

• Athletics No. 25 prospect Daniel Gossett allowed one run on three hits and struck out a career-high nine hitters in a no decision for Class A Advanced Stockton. The 23-year-old righty has been sharp in his first three starts for the Ports, pitching to a 2.12 ERA and 22/5 K/BB in 17 innings.
• Indians No. 23 prospect Greg Allen went 2-for-3 with two doubles and four runs scored in Class A Advanced Lynchburg's win over Potomac, while his three stolen bases pushed his season total to 13, helping him reclaim the lead from Boston's Moncada. A sixth-round Draft pick in 2013 out of San Diego State, Allen, 23, is hitting .325 with a .518 on-base percentage and 14 runs scored through 11 games for the Hillcats.
• Mariners No. 2 prospect Edwin Diaz dominated for his third straight turn for Double-A Jackson, firing five innings of one-run ball with eight strikeouts in a win over Birmingham. The 22-year-old, who allowed just two hits, owns a sparkling 1.69 ERA and 24/2 K/BB ratio through his first 16 innings for the Generals. Tyler O'Neill (Mariners' No. 4) went 2-for-5 with his second home run of the season -- a long two-run homer off of White Sox' No. 1 prospect Carson Fulmer -- while D.J. Peterson (Mariners' No. 6) cranked his first dinger of the season in a 3-for-4 performance.
• Pirates No. 7 prospect Ke'Bryan Hayes went 4-for-6 with his first professional home run and five RBIs as Class A West Virginia edged Kannapolis in 16 innings, 8-7. The No. 32 overall Draft pick in the 2015 gave the Power an early lead with a three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning and later tied the game with a two-run single in in the 10th. He's hitting .415 with 10 RBIs through 10 games.
• Reds No. 11 prospect Tyler Mahle allowed one earned run in seven innings and matched his career-high with nine strikeouts in Class A Advanced Daytona's win over Fort Myers. The 21-year-old righty yielded three hits and did not issue a walk, throwing 69 of his 98 pitches for strikes.