Pipeline preview: Woodruff looks to stay hot

August 13th, 2016

Here's a look at top prospects to watch in Saturday's Minor League action:
Mejia streak watch:Indians No. 4 prospect Francisco Mejia aims to extend his 49-game hit streak as Lynchburg hosts Winston-Salem at 6:30 p.m. ET.
Hitter to watch: (Braves' No. 9), Carolina vs. Myrtle Beach (6 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
Demeritte had a perfect game at the plate on Friday when he went 2-for-2 with two home runs and three walks for Class A Advanced Carolina against Myrtle Beach. The 21-year-old second baseman's pair of homers were his first as a member of the Braves organization after he was acquired from Texas in return for pitchers and on July 27. Overall, Demeritte has gone deep 27 times in 102 games this season, though he has also struck out 146 times in that span.

Pitcher to watch: Brandon Woodruff (Brewers' No. 25), Biloxi at Jackson (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
Woodruff lowered his Double-A ERA to 2.87 in his start for Double-A Biloxi on August 8 when he tossed seven scoreless innings, scattering five hits and striking out seven in a win over Pensacola. The 23-year-old right-hander has been one of the Minor League's top hurlers since the start of July, posting a 0.41 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 43 2/3 innings over seven starts in that span. All together, Woodruff has pitched to a 2.50 ERA with a 1.02 WHIP and a 137-32 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 126 innings (23 starts) across the Class A Advanced and Double-A levels.

Duel of the day: Spencer Adams (White Sox No. 3) vs. Kohl Stewart (Twins' No. 5), Birmingham vs. Chattanooga (7:30 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
Adams, 20, is in search of his first Double-A win after going 0-3 with a 5.82 ERA in his first four starts for Birmingham. He pitched better in his most recent turn, however, tossing six innings of two-run ball in a no-decision against Jackson. Before moving up to the Southern League, Adams posted a 4.01 ERA with only 24 walks in 107 2/3 innings (18 starts) for Class A Advanced Winston-Salem.

Stewart enters the day having posted a 1.74 ERA in 31 innings over his past five starts for Chattanooga. The Twins promoted the 21-year-old right-hander in late May after his solid first half in the Class A Advanced Florida State League, and he's responded to the challenge by winning six of his 12 starts while registering a 3.07 ERA in 67 1/3 innings.

Saturday's Top 100 prospect probables

No. 36 (Astros' No. 3), Corpus Christi vs. Arkansas (8:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 44 (Nationals' No. 3), Syracuse at Columbus (7:15 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 45 Riley Pint (Rockies' No. 4), Grand Junction at Missoula (9:05 p.m. ET)
No. 46 Brent Honeywell (Rays' No. 2), Montgomery vs. Mobile (7:35 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 61 Phil Bickford (Brewers' No. 6), Brevard County at Dunedin (6:30 p.m. ET)
No. 69 Kolby Allard (Braves' No. 4), Rome at Hickory (7 p.m. ET)
No. 74 A.J. Puk (A's No. 2), Vermont vs. Tri-City (6:05 p.m. ET)
No. 77 Michael Kopech (Red Sox's No. 5), Salem vs. Wilmington (6:05 p.m. ET)
More top prospect probables

(D-backs' No. 3) vs. (A's No. 30), Reno at Nashville (Triple-A)
Nate Smith (Angels' No. 5), Salt Lake vs. Round Rock (Triple-A)
Jaime Schultz (Rays' No. 11), Durham vs. Charlotte (Triple-A)
(Giants' No. 14), Sacramento vs. Omaha (Triple-A)
(Mets' No. 18), Las Vegas vs. New Orleans (Triple-A)
(Phillies' No. 18), Lehigh Valley vs. Indianapolis (Triple-A)
Rob Zastryzny (Cubs' No. 20), Iowa at Fresno (Triple-A)
(Tigers' No. 26) vs. (Orioles' No. 27), Toledo at Norfolk (Triple-A)
(Orioles' No. 16) vs. (Giants' No. 25), Bowie at Richmond (Double-A)
Ricardo Pinto (Phillies' No. 16), Reading at Altoona (Double-A)
(Reds' No. 17), Pensacola vs. Tennessee (Double-A)
Daniel Gossett (A's No. 20), Midland at Springfield (Double-A)
Max Povse (Braves' No. 20), Mississippi at Jacksonville (Double-A)
Sandy Alcantara (Cardinals' No. 9) vs. (Marlins' No. 20), Palm Beach at Jupiter (Class A Advanced)
Spencer Turnbull (Tigers' No. 12) vs. Elniery Garcia (Phillies' No. 20), Lakeland vs. Clearwater (Class A Advanced)
Yeudy Garcia (Pirates' No. 13), Bradenton vs. St. Lucie (Class A Advanced)
Brad Keller (D-backs' No. 14), Visalia at Rancho Cucamonga (Class A Advanced)
Jordan Sheffield (Dodgers' No. 8), Great Lakes vs. Lake County
Justin Maese (Blue Jays' No. 11), Lansing at West Michigan (Class A)
Nolan Watson (Royals' No. 12), Lexington at Augusta (Class A)
Corbin Burnes (Brewers' No. 19), Wisconsin at Beloit (Class A)
Justin Steele (Cubs' No. 23), South Bend at Dayton (Class A)
Dario Agrazal (Pirates' No. 27), West Virginia vs. Delmarva (Class A)
(Phillies' No. 29), Lakewood at Kannapolis (Class A)
Dan Dunning (Nationals' No. 7), Auburn vs. Batavia (Class A Short Season)
Keegan Akin (Orioles' No. 8), Aberdeen vs. Lowell (Class A Short Season)
Tyler Phillips (Rangers' No. 27), Spokane vs. Eugene (Class A Short Season)
Joey Wentz (Braves' No. 7), Danville at Burlington (Rookie)