Pipeline preview: De Leon looks to rack up more K's

August 28th, 2016

Here's a look at top prospects to watch in Sunday's Minor League action:
Hitter to watch: Bryan Reynolds (Giants' No. 4), Augusta at Rome (2 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
Reynolds, 21, extended his hitting streak to seven games on Saturday when he went 3-for-5 with three runs scored for Class A Augusta. The 2016 second-rounder has hit .455 in eight games since being promoted from Class A Short Season Salem-Keizer, where he had posted a .312/.368/.500 batting line with five homers and 12 doubles in 40 games.

Pitcher to watch: Jose De Leon (Dodgers' No. 2), Oklahoma City vs. Colorado Springs (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
De Leon fired seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball with 10 strikeouts in his last start for Triple-A Oklahoma City, marking his second 10-strikeout performance in two starts and fourth in his past eight turns. The No. 37 overall prospect owns a 6-1 record in 15 starts this season, during which he's posted a 2.86 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP, with 98 strikeouts and 20 walks in 78 2/3 innings. He's also limited opposing hitters to a .199 average.

Duel of the day: (Reds' No. 7) vs. (Indians' No. 30), Louisville at Columbus (4:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
Davis is searching for his first Triple-A win after going 0-1 with a 7.58 ERA in four appearances (three starts) for Louisville. Before moving up to the Minors' highest level, the 23-year-old right-hander went 9-3 with a 2.72 ERA in 18 starts for Double-A Pensacola.

Merritt, meanwhile, enters the day having won five of his last six starts for Triple-A Columbus. With a 1.20 ERA over 37 2/3 innings during that stretch, the 24-year-old left-hander has lowered his overall ERA to 3.52 from 4.44. Merritt is likely to return to the big leagues as a September call-up after he allowed just one hit in 5 1/3 scoreless innings across two appearances out of Cleveland's bullpen earlier this season.

Sunday's Top 100 prospect probables

No. 52 (Braves' No. 3), Mississippi at Chattanooga (2:15 p.m. ET)
No. 63 (White Sox No. 1), Charlotte at Norfolk (6:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)
No. 77 Forrest Whitley (Astros' No. 4), Greenville vs. Elizabethton (6 p.m. ET)
No. 87 (Yankees' No. 7), Tampa vs. Brevard County (1 p.m. ET)
More top prospect probables

(D-backs' No. 3), Reno vs. Tacoma (Triple-A)
Jacob Faria (Rays' No. 5), Durham vs. Gwinnett (Triple-A)
Kyle Freeland (Rockies' No. 8), Albuquerque vs. El Paso (Triple-A)
(Royals' No. 9), Omaha at Iowa (Triple-A)
(A's No. 12), Nashville at Memphis (Triple-A)
(Giants' No. 14), Sacramento at Fresno (Triple-A)
(Phillies' No. 24), Lehigh Valley at Buffalo (Triple-A)
Sam Coonrod (Giants' No. 5), Richmond at Akron (Double-A)
Andrew Moore (Mariners' No. 10), Jackson at Biloxi (Double-A)
Clay Holmes (Pirates' No. 12), Altoona vs. Erie (Double-A)
Heath Fillmyer (A's No. 18), Midland vs. Frisco (Double-A)
Jalen Beeks (Red Sox's No. 29), Portland vs. Trenton (Double-A)
Yeudy Garcia (Pirates' No. 13), Bradenton vs. Charlotte (Class A Advanced)
Zack Littell (Mariners' No. 14), Bakersfield vs. Stockton (Class A Advanced)
Foster Griffin (Royals' No. 16), Wilmington vs. Myrtle Beach (Class A Advanced)
Duane Underwood Jr. (Cubs' No. 6) vs. Walker Buehler (Dodgers' No. 7), South Bend vs. Great Lakes (Class A)
Justin Maese (Blue Jays' No. 11), Lansing at Lake County (Class A)
(Braves' No. 11), Rome vs. Augusta (Class A)
Franklin Perez (Astros' No. 12), Quad Cities vs. Wisconsin (Class A)
Nolan Watson (Royals' No. 12), Lexington at Delmarva (Class A)
Jake Woodford (Cardinals' No. 13), Peoria vs. Burlington (Class A)
Roniel Raudes (Red Sox's No. 13), Greenville vs. Asheville (Class A)
Gage Hinsz (Pirates' No. 20), West Virginia vs. Lakewood (Class A)
(White Sox No. 25), Kannapolis vs. Columbia (Class A)
Tyler Watson (Nationals' No. 29), Hagerstown vs. Greensboro (Class A)
Kyle Funkhouser (Tigers' No. 6), Connecticut vs. Vermont (Class A Short Season)
Robert Tyler (Rockies' No. 16), Boise at Hillsboro (Class A Short Season)
Patrick Murphy (Blue Jays' No. 19), Vancouver at Everett (Class A Short Season)
Shane Bieber (Indians' No. 27), Mahoning Valley vs. West Virginia (Class A Short Season)