Yanks lead Prospect Team of the Week

July 5th, 2021

MLB Pipeline's Prospect Team of the Week honors the best performances from the previous seven days. Any Minor Leaguer currently on an organization Top 30 prospects list in our Prospect Rankings is eligible.

The Yankees continue to hog Prospect Team of the Week accolades as Glenn Otto became the first individual to earn those honors three times this season.

New York's fifth-round pick in 2017, Otto has battled injuries throughout his pro career but is finally showing what he can do when healthy. After striking out 12 in seven shutout innings for Double-A Somerset on Saturday, he now ranks second in the Minors in whiffs (95) and fifth in K rate (14.4 per nine innings).

Fellow Yankees right-hander Matt Sauer also made this week's PTOW, giving the organization 14 awards in 2021. That's more than any other farm system and nearly as many as their two closest competitors combined (Athletics with nine, Mets with seven).

Rays left-hander John Doxakis, Giants shortstop Marco Luciano and Pirates first baseman Mason Martin all garnered their second PTOW mentions of the season in this week's edition, which is based on games of June 28 through July 4.

C: Ford Proctor, Montgomery Biscuits (Double-A)
(Rays No. 25)

.571/.714/.857, 5 G, 14 AB, 3 R, 8 H, 2 3B, 4 RBI, 5 BB, 3 SO

A catcher/shortstop, Proctor led all organization Top 30 prospects last week in hitting and on-base percentage after reaching base multiple times in each of his five games, including a two-triple effort on Saturday. It was easily his best week of 2021 and helped him climb above the Mendoza Line, as he's now slashing .211/.338/.380 with four homers in 43 Double-A contests.

Others receiving votes: M.J. Melendez, Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Double-A, Royals).

1B: Mason Martin, Altoona Curve (Double-A)
(Pirates No. 14)

.333/.400/1.111, 5 G, 18 AB, 5 R, 6 H, 2 2B, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 1 BB, 5 SO

Martin ran away with the 2019 Minor League RBI crown with 129 and has driven in runs in eight of his last nine games, including all five last week when he tied for the lead among Top 30 prospects with four homers -- including three in a Saturday doubleheader. He's slashing .261/.327/.578 with 13 homers and 40 RBIs in 48 games, leads the Double-A Northeast with 29 extra-base hits and ranks in the top five in the league in homers, RBIs and total bases (104).

2B: Kendall Simmons, Clearwater Threshers (Low-A)
(Phillies No. 14)

.400/.471/1.000, 5 G, 15 AB, 3 R, 6 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 6 SO

Simmons carried a .510 OPS into last week, then went on a rampage that included a pair of multi-hit games and homers in two other contests. Injured for the first month of the season, he's batting .213/.267/.425 with three homers in 22 games in Low-A.

Others receiving votes: Jose Miranda, St. Paul Saints (Triple-A, Twins).

3B: Curtis Mead, Charleston RiverDogs (Low-A)
(Rays No. 30)

.414/.452/.793, 6 G, 29 AB, 7 R, 12 H, 2 2B, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 4 SO, 2 SB

An Australian acquired from the Phillies in a November 2019 trade for Cristopher Sanchez, Mead has produced everywhere he has gone in pro ball and continued to do so last week. He paced all Top 30 prospects in total bases (25) and tied for the lead in hits, extended his hitting streak to 11 games and turned in a four-hit, two-homer effort on Thursday. He tops the Low-A East in hits (68) and doubles (21), ranks among the leaders in most offensive categories and is batting .358/.410/.589 with seven homers and nine steals in 46 games.

SS: Marco Luciano, San Jose Giants (Low-A)
(Giants No. 1/MLB No. 12)

.316/.500/.1.000, 6 G, 19 AB, 5 R, 6 H, 1 2B, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 5 BB, 5 SO

The only member of the just-announced SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game rosters on the PTOW, Luciano tied for the lead among Top 30 prospects with four homers and had three multi-RBI games. He's batting .274/.371/.574 in 50 contests, tops the Low-A West with 14 homers and ranks second in extra-base hits (27), total bases (109) and RBIs (41) -- and he won't turn 20 until September.

OF: Stuart Fairchild, Reno Aces (Triple-A)
(D-backs No. 14)

.500/.588/1.357, 4 G, 14 AB, 6 R, 7 H, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 3 BB, 3 SO

Part of the Archie Bradley trade with the Reds last August, Fairchild missed nearly six weeks with a hamstring injury before returning last week and topping all Top 30 prospects in slugging and OPS (1.945) while sharing the lead in homers. He's hitting .322/.412/.644 with five homers in 16 Triple-A games.

OF: Jesse Franklin, Rome Braves (High-A)
(Braves No. 15)

.381/.440/1.048, 6 G, 21 AB, 5 R, 8 H, 3 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 3 BB, 7 SO

Franklin missed the entire 2020 college season after breaking his collarbone in a skiing accident, but the third-round pick is making up for lost time. He paced all Top 30 prospects in RBIs last week and tied for the lead in extra-base hits (seven), including a double and a homer each in games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Batting .287/.343/.573 with 11 homers in 45 games, he's the only player in the High-A East who ranks in the top 10 in both extra-base knocks (24) and steals (12).

OF: Garrett Mitchell, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (High-A)
(Brewers No. 1/MLB No. 49)

.480/.536/.880, 6 G, 25 AB, 12 R, 12 H, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 3 BB, 7 SO, 3 SB

The 20th overall pick in the 2020 Draft, Mitchell earned a promotion to Double-A after collecting four hits, two homers, four runs and six RBIs on Sunday, capping a week in which he led all Top 30 prospects in runs and tied for first in hits. Making his pro debut in High-A, he slashed .359/.508/.620 with five homers and 12 steals in 29 games after missing most of May with a strained left knee. He'd lead the High-A Central in all three slash categories if he had enough plate appearances to qualify.

Others receiving votes: Christopher Morel, Tennessee Smokies (Double-A, Cubs).

LHP: John Doxakis, Bowling Green Hot Rods (High-A)
(Rays No. 28)

0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 GS, 5 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO, 0.40 WHIP

Promoted to High-A in mid-June, Doxakis got knocked around in his first two starts at that level before excelling in his third, allowing just two baserunners and an unearned run while striking out seven in five innings on Friday. He has permitted one or fewer runs in his seven of his 10 starts this year, posting a 3.43 ERA, .179 opponent average and 53/5 K/BB ratio in 42 innings between Low-A and High-A.

Others receiving votes: Drew Rom, Aberdeen IronBirds (High-A, Orioles).

RHP: Glenn Otto, Somerset Patriots (Double-A)
(Yankees No. 28)

1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 GS, 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 12 SO, 0.14 WHIP

Otto has reached double-digit strikeouts in five of his 10 outings this year, including 14-K starts on May 20 and June 15. He threw 63 of 88 pitchers for strikes on Saturday while punching out 12 batters and yielding just two baserunners in seven innings. He has logged a 3.49 ERA, .199 opponent average and 95/14 K/BB ratio in 59 1/3 innings in Double-A.

RP: Matt Sauer, Tampa Tarpons (Low-A)
(Yankees No. 26)

1-0 W-L, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 SO, 0.17 WHIP

Making a comeback from 2019 Tommy John surgery, Sauer turned in his best outing of the year Friday when he pitched the final six innings of a suspended game that began the day before. He struck out 10 of the 21 hitters he faced and gave up a lone single while lowering his overall ERA to 4.05 with 56 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings in Low-A.