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Around the Minors: The week of Aug. 16

Sights and sounds from action across Minor League Baseball
August 22, 2021

Aug. 22

Aug. 22

Charging into history
After working a five-pitch walk in the eighth inning, Josh Lowe stole his 20th bag of the season for Triple-A Durham. Earlier in the week, the fourth-ranked Rays prospect clubbed his 20th home run, so the successful swipe made Lowe the first Bulls player to join the 20/20 club since 2007. MLB Pipeline's No. 79 overall prospect is one of five players in the Minors to accomplish that feat this season, and the only one to record those totals exclusively at the Triple-A level.

Not one, not two, not three...
Make that four straight games with a long ball for Nick Pratto for Triple-A Omaha. The fourth-ranked Royals prospect brought his tater tally to 25 on the season and 10 since joining the Storm Chasers. Pratto has hit safely in five straight games with four multihit performances along the way.

Leading the pack as a staff
A quartet of High-A Cedar Rapids hurlers -- Ryan Shreve, Aaron Rozek, Osiris German, Melvi Acosta and Denny Bentley -- combined for 13 strikeouts against Wisconsin to bring the Kernels' staff total to 1,056 punchouts on the season. That K tally by the Twins affiliate is best among all teams across Minor League Baseball.

Seeing double(s)
It wasn't just the first four-hit game of the season for Juan Yepez , all four knocks for the 23-year-old were doubles. It marked the first time all season that the 27th-ranked Cardinals prospect notched more than a single two-bagger in a game -- the performance was also the eighth four-hit effort of his pro career. Yepez is batting .271 with 16 doubles and 40 RBIs over 69 games with Triple-A Memphis this season.

Soaring with the angels
Not long after the Blue Angels flew over Blue Wahoos Stadium, Griffin Conine teed off on his Minor League-leading 33rd home run -- moving him into eighth place on the Marlins' all-time single-season list down on the farm. And that wasn't all either, in his next plate appearance, Miami's 22nd-ranked prospect extended his lead with his third straight dinger in as many at-bats going back to Saturday.

Count it!
For the first time since joining the Mud Hens, Riley Greene found the seats in his sixth game at the Minors' highest level. The second-ranked Tigers prospect -- batting in three hole for the first time with Toledo for the first time -- launched a two-run blast to right with one out in the opening frame. The 2019 No. 5 overall Draft pick has mashed 17 long balls on the season.

Making the extraordinary look ordinary
For the third time this season, Nick Gonzales posted a four-hit game. That is not a typo. The fourth-ranked Pirates prospect fell a triple shy of cycle while connecting on his 10th dinger of the year and driving in a pair of runs for High-A Greensboro. The 22-year-old also extended his hitting streak to six games while notching 12 knocks over that span.

Aug. 21

Wowzer, Cowser
Through just 12 games, Colton Cowser has lived up to his No. 5 overall Draft pick status. The Orioles' No. 5 prospect has hits in 11 games and RBIs in 12. And now he has a game-winning knock to his ledger. With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Cowser laced a ball off the right-field fence to score Darell Hernaiz and deliver the win for Low-A Delmarva. The Sam Houston State product is now batting .400/.500/1.100 across Rookie ball and Low-A.

Earning his crown
After allowing five runs in back-to-back starts, Jackson Kowar returned to form in spectacular fashion, tallying nine strikeouts for the first time since July 3. The Royals' No. 6 prospect was stingy for six innings, holding Triple-A Columbus to a walk and a double. The Omaha starter ran into some trouble in the seventh, allowing a single by Oscar Gonzalez and a walk by Nolan Jones before being replaced by Dylan Coleman, who kept Kowar's line spotless.

You *can* call it a comeback
Triple-A Oklahoma City sent 14 players to the plate as they scored 11 runs on six hits and four walks in the third inning alone. Sugar Land quickly responded with six runs in the home half of the frame, then slowly chipped away until they tied it up in the sixth. Two frames later, Astros shortstop Alex De Goti lined an RBI triple to left to complete the impressive comeback for the Skeeters.

Lawlar land
It didn't take long for Jordan Lawlar to adjust to pro ball. The No. 6 overall pick in last month's Draft popped up in his first at-bat for the Rookie-level D-backs, but then walked his second time up and ripped an RBI double in his third trip to the plate. Earlier in the week, the 19-year-old was named Arizona's top prospect and No. 13 overall.

Power up
In the seventh inning of his Triple-A debut, Romy Gonzalez drilled a two-run shot to put his Knights within one of the Tides. And if that wasn't exciting enough, the No. 21 White Sox prospect put a bow on his bow with a walk-off three-run blast for Charlotte. It was the first time Gonzales tallied five RBIs since Aug. 21, 2018 (exactly three years ago!) when he drove in eight runs for Rookie Advanced Great Falls.

Aug. 20

A special hold
Double-A Portland hurler Rio Gomez turned in one of his best relief appearances of the season on what was likely an emotional day -- his late father, Pedro Gomez's birthday. The Red Sox prospect earned the hold, working around a walk with two strikeouts for two hitless innings. The longtime sports reporter passed away in February.

Flawless execution
There is a lot to this play to be happy about if you're a Smokies fan and not so happy about if you're a Barons fan. It's not just that Double-A Tennessee pulled off an unlikely 1-6-2 putout, it's that the club pulled it off with the tying run for Birmingham on third and two outs in the ninth inning.

Dominating back to the top
After recording his fifth straight strikeout, Ryan Murphy reclaimed his spot at the top of the Minors' punchout leaderboard. The 21st-ranked Giants prospect retired 14 batters in a row and finished his outing with seven whiffs over five innings to bring his total on the year to 148 over 98 1/3 frames. Murphy is sporting a 1.21 ERA with High-A Eugene.

All out effort
Nothing was going to stop Twins outfield prospect Jimmy Kerrigan from making this play in right field for Triple-A St. Paul. The 27-year-old slid on the wet grass before getting up and going full extension to make the catch and record the out. The play also probably saved at least one run from scoring.

Talk about Texas sized...
It seems like any time Sam Huff makes contact with a baseball, he demolishes it. That theory held twice on Friday as the fifth-ranked Rangers prospect clobbered a pair of mammoth shots for Double-A Frisco. The first traveled 446 feet at 108 mph off the bat before his next dinger went 475 feet at the same exit velocity of 108. Huff is no stranger to hitting moonshots as his first dinger of the year was sent 511 feet and 115 mph off the bat while he was rehabbing a right knee injury suffered during Minor League camp with the ACL Rangers.

Nothing average about this outing
In his first appearance with Triple-A St. Paul, Joe Ryan sparkled over four innings. The right-hander -- acquired from the Rays in the Nelson Cruz deal -- allowed one run while whiffing nine, including the first six batters he faced. The sixth-ranked Twins prospect is fresh off of winning a silver medal with Team USA in the Olympics.

Breg-blast
In his eighth rehab game with Triple-A Sugar Land, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman found the seats for the first time with the Skeeters. The World Series champion mashed a three-run homer to left in the third inning to blow the game open. This was the 27-year-old's first action with Sugar Land since Aug. 7.

Smooth criminal
My goodness, made this one look easy. D-backs utility prospect Andrew Young makes the backhand flip with the glove in one seamless motion to get the out and take a hit away. The 27-year-old has made just two errors across 111 total chances in the field this season with Triple-A Reno.

Aug. 19

Seven up
Giants infield prospect Ghordy Santos mashed his way into San Jose history with a huge night at the plate against Rancho Cucamonga. After joining the Low-A club a mere four days ago, Santos belted a three-run homer to right-center in his first at-bat, a three-RBI double to right in the fourth and a run-scoring single to center in the seventh. The extra-base hits were his first ones for San Jose.

Living up to his new billing
It didn't take long for Anthony Volpe to back up the top Yankees prospect ranking bestowed upon him Wednesday by MLB Pipeline. While hitting out of the leadoff spot as designated hitter for High-A Hudson Valley on Thursday, the 20-year-old finished a double shy of the cycle with three runs scored. He capped his night against Brooklyn with a two-run walk-off homer to left field.

Can't wait for the encore
On Aug. 7, Sean Boyle jumped from High-A Hudson Valley to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. In his first start less than a couple of weeks later, the 24-year-old right-hander twirled a seven-inning no-hitter against Worcester. The only flaws in the outing were a first-inning walk to Franchy Cordero and the plunking of Jeremy Rivera in the sixth. But that's not the whole story -- Boyle also started a no-no for the Renegades on July 10. He went four innings, combining with Nick Ernst and Derek Craft for that feat.

Starring on both sides of the ball
It was Ronny Mauricio's world in the visiting High-A Cyclones' game against the Renegades. The third-ranked Mets prospect teed off on a two-run homer, his 16th of the year, in the sixth. That power display came after some sterling glove work. Actually, no glove work was involved as the shortstop barehanded a sharp grounder by Pat DeMarco and threw the runner out at first base in the fourth.

Coming up just short of history
Even without a milestone designation, Matt Brash delivered a dazzling outing in the opener of Double-A Arkansas' doubleheader against host Frisco. Seattle's No. 11 prospect went the distance, taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning before giving up a one-out single to second-ranked Texas prospect Josh Jung. The right-hander matched his career high with 11 strikeouts while walking two.

Order up!
Fourth-ranked Rays prospect Josh Lowe just missed hitting the bull in left field at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, settling for a salad after launching his 20th homer of the year onto the sign's grassy berm. The next batter, third baseman Michael Brosseau will be getting all the trimmings, though, after plunking the bull with his second long ball for Durham.

Perfect, for openers
Top Nationals prospect Keibert Ruiz went 4-for-4 in Game 1 of the Triple-A Red Wings' doubleheader against the IronPigs. The 23-year-old catcher doubled off of each of the three different Lehigh Valley pitchers -- lefties David Parkinson and Jeff Singer and righty Mike Adams. Ruiz, who also singled, drove in two runs and scored once out of the No. 2 spot in the lineup.

Aug. 18

Dive into Pipeline's updated top prospects lists
No Minor League season last year translated into oodles of upheaval in the first MLB Pipeline rankings since play resumed. While Adley Rutschman remains at the top, there's a lot to absorb in the new rankings. For instance, for only the second time since MLB began compiling them in 2004, the same organization boasts the top position player (Rutschman) and the top pitcher (Grayson Rodriguez). List buffs will recall the White Sox had Yoán Moncada at No. 1 and Michael Kopech at No. 12 on the 2017 midseason update.

And now, the home run race update
The Minor League home run chase has not abated. It's now tied again at 31, after MJ Melendez parked his 31st of the year, his third since the fifth-ranked Royals prospect's promotion to the Triple-A Storm Chasers. Melendez lined a three-run shot in the bottom of the fifth against the Clippers. The 22-year-old stands atop the leaderboard with buddy Griffin Conine, the No. 23 Marlins prospect.

We paws for this brief announcement
Ripken the Bat Dog made his Triple-A debut for the Bulls at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. He had quite the cheering section too, as it was Bark in the Park night for the Rays affiliate.

Two-for-Wednesday?
White Sox outfield prospect Micker Adolfo made back-to-back sparkling plays in the second inning of the Triple-A Knights' nightcap with the Tides. First, the 24-year-old stretched out to snag a sinking liner by Kelvin Gutierrez. A few pitches later, he went airborne again -- vertical this time -- to take a home run away from Pat Valaika.

Getting his money's worth
The first Triple-A RBI for Spencer Torkelson was a mere sacrifice fly on Tuesday, but the top Detroit prospect's first hit for Toledo was a knock to remember. The 21-year-old lasered a stand-up triple to right field in the second inning against Indianapolis. His second hit quickly followed when he beat out a ground ball to second base in the fourth.

It was only a matter of time
On Aug. 10, Adley Rutschman joined the Triple-A Norfolk ranks. He didn't go yard until Wednesday against Charlotte, but baseball's top prospect has been making plenty of contributions nonetheless. Through seven games at the Minors' highest level, the 23-year-old has batted .440 with a couple of doubles, six RBIs and five runs scored.

Aug. 17

Make it a 5-spot
The impressive start continued for Sal Frelick with his first career five-hit night. The 15th overall selection by the Brewers laced his third double of the year while driving in a run as part of a 5-for-6 performance for Low-A Carolina. The 21-year-old is sporting a .412 batting average and a .987 OPS over his first 10 professional games.

Making his mark
It's not taking long for the Pirates' No. 1 overall pick Henry Davis to make his presence felt with the organization. After homering in his first professional game in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League, the 21-year-old found the seats again for his first long ball with Low-A Greensboro. Davis has notched three hits since joining the Grasshoppers and they have all gone for extra bases.

I'm here too
In his Triple-A debut, Tigers No. 19 prospect Ryan Kreidler reminded everyone why he was promoted with the organization's top two prospects to the Minors' highest level. The 23-year-old sent a laser out to left-center in his second at-bat with the Mud Hens for a solo blast. Kreidler -- who was the first of the trio to find the seats with Toledo -- bashed 15 long balls for Erie to open the season.

Getting the Greene light
Second-ranked Tigers prospect Riley Greene had one shining moment after another since opening the season with Double-A Erie. Here's a look at some of those during his time with the SeaWolves, from his first triple to a number of his 16 roundtrippers and 54 RBIs. Greene is making his debut with the Triple-A Mud Hens with Detroit's top prospect Spencer Torkelson and No. 19 Ryan Kreidler.

Aug. 16

An almost perfect afternoon
Mariners farmhand Jantzen Witte went 5-for-5 at the plate with a homer and two doubles, but his Rainiers fell to the Aviators, 7-3. The 31-year-old infielder started off the first five-hit game of the season for a Tacoma player with a single to right in the first inning. He doubled to right in the third and belted his 12th homer to left-center in the fifth. After an RBI single to center in the seventh, he roped his 14th double to right in the ninth. Witte was thrown out at third base by right fielder Marty Bechina while attempting to go for the cycle.

Torkelson time is up with the SeaWolves
Some might think it was eerie in Erie how good top Tigers prospect Spencer Torkelson was in his 50 games with the SeaWolves. Here's a montage with highlights of his stay at Double-A, from his first hit -- an RBI single -- to a healthy dose of the 14 long balls he parked. Torkelson is headed to the Triple-A Mud Hens with Detroit's No. 2 prospect Riley Greene and No. 19 Ryan Kreidler.

The week that was
Summer's homestretch is here but the Minor League action is hotter than ever. No-hitters, eye-popping defensive gems, long home runs and promotions continue to bring the boys of summer that much closer to The Show. Review the action here.

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