Offensive Players of the Week
Here's a look at the top offensive performers in each league for the week ending May 5:
International League
Zoilo Almonte, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
(.355/.355/.613, 8 G, 11-for-31, 2 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 3 R, 0 BB, 5 K)
Almonte, the Yankees' No. 10 prospect, hasn't shown much of the power that saw him hit 21 homers for Double-A Trenton last year, but he's been even better for the RailRiders in nearly every other way. The 22-year-old switch-hitter has cut down on his strikeouts, improved his walk rate (he has 17 walks in 28 games this year after 25 in 106 contests in 2012) and lifted his on-base percentage 71 points to .393. Almonte has hits in each of his last 10 games and contributed a pair of long balls this week as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre extended its winning streak to eight games.
RailRiders' Almonte leaves yard
Pacific Coast League
Tim Federowicz, Albuquerque
(.571/.583/1.238, 6 G, 12-for-21, 3 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 6 R, 2 BB, 4 K)
Federowicz has bounced back and forth between Los Angeles and Albuquerque a few times already this season, but he's making the most of his time in the PCL. The backstop is hitting .500 with five homers and 17 RBIs in 12 games with the Isotopes, highlighted by back-to-back four-RBI outings on Tuesday and Wednesday this week. After going 4-for-5 with a homer and double Tuesday, the 25-year-old Federowicz delivered a two-run walkoff blast in the 10th inning Wednesday as the Isotopes topped Memphis, 6-4. Federowicz hit 11 homers in 115 games with Albuquerque last year; he's nearly halfway there with five in his first 12 games of 2013.
Tim Federowicz's walk-off 2-run homer in the 10th
Eastern League
Tyler Collins, Erie
(.348/.461/1.174, 7 G, 8-for-23, 1 2B, 6 HR, 12 RBI, 8 R, 5 BB, 5 K, 1 CS)
As a member of the Lakeland Flying Tigers last year, Collins slugged seven home runs in 126 Florida State League games. He nearly matched that mark this week with the SeaWolves, going deep six times in five games before being held homerless on Sunday. The 22-year-old Texan homered twice and drove in five runs in Erie's 9-1 win at Binghamton on Thursday and stretched the streak to five games with a solo shot Saturday night. Having seen enough, Altoona walked the Tigers' No. 6 prospect twice in Sunday's game.
Erie's Collins hits solo homer
Southern League
Ender Inciarte, Mobile
(.526/.609/.947, 6 G, 10-for-19, 2 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 9 R, 4 BB, 3 K, 3 SB)
Inciarte initially made the Phillies' Opening Day roster after being taken from the Diamondbacks in December's Rule 5 Draft, but he was returned to the Arizona organization on April 2 to make way for Ezequiel Carrera in the Phillies outfield. The BayBears and Diamondbacks are glad to have him back -- he reached base at least twice in each of his six games this week, is hitting .320, and ranks second in the Southern League with 22 runs scored. Carrera, meanwhile, collected one hit in 13 at-bats with the Phillies before being designated for assignment last week.
Texas League
Xavier Scruggs, Springfield
(.538/.600/1.538, 5 G, 7-for-13, 1 2B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 SB)
A 19th-round pick out of UNLV in 2008, Scruggs blasted 22 homers for Springfield last year. He's well on his way to surpassing that mark in 2013, going deep four times this week to give him nine in his first 25 games of the campaign. The 25-year-old slugger homered twice and drove in five runs against Arkansas on Monday before adding a long ball on both Wednesday and Saturday. Scruggs ranks second in the Texas League in home runs and is fourth with a .622 slugging percentage.
Springfield's Scruggs hits a grand slam
California League
Jake Lamb, Visalia
(.545/.583/.909, 6 G, 12-for-22, 5 2B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K)
Lamb missed two and a half weeks in the middle of April with a leg injury but has been lion-like in his 14 games in the Rawhide lineup, batting .409/.518/.750 with three home runs. The 22-year-old third baseman was particularly scorching early this week, collecting a pair of doubles Monday, a double and two singles Tuesday and four hits -- including a grand slam -- against Modesto on Wednesday. A sixth-round pick out of the University of Washington last June, Lamb is improving on his stellar debut with Rookie-level Missoula last summer.
Carolina League
Francisco Lindor, Carolina
(.500/.552/.769, 7 G, 13-for-26, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 6 R, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 CS)
There are a lot of reasons why Lindor, the eighth overall pick in the 2011 Draft, is the No. 14 prospect in baseball. He is perhaps the best defensive shortstop in the Minors. He held his own as the youngest regular player in the Midwest League last year. And he can also hit. After going 0-for-2 in the opening game of Carolina's doubleheader at Potomac on Tuesday, Lindor went 3-for-3 with a homer and double in the nightcap and has hits in each of his five games since, including a four-hit performance against Frederick on Friday night. The 19-year-old is hitting .366/.427/.527 with 11 walks and just 13 strikeouts in his first 29 Carolina League games. At this rate, he may not be there long.
Hot Prospects: Francisco Lindor
Florida State League
Travis Taijeron, St. Lucie
(.474/.600/.947, 6 G, 9-for-19, 6 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 3 R, 4 BB, 3 K)
After tearing up the South Atlantic League for 64 games last season, Taijeron was promoted to St. Lucie in mid June. Though he struggled in the FSL in 2012, hitting .203/.304/.373 in 48 games, he seems to have taken the measure of the league in 2013. The 24-year-old outfielder has at least one extra-base hit in each of his last seven games and is reaching base at a .393 clip, which leads the Mets and ranks 11th in the league.
Midwest League
Jabari Henry, Clinton
(.409/.500/.909, 6 G, 9-for-22, 2 2B, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 7 R, 5 BB, 3 K)
An 18th-round pick out of Florida International in 2012, Henry was a solid performer for Rookie-level Pulaski and short-season Everett last summer. He's been a spectacular one for full-season Clinton in his first 24 games. The 22-year-old outfielder is third in the league in hitting (.370), second in on-base percentage (.480) and third in slugging (.605), and he's drawn 18 walks while striking out just 10 times. Henry drove in 11 runs in six games this week, highlighted by a two-homer, four-RBI performance against Dayton on Thursday.
South Atlantic League
Tom Murphy, Asheville
(.500/.619/1.375, 8-for-16, 1 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 7 R, 5 BB, 5 K)
Catching is rough on the body, but with the way Murphy is swinging the bat, the Tourists must be searching for ways to get him into the lineup. A third-round pick in 2012, Murphy is riding a 13-game hitting streak -- in fact, he's failed to get a hit in just two of his 17 games this season and has scored at least once in each of those 15 games with a hit. This week he homered in three consecutive games -- including both ends of Monday's doubleheader against Lakewood -- lifting his season hitting line to an absurd .414/.528/.931. Though Asheville's McCormick Field is hitter-friendly (and Murphy is batting .520/.586/1.240 there), he's doing it on the road as well, posting a still-impressive .333/.488/.697 line away from home.
Tourists' Murphy hits a solo homer
John Parker is a contributor to MLB.com.
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