Offensive Players of the Week
Here's a look at the top offensive performers in each league for the week ending April 20:
International League
J.D. Martinez, Toledo
(.318/.423/1.182, 7 G, 7-for-22, 1 2B, 6 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R, 3 BB, 5 K)
Nearly a month ago, Martinez was released by the Astros, who had taken him in the 20th round of the 2009 Draft. While Houston now ranks last in the Majors with a .192 average and 52 runs in 19 games, Martinez is hitting .308/.366/.846 with a Minor League-leading 10 homers -- no one else has more than seven -- in his first 17 games. In three games against Columbus on Friday and Saturday, the 26-year-old outfielder collected five hits, all of which left the park. The power surge prompted the Tigers to recall him to Detroit on Monday.
Martinez hits third homer of day
Pacific Coast League
Allan Dykstra, Las Vegas
(.450/.593/.900, 7 G, 9-for-20, 3 2B, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 5 R, 7 BB, 5 K)
Dykstra was the Double-A Eastern League's Most Valuable Player last year thanks to solid power (21 homers, 82 RBIs) and a superlative ability to get on base (102 walks, .436 OBP). That talent is playing even better in the PCL, where the 26-year-old first baseman is hitting .389/.542/.722 in his first 14 Triple-A games and has walked more times (12) than he's struck out (11). With Dykstra batting anywhere from fourth to ninth in their lineup, the 51s have jumped out to a 13-5 record, best in the PCL. And with Ike Davis having been traded, Dykstra is that much closer to the big leagues should the Mets require help.
Eastern League
Christian Walker, Bowie
(.421/.450/.842, 5 G, 8-for-19, 1 3B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 5 R, 1 BB, 6 K)
Walker had hits and scored in each of his five games last week, culminating in three games against visiting Akron in which he went 6-for-12 with two homers and four RBIs. A fourth-round pick out of the University of South Carolina in 2012, Walker hit .300 across three levels in his first full season last year. The 23-year-old first baseman is right on pace again this season -- he's batting .299 -- but has drawn just one walk in 16 games for a .304 OBP, down from .362 in 2013.
Southern League
J.T. Realmuto, Jacksonville
(.500/.556/.625, 6 G, 12-for-24, 3 2B, 7 RBI, 10 R, 3 BB, 1 K, 3 SB)
Realmuto, the Marlins' No. 9 prospect, seems much more comfortable at the plate in his second Double-A season. After batting .239/.310/.353 in 2013, the 23-year-old backstop is off to a .333/.381/.509 start this year and was singularly destructive as the Suns won five of seven games last week. Realmuto had three hits in three different games during the week and scored 10 runs. Perhaps even more impressively, he's fanned just once in his last nine games.
Suns' Realmuto hits two-run homer
Texas League
Harold Riggins, Tulsa
(.444/.500/.833, 5 G, 8-for-18, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 3 R, 2 BB, 8 K)
In contrast to Realmuto, Riggins led the Minor Leagues with 192 strikeouts last season. He still fans a great deal, but he's batting .326 in his first taste of Double-A ball with the Drillers and with a pair of homers in his last three games, is balancing the whiffs with power. Though the sample size remains small this early in the season, the 24-year-old first baseman is utterly destroying left-handed pitching, posting a .583/.583/.917 line against southpaws. Unfortunately, he's hit only .226/.314/.452 against righties.
California League
Patrick Kivlehan, High Desert
(.385/.407/1.077, 6 G, 10-for-26, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 9 RBI, 8 R, 1 BB, 3 K)
A slugger with Kivlehan's power can be expected to do serious damage at a launching pad like High Desert's Mavericks Stadium, and he has not disappointed. The Rutgers product went deep five times last week, including back-to-back two-homer games at Lancaster (which ranks second to High Desert for homer-friendliness in the Cal League). There's more to Kivlehan's game than home runs, though: he's a career .303 hitter and even stole 15 bases last year -- not bad for a third baseman. However much he may enjoy hitting in High Desert, it may soon be time for him to threaten the confines of The Ballpark at Jackson, home of the Double-A Generals.
Carolina League
Kevin Keyes, Potomac
(.346/.452/.846, 7 G, 9-for-26, 1 2B, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 4 BB, 5 K)
Keyes has always had power -- he swatted 21 homers in 2012 -- but has had trouble getting on base. After two seasons of sub-.300 OBPs with Potomac, the 25-year-old first baseman is off to a .290/.362/.548 start in his third Carolina League season. Keyes went deep four times last week, including three straight games with a long ball over the weekend. Thanks to a .421 average with runners in scoring position, Keyes drove in 11 runs last week and ranks second on the circuit with 15 RBIs in 16 games.
Florida State League
Starlin Rodriguez, Palm Beach
(.381/.480/.952, 6 G, 8-for-21, 3 2B, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 6 R, 3 BB, 1 K)
Rodriguez has played parts of four seasons in Palm Beach, where he's always hit well, if not quite as well as this. The 24-year-old infielder has reached base in 12 of his 13 games this year and put together a memorable weekend against visiting Charlotte. Rodriguez, who has never hit more than eight home runs in a season, slugged three long balls and drove in seven runs in a pair of games Friday and Saturday. He's batting .538 with runners in scoring position and ranks second in the FSL with a 1.122 OPS.
Midwest League
Fernando Perez, Fort Wayne
(.458/.481/.708, 6 G, 3 2B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R, 1 BB, 2 K)
Deuces were wild all week for Perez, who finished the stretch with five consecutive two-hit games during which he drove in nine runs. The 20-year-old, a Padres third-round pick in 2012, is batting .345 in his first 13 full-season games hand has a hit in each of his last 10. Only three Midwest League hitters have more than Perez's 13 RBIs on the year, and the surge helped Fort Wayne sweep a three-game set against visiting Peoria.
South Atlantic League
Ryan McMahon, Asheville
(.471/.526/1.059, 5 G, 1 2B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 5 R, 2 BB, 4 K)
McMahon, a second-round pick last June, was named a Topps Short Season/Rookie All-Star after hitting .321/.402/.583 with 11 homers for Grand Junction last summer. He's been even better in his first 15 full-season games, posting a .340/.443/.760 line with six homers, 10 RBIs and 14 runs scored. Asheville's McCormick Field is quite accommodating for left-handed sluggers, but McMahon's road numbers are actually slightly better than those at home. Still just 19 years old, the third baseman seems poised to produce impressive statistics no matter where he plays.
John Parker is an editor for MiLB.com.
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