MiLB Announces April Players and Pitchers of the Month
Winners come from 14 organizations; Angels and Cardinals lead with three each
Winners come from 14 organizations; Angels and Cardinals lead with three each
May 4, 2022 — Minor League Baseball™ (MiLB™) today announced the Player and Pitcher of the Month Award winners for April in each of the 11 leagues in Major League Baseball’s player development system.
International League (Triple-A)
Memphis Redbirds (Cardinals) third baseman Nolan Gorman batted .338 and led the league in total bases (60), home runs (11), slugging percentage (.811) and OPS (1.201) and was fourth in runs (19). After going hitless in his first three games, he hit safely in 16 straight games from April 8-30. He homered in five straight games from April 13-19. Gorman, 21, was selected by St. Louis in the first round (19th overall) of the 2018 MLB Draft out of O’Connor High School in Phoenix.
Nashville Sounds (Brewers) left-hander Ethan Small went 2-0 with a 0.77 ERA in five starts. He scattered nine hits over 23.1 innings and struck out 31 while holding opponents to a .114 average. Small, 25, was selected by Milwaukee in the first round (28th overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Mississippi State University.
Pacific Coast League (Triple-A)
Reno Aces (D-backs) outfielder Stone Garrett led the league in total bases (55), doubles (eight), slugging percentage (.724), OPS (1.141) and was second in average (.355). He was third in hits (27) and on-base percentage (.417) and fifth in home runs (six) and RBI (19). Garrett, 26, was originally selected by Miami in the eighth round of the 2014 MLB Draft out of George Ranch High School in Richmond, Texas.
Oklahoma City Dodgers right-hander Ryan Pepiot went 2-0 with a 1.66 ERA in five starts. He allowed 14 hits and struck out 29 over 21.2 innings and held opponents to a .182 batting average. Pepiot, 24, was selected by Los Angeles in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Butler University.
Eastern League (Double-A)
Hartford Yard Goats (Rockies) shortstop Ezequiel Tovar led the league in hits (24) and total bases (46) and was second in OPS (1.061). He finished third in slugging percentage (.639), fourth in average (.333) and RBI (14), fifth in runs (15) and sixth in home runs (five). He recorded nine multi-hit games. Tovar, 20, was signed by Colorado as an International Free Agent out of Maracay, Venezuela, on Aug. 1, 2017.
Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox) left-hander Brandon Walter did not factor in a decision in four starts as he pitched to a 1.17 ERA over a league-best 23 innings. Walter struck out 29 batters and held opponents to a .169 average. Walter, 25, was selected by Boston in the 26th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Delaware.
Southern League (Double-A)
Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels) outfielder Trey Cabbage led the league in average (.356), home runs (eight), RBI (21), total bases (57), slugging percentage (.781) and OPS (1.265). He was second in on-base percentage (.484), third in hits (26) and walks (6) and fifth in runs (15). Cabbage, 25, was originally selected by Minnesota in the fourth round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Grainger High School in Rutledge, Tennessee.
Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels) right-hander Chase Silseth went 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA in four starts. He struck out 27 batters in 20 innings and held opponents to a .188 average. Silseth, 21, was selected by Los Angeles in the 11th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of Arizona.
Texas League (Double-A)
Springfield Cardinals outfielder Moisés Gómez led the league in average (.429), runs (22), total bases (66), home runs (11), RBI (25), slugging percentage (.1.048) and OPS (1.519). He was second in hits (27) and on-base percentage (.471). Gómez’s 66 total bases were 22 more than anyone in the league and he recorded 11 multi-hit games. Gómez, 23, was originally signed by Tampa Bay as an International Free Agent out of Caracas, Venezuela, on April 28, 2015.
Wichita Wind Surge (Twins) right-hander Simeon Woods-Richardson went 2-0 over four starts and did not allow an earned run in 21.2 innings. He did not allow more than two hits in a start, all of which were at least five innings, and he struck out 18 while holding opponents to a .101 average. Woods-Richardson, 21, was originally selected by the New York Mets in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Kempner High School in Sugar Land, Texas.
Midwest League (High-A)
Cedar Rapids Kernels (Twins) third baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand led the league in average (.410), hits (32), total bases (53), RBI (23), slugging percentage (.679) and OPS (1.138). He was second in on-base percentage (.459), fourth in home runs (five) and fifth in runs scored (14). He recorded 11 multi-hit games and started the season going 9-for-10 with three homers and 14 RBI in the first two games. Encarnacion-Strand, 22, was selected by Minnesota in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Oklahoma State University.
Peoria Chiefs (Cardinals) right-hander Michael McGreevy went 1-0 with a 0.76 ERA in four starts. He allowed 13 hits and two earned runs while striking out 25 in a league-best 23.2 innings. He held opponents to a .159 average. McGreevy, 21, was selected by St. Louis in the first round (18th overall) of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of California at Santa Barbara.
Northwest League (High-A)
Spokane Indians (Rockies) catcher Drew Romo led the league in average (.342), hits (26) and total bases (38) and was second in runs (14). He was third in RBI (14) and OPS (.884) and fourth in slugging percentage (.500). Romo, 20, was selected by Colorado in Competitive Balance Round A of the 2020 MLB Draft out of The Woodlands High School in The Woodlands, Texas.
Tri-City Dust Devils (Angels) right-hander Braden Olthoff went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in four starts. He scattered 12 hits over 20 innings while striking out 26 and holding opponents to a .171 average. Olthoff, 23, was selected by Los Angeles in the ninth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Tulane University.
South Atlantic League (High-A)
Winston-Salem Dash (White Sox) third baseman Bryan Ramos led the league in average (.403), hits (29) and OPS (1.102) and was second in total bases (47) and slugging (.653). He finished third in on-base percentage (.449) and fifth in RBI (16). Ramos, 20, was signed by Chicago as an International Free Agent out of Havana, Cuba on July 2, 2018.
Rome Braves right-hander Tanner Gordon was 3-1 with a 1.64 ERA in four starts. He led the league in innings pitched (22) and strikeouts (36) without walking a batter. Gordon was the only pitcher in the league who made more than one start without issuing a walk. Gordon scattered 18 hits and allowed four earned runs. Gordon, 24, was selected by Atlanta in the sixth round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Indiana University.
California League (Single-A)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Dodgers) outfielder Damon Keith led the league in on-base percentage (.519), slugging percentage (.672) and OPS (1.191) and was second in average (.391), hits (25) and runs (19). He finished third in triples (two) and fourth in total bases (43). Keith, 21, was selected by the Dodgers in the 18th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of California Baptist University.
Lake Elsinore Storm (Padres) right-hander Garrett Hawkins went 1-0 with a 1.96 ERA in four starts. He struck out 26 batters and walked just one over 18.1 innings. Hawkins, 22, was selected by the Padres in the ninth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of British Columbia.
Carolina League (Single-A)
Charleston RiverDogs (Rays) outfielder Dru Baker led the league in average (.435), on-base percentage (.552), slugging percentage (.717) and OPS (1.269). He walked more times (11) than he struck out (seven) and had 20 hits and 14 RBI in 13 games before fouling a ball off his foot and missing the last five games of the month. Baker, 22, was selected by Tampa Bay in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Texas Tech University.
Augusta GreenJackets (Braves) right-hander Royber Salinas pitched to a 1.45 ERA in four starts as he allowed three earned runs on nine hits 18.2 innings. He struck out 43 of the 56 batters he retired before a promotion to High-A Rome on Tuesday. Salinas, 21, was signed by Atlanta as an International Free Agent out of Guarenas, Venezuela, on Oct. 9, 2018.
* Florida State League (Single-A)*
Bradenton Marauders (Pirates) first baseman Jacob Gonzalez led the league in average (.448), hits (30), total bases (49), on-base percentage (.513), slugging percentage (.731) and OPS (1.244). He was third in triples (four) and RBI (14). Gonzalez recorded nine multi-hit games and hit safely in 16 of 18 games for Bradenton. Gonzalez, 23, was selected by Pittsburgh in the second round of the 2017 MLB Draft out of Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Arizona.
* Dunedin Blue Jays* left-hander Tariq (Ricky) Tiedemann went 3-0 with a 0.90 ERA in four starts. He allowed just five hits and two earned runs over 20 innings while striking out 33. He held opponents to a .081 batting average. Tiedemann, 19, was selected by Toronto in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Golden West Junior College in Huntington Beach, California.
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