Reds' De La Cruz headlines Players of the Month

Minor League Baseball announced the Player and Pitcher of the Month Award winners for August in each of the 14 leagues in Major League Baseball’s player development system.

International League (Triple-A)

Worcester Red Sox catcher Connor Wong batted .368/.411/.838 and led the league in home runs (nine), slugging percentage (.838) and OPS (1.249). He finished second in RBIs (22), third in total bases (57) and fourth in average (.368). Wong hit safely in 14 of his 16 games -- including a nine-game hitting streak from August 17-27 -- and homered in consecutive games three times. Wong, 26, was originally selected by Los Angeles (NL) in the third round of the 2017 MLB Draft out of the University of Houston.

Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies) left-hander Michael Plassmeyer went 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA in four starts as he scattered 14 hits and 10 walks over 23 innings while striking out 28. He held opponents to a .175 average and no pitcher in the league with more than 19 innings pitched allowed fewer earned runs. Plassmeyer, 25, was originally selected by Seattle in the fourth round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of the University of Missouri.

Pacific Coast League (Triple-A)

Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Astros) outfielder Lewis Brinson batted .380/.449/.709 and led the league in average (.380). He finished second in hits (30) and OPS (1.158), was third in slugging percentage (.709), fourth in home runs (seven) and total bases (56) and was fifth in RBIs (23) and on-base percentage (.449). Brinson, who was traded to San Francisco on August 31, recorded nine multi-hit games and two multi-homer games. Brinson, 28, was originally selected by Texas in the first round of the 2012 MLB Draft out of Coral Springs High School in Coral Springs, Florida.

Reno Aces (D-backs) right-hander Brandon Pfaadt went 3-0 with a 2.03 ERA in five starts. He allowed seven earned runs on 16 hits and nine walks while striking out a league-leading 32 batters in 31 innings. Pfaadt held opponents to a .151 batting average. Pfaadt, 23, was selected by Arizona in the fifth round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky .

Eastern League (Double-A)

Bowie Baysox (Orioles) infielder/outfielder Connor Norby batted .339/.405/.661 and led the league in hits (37), home runs (nine), RBIs (26) and total bases (72). He was second in slugging percentage (.661) and OPS (1.066) and was third in average (.339) and runs (25). Norby posted 13 multi-hit games and saw his season batting average climb from .237 to .292 in August. Norby, 22, was selected by Baltimore in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of East Carolina University.

Akron RubberDucks (Guardians) right-hander Tanner Bibee went 4-0 with a 1.32 ERA in six starts. He led the league with 34 innings pitched and was third with 37 strikeouts. He allowed five earned runs on 24 hits and seven walks and held opponents to a .194 average. Bibee, 23, was selected by Cleveland in the fifth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Cal State Fullerton.

Southern League (Double-A)

Chattanooga Lookouts (Reds) shortstop Elly De La Cruz batted .355/.425/.688 and led the league in RBIs (25), doubles (13) and total bases (64), while finishing second in average (.355), hits (33), slugging percentage (.688) and OPS (1.113). He finished fifth with six home runs. De La Cruz recorded 12 multi-hit games and reached base safely in 22 of 24 games. De La Cruz, 20, was signed by Cincinnati as an international free agent out of Sabana Grande de Boya, Dominican Republic, on July 2, 2018.

Birmingham Barons (White Sox) right-hander Sean Burke went 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA in five starts as he allowed six earned runs on 13 hits and seven walks over 21 innings. He struck out a league-best 38 batters and held opponents to a .176 average. Burke, 22, was selected by Chicago (AL) in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of Maryland.

Texas League (Double-A)

Amarillo Sod Poodles (D-backs) first baseman Leandro Cedeno batted .398/.453/.699 and led the league in runs (27), total bases (65), home runs (eight), slugging percentage (.699) and OPS (1.152). He was second in average (.398) and hits (37), was third in RBIs (23) and fifth in on-base percentage (.453). He recorded 14 multi-hit games and had a career-high five hits August 18 at Midland. Cedeno, 24, was originally signed by St. Louis as an international free agent out of Guatire, Venezuela, on August 29, 2014.

Arkansas Travelers (Mariners) right-hander Prelander Berroa went 2-0 with a 1.33 ERA in five starts as he allowed just three earned runs on eight hits while striking out 32 in 20 1/3 innings. Berroa held opponents to a .116 average and struck out a career-high 11 in five innings of a combined no-hitter against Northwest Arkansas on August 12. Berroa, 22, was originally signed by Minnesota as an international free agent out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on July 2, 2016.

Midwest League (High-A)

South Bend Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong batted .356/.417/.535 and led the league in hits (36), average (.356), total bases (54) and OPS (.952). He was second in on-base percentage (.417), third in doubles (seven), fourth in slugging percentage (.535) and fifth in runs (18). He recorded 12 multi-hit games and tied his career-high with four hits on August 20 against Beloit. Crow-Armstrong, 20, was originally selected by New York (NL) in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Harvard-Westlake High School in Los Angeles. He was traded by the Mets to the Cubs on July 30, 2021, in exchange for Javier Baez.

South Bend Cubs right-hander Luis Devers went 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA in four starts as he allowed three earned runs on 10 hits and four walks in 20 innings. He struck out 20 batters and held opponents to a .149 average. Devers, 22, was signed by Chicago (NL) as an international free agent out of Samana, Dominican Republic, on July 19, 2017.

Northwest League (High-A)

Spokane Indians (Rockies) catcher Hunter Goodman batted .370/.405/.769 and led the league in hits (40), home runs (10), RBIs (27), average (.370), total bases (83), slugging percentage (.769) and OPS (1.174). He was second in runs (25) and doubles (11). His 83 total bases were 25 more than anyone in the league and led all of professional baseball, while his 40 hits led the Minor Leagues. Goodman recorded 15 multi-hit games in August and his 33 home runs through August are tied for the Minor League Baseball lead with Moisés Gómez of the Cardinals organization. Goodman, 22, was selected by Colorado in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of Memphis.

Hillsboro Hops (Diamondbacks) right-hander Scott Randall went 4-0 with a 0.36 ERA in four starts as he allowed 14 hits and four walks over 24 2/3 innings. He held opponents to a .171 average and struck out 21. Randall, 24, was selected by Arizona in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Sacramento State University.

South Atlantic League (High-A)

Greenville Drive (Red Sox) infielder Matthew Lugo batted .353/.405/.608 and led the league in hits (36) and total bases (62). He was third in average (.353), runs (22) and RBIs (24), finished fourth in home runs (four) and fifth in slugging percentage (.608). He recorded 11 multi-hit games. Lugo, 21, was selected by Boston in the second round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy in Florida, Puerto Rico.

Hickory Crawdads (Rangers) right-hander Mason Englert went 3-1 with a 1.82 ERA in four starts as he allowed five earned runs on just seven hits over 24 2/3 innings. Englert held opponents to a .086 average as his month included a span of 15 1/3 innings over the four starts where he did not allow a hit. He struck out 21 batters in August and was promoted to Double-A Frisco on August 31. Englert, 22, was selected by Texas in the fourth round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Forney High School in Forney, Texas.

California League (Single-A)

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Dodgers) catcher/first baseman Dalton Rushing batted .442/.551/.805 and led the league in average (.442), on-base percentage (.551), slugging percentage (.805) and OPS (1.356). He was second in doubles (10) and third in hits (34) and total bases (62). He posted eight multi-hit games and homered in his first at bat with a full season affiliate on August 4. Rushing, 21, was selected by Los Angeles (NL) in the second round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of Louisville.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Dodgers) right-hander Reinaldo De Paula went 2-0 with two saves and a hold while finishing seven games for the Quakes. He did not allow a run and allowed just four hits in his nine appearances while striking out 14 in as many innings. Opponents batted just .089 in August prior to his August 25 promotion to High-A Great Lakes. De Paula, 23, was signed by Los Angeles (NL) as an international free agent out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on May 29, 2017.

Carolina League (Single-A)

Charleston RiverDogs (Rays) outfielder Shane Sasaki batted .356/.436/.713 and led the league in hits (31), doubles (12), total bases (62) and OPS (1.149) and was second in average (.356) and slugging percentage (.713). He was fourth in home runs (five) and fifth in on-base percentage (.436). Sasaki posted 11 multi-hit games, including the third and fourth four-hit games of his career. Sasaki, 22, was selected by Tampa Bay in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Iolani High School in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Lynchburg Hillcats (Guardians) left-hander Will Dion went 3-0 with a 1.16 ERA in four starts before an August 29 promotion to High-A Lake County. Dion struck out 27 and walked six over 23 1/3 innings as he scattered 15 hits. He allowed one earned run in his last 16 2/3 innings of the month and held opponents to a .179 average in August. Dion, 22, was selected by Cleveland in the ninth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of McNeese State University.

Florida State League (Single-A)

Bradenton Marauders (Pirates) shortstop Tsung-Che Cheng batted .389/.517/.611 and led the league in hits (35), runs (23), average (.389), total bases (55), walks (23), on-base percentage (.517), slugging percentage (.611) and OPS (1.128). He finished second in doubles (10) and stolen bases (10). He posted 10 multi-hit games and reached base safely in 24 of 26 games. Cheng, 21, was signed by Pittsburgh as an international free agent out of Pingtung County, Taiwan, on July 2, 2019.

Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (Twins) right-hander Pierson Ohl went 2-1 with a 1.33 ERA in five games (four starts) as he allowed just four earned runs over 27 innings. Ohl struck out 26 while walking just one batter and did not allow an earned run in his first 21 innings of the month. Ohl, 22, was selected by Minnesota in the 14th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Grand Canyon University.

Arizona Complex League (Rookie)

Dodgers infielder Rayne Doncon batted .339/.422/.679 and led the league in home runs (five), total bases (38), slugging percentage (.679) and OPS (1.101). He finished second in RBIs (15), third in hits (19) and fourth in average (.339) and on-base percentage (.422). Doncon, 18, was signed by Los Angeles (NL) as an international free agent out of San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, on January 15, 2021.

Giants Orange right-hander Gerelmi Maldonado pitched to a 1.17 ERA in five appearances (three starts) as he allowed two earned runs over 15 1/3 innings while leading the league in strikeouts (28). Maldonado held opponents to a .175 average. Maldonado, 18, was signed by San Francisco as an international free agent out of Palo Negro, Venezuela, on January 15, 2021.

Dominican Summer League (Rookie)

Astros Orange outfielder Luis Baez batted .373/.426/.695 and led the league in hits (22), total bases (41), home runs (five) and slugging percentage (.695). He was second in OPS (1.121) and fourth in average (.373). Baez, 18, was signed by Houston as an international free agent out of Bani, Dominican Republic, on January 15, 2022.

Yankees right-hander Alejandro Gomez went 4-0 with a 0.52 ERA in four appearances as he allowed just one earned run over 17 1/3 innings. He struck out 25 and held opponents to a .107 average. Gomez, 20, was signed by New York (AL) as an international free agent out of Ocotlan, Jalisco, Mexico, on July 5, 2021.

Florida Complex League (Rookie)

Astros Orange infielder/outfielder Rolando Espinosa batted .348/.508/.630 and led the league in runs (16), total bases (29), walks (15), stolen bases (12), on-base percentage (.508), slugging percentage (.630) and OPS (1.138). He was second in average (.348), home runs (four) and RBI (15). Espinosa, 21, was signed by Houston as an international free agent out of Ciego de Avila, Cuba, on August 21, 2017.

Yankees right-hander Alfred Vega pitched to a 0.73 ERA in four appearances (two starts) as he allowed just three hits and one earned run over 12 1/3 innings. Vega struck out 16 and held opponents to a .073 average. He did not allow a hit in his first three outings of the month, covering 9 2/3 innings. Vega, 21, was signed by New York as an international free agent out of Puerta Plata, Dominican Republic, on July 2, 2017.