Prospect Roundup: Games of Aug. 13

Theme of the day

Pitching top to bottom: On a day when No. 76 overall prospectTouki Toussaint made his Major League debut with the Braves, No. 24 Kyle Wright grabbed headlines of his own with a seven-inning, one-hit gem for Triple-A Gwinnett. But it wasn't just at the top levels that pitchers got to show off impressive arms -- the AZL White Sox, led by five innings from Brayan Herrera, no-hit the Brewers' complex-level affiliate in a strange seven-inning affair. It was the first no-hitter of the Arizona League season.

Who stayed hot

White Sox OF Eloy Jiménez, Triple-A Charlotte: 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI, R -- The game's No. 3 prospect demonstrated his prodigious power again, going deep the other way to right in the fifth inning of Charlotte's 8-7 loss to Buffalo. It was Jimenez's third homer in his last six games and his 11th in 35 contests since joining Chicago's Triple-A affiliate on June 21. Despite missing about two weeks with a strained adductor muscle, the 21-year-old, right-handed slugger still ranks fifth in the International League in homers in that time and also sits second in average (.351), slugging (.672) and OPS (1.065). He's struck out only 18 times in 145 plate appearances (12.4 percent). This is a slugger with little to prove offensively at Triple-A, but barring a major organizational shift in thinking, he's unlikely to see the Majors until next April.

Who needed this one

Blue Jays OF Billy McKinney, Triple-A Buffalo: 2-for-4, HR, 3B, 3 RBI, R, BB, 2 K -- The narrative around McKinney when the Blue Jays picked him up from the Yankees in the J.A. Happ trade was that he had started to show some serious pop at Triple-A. However, he didn't go deep for Buffalo until his 17th game with the club. The left-handed slugger also added a triple for his first multi-hit game since July 31. McKinney is hitting .204/.283/.389 with six total extra-base hits since debuting with the Bisons on July 28. As a member of the 40-man roster, the Jays' No. 19 prospect could still join the big club when rosters expand in September, but he has yet to force his way into Toronto's long-term plans.

The unexpected

Athletics OF Austin Beck, Class A Beloit: 3-for-4, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 R, BB -- This was just the third time in 103 games this season that the A's No. 5 prospect collected multiple extra-base hits. When Oakland grabbed Beck with the sixth overall pick in 2017, many expected his power to be his offensive calling card, but that hasn't been the case -- he's hit just one homer and produced a .383 slugging percentage in 2018. If there was a hit he'd lack to complete the cycle, the dinger was the most likely option of the four. That said, Beck has been better in August, hitting .370/.400/.543 with one triple and six doubles over 12 games.

Best matchup

Brendan McKay vs. Royce Lewis: This Florida State League battle between Charlotte and Fort Myers featured the second matchup between two of the top four picks from the 2017 Draft. (The two also faced each other back on May 10 when they were both in the Midwest League.) The Rays' two-way star continued to get the best of his shortstop counterpart as McKay got Lewis to fly out to left in the first and struck him out in the fifth. The Twins' top prospect got his first and only hit off the left-hander with an RBI infield single in the third. Lewis is just 1-for-5 with the strikeout against McKay this season.

Who strengthened their promotion case

Padres C Francisco Mejía, Triple-A El Paso: 2-for-4, HR, RBI, R -- The Padres were always likely to call up MLB.com's No. 21 overall prospect in September, and performances like this are the reason. Mejia began the day 1-for-16 with five strikeouts in his last four games, but turned it around with the help of his second El Paso homer and first since Aug. 3. The 22-year-old switch-hitter has hit .298/.359/.439 in 16 games since coming over from the Indians system, making him a slightly above-average hitter for the Pacific Coast League. On the defensive side, he's only played catcher with the Chihuahuas after bouncing around between backstop and the outfield while in Columbus. Expect him to get plenty of time behind the plate in the Majors next month, but he might need to get a little hotter offensively to push Austin Hedges to a backup role.