Prospect Roundup: Games of June 12

Theme of the day

A big day for the Eastern League -- There was no more exciting circuit Tuesday than the Eastern League. Tigers No. 5 prospectJake Rogersconnected on three homers for Double-A Erie. Blue Jays No. 30 prospect Jon Harristossed six hitless innings for New Hampshire with No. 9 overall prospect Bo Bichette hitting a two-run homer in the same game. Yankees No. 12 prospect Jonathan Loaisiga proved it was possible to jump straight from the Eastern League to the Majors when New York announced it would call him up from Trenton to make a spot start Friday. If the league is looking for a new ad campaign, it should just use Tuesday's headlines as a guide.

Who stayed hot

Phillies RHP Enyel De Los Santos, Triple-A Lehigh Valley: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K, 115 pitches, 76 strikes -- The Phillies' No. 12 prospect might be the Roundup's most frequently featured player this season -- and for good reason. On Tuesday, De Los Santos tossed his eighth straight scoreless start for the IronPigs and improved his International League-leading ERA to 1.47 through 73 1/3 innings. He also ranks third with both 76 strikeouts and a 1.01 WHIP. The only thing keeping him in Triple-A is the fact that the Phillies really don't need the rotation help right now. Four of the club's five Major League starters have ERAs below 4.00, and the other is Vince Velasquez, who has 83 strikeouts in 67 1/3 innings. It'll take an injury or a serious downturn for De Los Santos to crack the rotation right now. But for future reference, this is what banging down the door looks like.

Who needed this one

Tigers OF Daz Cameron, Class A Advanced Lakeland: 4-for-4, 3B, R, SB -- The Tigers' No. 9 prospect was 0-for-15 over his previous five games before breaking out with a career-high-tying four hits against Jupiter. His season average jumped 15 points, climbing to .267 through 56 games. The 2015 37th overall pick made big strides with the bat last season, which led to his being a big part of the deal that sent Justin Verlander from Detroit to Houston. With a .267/.349/.381 line and 113 wRC+, he's only been a slightly above-average hitter in the Florida State League. With his above-average speed and plus glove in center, however, he remains a solid piece in the Tigers' rebuild plans.

The unexpected

Astros LHP Framber Valdez, Double-A Corpus Christi: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K, 69 pitches, 44 strikes -- The Astros' No. 15 prospect was on the back end of a piggyback outing for Corpus Christi's game against San Antonio, but still managed to lead all ranked prospects with 10 strikeouts on the day. The 24-year-old southpaw is fully capable of racking up the K's -- he's fanned 77 in 64 2/3 innings this season -- but to see him get so many in that type of limited role was a surprise.

Best matchup

Shane Bieber vs. Nick Senzel: Bieber, MLB.com's No. 98 overall prospect, has seen the promised land of Major League Baseball, having debuted on May 31. Senzel, No. 5 overall, is still trying to get there. On Tuesday, the two crossed paths. Although Columbus defeated Louisville, 6-2, it was Senzel that got the best of Bieber, going 2-for-4 with two singles, including an RBI groundout in the eighth inning that chased the Clippers starter from the game. It was Senzel's third straight multi-hit game, improving his season line to .289/.368/.452. Bieber now owns a 1.38 ERA through 45 2/3 innings with Columbus after being charged with one earned run in his 7 1/3 frames. It might not be long before the two see each other again. Columbus hosts Louisville for a three-game set in two weeks.

Who strengthened their promotion case

Orioles OF Ryan McKenna, Class A Advanced Frederick: 4-for-5, HR, 2B, RBI, 4 R, 2 BB in doubleheader -- There can't be much left for the Orioles' No. 29 prospect to prove in the Carolina League. After Tuesday, he's leading the circuit in all three slash-line categories at .378/.466/.546, and none of them are close. No other qualified hitter in the Class A Advanced league is batting higher than .320, and that player happens to be Keston Hiura, who moved up to Double-A Biloxi two weeks ago. Though this is a significant improvement for the 2015 fourth-rounder, it's clear that McKenna isn't being challenged in Frederick -- his monthly OPS has climbed from .844 in April to 1.056 in May to 1.299 so far in June. The Carolina League All-Star Game will be held next Tuesday, and it's tough to imagine McKenna will stick around much longer than that.

Others of note

Phillies RHP Adonis Medina, Class A Advanced Clearwater: 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 87 pitches, 52 strikes -- After a rough first six weeks of the season, the Phillies' No. 2 prospect hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his last four starts. He now owns a 4.27 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 52 2/3 innings.
Angels RHP Griffin Canning, Double-A Mobile: 5 2/3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K, 88 pitches, 61 strikes -- This was Canning's longest outing of the season, and the Angels' No. 7 prospect showed no issues handling the burden with a gem at home against Jackson. Canning owns a 1.97 ERA with 49 strikeouts in 45 2/3 innings with Mobile since being promoted on April 17.