Baseball America | Blog | Baseball America Prospects Blog | Top Offensive Performances By Position Prospects Over The Weekend

We turn our attention now to the top offensive performers from weekend series, April 13-15, this time counting down the top performances in terms of the Bill James runs created metric (the convoluted ’02 version).

TOP 10 RUNS CREATED BY PROSPECTS IN THE MINORS • APRIL 13-15
BATTER	ORG	TEAM	LEAGUE	LVL	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	SB	RC
Tyler Austin	NYY	Charleston	S. Atlantic	LoA	13	8	3	1	1	2	3	0	6.8
Evan Gattis	ATL	Lynchburg	Carolina	HiA	12	7	1	0	2	2	0	0	6.8
Mike Trout	LAA	Salt Lake	Pacific Coast	AAA	10	6	0	2	0	3	0	1	5.8
Brandon Waring	BAL	Bowie	Eastern	AA	11	5	2	0	2	3	1	0	5.7
Miles Head	OAK	Stockton	California	HiA	12	8	2	0	1	0	0	0	5.7
Billy Hamilton#	CIN	Bakersfield	California	HiA	9	7	0	2	0	3	1	3	5.6
Jason Esposito	BAL	Delmarva	S. Atlantic	LoA	12	7	1	0	0	3	1	2	5.2
Jared Mitchell*	CWS	Birmingham	Southern	AA	9	6	2	1	0	3	2	2	5.2
Martin Maldonado	MIL	Nashville	Pacific Coast	AAA	12	7	2	0	1	0	2	0	5.0
Will Middlebrooks	BOS	Pawtucket	International	AAA	13	6	1	0	2	1	1	0	4.9
*Bats lefthanded. #Switch-hitter. Chart considers only players who appear in 2012 BA Prospect Handbook

The Yankees shifted Tyler Austin from the corner infield to right field this season, and he's gotten off to just about the best start possible with low Class A Charleston. The 20-year-old leads the South Atlantic League in average (.438), slugging (1.031) and extra-base hits (10) after a weekend showing that included three doubles, a triple and a home run . . . Braves high Class A catcher Evan Gattis used a similarly-robust showing to vault into the top spot in the Carolina League batting race (.469). He also leads or shares the lead with three homers and 14 RBIs . . . Mike Trout used his speed not only to leg out two triples over the weekend, but also to race home from first base on a single. He's batting .435/.491/.652 through 46 at-bats for Triple-A Salt Lake . . . White Sox 2009 first-rounder Jared Mitchell missed the entire 2010 season with an ankle injury and followed that up with poor performance in the Carolina League last year (he hit .222 with 183 strikeouts in 129 games), but he's gotten out of the blocks quickly this season with Double-A Birmingham. The 22-year-old center fielder is batting .343/.511/.543 in 35 at-bats with five extra-base hits, 11 walks and two steals in three attempts for the Barons.

Other Top Performances By Prospects

Pacific Coast League sluggers James Darnell (Padres), Brett Jackson (Cubs), Anthony Rizzo (Cubs) and Clint Robinson (Royals) all mashed two home runs over the weekend . . . Rays 2011 supplemental pick Tyler Goeddel cracked his first two professional homers in a 23-hit, 22-run barrage by low Class A Bowling Green . . . Rangers shortstop Jurickson Profar went 5-for-11 (.455) with a pair of home runs.

Top Performance By A Prospect-Eligible Player Outside His Team's Top 30

A 13th-round pick in 2010, Colin Walsh embarks on his third season with low Class A Quad Cities. The former Stanford Cardinal and current Cardinals farmhand went 8-for-13 (.615) with five doubles, a triple, a homer and six RBIs over the weekend, suggesting that if he's healthy, then the second baseman is ready for high Class A.

Rough Stretch

Mariners Double-A first baseman Rich Poythress went 0-for-15 with four strikeouts and a walk over the weekend, dropping his season average with Jackson to .225.