Prospect Of The Day

Outfielder Erik Komatsu has blistered Pioneer League pitching all season, but he’s been otherworldly in the month of August for Helena (Brewers). He continued his torrid pace yesterday as he blasted his eighth and ninth home runs of the season–both three-run shots coming with two outs in the inning–finishing 2-for-4 with two runs and six RBIs while adding an assist from right field. After batting .450 in his last 10 games, Komatsu’s season line now stands at .347/.421/.591. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

It has been an inauspicious beginning to Princeton (Rays) shortstop Tim Beckham’s career, but the No. 1 overall pick has shown signs of life recently. He hit his first home run yesterday in a victory over Burlington (Royals), going 2-for-4 with a run, an RBI and his fourth stolen base of the season. Over his last 10 games, Beckham is batting .289.

Prospect Nuggets

GCL Marlins catcher Kyle Skipworth is now 0-for-his-last-19 after going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts yesterday . . . In an attempt to get his bat going, Anthony Hewitt has been serving as the GCL Phillies designated hitter more frequently, but he extended his hitless streak to four games last night as he finished 0-for-3 with two strikeouts . . . [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

After enduring a recent power lapse, Casper (Rockies) catcher Wilin Rosario helped the Ghosts to a narrow 8-7 victory, slugging two solo home runs in the fourth and sixth innings. The 19-year-old backstop was 3-for-5 with three runs and two RBIs on the night. This is Rosario’s second season with Casper, as he batted just .209/.283/.296 last year, but has bolstered his prospect stock this season with a .328/.388/.587 line through 189 at-bats.

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Prospect Of The Day

Prior to the June draft, scouts questioned Tony Delmonico’s power potential. Over the weekend, he answered his critics resoundingly. He hit home runs in both Friday’s and Saturday’s games, and then went 3-for-5 with three doubles, two runs and four RBIs yesterday for Ogden (Dodgers). Predictably, his slugging percentage skyrocketed in the process, climbing from .621 to .736 over the three-day stretch as he helped the Raptors extend their winning streak to eight games. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Isaac Galloway hasn’t transitioned from high school to professional ball as smoothly as he would have liked, but yesterday’s line is probably something similar to what the Marlins expected out of their eighth-round draft pick. Galloway batted third in a win over the GCL Nationals and finished the game 3-for-5 and added a run and two RBIs, with one of them coming on a triple. He also swiped his third bag of the season in the first inning, and his stolen base total will probably climb once he becomes more proficient in reaching base. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Elizabethton (Twins) is getting more production out of their eight-hole hitter than they probably could have expected. Center fielder Angel Morales, an 18-year-old product of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy, was 2-for-4 with a run scored, double and his 10th home run of the year in defeat. In 136 at-bats, Morales is batting .331/.435/.632. This is the fourth consecutive day that a Twins prospect has earned POTD recognition, and deservedly so.

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Prospect Of The Day

Left fielder Evan Bigley blasted two home runs and finished the game 2-for-4 with two runs and four RBIs in a winning effort for first-place Elizabethton (Twins). The pair of roundtrippers gives him 11 for the year, moving his season line to .308/.373/.639. Minnesota’s 10th round selection has blistered Appy League pitching of late, totaling 12 runs scored, seven home runs and 15 RBIs in his last 10 games. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

On a slow night for many high-profile prospects, Elizabethton (Twins) center fielder Angel Morales ran away with POTD honors. He is now batting .333/.438/.620 after going 3-for-5 with two home runs and driving in all five of Elizabethton’s runs last night versus Kingsport. The power surge comes after Morales tallied just one extra-base hit in his last eight games, giving him nine home runs and 19 RBIs in 129 at-bats. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Now just a few months removed from high school, GCL Twins center fielder Aaron Hicks is showing the kind of versatility that made him such an attractive pro prospect heading into the 2008 draft. He was 2-for-2 with two runs, a triple and a home run in a 3-2 victory over the GCL Pirates on Sunday night. Hicks has hit safely in 10 straight games, bumping his average to .352, and has four triples on the season. Curiously, the team bus must be having some sort of calming effect on Hicks, as he has done most of his recent damage away from home, going 11-for-23 with two home runs in his last six contests on the road.

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Prospect of the Day

Princeton (Rays) shortstop Tim Beckham put together the most impressive game of his young career in a 10-6 victory over Johnson City (Cardinals). Beckham now has collected a hit in four of his last five games and has shown flashes of power, rapping out four doubles in his last six games. Beckham, who is usually in the lineup as DH when he is not playing shortstop, has made seven errors last night, including a throwing error in last night’s game. [...] Continue Reading »

 Prospect of the Day

Red Sox first-round pick Casey Kelly exploded on Wednesday with a 3-for-5 day that included his first professional home run. Kelly has played at shortstop in most games for the Red Sox since making his debut on July 20th. Yesterday Kelly served as the GCL Red Sox DH and came through with the biggest offensive game of his short professional career. Kelly is now on a modest four-game hit streak after going hitless in the first four games of his career. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect of the Day

Capser (Rockies) righthander Ethan Hollingsworth delivered his best outing of the year in a victory over Idaho Falls Tuesday. The former Western Michigan Bronco threw five shutout innings, allowing just four hits as Casper cruised to a 5-0 victory. Hollingsworth struck out eight without issuing a walk. The strong outing comes on the heels of several poor outings from the highly regarded righthander. Hollingsworth had given up four or more runs in each of his past three outings, none of which lasted more than six innings, entering Tuesday’s start. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect of the Day

His pro career may be just two games old, but GCL Nationals leftfielder Destin Hood has made quite the impression in his first few days in the Gulf Coast League. Hood, the Nationals second round pick out of an Alabama high school, turned down an opportunity to play both football and baseball at the University of Alabama when he signed for $1.1 million, spread over five years. Hood was 2-for-2 on Saturday as a late-game substitution in his pro debut, before drawing his first start on Monday. Hood was 2-for-5 on the day, including a double. The 18-year-old also picked up three RBIs and a run scored. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect of the Day

Kingsport (Mets) shortstop Wilmer Flores capped off a huge weekend with a 3-for-6 performance in an 11-9 win over Elizabethton (Twins). The 16-year-old Venezuelan native had a RBI and two runs scored in the slugfest. Flores was the star of a doubleheader on Saturday, as he went 3-for-8 on the day, notching a home run and three RBI. Flores not only has rewarded the Mets’ faith in him with his offensive abilities, but also with his maturation in the field. “He is going to stay at a premium position…Right now he is a shortstop,” said Mets VP of Player Development Tony Bernazard about the Mets belief that Flores can remain at shortstop. Early in the year Bernazard’s confidence in Flores could have been questioned when the heraled prospect made five errors in his first eight games, but Flores has bounced back nicely. Flores has made just one error in his past eight games and only four in twenty five games since his rocky start. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Centerfielder Aaron Hicks (Twins) has not disappointed in the Gulf Coast League. The first-rounder went 2-for-4 with a home run, three runs scored, two RBIs and a stolen base. Hicks has stolen five bases in his last five games and is tearing up GCL pitching with an average of .330.

Prospect Nuggets

Hicks’ teammate Tyler Ladendorf, the Twins’ third round selection went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBIs. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Left fielder Rashun Dixon (Athletics) was a 10th round selection, but he has flashed speed while running the bases in the Arizona League. Two triples on Wednesday gave Dixon seven triples on the season. The amazing thing is that he still doesn’t have a double in 90 at-bats.

Prospect Nuggets

Cutter Dykstra, the Brewers’ second-round pick in June, debuted in the Arizona League and went 0-for-2. . . Shortstop Tim Beckham (Rays) went 1-for-3 and picked up two RBIs, one on a double and another on a sacrifice fly. . . Kingsport shortstop Wilmer Flores (Mets) hit a solo home run, his sixth of the season, in four at-bats. . . Casey Kelly (Red Sox) got his first hit, a double. The bad news: the first-round pick struck out twice in four at-bats and is hitting 1-for-20. . . Righthander Evan Hildenbrandt (Reds) was roughed up in the Gulf Coast League, allowing five runs on seven hits in four innings. . . Brett Oberholzer (Braves), a lefthander from New Castle, Delaware, threw six shutout innings in GCL ball and lowered his ERA to 1.90. However, he had just one strikeout. . . Burlington’s John Flanagan (Royals), a 13th-round pick, threw 4 2/3 scorelss innings. The 20-year-old lefthander gave up six hits, but walked just one and struck out five.

What To Watch For Today

Flores and Kingsport ride a five-game winning streak into tonight’s game against Princeton. The Mets now sit just one game out of first and could move into a tie with a win tonight.

Prospect Of The Day

Danville righthander David Francis (Braves) turned in one of the better performances you’ll see at any level on Tuesday when he threw six no-hit innings, walked two and struck out 16. Let’s put it another way; of the 18 outs Francis made, only three of them were not strikeouts. (Francis struck out four in one inning, but one batter reached base on a third strike wild pitch.) Francis had given up just one run over his last 16 innings since making his professional debut before Tuesday’s performance.

Prospect Nuggets

Jon Leiber and Scott Eyre (Cubs) made rehab appearances in the Arizona League. Lieber allowed four hits in three innings, but pitched shutout ball, while Eyre walked one in a scoreless inning of relief. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Miguel Mendez (Pirates) is a 20-year-old catcher from the Dominican Republic who has owned the Gulf Coast League. In 47 at-bats, Mendez has five home runs and 12 RBIs to compliment a line of .447/.526/.809. Mendez went 3-for-3 with a double and a home run yesterday. [...] Continue Reading »

Prospect Of The Day

Johnson City shortstop Niko Vasquez (Cardinals) went 5-for-9 with a stolen base in a doubleheader and has put together a nine-game hitting streak. During his tear, Vasquez is hitting .514 with five doubles, one triple and four RBIs.

Prospect Nuggets

Jaff Decker (Padres) just doesn’t stop hitting. The Arizona League leftfielder went 2-for-3 with a double and his average is up to .406. [...] Continue Reading »

California League

Prospect of the Day

Hank Conger (Angels) continued his incredible week on Thursday, hitting two more home runs. Due to labrum issues Conger has been serving mostly as Rancho Cucamonga’s DH. Conger also had six RBI in the game, bringing his Cal League total to 32. Conger’s six home runs over the past week are the most hit in a week’s span by anyone in the Cal League this year. [...] Continue Reading »