When the Angels moved RHP Johnny Hellweg to the starting rotation, it was done more to get him innings than for any thought of a long-term role as a starter. But it's worked out better than than the Angels could have expected. Hellweg has always had control issues, but lately he's started throwing more strikes. With a fastball that has flirted with 100 mph, Hellweg always has been hard to hit, and that's become quite apparent recently. The 22-year-old has gone 4-1, 2.12 in 64 innings as a starter with 80 strikeouts, 50 hits allowed and 28 walks. This week he struck out 17 in nine innings. When you consider that he's pitching in the California League, those numbers become all the more remarkable . . . Reds 1B Neftali Soto benefited indirectly from Cincinnati's September callups when he jumped from Double-A to Triple-A Louisville to provide offensive support. He left Carolina with a parting gift—an 8-for-19 week with three more home runs. Soto's final Double-A home run gave him 30 for the year and ensured he'll share the Southern League home run title with Paul Goldschmidt. It's even more impressive when you consider that the 22-year-old Soto missed a month of the season with injury . . . Yankees 3B Dante Bichette Jr. had to settle for second place in the Gulf Coast League batting race, as the Tigers Brandon Eckerle beat him out by 13 points. But that's about the only bad news for Bichette, who had an exceptional pro debut. He wrapped up the regular season this week by hitting .429/.538/.714 with three doubles and a home run. The 18-year-old finished among the league leaders in most offensive categories, and he even led the league in fielding percentage at third base, though questions remain about his long-term position . . . Everything's working out just like the Rays planned when it comes to LHP Enny Romero. He has not allowed a run in three of his last four starts, and he seems to be getting stronger as the season wanes. The 20-year-old lefty isn't a polished pitcher by any measure of the word, but he does have plus stuff, and the Rays have demonstrated time after time that they know how to turn raw pitchers with plus stuff into solid big leaguers. In Romero's case, his 94-95 mph fastball is his calling card, which explains why he's second in the Midwest League with 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings. His secondary stuff is well behind his fastball, and he walks too many hitters at present, but with the Rays' patient approach, he has plenty of time to refine his breaking ball and his command. If the control doesn't improve, he profiles to be a power arm out of the pen, a la Jake McGee . . . Low Class A Savannah CF Darrell Ceciliani, 21, is finishing 2011 with a flourish, batting .320/.421/.443 (31-for-97) with nine extra-base hits and 16 walks in August. The Mets 2009 fourth-rounder batted 11-for-21 (.524) this week with two doubles and three triples . . . The Mets shifted 20-year-old Cesar Puello to center field on June 22, and, coincidentally or not, the erstwhile right fielder found a new gear on offense. In 54 games since the switch, he's batting .281/.339/.474 (48-for-171) with 18 extra-base hits (including six homers) and eight steals for high Class A St. Lucie. (He went 10-for-23 with a homer, two doubles and four steals this week.) Scouts believed in Puello's power potential even as he hit only one homer in low Class A a year ago. Now he needs to tighten his strike zone (18 walks, 100 strikeouts) . . . Dodgers corner OF Joc Pederson's across-the-board tools landed him a $600,000 bonus as an 11th-rounder last year, and he's had an outstanding year as a 19-year-old for Rookie-level Ogden. Pederson leads the Pioneer League in on-base percentage and ranks fourth in batting with a .363/.434/.581 line in 248 at-bats. Pederson is also finishing strong, batting 14-for-23 (.609) with one homer and three doubles in the last week