MLB Prospect Watch

Prospect Action - 7/4/12

Triple-A

• Jeff Locke improved to 7-4, as the Pirates left-hander threw seven innings of of one-hit baseball, allowing just one run, says Robert Emrich of MiLB.com.
• Andy Oliver got lit up on the Fourth of July, giving up eight earned runs in just 2 1/3 innings, reports The Columus Dispatch.
• After a spot start in the majors followed by a DL stint, Brewers right-hander Tyler Thornburg finally made his Triple-A debut, going five innings and striking out six, allowing just two earned runs, reports Danny Wild of MiLB.com. 

Double-A

• In his first game since the Tigers promoted him from High-A Lakeland, outfield prospect Avisail Garcia hit a solo home run, reports Mike Copper of The Erie Times-News.  Garcia left Lakeland with a .289/.324/.447 line, hitting eight home runs in his half-season there, but striking out 57 times to just 11 walks.
• After dominating the Carolina League, it took Cody Buckel until his third start to earn his first Texas League victory, which the Rangers right-hander got on Wednesday, throwing six shutout innings and allowing just one hit, writes Robert Emrich of MiLB.com.
• A three-run homer by Jonathan Schoop wasn't enough for the Orioles prospects in Bowie on Wednesday, says Tucker Blair of Orioles-Nation.com.  For Schoop, it was his seventh home run is a season that has seen him struggle to repeat the performance that made him the Orioles minor league Player of the Year last season.

High-A

• Dylan Bundy wasn't at his best on Wednesday, says Blair, but managed to limit the damage to three in four innings of work.  Bundy managed to avoid getting the loss thanks to a three-run homer by Trent Mummey, just his second of the season.
• Jacob Petricka's evening was ruined by a six-run second inning that included three walks and four hits allowed by the White Sox starter, writes Bill Cole of The Winston-Salem Journal.

Low-A

• Making his third straight start after a stint in the bullpen, Will Lamb showed the Rangers what he is capable of on Wednesday night, striking out seven batters in as many innings while allowing just a lone hit, reports Mark Parker of The Hickory Daily Record.
• Matt Skole extended his South Atlantic League home run lead, as the Nationals prospect blasted his 19th of the season, notes The Lexington Herald-Leader.

 

 

Injury Update - Venditte, Mummey

• Pat Venditte has a big decision to make regarding his future.  The Yankees switch-pitcher reportedly has a torn labrum in his right shoulder, according to The Scranton Times-Tribune, which makes for a tough decision, given that he still has another healthy arm to pitch with.  For most pitchers, season-ending surgery would be the only option, but since Venditte is a switch-pitcher, he has the option to keep pitching with just his healthy left arm and hope that rest is enough of a remedy for his right arm.  The problem, however, is that the general opinion on Venditte is that he's not a good enough pitcher from either side to get by without constantly having the platoon advantage against hitters.  
• Trent Mummey is back on the DL, his second trip there this season, says Tucker Blair of Orioles-Nation.com.  Mummey spent most of last year on the on the DL as well with symptoms related to a concussion.  During his brief time the field last year, the Orioles 4th round pick from the 2010 draft has hit .292/.373/.478 between Low and High-A ball, but this season, back in High-A Frederick, Mummey struggled, hitting just .244/.337/.344.

 

Prospect Action - Cosart, Mummey, Gennett, Addition, Harvey

• Jarred Cosart gave up four runs in 3 1/3 innings in an Astros minor league game on Sunday, striking out five batters but giving up seven hits, reports Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.
• Orioles OF prospect Trent Mummey went 1-for-1 with a game tying RBI double, says Orioles-Nation.com.
• Brewers infield prospect Scooter Gennett hit for the cycle on Sunday, notes Ashley Marshall of MiLB.com.
• Nick Addition gave up two runs in five innings of work in the Cardinals Triple-A exhibition game, notes FutureRedbirds.net.
• Josh Lindblom gave up two runs in an innings and a third in the Dodgers major league game, reports Ken Gurnick of MLB.com.
• Matt Harvey, making his first start in Mets camp against major league competition, got rocked, allowing seven hits, five runs, and three home runs in one inning of work, says Andy Martino of The New York Daily News.

Prospect Action - Biddle, Franco, Grandal, Gyorko, Pastornicky, Jackson

• On the back fields, the Phillies top pitching prospect, left-hander Jesse Biddle, got rocked, but third base prospect Maikel Franco hit a pair of home runs, reports Jason Weitzel of Beerleaguer.com.
• The Padres got outstanding offensive performances from a pair of prospects in one of their split squad games on Thrusday, as recently acquired catching prospect Yasmani Grandal went 3-for-3 with a home run, and third base prospect Jedd Gyorko knocked four hits of his own, says Ashley Marshall of MiLB.com.
• Tyler Pastornicky did his part in trying to re-claim the Braves short stop job that he came into camp with, posting a 4-for-5 day at the plate, notes Chris Viviamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
• Brett Jackson homered in his only at-bat on Thursday, says David Heck of MiLB.com, who also notes that fellow Cubs prospect, Rafael Dolis, kept his spring ERA perfect with another scoreless inning.
• Xavier Avery went 3-for-4 with two doubles off of Carl Pavano on Thursday, then was replaced in the Orioles lineup by Trent Mummey, who promptly hit a two-run homer, reports Andrew Pentis of MiLB.com.

Blogs Track Teams - 4/26

• Tim Williams of PiratesProspects.com reports on Jeff Locke's up-and-down day and other Pirates action.
• PineTarPress.com has your Royals wrap-up including a solid start from Tim Melville.
• IndiansProspectInsider.com has game recaps for all of the Indians affiliates in action from Monday.
• Josh Norris of MinorMatters.com has Yankees prospect highlights, including another start for Manny Banuelos and another multi-hit day for Slade Heathcott.
• Orioles-Nation.com lets us in on the impressive 2011 Oriole debut of Trent Mummey.
• Doug Gray of RedsMinorLeagues.com reports on Reds prospect results, including a bizarre day at the plate for Yasmani Grandal that saw him appear at the plate five times without recording an official at-bat.
• Steve Foster from InsidetheRockies.com has your Rockies results, including another rough battle for Tyler Matzek against his control problems, and noteworthy performances from Charlie Blackmon and Kyle Parker.
• TalkingChop.com talks about some dominating performances from Braves pitching prospects Julio Teheran and Paul Clemens.
• Jarred Massey of LAdodgertalk.com mentions another good start for Zach Lee and other impressive Dodger prospect performances.