Baseball America Prospect Report — Sept. 1, 2020
Image credit: Spencer Howard (Hunter Martin/Getty)
Baltimore Orioles
—Lefthander Keegan Akin took his first turn in the Orioles’ rotation and pitched 4.1 innings of two-run (none earned) ball in Buffalo against the Blue Jays. He struck out six and walked two. He got nine swings and misses in 81 pitches and topped out at 96 mph with his four-seam fastball.
—Outfielder Ryan Mountcastle went 1-for-4 with a single struck at 103.4 mph against Toronto reliever Ryan Borucki. The single was the second hardest-hit ball of his career, just behind a 104.1 mph home run.
Boston Red Sox
—At Boston’s alternate site in Pawtucket, Red Sox No. 1 prospect Triston Casas hit a monster home run. Check out this 414-foot blast off of Marcus Walden.
Chicago White Sox
—Luis Robert crushed his 10th home run, a 449-foot shot to center field, and went 2-for-4 with two RBIs in the team’s win over the Twins. The 23-year-old center fielder, who is hitting .298 and leads rookies in homers (10) and RBIs (24), has hit three dingers and driven in six over his last four games.
—Nick Madrigal added two more hits and is 7-for-13 since returning from the injured list on Aug. 28. The plus hitter has 12 hits, all singles, in 29 at-bats.
Cincinnati Reds
—Shogo Akiyama continues to struggle after signing a three-year, $21 million deal with the Reds in January. The 32-year-old outfielder, who went hitless in three at-bats in the team’s loss to the Cardinals on Monday, is 3-for-22 in his last seven games and has hit just .189 on the season.
Miami Marlins
—Lefthander Trevor Rogers made the second start of his big league career and was impressive once again. He struck out five in five innings of two-run ball. The effort was good enough for his first big league win, over two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom. He got 10 swings and misses in 89 pitches, including four of his five strikeouts. Of his 89 pitches, just four were breaking balls (sliders). Sixty-two of those pitches were either four-seamers or sinkers.
Milwaukee Brewers
—No. 6 prospect Drew Rasmussen pitched two innings of one-run ball against the Pirates on Monday, allowing two hits and two walks and striking out two. The 2018 sixth-rounder from Oregon State, who averaged 97.8 mph on his fastball and induced four swings and misses with the pitch, has struck out seven and walked four in 7.1 innings.
—No. 17 prospect Devin Williams stifled hitters once again, striking out four in 1.2 scoreless innings while walking one to earn his third big league win. The 25-year-old righthander led the way with his plus-plus changeup, inducing six swings and misses with the pitch and two more with his fastball that averaged 96.3 mph. Williams has struck out 29 batters in 14 innings, walking six and allowing four hits.
New York Mets
—Andres Gimenez went 1-for-1 with a pinch-hit single in his team’s loss to the Marlins. The Mets’ No. 6 prospect is now 16-for-62 to start his big league career.
New York Yankees
—Righthander Miguel Yajure, the Yankees’ No. 11 prospect, spun three scoreless innings in his big league debut. Yajure missed the 2017 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, then dazzled in 2019 while ascending to Double-A Trenton. He also has the best control among Yankees prospects. Yajure’s first big league strikeout came against Tampa Bay’s Willy Adames, on a nasty changeup. He also showed off a downer curveball which he spun over the course of 12 pitches at an average of 2,670 rpms.
Philadelphia Phillies
—Third baseman Alec Bohm, the team’s No. 2 prospect, went 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI in the Phillies’ win over Washington on Monday. His hit, a double, left the bat at 107.1 mph, marking his third exit velo of 107 mph or more this season.
—Righthander Spencer Howard, the Phillies’ top prospect, picked up the first win of his big league career by pitching five innings of two-run ball. He did allow a home run, but it was to Juan Soto, so it’s understandable. He got his revenge on Soto by getting him to swing through a changeup for one of his four strikeouts and one of his six swings and misses. Howard’s four-seam fastball topped out at 97 mph.
—Lefthander JoJo Romero pitched 1.1 scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts, including one of Nats’ No. 2 prospect Luis Garcia.
San Diego Padres
—Jake Cronenworth extended his on-base streak to 17 games against the Rockies on Monday. The 26-year-old scored once and collected his third triple, tied for most in the National League, and is hitting .356 in 101 at-bats.
—Adrian Morejon picked up his first big league win, pitching three scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out two. The 21-year-old lefthander has struck out nine and walked two in 7.2 innings.
St. Louis Cardinals
—No. 1 prospect Dylan Carlson went 0-for-4 in the team’s win over the Reds on Monday, lowering his average to .176 in 68 at-bats. The 2016 first-round pick is in the midst of a 1-for-12 slump since his six-game hit streak ended on Aug. 28.
Tampa Bay Rays
—Randy Arozarena, whom the Rays acquired from the Cardinals in the offseason along with Jose Martinez (who has since been dealt to the Cubs), collected his first hit as a Ray on Monday evening.
Toronto Blue Jays
—Righthander Thomas Hatch continued his stellar relief work with 1.2 innings of perfect ball against Baltimore. He struck out one batter, Mason Williams, and topped out at 98 mph with his four-seam fastball.
HITTERS
| TEAM | CLASS | PLAYER | AB | R | H | BI | AVG | NOTES |
| BAL | MAJ | Mountcastle, Ryan LF | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .364 | |
| BOS | MAJ | Dalbec, Bobby DH | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | |
| COL | MAJ | Hilliard, Sam CF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .239 | |
| CWS | MAJ | Madrigal, Nick 2B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .400 | |
| CWS | MAJ | Mendick, Danny 3B | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .232 | |
| CWS | MAJ | Robert, Luis CF | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | .296 | 2B (8), HR (10), BB (10) |
| LAA | MAJ | Adell, Jo RF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .173 | |
| LAA | MAJ | Jones, Jahmai PR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| LAA | MAJ | Walsh, Jared 1B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | |
| MIA | MAJ | Diaz, Lewin 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .171 | 2B (2) |
| MIA | MAJ | Sanchez, Jesus RF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .038 | |
| MIN | MAJ | Jeffers, Ryan C | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .300 | BB (1) |
| NYM | MAJ | Gimenez, Andres PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .270 | |
| PHI | MAJ | Bohm, Alec 3B | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .275 | 2B (4) |
| SD | MAJ | Cronenworth, Jake 2B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .365 | 3B (3) |
| SEA | MAJ | Fraley, Jake RF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .174 | 3B (1), CS (1) |
| SEA | MAJ | Haggerty, Sam LF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .294 | 2B (5) |
| SEA | MAJ | Lewis, Kyle CF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .323 | |
| SEA | MAJ | Walton, Donnie 2B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | BB (1) |
| SEA | MAJ | White, Evan 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .163 | |
| STL | MAJ | Carlson, Dylan CF-LF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .176 | |
| STL | MAJ | Thomas, Lane RF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | BB (2) |
| TB | MAJ | Arozarena, Randy DH | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .200 | BB (2), SB (1) |
| TOR | MAJ | Espinal, Santiago SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | |
| WAS | MAJ | Garcia, Luis 2B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .255 |
PITCHERS
| TEAM | CLASS | PLAYER | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | ERA | NOTES |
| BAL | MAJ | Akin, Keegan | 4.1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 3.52 | |
| BAL | MAJ | Tate, Dillon | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3.12 | |
| CLE | MAJ | Karinchak, James | 0.1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2.00 | |
| CWS | MAJ | Heuer, Codi | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.27 | |
| MIA | MAJ | Rogers, Trevor | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2.57 | W (2-0) |
| MIL | MAJ | Rasmussen, Drew | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3.68 | |
| MIL | MAJ | Williams, Devin | 1.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0.64 | W (3-1) |
| NYY | MAJ | Nelson, Nick | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7.45 | |
| NYY | MAJ | Yajure, Miguel | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0.00 | |
| PHI | MAJ | Howard, Spencer | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5.91 | W (1-2) |
| PHI | MAJ | Romero, JoJo | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 | |
| SD | MAJ | Morejon, Adrian | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.52 | W (1-0) |
| STL | MAJ | Woodford, Jake | 0.1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4.22 | |
| TB | MAJ | Fairbanks, Peter | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.70 |
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