Double-A (Portland Sea Dogs)
Charlie Madden was hitting .171 in Advanced-A this year but got called up to Double-A when Sandy Leon went on Paternity Leave. In one game, Madden put on an absolute show. The catcher went 3-for-4 with two home runs. How was he rewarded, you ask? By being demoted to Short-A – where the season hasn’t even started yet.
Jhon Nunez is, of course, having a great season himself. The switch-hitting catcher is slashing .306/.351/.472 so far this year. He’s smacked four doubles and one triple, as well as two home runs. The 24-year-old has scored 10 runs, showing off his great speed for the position.
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C.J. Chatham still doesn’t have a home run on the year, but his .313 average makes up for it. The shortstop will never be someone that hits a ton of homers, but his swing is too pretty to not give him a good average. It could also produce a few line drive home runs in the Majors – so that’s at least something.
Bobby Dalbec, on the other hand, will absolutely mash home runs. He’s hit seven so far this year and has 24 RBI to go along with it. The third base prospect also has eight doubles and one triple and a solid .244 average to this point. Dalbec’s average may not be “great” but it’s improved dramatically from just a few weeks ago. He also has a ridiculous 27 walks, leading to a strong .377 OBP.
Baby Bartolo isn’t just back, he’s looking better than he has in a long time. Dedgar Jimenez started the year with a 19.64 ERA after his first two starts (eight earned runs in 3 2/3 innings). Since then, the 23-year-old has allowed just eight earned runs in five starts (31 2/3 innings. For those keeping track at home, that’s a 2.53 ERA (4.15 overall). The left-hander is making waves once again.
Denyi Reyes is also trying to regain old magic. The 22-year-old is down to a 5.49 ERA after allowing just one run on three hits in five innings in his last start. He’s yet to put together back-to-back great starts this year, so let’s see if he can do it this time around.
Kyle Hart, on the other hand, hasn’t really had a bad start all year. The 25-year-old has a 2.77 ERA and 1.03 WHIP in 48 2/3 innings. Opponents are hitting .203 against him and he has 54 strikeouts compared to just 15 walks.
Tanner Houck had two starts this week – one solid and one weak. In his first start, the right-hander struck out seven over 6 2/3 innings – allowing two runs. In his next start though, he only went 3 2/3 innings – allowing four earned runs on seven hits while striking out none. His ERA sits at 5.17 at the moment but he’s shown he can go on dominant runs in the past.
Darwinzon Hernandez is down to a 4.10 ERA in Double-A after allowing three runs in seven innings in his last start. The important thing here was that he walked just two batters while striking out 11.
Adam Lau has a 1.83 ERA in 12 appearances so far this year. He’s walked 12 batters over 19 2/3 innings but has 26 strikeouts in that time as well. The right-hander has kept the walks from hurting him by keeping his opponents to a .175 batting average and giving up just one home run.