Red Sox Double-A (Portland)
Nick Yorke had a big week. The right-handed hitting second baseman went 8-for-24 with two doubles, two home runs, and 11 RBI. He's now slashing .297/.401/.500 with nine doubles, three triples, and eight home runs. Yorke has driven in 30 runs, scored 42 more, and stolen six bases. One of the best hit tools I've seen from a prospect.
Ceddanne Rafaela ended his 14-game hitting streak this week but continues to mash. The right-handed hitting centerfielder has a .285/.324/.420 slash line with 13 doubles and five home runs. He's driven in 34 runs, scored 36 more, and stolen 27 bases. Rafaela's pushing on the Triple-A door.
Marcelo Mayer doesn't have the best numbers through 10 Double-A games, but he did mash two home runs this week. The left-handed hitting shortstop has a .261/.337/.484 slash line with 12 doubles, one triple, and nine home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 40 runs, scored 27 more, and stolen eight bases.
Chase Meidroth continues to hit and is even flexing some home run muscle with two this week. The right-handed hitting second baseman is slashing .323/.467/.465 with seven doubles and five home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 26 runs, scored 31 more, and stolen seven bases. Meidroth has walked more times (37) than he's struck out (36).
Nathan Hickey's back from a short stint on the IL. The left-handed hitting catcher is slashing .284/.372/.545 with nine doubles, one triple, and eight home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 22 runs and scored 22 more.
Matt Donlan got his first Double-A hit this week. The right-handed hitting catcher is 1-for-4 with a walk in two games. He's only appeared in 10 games since signing last season as an undrafted free agent. Donlan is an interesting prospect that the team must see something in if they already have him in Double-A.
Corey Rosier continues to hit. The left-handed hitting outfielder has a .306/.363/.438 slash line with nine doubles, two triples, and two home runs. He's driven in 15 runs, scored 27 more, and stolen 24 bases.
Phillip Sikes has a .240/.320/.358 slash line with 11 doubles, two triples, and two home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has 17 RBI, 30 runs scored, and 23 steals.
Matthew Lugo has struggled a bit this season, slashing .237/.261/.397 However, the right-handed hitting third baseman has hit 13 doubles, one triple, and two home runs. He's driven in 20 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen four bases. Lugo is also adding versatility by learning left field.
Tyler Dearden is having a quietly strong season. The left-handed hitting outfielder holds a .264/.347/.379 slash line with two doubles, one triple, and two home runs. He's driven in 12 runs and scored 11 more. Dearden doesn't get a lot of playing time but tends to capitalize when he does.
Niko Kavadas has struck out a lot but is being effective otherwise. The left-handed hitting first baseman has a .220/.396/.421 with five doubles and nine home runs. He's driven in 31 runs, scored 22 more, and stolen one base.
Brian Van Belle can't stop pitching gems. The right-handed pitcher has a 2.81 ERA, .241 BAA, and 1.19 WHIP in 64 innings. He's struck out 52 batters compared to 20 walks. BVB is a guaranteed five-plus innings every time out.
CJ Liu didn't have the best performance this week, but he managed to stay effective. The right-handed pitcher has a 3.93 ERA, .242 BAA, and 1.41 WHIP. He's struck out 59 batters and walked 28 over 52 2/3 innings.
Grant Gambrell had a tough first few innings in his lone start this week. The righty starter settled in and ended up posting a solid line of five runs (four earned) over six innings. He has a 2.60 ERA, .180 BAA, 1.01 WHIP, and 24 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings in Double-A.
Luis Guerrero is cooking in Double-A, and it feels like it's time for a new challenge. The right-handed reliever has a 1.05 ERA, .133 BAA, and 1.09 WHIP in 25 2/3 innings. He's struck out 20 batters and walked 17. Guerrero only has nine walks in his last 16 2/3 innings, though, cleaning up the act a bit.
Ryan Fernandez tossed four shutout innings over two appearances this week. The righty reliever gave up just two hits and one walk while striking out eight batters in that time. He has a 1.59 ERA, .188 BAA, and 0.97 WHIP in 22 2/3 innings. Fernandez has struck out 31 batters and only walked seven.
Ryan Zeferjahn also tossed four scoreless innings over two appearances this week. The left-handed reliever walked three batters and didn't allow a hit while striking out nine batters. Zeferjahn has a 3.52 ERA, .200 BAA, and 1.37 WHIP in 15 1/3 innings between Single-A and Double-A. He's struck out 25 batters and walked 10.