We’re back for the May Minor League Awards, continuing our series from last year. To be up for an award, players need to be our version of prospect-eligible (no major league service time and at least in Single-A or higher).
Sometimes the rules will be bent a little in order to get a pitcher into a category he may not fit perfectly into (shoutout to my guy Denzel Washington because this is not a democracy, this is a dictatorship). Let's get into May's award winners, named after Red Sox minor league legends of the past.
Dedgar Jimenez Award (starting pitcher of the month)
Winner: Anthony Eyanson
Runner-ups: Blake Wehunt, Barrett Morgan, Cole Tolbert, Jacob Mayers
Anthony Eyanson takes the award despite Blake Wehunt actually having a slightly lower ERA (2.08 compared to 2.16). That’s because Eyanson’s WHIP and BAA are significantly lower.
Eyanson made his Double-A debut on May 10 and has looked just as good there as he did in High-A. On May 19, he threw five no-hit innings. Then, on May 26, he struck out eight batters in four innings.
Boston’s pitching lab continues to pump out elite arms in the minor league system. It’s hard not to get excited about Eyanson. He’s making mincemeat of his opponent at every level.
Overall, the right-handed pitcher posted a 2.16 ERA, .132 BAA, and 0.93 WHIP in four starts between High-A and Double-A in May. He struck out 23 batters and walked nine in 16 2/3 innings. Eyanson even picked up his first professional win this month.
Joan Martinez Award (relief pitcher of the month)
Winner: Wuilliams Rodriguez
Runner-ups: Caleb Bolden, Max Carlson
Wuilliams Rodriguez certainly stepped up his game this month. The right-handed pitcher posted a 2.03 ERA, .149 BAA, and 0.68 WHIP over eight appearances. Rodriguez picked up two saves in May (both coming in his last two outings).
The 20-year-old struck out 10 batters and walked two in 13 1/3 innings. He allowed two home runs this month, but they came in his first two appearances.
In fact, Rodriguez allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits (two homers) in four innings over his first two outings of the month. He allowed one unearned run on one hit over the final six appearances (9 1/3 innings) in May.
Chih-Hsien Chiang Award (offensive player of the month)
Winner: Jack Winnay
Runner-ups: Mason White, Brooks Brannon, Franklin Arias, Johanfran Garcia
This was easily the hardest category to award. Shoutout to some of the runner-ups. Johanfran Garcia and Brooks Brannon crushed baseballs in May, and Franklin Arias was Franklin Arias. However, this was a race between Mason White and Jack Winnay.
White slashed .342/.425/.618 with four doubles, one triple, and five home runs in May. He drove in 17 runs and scored 12. The left-handed hitter struck out 24.1% of the time and walked 10.3% of the time.
Winnay slashed .290/.490/.623 with two doubles and seven home runs in May. He drove in 14 runs and scored 20. The right-handed hitter had a 23.5% strikeout rate and a 26.5% walk rate.
Winnay had a lower batting average and didn’t drive in as many runs, but that walk rate is bonkers. Winnay and White both had special months, and both could have breakout campaigns this year, but Winnay’s OBP and seven home runs give him the edge in May.
Deiner Lopez Award (defensive player of the month)
Winner: Nelly Taylor
Runner-ups: Ahbram Liendo, Franklin Arias, Isaiah Jackson, Stanley Tucker
It would be easy to give this award to the top prospect in the system, in Franklin Arias. He’s so smooth at first base that he makes a lot of difficult plays look easy. Isaiah Jackson is constantly impressing in the outfield. Stanley Tucker does it all, no matter where you stick him in the field. You could even point to someone like Justin Gonzales and his bonkers arm in right field, or Marvin Alcantara and Ahbram Liendo continuing to be electric in the infield for Portland. Miguel Bleis is still special, too.
However, I’m sticking with someone who is a staple of this award at this point: Nelly Taylor. Even when the bat isn’t going for him, you know Taylor is going to give you Gold Glove defense on a nightly basis in the outfield.
The 23-year-old has played all three outfield spots this season, and he’s made web gems in all three. Taylor doesn’t let that offensive slump carry over to defense. It would be easy for a prospect to want to protect his body, knowing that if he’s not hitting, he might not play and might not get a chance to prove himself, and hurt his odds of making it to the big leagues. But Taylor is going out there and putting his body on the line defensively to help his team. Gamer.
Danny Mars Award (baserunner of the month)
Winner: Braiden Ward
Runner-ups: Andrews Opata, Nelly Taylor, Marvin Alcantara
In a normal month, Andrews Opata and Taylor would’ve been in a dog fight for the title. Shoutout to Alcantara, who went a perfect 7-for-7 on stolen base attempts and stretched for a few doubles. Meanwhile, Taylor started to get warmer at the plate and stole 11 bases on 13 attempts in May. If he has a big June at the plate, he could take the award next month. He stole 12 bases in April, and he stole 12 more in May.
However, Braiden Ward went 15-for-15 on stolen base attempts this month. He gets on base by bunting and forcing errors. Then he’ll move over to third on failed pickoff attempts or balks. It’s an absolute mess, and I love it.
Ward didn’t have his best month, but still managed to get on base at a .351 clip. That is more than enough for him to create havoc. He’s tied for the organizational lead (with Opata) with 24 steals this season.
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