Bryson Smith
Last year's 34th round pick, Bryson Smith, was selected as a four-year college player from the University of Florida. His draft stock took a hit after a DUI arrest early in his senior year. The 23-year old center fielder looked good in limited time last season split between the AZL Reds and Billings, posting a 1.080 OPS in 25 games. Smith skipped Dayton, and started this year in Bakersfield where he picked up right where he left off, slashing .338/.409/.428 so far this season. Over the last 10 games he's been on a tear, with a line of .406/.459/.594 with 3 wangoes and 7 ribeyes.
Henry Rodriguez
Could it be getting close to call-up time for Hank-Rod? Since the kid has been stateside, he has flat-out hit at every level. With 2B locked down by Dat Dude for the foreseeable future, Henry has moved from second to third. It will be interesting to see what the organization decides to do with O'Henry, as his size and lack of power may limit his value at the hot corner. But the young Venezuelan has run off a .395/.439/.421 in the last 10 games, and that definitely deserves a tip of the cap.
Ryan Wright
One of the lone bright spots in Dayton this year has been Ryan "First in Flight" Wright. The Reds 5th round draft pick last year has been playing out of his mind lately, going 20-40 with 8 doubles and 11 RBIs in the last 10 games, which is good for a 1.224 OPS. That is completely insane.
Neftali Soto
After posting the best year of his professional career in 2011, Soto has stumbled out of the gate in Louisville. He's managed just 14 extra-base hits in 191 ABs so far this season, and struggled recognizing the strike zone, whiffing 51 times with just 13 walks.
Juan Duran
I thought the Cali League was supposed to inflate offensive numbers... I guess it helps if you actually put the bat on the ball. The big man has a nightmarish 3/24 BB/K ratio right now and a paltry .606 OPS in 32 games. Yuck.
Curtis Partch
After getting the call up from Bakersfield, where he had a 1.50 ERA in 12 innings of relief, Partch has struggled so far in Wahooville. His command has disappeared since heading to AA, which has in part led him to give up 21 earned runs in 22.2 IP.
- Louisville dropped 2 of 3 to the Indianapolis Indians this weekend. Pedro Villarreal had a decent start, but was tagged with the loss in the 4-1 contest. Willie Harris drove in the only Bats run. [insert Willie Harris joke here.] Sean Gallagher got the win on Saturday, throwing 7 solid innings in a 5-4 victory. On Sunday, the Bats lost 9-4, after having the lead in the 8th inning. A 7 run 9th inning courtesy of Travis Webb, Carlos Fisher and Josh Judy did the Bats in.
- Pensacola also lost 2 of 3 this weekend in their series against the Mississippi Braves. Kyle Lotzkar had a rough start, allowing 5 runs in 3.1 innings in a 6-5 loss. Donnie Joseph got tagged with the loss after giving up a rare earned run. The Wahoos lost again on Saturday, this time falling 7-3. Lil' Cueto looked sharp, fanning 7 over 6 innings while allowing 2 runs, but the bullpen ultimately coughed it up. David Vidal had a nice night at the dish, going 2-4 with a double. Pensacola salvaged the weekend by winning Sunday 7-5. Five different pitchers toed the rubber, none going more than 2.2 innings. Donnie Joseph got back on the good foot and took the save.
- Bakersfield lost all three games this weekend. Billy Hamilton got back on the horse and stole 5 bases in 3 games, bringing his season total up to 49 in 45 games. Donald Lutz has been nursing a gimpy foot, but that didn't stop the Bakersfield Californian from posting this piece on the Brauner Hulk.
- Dayton (surprisingly) took two of three this weekend. They lost to the Lugnuts 8-7 on Friday, thanks to a poor start from Rowdy Radhames Quezada in which he gave up 6 runs in 3 innings. On Saturday, the Dragons started a series against the West Michigan White Caps. They took the first game in a back and forth affair, and then came back from behind on Sunday. On Sunday, Stalin Gerson threw seven innings giving up 3 ER with 5 Ks and no walks, and Kyle Waldrop went 3-4 with a dinger and 2 runs batted in.