Nick Ahmed sure has taken to the PCL, as most prospects do. He had a monster game last night going 5 for 6 with 2 doubles, a homer and 3 RBI. He's hitting .318 with 22 XBH, 10 SB and an .810 OPS. One good thing about the PCL is it makes our prospects in AAA seem more attractive to other teams. So if/when Ahmed gets traded simply because he's blocked from above he might fetch a hair more than he's really worth, not unlike Matt Davidson and Ryan Wheeler.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: Nick Ahmed, Reno 5 for 6, 3 R, 2 DBL, 1 HR (2), 3 RBI
2 Stars: Mark Thomas, Mobile 2 for 4, 2 R, 2 HR (5), 6 RBI
1 Star: Daniel Palka, South Bend 3 for 4, 2 R, 1 DBL, 2 HR (13), 2 RBI
0 Stars: Marcus Wilson, AZL 0 for 4, 4 K
AAA: Reno 18 Colorado Springs 4. It was a massive hitting fest in Reno as the Aces cranked out 25 hits and 18 runs led by Nick Ahmed's 5-hit night. On the night the team had 8 doubles, a triple and 2 home runs. Bobby Wilson had 4 hits. Andy Marte, Nick Evans and Andy Cunningham each had 3 hits. Danny Dorn had a home run and 5 RBI. Bo Schultz was pretty steady on the mound giving the bullpen some relief with 7 strong innings allowing 4 runs on 8 hits. Newly-promoted Blake Cooper followed with 2 shutout innings.
AA: Mobile 9 Jacksonville 2. Mobile had a laugher of their own scoring 6 times in the first 4 innings in a runaway. Justin Fitzgerald was terrific striking out 10 over 6 innings with just 1 run allowed on 2 hits and 3 walks. Jimmy Sherfy pitched the 7th and struck out the side though he did allow a hit and a walk. Mark Thomas hit 2 home runs including a grand slam in the 4th that really blew the game open. Ryan Court subbed for Jake Lamb and was perfect going 3 for 3 with a walk and 3 runs scored.
A+: Visalia 6 @ Bakersfield 4. Brandon Sinnery was solid allowing 2 runs on 5 hits. Enrique Burgos picked up his 15th save with a clean 9th. Steve McQuail had 2 hits including a double and 3 RBI. Socrates Brito and Brandon Drury each contributed a pair of singles. Daniel Bowman hit his 1st home run of the year.
A: South Bend 5 Great Lakes 2. Blayne Weller was solid allowing 2 runs over 5 innings on 3 hits and 3 walks while striking out 6. The bullpen was even better with 4 shutout innings on 2 hits. Johnny Shuttlesworth got the win with 2 shutout innings, Daniel Gibson pitched a perfect 8th, and Silvino Bracho a perfect 9th for his 12th save. Bracho is sporting a 0.42 ERA with 36 strikeouts against 5 walks in 21 innings. The offense was led by Daniel Palka who went 3 for 4 with 2 home runs giving him 13 on the year.
A-: Hillsboro 0 Vancouver 4. The Hops got shut down getting just 4 hits off Vancouver pitching. Ryan Doran was good, just not good enough going 6+ innings allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 7. 5th round pick fireballer Mason McCullough made his professional debut in the 9th allowing no runs while walking 1 and striking out 1.
R: Missoula 3 Helena 4. Markus Solbach was cruising along with a shutout through 5 innings but got pounced on in the 6th as Helena scored 4 times. The offense couldn't overcome the 1-run deficit. Fernery Ozuna went 3 for 4 with 2 doubles and Trevor Mitzui went 2 for 4 with a double. Phoenix native Kevin Cron made his professional debut going 2 for 4 with a 2-run homer.
AZL: Dbacks 5 Giants 2. 2nd round pick Cody Reed made his professional but only pitched 2/3 of an inning without allowing a run on a hit and a walk. I have no further information on why he was yanked so early. Yefrey Ramirez followed with 5.1 sparkling innings allowing 1 run on 5 hits and a walk while striking out 8 to get the win. Cody Clark pitched the 9th for his 1st save. Jose Herrera and Raul Santana each drove in 2 runs while Henry Castillo and rehabbing Joe Munoz each went 2 for 4.