Taken in the 4th round of last year's draft Matt McPhearson was rated by some as the fastest player in the 2013 draft. He didn't get a chance to fully demonstrate that speed much in his first year because he simply didn't hit much. He did manage a .311 OBP even though he only hit .200 and he did swipe 15 bases in 42 games. His poor season got him a return ticket to the AZL Rookie League and he's taking full advantage hitting .417 in his first 8 games with a .475 OBP. That is giving him more base-stealing opportunities and the diminutive center fielder has responded with 6 steals. Do the math. At that rate he would steal 90 bases over 120 games. A few more weeks like that and he'll find himself in Missoula next.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: Marty Herum, South Bend 2 for 4, 2 R, 1 DBL, 1 HR (3), 5 RBI
2 Stars: Elvin Soto, Hillsboro 4 for 5, 1 R, 1 TPL
1 Star: Tyler Bolton, Missoula 6 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 5 K, 1 ER, W (2-0)
0 Stars: Zac Curtis, Hillsboro 1 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 3 ER, BS, L (0-1)
AAA: Reno 2 @ Tacoma 6. Zeke Spruill put his team in a hole with 6 runs allowed in 5 innings and the offense only responded with 2 of its own. Blake Cooper had 2 shutout innings in relief. The offense only came up with 6 hits, 2 from Andy Marte and 2 from Argenis Diaz.
AA: Mobile 6 @ Jackson 5. Dustin Martin was the hero of the day when he clubbed a 2-out, 2-run homer in the top of the 9th to give Mobile a 6-5 win. Bradin Hagens got the start allowing 3 runs (2 earned) in 5 innings. But it was RJ Hively who made things tough when he surrendered 2 runs to give Jackson a 5-4 lead. After Martin's heroics Kaleb Fleck closed it out with 2 strikeouts in the 9th. The offense collected 12 hits with 3 from Evan Marzilli. Jake Lamb went 2 for 4 with a walk. Todd Glaesmann was 2 for 4 with a double and 2 RBI. And Sean Jamieson added a pair of singles.
A+: Visalia - Off Day
A: South Bend 10 Fort Wayne 3. Sean Furney had a nice start allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits and a walk while striking out 6. The offense had it going with Marty Herum doing the most damage with a double, a home run and 5 RBI. Daniel Palka was 2 for 4 including his 15th home run and 63rd RBI in his 78th game. Michael Perez walked 4 times and scored 2 runs.
A-: Hillsboro 4 Everett 5. It looked like the Hops had this one in the bag with a 2-run lead and Zac Curtis coming on for the save. Unfortunately Curtis hit his first bump in the road as a professional and surrendered 3 runs on 3 hits and a walk that made Everett a winner. Catcher Elvin Soto had a big game going 4 for 5 with a triple. Bennie Robinson went 2 for 4.
R: Missoula 3 @ Great Falls 2. 33rd round pick Tyler Bolton had his second consecutive sharp start allowing just a solo home run over 6 innings, earning his second win. Reliever Kevin Simmons did the job with 3 innings of relief to earn his 1st professional save. Trevor Mitsui was perfect going 2 for 2 with a couple of walks. Sergio Alcantara stole his 4th base in 8 games.
AZL: Dbacks 8 @ Reds 6. The Dbacks eked out a win in this back-and-forth affair in spite of getting 14 hits and leaving 12 runners stranded. Anfernee Benitez started and was so-so allowing 5 runs (3 earned) in 5+ innings of work. Henry Castillo stayed hot going 3 for 5 while Luis Veras also picked up 3 hits. Anthony Bazzani earned his first professional save with a perfect 9th.