Washington Nationals Minor Leagues: Players Of The Week (5/25-5/31)
By Ricky Keeler
Hitter Of The Week: 3B Grant DeBruin (.319, 1 HR, 25 RBI’s)
DeBruin has been one of Hagerstown’s best run scorers over the first two months of the season. This past week, DeBruin had two three-hit performances. Over the course of this past week, the 24-year-old had 11 hits in 25 at-bats, drove in five runs, and walked four times. Out of those 11 hits, three of them were doubles.
It has been a great first two months for DeBruin in his first year with the Nationals organization. He has 53 hits and 25 RBI’s, which leads the team. DeBruin’s average did slip this month, but only from .339 in April to .308 in May. Right now, he is one of the Suns’ most consistent hitters.
Also, this deserves mention in the hitter of the week portion rather than honorable mention. This past week, Jeff Gardner and Osvaldo Abreu kept their hitting streaks alive. While Gardner’s was snapped at 15 games on May 29, Abreu carries a 15-game hitting streak into this week.
Honorable Mention: CF Dale Carey (.256, 5 HR, 21 RBI’s)
The 23-year old outfielder showed off some of his power this week for the Suns. On May 26, against the Greensboro Grasshoppers (Miami Marlins), Carey went deep twice and drove in three runs in a 10-3 Hagerstown win. He had a solo home run in the fifth and a two-run shot in the eighth. Plus, he was hitting out of the leadoff spot that night.
After hitting .191 in April, Carey hit .298 in May with four home runs and 15 RBI’s. In addition, he had a .393 on-base percentage and a .490 slugging percentage. Carey leads the team in homers and is tied for third in hits with 44.
Pitcher Of The Week: SP Austen Williams (6-1, 1.65)
With Valdez now in Potomac, Williams now becomes the sole ace of this Suns rotation. On May 26 against Greensboro, Williams went six innings, gave up two runs on five hits, struck out five, and walked one to record his sixth win of the season. The 22-year-old right-hander has only given up a combined four runs in his last four starts.
In the South Atlantic League, Williams is one of five pitchers who have at least six wins. He is tied with three others for second. He is fifth in the SAL in ERA at 1.65. In five starts this month, Williams went 3-0 with a 2.30 ERA and had 26 strikeouts.
Honorable Mention: RP Mario Sanchez (1-2, 2.81)
Sanchez got his first win of the season out of relief over the past week for the Suns. The 20-year-old made two appearances and gave up no runs over the course of 6.1 innings. Sanchez has struck out two batters in each of his last three relief appearances.
The win that Sanchez recorded came on May 29 against the Kannapolis Intimidators (Chicago White Sox). In that outing, he gave up only one hit in 3.1 innings. In seven appearances this month, which included one start, Sanchez went 1-2 with a 2.37 ERA.