Washington Nationals Minor Leagues: Players Of The Week (6/22-6/28)

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

Syracuse Chiefs (26-51)

 Hitter Of The Week: 3B Mario Lisson (.273, 1 HR, 9 RBI’s)

Last week, I talked about Kevin Keyes and Rick Hague having excellent weeks in their first few games at the triple-A level. However, 31-year-old Mario Lisson deserves some recognition. He was promoted from double-A Harrisburg to Syracuse early this month. While the Chiefs did struggle on offense this week, Lisson was still able to get his hits in bunches.

In the Chiefs’ three-game series against the Charlotte Knights (Chicago White Sox), he went 6-for-10 with two runs scored, a RBI, and a double. During his 2015 season in both Harrisburg and Syracuse, Lisson is hitting .279 with five home runs and 29 RBI’s.

Honorable Mention: RF Darin Mastroianni (.254, 3 HR, 19 RBI’s)

Mastroianni only had five hits this week, but the 29-year-old right fielder was the only run producer in Syracuse’s 2-1 win on Monday against Charlotte. In that game, he went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, two RBI’s, and a stolen base.

Mastroainni’s 13 stolen bases are the most of any player on the Syracuse team, but keep in mind, that combines his stolen bases from Lehigh Valley as well. He has been one of the key contributors out of the leadoff spot this season as he has an on-base percentage of .327 when he bats first.

Pitcher Of The Week: P P.J. Walters (3-1, 5.33 ERA)

While Walters has only appeared in five games with the Chiefs since being traded from the Dodgers, he gets the nod for pitcher of the week because he did well in both outings this week, one as a starter and one as a reliever.

In his first outing on June 23 against Charlotte, he threw two innings in relief of Taylor Hill. He went two innings, gave up three hits, struck out three, and walked one in a 4-3 win for the Chiefs. Then, he got the start on June 26 against the Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh Pirates). He went six innings, gave up three runs on five hits, struck out three, and walked two in a no-decision. While Walters has a 6.23 ERA in three starts with Syracuse, opponents are only hitting .219 against him.

 Honorable Mention: SP Paolo Espino (2-1, 1.91)

This past week, Espino was the only pitcher to record a win for Syracuse. In his first start of the week on June 22 against Charlotte, he threw seven innings, gave up five hits, struck out six, and walked two to pick up the win. Then, on June 27, he gave up four runs on six hits in 5.1 innings of work in a 4-0 loss to Indianapolis. While the 28-year-old pitched well, it was his first loss since he was with double-A Harrisburg on May 14. In the month of June, he went 1-1 with a 2.16 ERA in five starts and had a 5:1 strikeout to walk ratio.

Next: Double-A