Washington Nationals Minor Leagues: Players Of The Week (6/29-7/5)

(Nick Pivetta – Photo Credit: Hagerstown Suns/MILB.com)

It’s Monday, which means it is time for another edition of Washington Nationals Minor League Monday. Every week, we take a look back at who were the best players in the Nats farm system during that particular week. Entering the second week of July, all of the affiliates are underway and some like Potomac and Hagerstown are in the second halves of their respective seasons.

This past week, we found out the names of who would be playing in the double-A and triple-A All-Star games. Both of these games will take place during the Major League All-Star break. The Harrisburg Senators had four players selected: catcher Pedro Severino, right-handed starter Austin Voth, and right-handed relievers Paul Demny (who is now at triple-A Syracuse), and Gilberto Mendez. That game will be played July 15 in Portland, Maine.

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• CJ Abrams: Franchise Shortstop

As for the Syracuse Chiefs, they will only have one player representing them at the July 15 game in Omaha, Nebraska. That player is shortstop Jason Martinson. The 26-year-old is hitting .242 this season with 12 home runs and 36 RBI’s.

The story of the week in the Nats farm system was down at high-A Potomac. Aaron Barrett began his process of getting back to the Nats in two rehab appearances. He gave up one run (none earned) on two hits, struck out two, and walked one. Barrett was nearly part of history on July 1 as he nearly combined with Lucas Giolito and Manny Rodriguez for a no-hitter against Frederick, but they came up two outs short. Yesterday, Nick Pivetta came close to history of his own as he took a perfect game into the seventh during Potomac’s 3-1 win over Wilmington.

Here are our Minor League hitters and pitchers of the week. Stats are as of July 5, 2015:

Next: Triple-A

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

 Syracuse Chiefs (30-54)

 Hitter Of The Week: RF Kevin Keyes (.325, 3 HR, 17 RBI’s)

Keyes has only been with the Syracuse Chiefs for three weeks, but this is the second time that he has been named hitter of the week. His best performance this week came on July 1 against the Louisville Bats (Cincinnati Reds). He went 4-for-5 with two home runs, five RBI’s, and scored three runs.

This past week, the 26-year-old right fielder was 9-for-26 at the plate with three home runs and nine RBI’s. In 20 games with the triple-A club, he has a slugging percentage of .525 and ten of his 26 hits have been for extra bases, which includes seven doubles. Right now, Keyes has adjusted to International League pitching and is locked in at the plate.

Honorable Mention: SS/3B Jason Martinson (.242, 12 HR, 36 RBI’s)

With Emmanuel Burriss now with the big league club, Martinson has had to move over to third base as Trea Turner now plays shortstop for the Chiefs. However, that hasn’t stopped the IL All-Star from contributing with the bat. On July 4 against Pawtucket (Boston Red Sox), Martinson went 3-for-5 with two home runs and four RBI’s.

This past week, the 26-year-old shortstop went 9-for-31 with two home runs and eight RBI’s. He did hit .239 in June, but had the most home runs (four) that he had in any other month this season. His 12 home runs lead the team and he is tied for fourth in the entire league in that category.

Pitcher Of The Week: SP Bruce Billings (4-3, 3.82 ERA)

This past week, Billings was able to win both games he appeared in against Louisville and Pawtucket respectively. Against Louisville on June 29, Billings came in for A.J. Cole and threw four shutout innings, giving up three hits, and striking out three batters. Then, on July 4, Billings did give up four runs on eight hits over five innings, but he struck out seven and got great run support to get the win.

In six games (two starts) during the month of June, the 26-year-old right-hander went 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA. He has given up one earned run or fewer in four of his last six outings. Even though Billings is mainly in the bullpen now, one of the Nats non-roster invitees this spring is doing a good job in his new role.

Honorable Mention: SP Joe Ross (1-1, 3.60)

Ross was able to get his first win with the Chiefs on July 1 against Louisville. He went five innings, gave up one run on four hits, struck out one, and walked one in Syracuse’s 10-1 win. While Ross hasn’t been dominant at the triple-A level, he has still only given up two runs in ten innings of work over his two starts.

Plus, he is still showing good control as he has only walked one batter in each start. The 22-year-old right-hander made a good impression on the Nats when he was with the big league club, going 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA in three starts. He struck out 23 batters and walked two over that time period.

Next: Double-A

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

Harrisburg Senators (40-43)

 Hitter Of The Week: 3B Matt Skole (.248, 11 HR, 50 RBI’s)

While Skole was not named an Eastern League All-Star this week, he was given a different honor. Today, he was named player of the week in the Eastern League and for good reason. At the plate, he was 12-for-26 with a home run and eight RBI’s. His best game of the week came on July 1 against the Richmond Flying Squirrels (San Francisco Giants).

The third baseman went 4-for-6 with a solo home run and two RBI’s. Plus, he hit a walk-off double to win the game in the bottom of the 13^th inning. During the month of June, the 25-year-old hit .290 with three home runs and 23 RBI’s. Skole has always had the power, but he put it together by racking up the hits and home runs.

Honorable Mention: SS Wilmer Difo (.296, 3 HR, 30 RBI’s)

Lately, all the talk about shortstops in the Nationals’ organization has been about Trea Turner, but you can’t forget about Wilmer Difo. This past week, the 23-year-old went 8-for-28 at the plate with six RBI’s and a pair of stolen bases.

On July 4, against the Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates), Difo went 3-for-5 with a run scored and four RBI’s in Harrisburg’s 11-9 win. In the first five games of July, he is hitting .318 with no home runs and six RBI’s. He is not stealing as many bases, but when he does, he has nine of them on ten tries.

Pitcher Of The Week: SP Austin Voth (3-5, 3.44 ERA)

The Eastern League All-Star made one start this past week against the Flying Squirrels. He threw six shutout innings, gave up five hits, struck out five, and walked three. While the walks are high, this is the second straight start in which Voth shutout the Flying Squirrels lineup (June 16).

One thing that Voth has done for the Harrisburg rotation is that he has gone deep into games. He has pitched into the sixth inning or later in six of his last seven starts. In five starts during the month of June, he went 1-2 with a 3.68 ERA and struck out 29 batters in 29.1 innings.

Honorable Mention: SP Richard Bleier (6-3, 2.96)

Bleier made two starts with the Senators this week and went 1-1 in those outings. On June 30, against the Richmond Flying Squirrels, he went seven shutout innings, gave up six hits, struck out two, and walked one to record his sixth win of the season.

While he struggled a little bit against the Altoona Curve Sunday when he gave up three runs on ten hits over six innings in a loss, it was still another quality outing for the 28-year-old left-hander. Bleier has now given up three runs or fewer in six of his last seven starts. In six starts during the month of June, he went 3-1 with a 1.70 ERA and walked only four batters in 42.1 innings.

Next: High-A

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

Potomac Nationals (40-40)

Hitter Of The Week: C Spencer Kieboom (.260, 1 HR, 22 RBI’s)

Kieboom played in only five games this week, but he recorded a hit in each of the five games that he appeared in. Kieboom, who is currently on a seven game hit streak, went 6-for-21 at the plate with seven RBI’s. On June 29, against the Carolina Mudcats, he went 2-for-4 with three RBI’s.

The 24-year-old catcher had multiple RBI’s in three of the five games he played in. During the month of June, the Carolina League All-Star hit .254 with three RBI’s and two of those came in the one game vs. the Braves’ affiliate. It’s been a solid season for Kieboom and the young catcher will look to keep that hit streak going this week.

Honorable Mention: CF Alec Keller (.440, 0 HR, 3 RBI’s)

Keller makes the list for the first time since being promoted from low-A Hagerstown to Potomac a week ago along with first baseman Grant DeBruin, who hit his first home run in high-A. In three of the six games he played in, the 23-year-old hit in the number nine spot, but he put up some quality production.

Keller went 11-for-25 with three RBI’s this past week. Nine of those 11 hits came within a three-day period (July 2-July 4). On July 4 against Wilmington, Keller went 4-for-6 with a double, a triple, and two RBI’s. He had the walk-off hit in that game when he singled in the bottom of 14^th. That game, which finished on July 5, was suspended on July 4 due to fog in the 13^th inning. With Hagerstown, he hit .302 with 74 hits and 18 RBI’s in 61 games.

Pitcher Of The Week: SP Nick Pivetta (7-4, 2.29)

As I mentioned in the opening slide, it was an excellent week for pitchers in the Potomac rotation. Yesterday, Pivetta was on the verge of history when he retired the first 19 Wilmington hitters he faced before Jack Lopez reached on an infield single. Nevertheless, Pivetta was dominant in this one. He went seven innings, gave up one run two hits, struck out nine, and did not walk a batter.

Earlier in the week, Pivetta pitched on June 30 against Carolina and gave up one run on two hits over six innings. He struck out four and walked three in a no-decision. Over his last 20 innings, the 22-year-old right-hander has given up three runs on ten hits and struck out 20 batters. He went 3-0 in four starts during the month of June with a 2.63 ERA.

Honorable Mention: SP Lucas Giolito (3-4, 3.08)

In his lone start of the week on July 1, Giolito entered the game for Aaron Barrett after his rehab appearance and was able to shut down the Frederick lineup. He threw seven no-hit innings, struck out seven batters, and walked one. This is impressive because it showed the potential Giolito has to be unhittable and that he hadn’t pitched a full game after his start against Wilmington on June 25 got postponed due to rain.

During that outing against the O’s affiliate last Wednesday, Giolito induced nine groundball outs in addition to the seven strikeouts. In the month of June, the 20-year-old right-hander went 1-0 in five starts with a 2.31 ERA. He struck out 30 batters and walked eight in 23.1 innings of work. He will be heading to Cincinnati this week to take part in the Futures Game.

Next: Low-A

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

Hagerstown Suns (40-39)

Hitter Of The Week: SS Osvaldo Abreu (.285, 4 HR, 26 RBI’s)

The Hagerstown shortstop has been on fire over the last four days in the South Atlantic League. This week, Abreu went 10-for-26 at the plate with three RBI’s, but eight of those hits have come in the last four games. On July 2, against the Greensboro Grasshoppers (Miami Marlins), he went 4-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.

In nine games out of the leadoff spot this season, the 21-year-old shortstop is hitting .343 with three RBI’s. He hit .250 in the month of June with two home runs and 11 RBI’s. Despite those struggles, Abreu has had a great start to July, hitting .444 in five games with four doubles.

Honorable Mention: 1B Jose Marmolejos-Diaz (.279, 6 HR, 41 RBI’s)

With DeBruin now in high-A, Marmolejos-Diaz is now one of the main power hitters in this lineup. This week, the 22-year-old first baseman went 9-for-29 with seven RBI’s. He had four hits and a home run in the two games of a doubleheader against the Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles) on June 29. Marmolejos-Diaz’s 41 RBI’s leads the team and he is eighth in the South Atlantic League in that category. In addition, he is third in the SAL in doubles with 20. During the month of June, he hit .274 with two home runs and 18 RBI’s.

Pitcher Of The Week: SP Austen Williams (8-1, 2.10 ERA)

Williams has been a constant as the Suns’ pitcher of the week and this past week was no different. In two starts this past week, he went 2-0, threw a combined 12 innings, gave up five runs on nine hits, struck out nine batters, and walked three. Last night, against the Lakewood BlueClaws (Philadelphia Phillies), he went six innings, gave up three runs on five hits, struck out four, and walked one.

The 22-year-old right-hander has been dominating South Atlantic League offenses this season. In the month of June, the SAL All-Star went 1-0 in three starts with a 2.50 ERA. He has not lost a start in the SAL since April 9 against Hickory. He is second in the league in ERA, fifth in WHIP, and is tied for fifth in wins.

Honorable Mention: P Connor Bach (2-1, 3.21)

While Bach wasn’t as dominant as he was on June 26, when he threw 5.1 no-hit innings of relief against Delmarva, he was pretty close. On July 2, the 23-year-old left-hander got the start against Greensboro. He went six innings, gave up no runs on two hits, struck out eight batters, and walked three in a 5-0 win.

Bach not given up a run in his last 11.1 innings and has struck out 14 batters. He only made one start in June, but had a 3.12 ERA in four appearances. Bach’s 62 strikeouts are one behind Austen Williams for the team lead.

Next: New York-Penn League