Washington Nationals Minor Leagues: Players Of The Week (7/20-7/26)

(Photo Credit: MILB.com)

Hagerstown Suns (49-49)

Hitter Of The Week: 1B Jose Marmolejos-Diaz (.292, 8 HR, 56 RBI’s)

Marmolejos-Diaz has been a constant force in the Suns lineup and has continued his great month of July at the plate. This week, he went 12-for-24 at the plate with a home run and six RBI’s. In the six games that he played, he had three hits in three of them. Plus, the 22-year-old has recorded a RBI in each of his last five games.

In 24 games this month, the first baseman is hitting .322 with two home runs and 18 RBI’s. Out of the 29 hits that he has had, 11 of them have been for extra-bases. His 56 RBI’s are tied for second in the South Atlantic League and are two behind the league lead.

Honorable Mention: LF Jeff Gardner (.241, 4 HR, 37 RBI’s)

While Gardner only played in four games this week, the 23-year-old was still able to put up eight RBI’s. He was 5-for-13 at the plate with one of those hits being a double. Against the Savannah Sand Gnats (New York Mets) on July 23, Gardner went 2-for-4 with five RBI’s.

The five runs batted in is the most RBIs’s he has had in a single game this season. Gardner is hitting .236 with two home runs and ten RBI’s in 18 games. He didn’t play in the last two games, but that should not take away from the good performance that he had.

Pitcher Of The Week: RP Robert Orlan (3-1, 3.24)

In a week where Hagerstown starters struggled to put up good performances, a reliever gets the pitcher of the week honors. On July 22 against Savannah, he went three innings, gave up one hit, and struck out six batters (a season-high). That performance got Orlan a promotion to high-A Potomac.

He pitched for the P-Nats on Sunday against Salem and had another shutout performance. In 2.2 innings, he gave up one hit and struck out four. Orlan had 17 strikeouts in 13 innings this month with the Suns before being promoted.

Honorable Mention: SP Luis Reyes (5-6, 4.75)

This past week, Reyes made two starts this past week for Hagerstown, going 1-1 in those outings. Yesterday, against the West Virginia Power (Pittsburgh Pirates), he went five innings, gave up four runs on six hits, and struck out two, but he did record the victory.

In his first start of the week against the Kannapolis Intimidators (Chicago White Sox), the 20-year-old right-hander gave up two runs on seven hits over five innings in a loss. He did walk three batters in that game, something he has done in three of his last five starts. Reyes is 2-2 with a 3.20 ERA in five starts this month.

Next: Short-Season