Charm City 2054.5 Best of the Minor Leagues

[DaveB]

The minor league season has ended for each of the Jimmies affiliates and the following article is going to look at what I felt were the top performers for each level. When I first thought about this article I wasn't sure if it was something I was going to enjoy writing. My thought was that it was going to be kind of repetitive (it was in some parts), but it was actually quite fun. I was surprised to see how some of the players were acquired, surprised to see how well guys I've never heard of performed, and also dig into how some of these dudes were acquired. Another thing that kind of surprised me was how hard it was to pick a player in the lower levels. Between promotions, demotions, and releases some of the best players didn't really stay at the level long enough to make an impression. Below are the players who were seen as the Best Hitter and Best Pitchers on each of our minor league teams.

AAA - ANNAPOLIS SAILORS:

Best Hitter:
OF: Geoffrey 'Flash' Dodson was our best hitter in AAA. Dodson, a former 2nd round pick in 2052 posted a .316/.439/.482/.922 stat line with 20 homers and a 5.7 WAR.
Best Pitcher:
MR: Adrian Kraft was named as our best AAA pitcher. Kraft, a personal favorite of mine from our time in Jerusalem and a journeyman reliever posted a solid 2.43 ERA with 35 saves and a 173 ERA+ in 56 AAA games this past season.

AA - FREDERICK TRAVELERS:

Best Hitter:
1B: Jared Dixon posted a solid .316/.411/.451/.862 stat line in AA. A former 8th rounder from 2049 has slowly made his way to AA and has been doing well at each level.
Best Pitcher:
SP: Darwin Pollard went 10-9 with a 3.21 ERA in 23 starts. Pollard was signed as a minor league free agent in July of last year has been a solid addition.

A - CUMBERLAND MINERS:

Best Hitter:
2B: Héctor Escobedo was named as our best A ball hitter despite appearing in only 45 games in A ball and finishing in AA. Escobedo, a former 2nd rounder from 2053 posted .354/.408/.584/.992 with a 2.2 WAR in those 45 games.
Best Pitcher:
MR: Seishiro Ozaki was named as our best A ball pitcher. Ozaki, was also a journeyman reliever posted a 2.13 ERA in 88.2 innings and 34 games in A ball this year.

SA - CAYMAN ISLANDERS:

Best Hitter:
2B: Júlio Bodon is a cool reason to break down the best performers at each level. I'll be honest I have no idea who this guy was, but he posted a .332/.406/.449/.855 stat line in 72 games for Cayman. As of now Bodon looks like a future utility guy if he makes it to the bigs.
Best Pitcher:
MR: Rob Brooks was our former 4th round pick in 2051. He didn't allow an earned run in 30.1 innings this year in SA. Brooks also earned 14 saves.

R - ASSATEAGUE PONIES:

Best Hitter:
OF: Hsin Cui is a former unsigned international free agent from China. He posted an impressive .366/.441/.560/1.000 stat line in 134 AB in his first taste of pro ball state side.
Best Pitcher:
SP: Qing-lai Ou-yang has quietly become one of our top pitching prospects. Acquired in a trade for [https://statspl.us/brewster/reports/new ... 41915.html]C: Kazuki Saito[/url] from Omaha back in 2051, Ou-yang went 6-2 with a 2.04 ERA in 9 starts with a 224 ERA+ while pitching 61.2 innings for the Ponies.

[BaseClogger]

No September call up for Flash Dodson??

[DaveB]

No September call up for Flash Dodson??

I thought about it, but I didn’t think he’d play enough for it to make sense so I promoted Limia to sit on the bench for the month. I’m expecting Flash to push for a roster spot next season.

[Jess64]

Gotta love those Minor leaguers!!

[Trebro]

It really is fun to see what's going on in your minors, even if your minors apparently suck. Lots of players who hang in there longer than you'd expect.