Charm City 2062.11 - Top Minor League Performers Announced

[DaveB]

Another minor league season is in the books. It's time to take a look at who our outstanding minor league hitter and pitcher of the year were for each level. This has become one of my favorite team news posts to make each year because I find it fun to go back every so often now and think "Wow there's a name I haven't heard in awhile" or "I always had high hopes for _____". I find it fun to look back at these every so often and wonder "What If?" or "He was really starting to cook in ___."

AAA - ANNAPOLIS SAILORS:

Best Hitter:
Matt Bamber has slowly moved up the depth charts since being selected with the 65th overall pick in 2059. Bamber has set himself up to be an option to see time in Charm City next season. He posted a .338/.399/.508/.906 slash line with 16 homers and 66 RBI. Bamber seems to be starting to develop more power as he's progressed up the system. It'll be interesting to see where he'll slot in.

Best Pitcher:
Miguel Reyes wins the AAA award this year. Reyes dominated in AAA posting a 1.35 ERA in 26.2 innings of work across 24 games. He earned 19 saves and struck out 28 in that time frame. Since his promotion to Charm City he's taken over the closer role from Manuel Barrera while posting a 2.41 ERA in 33.2 innings and 7 saves with the Jimmies.

AA - FREDERICK TRAVELERS:

Best Hitter:
Former minor league free agent signee Tomiichi Sasaki has been a fighter since being signed in 2060 for 10k. Sasaki posted a .260/.362/.496/.858 slash line with 25 homers and 64 RBI in AA this year. He's an interesting fella as he doesn't really play a position, but his bat has been solid at every stop. I'm hopeful a trip through the development lab will allow him to develop in the outfield, otherwise he's going to have to continue to hit well to make the big league roster.

Best Pitcher:
I've been very impressed with the slow ascension of Gerwin Sier. We signed Sier as a minor league free agent after he left the GBC Buenos Aires Brisas back in 2059. Sier posted a 9-3 record with a save while performing with a 3.27 ERA covering 140.1 innings of work. I'm not sure what the future holds for Sier, but there's always room for a solid depth option in the organization.

A - CUMBERLAND MINERS:

Best Hitter:
I've been impressed by the development of Juan Patlan. A former 6th rounder in 2060, Patlan isn't known for his offense as seen by .231/.290/.360/.650 slash line, but he's shown the ability to be a solid defender in CF as seen by his 7.2 ZR in 52 games. His ceiling at the moment looks to be a 5th outfielder in the bigs, but he seems to be trending in the right direction.

Best Pitcher:
Tzu-hsia Hong seems to have been in the organization forever. So long in fact that I actually forgot about him until this year. We acquired Hong from Rocky Mountain way back in 2056 in exchange for Norm 'Squirt' Collyer. Hong posted a 6-5 record with the Minors along with a 2.32 ERA before being promoted to Frederick mid season. The 24 year old Hong looks like he still needs some development to be able to make the Jimmies, but I've been happy with the recent progress that he's made.


SA - CAYMAN ISLANDERS:

Best Hitter:
Former first round pick Shimpei Kobayashi takes home the award this year for the Islanders despite only playing 16 games for the team. Kobayashi posted a .339/.409/.610/1.019 with 3 homers and 14 RBI before being promoted. Kobayashi eventually settled at AA after a solid season of development. Shimpei looks like a fringe starter at 3B long term, but we've been trying to develop him at other positions to allow him to have a better chance at reaching the majors.

Best Pitcher:
I didn't expect [https://statspl.us/brewster/reports/new ... 77992.html]Vaughn Flynn[/url] to take home the award, but here we are. We selected Flynn with in the 14th round this season and while his pedigree wasn't great he was quite good posting a 5-2 record with a 1.78 ERA in 65.2 innings of work. I'm not going to lie and say Vaughn is our next big pitching prospect, but it'll be fun to look back at his performance in 2062 and see what ends up happening to him development wise.

R - ASSATEAGUE PONIES:

Best Hitter:
Jorge Luna is an example of why I like to keep an eye in free agency for some potential steals. Luna was originally drafted by Long Beach in the 10th round back in 2060, but was cut in 2061. We signed him to a minor league deal in June of 2061. He's progressed well for us and had a strong season for the Ponies posting a .280/.328/.467/.796 slash line with 9 homers and 32 RBI this year. He still has a lot of work to do before we even think about what might be, but he's had a very good start to his career with us.

Best Pitcher:
Finally Juan Barrera takes home the pitchers award with the Ponies. Barrera is a name that has had some success in Charm City Juan had a solid year for Assateague. We signed Barrera as a minor league free agent in 2061 after he was cut loose from Boise. He posted a 4-6 record with a 3.35 ERA in 75.1 innings of work this year. I'm happy with the development that we've seen out of Barrera and I'm hopeful see him continue his progressions.

Thanks for reading.

[Trebro]

These are my favorite kind of team news that aren't clearly designed to immerse in a fictional world