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Prospect Primer: National League East

Young sluggers, fireballers highlight loaded prospect division
@Jacob_Resnick
March 27, 2023

Some prospects are on the verge of stardom, others are entering a crucial phase of their development and others are getting their first tastes of full-season ball. As the 2023 season approaches, MiLB.com goes through each MLB division to take a look at the most intriguing prospects. Other Prospect Primers:

MiLB clubs spread the love on Valentine's Day

Mascots deliver flowers as teams load up on valentine puns
@Jacob_Resnick
February 14, 2023

Will you M-i-L-B our valentine? It seems too perfect to be true. As Spring Training gets underway this week, love is in the air -- not just for baseball, but for Valentine's Day as well. This year's holiday saw plenty of Minor League teams get in on the action, sending

Cannon Ballers help local community progress

Kannapolis hosts second annual MLK Dream Day celebration
@Jacob_Resnick
January 14, 2023

To get from the birthplace of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta to the home of the Cannon Ballers in Kannapolis, North Carolina, you’ll spend most of the four-hour drive on I-85. About 30 minutes past Charlotte, take exit 58 and follow signs for downtown Kannapolis. Then, appropriately, you’ll

MiLB clubs help local communities for holidays

Fitzgerald joins WooSox caravan after winning service award
@Jacob_Resnick
January 3, 2023

Part of the charm of Minor League Baseball is how closely tied its 120 clubs are to their local communities. And despite being months removed from the baseball schedule, many teams and their front offices maintain those bonds with events throughout the holiday season. From organizing toy drives to providing

Merrill leads way in new-look Padres system

Despite trades, San Diego farm features exciting young talent
@Jacob_Resnick
December 9, 2022

Each offseason, MiLB.com goes position by position across each organization and honors the players -- regardless of age or prospect status -- who had the best seasons in each farm system. Next up in our 2022 Organization All-Stars series are the San Diego Padres.

High-A award winners and All-Stars

Encarnacion-Strand, Veen and Rodriguez named MVPs
@Jacob_Resnick
November 9, 2022

Minor League Baseball has announced the end-of-season award winners and All-Star teams for the three High-A leagues, based on votes cast by league managers. In the Midwest League, third baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who played for Twins-affiliated Cedar Rapids before being traded to the Reds, was named the Most Valuable Player.

Record 27 Minor Leaguers post 20/20 seasons

Volpe, De La Cruz, Carroll among those with power and speed
@Jacob_Resnick
September 29, 2022

Was 2022 the most exciting season in Minor League Baseball history? From a power-speed perspective, the answer is an overwhelming yes. Since the data became available, dating back 65 years, no year has even approached the amount of dual threats that put their skills on display this season. A record

Smith notches cycle in career night for Las Vegas

Oakland infielder collects 5 hits, homers twice in PCL slugfest
@Jacob_Resnick
September 18, 2022

Kevin Smith wanted the third home run, something he had never done in a game as a pro. But leading off the bottom of the ninth with his team trailing by two, he knew the right play was to just put the ball in play. As it turned out, that

Emeralds claim 2022 Northwest League crown

Glowenke's 10th-inning homer sends Eugene to back-to-back titles
@Jacob_Resnick
September 17, 2022

At first, it appeared as though Luis Toribio would be the hero. Then, it was Luis Matos. Surely Grant McCray's go-ahead three-run homer in the top of the ninth would seal his place in Emeralds lore. In the end, Jimmy Glowenke stood atop them all. The infielder’s two-run homer in

Brewers' Clarke cracks 3 homers for Biloxi

Shuckers set single-season dinger record on milestone night
@Jacob_Resnick
September 10, 2022

Shortly before his late August promotion to Double-A, Wes Clarke’s hitting coach with the High-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, Nick Stanley, suggested Clarke adjust his batting stance so that his hands were held higher. The intention was to free up his swing and promote athleticism. Clarke homered in his first game

Lugnuts bend but don’t crack in no-no

Lansing allows run, but holds on for club's third no-hitter
@Jacob_Resnick
September 5, 2022

The last time the High-A Lansing Lugnuts, then a Single-A affiliate, threw a no-hitter, they ultimately lost the game. It nearly happened again. Despite combining for seven walks and allowing a run, four Lansing pitchers teamed up for the third no-hitter in franchise history, with the Athletics affiliate hanging on

Aced it: Jordan Luplow collects 3-homer game

Veteran outfielder notches the feat in fourth game with Reno
@Jacob_Resnick
September 4, 2022

Less than a week after being optioned to Triple-A Reno to make room in the Majors for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ top prospect, Jordan Luplow showed off the thump he still has in his bat. The veteran outfielder clobbered three home runs in his fourth game since joining the Aces, going

Wallner notches first cycle in Saints history

No. 5 Twins prospect, a Minnesota native, plates 6 on 5-hit night
@Jacob_Resnick
September 2, 2022

How locked in was Matt Wallner? He didn’t even realize he was a triple shy of the cycle … until he hit second base. The No. 5 Twins prospect stumbled his way to third base and just barely beat the tag, but when he stood up he could finally crack

Rodriguez begins rehab trail at Aberdeen

Orioles' top pitching prospect tosses 31 pitches for IronBirds
@Jacob_Resnick
September 1, 2022

Three months ago, the calendar flipped to June with an entire fan base optimistic that its top pitching prospect would dominate his way to the Majors before July. That June 1 start was ultimately Grayson Rodriguez's last before he was shut down with a Grade 2 right lat strain. As

Nwogu's night: Three homers by the fifth inning

Cubs prospect slugs his way into record books in four-hit night
@Jacob_Resnick
August 25, 2022

Jordan Nwogu had never hit two home runs in one game in his life (dingers in both ends of a high school doubleheader don’t count, he says), so when asked where hitting three homers in one game ranked among the feats he’s accomplished on the field in his life, the

Painter draws up six zeros in Double-A debut

Pitching at third level in '22, top Phillies prospect whiffs eight
@Jacob_Resnick
August 21, 2022

It might be reasonable to question how a 19-year-old pitcher, of any pedigree, would fare at the Double-A level, but Andrew Painter is cut from a different cloth. Though instead of wiping away watercolors, this one is mopping up opposing batters. Painter, the Phillies’ top-ranked prospect and No. 25 in

McDonough hits for the cycle for Greenville

After entering the season without one, Drive collect 2nd of '22
@Jacob_Resnick
August 21, 2022

The Drive -- a franchise that has served as a Red Sox affiliate since 2005 -- entered the 2022 season without a cycle in its record books. As the year nears its final weeks, the team will now be able to add not one, but two entries. Red Sox outfield

Gossett throws first Wind Surge no-hitter

In quest back to the Majors, righty seals history on 120th pitch
@Jacob_Resnick
August 20, 2022

Daniel Gossett, unlike his Double-A teammates, is working his way back up to the top. And in the four years since throwing his most recent Major League pitch, the 29-year-old has come to learn that few things in the sport are guaranteed. But for at least one night, Gossett could

Dunedin quartet team up for no-hitter

Churchill slams the door on the game, first week in pro ball
@Jacob_Resnick
August 14, 2022

Ian Churchill concluded his first week in professional baseball with an achievement most players never get to claim. Churchill, Toronto's 10th-round pick in last month’s Draft, tossed a perfect ninth inning on Sunday to secure a combined no-hitter for Single-A Dunedin, who beat the Tampa, 5-0.

Berroa fans 11 in Travelers' second no-no of '22

Former Major Leaguers Kaminsky, Shipley toss scoreless frames
@Jacob_Resnick
August 13, 2022

Double-A Arkansas’ second no-hitter of the 2022 season was started by a young arm on his way to the Major Leagues. It was finished off by a pair of veterans working their way back up to The Show. No. 24 Mariners prospect Prelander Berroa struck out a career-high 11 over

O'Keefe hits 3 homers, delivers walk-off single

Veteran catcher lifts Triple-A Tacoma to third walk-off in four days
@Jacob_Resnick
July 3, 2022

Stepping up to the plate in the bottom of the 10th inning on Saturday, Brian O’Keefe had a chance at rarefied air. Armed with three home runs and bidding for a historic fourth, he instead settled for a solid consolation prize -- a walk-off single to lift the Triple-A Tacoma

'I love the Lake Elsinore Storm': Mayor calls no-hitter

Hawkins, Mundo produce first no-no in Storm history
@Jacob_Resnick
July 2, 2022

It took the San Diego Padres over 50 years and over 8,000 games to throw their first no-hitter. For the broadcaster of one of their Minor League affiliates, he witnessed the milestone in Game 1. Tim Sheridan isn’t the usual broadcaster for the Single-A Lake Elsinore Storm. He’s actually the

Aberdeen arms combine to toss no-hitter

Van Loon, Lloyd, Moore team up to shut down Jersey Shore
@Jacob_Resnick
June 18, 2022

High-A Aberdeen had already clinched the South Atlantic League North Division first-half title, but that didn’t stop them from pressing down the gas and making some more history. Three IronBirds pitchers -- Peter Van Loon, Daniel Lloyd and Xavier Moore -- combined to toss a no-hitter in the Orioles affiliate’s