Bus Leagues Express: July 1

Kudos to Elizabethton’s Niko Goodrum for hitting for the cycle. The top player charts are for the month of June.

Top stories

Pitcher homers… kind of: Position players pitching an inning in blowouts or extra inning games isn’t unusual. In fact, Durham uses Craig Albernaz so much it’s like he’s a regular member of the bullpen. Lehigh Valley had one of those nights against division leading Pawtucket Saturday, losing 14-1. Starter Pat Misch wore one for the team by hanging in there five innings despite giving up nine runs, and two relievers combined to give Pawtucket a 14-0 lead. In the 7th inning, bench player Tug Hulett entered the game to play third base. After two innings in the field, he moved to the mound to finish the game and save the actual arms. He struck out one in a scoreless inning in his first career pitching appearance, and he topped off his night with a solo homer in the bottom half of the inning. Of course he’s a position player, but I would say this counts as a pitcher’s home run since that’s the position he was in the game as.

Olt heads out to right field: Texas third base prospect Mike Olt has moved across the diamond to first base occasionally this season for Frisco, and Saturday night he did something he says he hasn’t since high school: play the outfield. In Frisco’s 11-6 loss at Springfield, Olt saw some action at his new position, making a few catches and fielding some hits. At the plate, he hit a two run homer, his 21st this season. With Adrian Beltre at the hot corner for the foreseeable future, the Rangers want to check out his versatility to give him a chance to stay in the organization. If the Rangers are in the hunt for pitching this month, teams will certainly be asking about him.

Bullpen spoils Betances’ return to Trenton: It’s no secret that Dellin Betances has struggled with the Empire State Yankees this year, posting a 6.39 ERA and only striking out two more than he’s walked. The Yankees reassigned him to AA Trenton where he’s spent part of the last two years hoping he could get some confidence back. In his first start back with the Thunder, he pitched six scoreless innings, striking out six while allowing three hits and walking three. He still needs to cut down on the walks, but it’s definitely a small step forward. A move to the bullpen may be necessary for the 24 year old soon if he can’t show improvement.

Guerrieri scratched with injury: According to New York Penn League writer Dave Gershman, Taylor Guerrieri did not make his scheduled start Saturday night after tweaking something in warmups. No further information is available at this time, and perhaps it’s just semantics, but using tweak to describe the problem suggests it’s not a big deal. Guerrieri has made two starts for Hudson Valley this year and has been outstanding, only allowing one run in 10 innings on seven hits and a walk while striking out 12. Last year, he was the Rays’ first draft pick, and at this point I feel he’s the organization’s best prospect.

Wild Ynoa appears: It only happens every two years, but a few lucky onlookers got a glimpse of A’s prospect Michael Ynoa last night in the Arizona League. He walked one and struck out one in a scoreless inning. After signing for a bonus north of $4 million as a 16 year old in 2008, Ynoa has only pitched nine professional innings before Saturday due to persistent elbow problems. The big righty is now 20 and is yet to pitch out of the complex league. In the past, he’s shown potential for three plus pitches, so it’s just a matter of him staying healthy, if possible.

Seager signs: It seems like the big draft signings have slowed down lately, but the Dodgers made news over the weekend by signing 18th overall pick Corey Seager. The younger brother of Seattle’s third baseman Kyle, he got a bonus of $2.35 million, $400,000 above the recommended value for the pick. He has more potential than his brother who appears to be a solid big leaguer, but it’ll take some time for him to reach the majors too. He has power potential which profiles nicely at third base, and he should become a good defender at the hot corner. Florida’s Paco Rodriguez is the only Dodgers pick to not sign in the top 10 rounds, and if he gets the full recommended value, the Dodgers will be $98,000 over the bonus cap.

On tap today

MiLB.TV schedule

Pawtucket tries to reverse slide in doubleheader against Lehigh Valley

Ramirez, Rosenthal meet in top TL matchup

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