Cal notes: Cordell letting talent take over

The Cal League season is barely two months old, but it's already been an eventful one for High Desert third baseman Ryan Cordell. He's on the hot corner for now, but Cordell began the season as the Mavs' starting shortstop before playing a month in center field when teammate Lewis Brinson went down with an injury.

"It's been an interesting start to the year," Cordell said. "I've had a lot of ups and downs so far defensively, but it's all a learning process. I've got a good coaching staff that I work with every day. Hopefully as time goes on and I get more reps over there, things will get more comfortable."

Cordell was picked as an outfielder from Virginia's Liberty University by the Texas Rangers in the 11th round of the 2013 Draft. But last year he spent some time at first base and caught the attention of the organization, which had him play first, third and shortstop in the instructional league.

"They just said to have fun with it, see what you can do and just let your talent take over," Cordell said. "They saw something they liked, so when I showed up to Spring Training this year, they let me know, 'Hey, we're going to start working you over on the infield and we'll see how that goes.' It's been a learning process."

High Desert manager Spike Owen, who spent most of his 13-year MLB career at shortstop, has been working extensively with Cordell on his infield defense since the start of Spring Training, as has Texas' Minor League infield coordinator Casey Candaele.

Since Friday, Cordell has been penciled in as High Desert's starter at third base, where he expects to remain for the rest of the first half of the season. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound Cordell had no professional experience at third before this season and has committed three errors in four games since taking over his new position.

Ranked as the Rangers' No. 12 prospect, Cordell hasn't allowed all of the defensive changes to affect his offense. Through 57 games, the 23-year-old native of Orangevale, California, ranked second in the league with 50 RBIs, to go along with a .297/.358/.517 slash line, 11 home runs and 11 doubles.

Back in Spring Training, Cordell said he picked the brain of longtime Rangers infielder Michael Young, who shifted around the diamond during his career.

"He just told me, 'You've got to be able to separate those two -- no matter what. Whether you're struggling offensively or struggling defensively, they're two totally separate things,'" Cordell recalled. "The preparation that you do during BP and in the cage before the game is what you've got to rely on when it comes to offense. You can't worry about what you're doing defensively."

In brief

Notable promotions: Former San Jose right-hander Tyler Beede, the Giants' No. 3 prospect, has been called up to Richmond after posting a 2.24 ERA in nine Cal League starts. Former Bakersfield catcher Tyler Marlette, Seattle's No. 8 prospect, was promoted to Double-A Jackson despite a .216/.284/.365 slash line in 39 games with the Blaze. No. 16 Astros prospect Joe Musgrove earned a promotion to Double-A Corpus Christi after putting up a 43-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 30 innings with Lancaster.

Power surge: With Monday night's solo shot by Marc Wik in an 8-3 win over Visalia, the Lancaster JetHawks hit a home run in 14 straight games, a streak that ended Tuesday night. Through 57 contests, the JetHawks led the Cal League with 71 homers, 6.2 runs per game and a .284 team batting average.

Rancho rehabs: The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes enjoyed an influx of MLB veterans this past week. Outfielder Yasiel Puig highlighted the action with a two-game stint that featured a solo shot Friday before he was recalled to the Dodgers on Saturday. Veteran pitchers Brandon League and Erik Bedard also appeared for the Quakes in their recent series against Lancaster.

Great grand slam: Kyle Gaedele recorded the first grand slam of the year for the Lake Elsinore Storm on Monday night. Gaedele's blast came on the 90th birthday of his late, great-uncle Eddie Gaedel, the 3-foot-7 batter who famously walked in his only career at-bat on Aug. 19, 1951, for the St. Louis Browns.