Van Slyke Named PCL Player of the Week
ROUND ROCK, Texas - Scott Van Slyke of the Albuquerque Isotopes and Brad Mills of the Round Rock Express have been named Pacific Coast League Player and Pitcher of the Week for the extended opening week of April 4th-14th, the league office announced today.
Scott Van Slyke has dominated opposing pitching staffs over the course of the first week and a half of the youthful 2013 season. Van Slyke is tied for the league lead with four home runs and a .574 on-base percentage, and is leading the league outright in batting average (.500), slugging percentage (.947) and total bases (36). His 16 RBI, 19 hits and nine extra-base hits each rank second in the league.
Van Slyke, 26, is in his ninth professional season since being drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 14th round of the 2005 First-Year Player Draft out of Burroughs High School in Ladue, Missouri. He made his Major League debut in 2012 when he was called up by the Dodgers on May 9th. Van Slyke collected an RBI single in his first career at-bat.
Brad Mills has been superb on the mound in two starts this season, earning wins in both and helping the Express jump out to an early American Southern Division lead. On April 6th, in his first start of the season, Mills pitched a solid six innings against the Omaha Storm Chasers allowing five hits and only one earned run without issuing a walk. The Arizona native one-upped his previous start with a stellar outing against the Iowa Cubs on April 11th tossing seven shutout innings to go along with seven strikeouts.
Mills' 0.69 ERA and .156 average against are good for fourth in the league. Mills was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2007 amateur entry Draft out of the University of Arizona. Mills made his Major League debut as a member of the Blue Jays on June 18th, 2009. After a stint with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organization, Mills was claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers on March 24th, 2013.