J.P. Crawford struggled through Spring Training a year ago, but he's been hard to ignore this time around. The Phillies' No. 3 prospect went 3-for-5 with his first Grapefruit League homer on Friday, but the visiting Tigers rallied for a run in the bottom of the ninth inning to forge
J.P. Crawford struggled through Spring Training a year ago, but he's been hard to ignore this time around. The Phillies' No. 3 prospect went 3-for-5 with his first Grapefruit League homer on Friday, but the visiting Tigers rallied for a run in the bottom of the ninth inning to forge a 6-6 tie.
Crawford -- MLB.com's No. 37 overall prospect -- started and played the entire game at shortstop. He raised his average to .303 with the three-hit day. The 23-year-old singled in the third, homered to right field in the fifth and added a base hit in the seventh while scoring three times.
Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said earlier in the week that Crawford could potentially slot in as Philadelphia's No. 9 hitter to begin the season. He avoided a major injury last weekend when a broken bat hit him in the eye, an incident that seemed to spark a hot week at the plate. Since Saturday, Crawford has raised his average 63 points. He's 10-for-33 after batting .207 with no homers in Spring Training last year.
Scott Kingery, the Phils' No. 2 prospect, went 1-for-5 and is hitting .364 in 33 spring at-bats.
For Detroit, No. 17 prospect Victor Reyes came into the game in right and went 1-for-2, while No. 10 prospect Christin Stewart doubled in his lone at-bat.
Nationals 4, Cardinals (ss) 2 (Box)
Carter Kieboom -- MLB.com's No. 90 overall prospect and No. 3 in the Nationals organization -- picked up a hit in his only at-bat and fourth-ranked Erick Fedde earned the win after firing 3 2/3 innings of relief. Fedde gave up one run and one walk while striking out four. Yairo Muñoz -- the Cardinals' No. 12 prospect -- led St. Louis with two hits. He was 2-for-3 with a walk to bring his spring average up to .368. No. 5 prospect Harrison Bader drove in the Cards' final run with a groundout in the top of the ninth inning.
Cardinals (ss) 4, Marlins 2 ( Box )
Marlins No. 9 prospect Brian Anderson started at third base and went 1-for-3 and top Miami prospect Lewis Brinson added a double and a walk in a loss to St. Louis in Jupiter. Right-hander Sandy Alcantara, the Marlins' No. 3 prospect, allowed three runs on six hits and three walks in four innings. He struck out four and took his first spring loss.
Orioles 4, Mets 4 (Box)
Baltimore and New York battled to a tie in St. Lucie, with both teams scoring a pair of runs in the ninth. Top Orioles prospect Austin Hays went 1-for-3 with a stolen base. The 22-year-old outfielder, who hit .329/.365/.593 with 32 homers in 128 Minor League games last season, is batting .192 this spring.
Pirates 12, Braves 9 (Box)
The hits came in bunches in Bradenton as the Bucs and Braves combined for 21 runs on 25 hits, including 11 homers, despite minimal wind. Pirates No. 8 prospect Colin Moran and 23rd-ranked Jordan Luplow each singled, while Braves farmhands Lane Adams and Jaff Decker clubbed solo shots off Tyler Eppler in the ninth.
Rays 11, Twins 1 (Box)
Rays No. 26 prospect Ryan Yarbrough pitched three innings of scoreless relief and yielded one hit and a walk while striking out one. Yarbrough has been impressive this spring, boasting a 2.53 ERA in six appearances. For Minnesota, No. 13 prospect LaMonte Wade Jr continued swinging a potent bat with a hit in his only plate appearance. He's batting .318.
Blue Jays 6, Phillies (ss) 4 Box
Blue Jays No. 28 prospect Jonathan Davis hit a solo homer in the eighth inning.
Cubs 6, White Sox 3 Box
No. 6 White Sox prospect Dane Dunning allowed two hits in two scoreless innings but was assigned to Minor League camp after the game.
Athletics 7, Indians 3 Box
A's No. 5 prospect Dustin Fowler hit a two-run double to bump his average to .185.
Mariners 9, Rangers 7 (Box)
Daniel Vogelbach, Seattle's 11th-ranked prospect, continued his torrid spring by going 2-for-4 with a homer, double and three RBIs. The first baseman is batting .405 in the Cactus League.
D-backs 4, Dodgers 1 (Box)
Top Los Angeles prospect Walker Buehler made his first Cactus League start and struck out two while walking one in two hitless innings.
Brewers 16, Reds 13 (Box)
Reds No. 4 prospect Jesse Winker drove in four runs with a double and two singles and scored once. Top Cincinnati prospect Nick Senzel went 1-for-2, while 23rd-ranked Phillip Ervin finished 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored. Top Brewers prospect Keston Hiura went 1-for-2 with an RBI, while No. 7 Corey Ray singled, drove in a run and scored.
Royals 12, Padres 4 (Box)
A day after mashing two homers, Royals No. 18 prospect Ryan O'Hearn hit a two-run shot against the Padres. The blast was the fourth of the spring for the 24-year-old, who raised his Cactus League average to .407. Burch Smith, ranked 17th in the Kansas City system, walked one and struck out a pair in a scoreless inning, while No. 12 Miguel Almonte allowed two runs -- one earned -- on two hits and a walk with two punchouts over two frames.
Rockies 18, Angels 6 (Box)
The Rockies' best Minor Leaguers didn't get a chance to pile on Shohei Ohtani's difficult day, but 12th-ranked Sam Hilliard cracked a three-run homer in the eighth and Colorado's two top prospects, Brendan Rodgers and Ryan McMahon, each walked and scored in the slugfest. Garrett Hampson (No. 7) also doubled and crossed the plate for the Rockies. Jairo Díaz (No. 23) allowed two earned runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings. Ohtani, MLB.com's No. 1 overall prospect, surrendered seven runs on a walk and seven hits, including two homers, over 1 1/3 innings. Angels No. 23 prospect David Fletcher went 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored.
Red Sox 4, Twins 2 (Box)
Fifth-ranked Red Sox prospect Sam Travis singled and drove home a run, pushing his Grapefruit League average to .256.
Astros 2, Yankees 0 (Box)
Kyle Tucker kept his torrid spring pace going with a 1-for-3 evening. The Astros' second-ranked prospect is batting .405 with a 1.236 OPS in 16 Grapefruit League games. Astros No. 9 prospect J.D. Davis belted his third spring homer, a solo shot in the first. Right-hander Rogelio Armenteros, Houston's No. 12 prospect, fanned five while allowing one hit and one walk over three scoreless innings. Yankees No. 22 prospect Giovanny Gallegos struck out one in an inning of perfect relief.
