Pitchers of the Week

Here's a look at the top pitching performers in each league for the week ending Sept. 2:

International League
Zach Stewart, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
(1-1, 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 16 IP, 16 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 1 HR, 1 HBP, 1 BB, 9 K)
The 26-year-old right-hander had only pitched into the eighth inning twice this season for Triple-A Charlotte entering the final week of the season. That is, until he put together a pair of eight-inning performances to double that total to four. He allowed four runs (all unearned) on six hits and no walks in a hard-luck loss on Wednesday and went unscathed through eight in the season finale on Monday. Stewart, who returned to the White Sox after a stint with the Red Sox in 2012, finished 6-14 with a 4.25 ERA in 28 starts for the Knights.

Pacific Coast League
Burch Smith, Tucson
(0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K)
As any Padres follower will tell you, it's been an up-and-down season for the team's No. 9 prospect. After a great start to the year at Double-A San Antonio, he struggled immensely during a three-start stint (15 earned runs in 7 1/3 innings) with the big club in May. He was sent back to Triple-A Tucson, where he's been solid all year. But the 23-year-old right-hander was more than that on Thursday, striking out a season high 10 and scattering three hits over seven scoreless frames. As a reward, the Padres made him one of their September callups.

Eastern League
Eduardo Rodriguez, Bowie
(2-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 14 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 11 K)
The Orioles' top left-handed pitching prospect has had three scoreless outings for Double-A Bowie, and they've each come over his last four starts. Two were in the last week, including an eight-inning gem last Monday that was easily his most impressive start for the Baysox. After a rough introduction to the Eastern League (2-3 with a 5.52 ERA in nine starts), Rodriguez can hold his head high that he was able to improve those stats to 4-3 and 4.22 before the season concluded.

Southern League
Bryan Evans, Jacksonville
(2-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 16 2/3 IP, 8 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 16 K)
Evans split time between the rotation and the bullpen for the Suns this season in his fourth campaign with the Marlins' Double-A affiliate, but he absolutely flourished as a starter down the stretch. The right-hander scattered two hits and a walk and struck out nine for his first career shutout. He followed that with another gem on Sunday, during which he allowed six hits and fanned seven in 7 2/3 scoreless frames. Although both resulted in wins, the effort was for naught as the Suns were eliminated from playoff contention on the last day of the season.

Texas League
Luis Cruz, Corpus Christi
(2-0, 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 16 2/3 IP, 8 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 16 K)
Cruz struck out a ton of batters -- 129 in 113 1/3 innings, to be exact -- but otherwise didn't enjoy much success (5.16 ERA, 1.33 WHIP) in 27 appearances at Class A Advanced Lancaster. Nonetheless, he enjoyed much more success in his time with the Hooks. He fanned 14 and walked just one in a two-hitter against San Antonio on Monday and added a scoreless inning of relief on Friday for good measure. The left-hander, who turns 23 on Sept. 10, gave up just one run on five hits in 17 innings during his time in the Texas League.

California League
Kyle Crick, San Jose
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 0 BB, 11 K)
They don't call him the Giants' top prospect for nothing. The 6-foot-4 right-hander capped a stellar California League campaign with 11 strikeouts and just two hits allowed over seven scoreless innings -- the longest outing of his season. Crick missed time in April, May and June due to an oblique injury but was extraordinary in the hitting-happy Cal League when healthy. He finished 3-1 with a 1.57 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 68 2/3 innings this season for the Giants.

Carolina League
Myles Jaye, Winston-Salem
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 4 K)
A shutout, even if it only lasts seven innings as part of a doubleheader, is a pretty good way to get noticed for these awards. That's precisely what Jaye accomplished for the Dash on Wednesday in its 5-0 win over Potomac in the second game of a twinbill. It was the second straight start in which the 21-year-old had put up seven zeros on the board, and it resulted in a promotion to Double-A Birmingham, where he gave up seven runs on eight hits in just 3 2/3 innings in his Double-A debut Monday. Nonetheless the right-hander, who began the year with Class A Kannapolis, has plenty to hang his hat on going into his fourth year of pro ball.

Florida State League
Wilsen Palacios, Lakeland
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 4 K)
Between Palacios and Devon Travis, the Flying Tigers made a clean sweep of the Florida State League awards after having only one representative in the first 19 weeks (Kyle Ryan, April 15-22). Like Jaye, the 24-year-old right-hander earned a shutout -- the third of his career -- by tossing seven innings during a doubleheader win in his last start of the year Saturday. The performance lowered his ERA to 3.07, third-lowest among FSL hurlers this season and his personal best since putting up a 2.43 mark over 14 appearances across three levels in 2010.

Midwest League
Tim Shibuya, Cedar Rapids
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 6 K)
Shibuya didn't join Cedar Rapids until mid July in his comeback from arm surgery and hadn't stepped into the rotation until almost a month later. But ever since he made the jump back to being a starter, the right-hander has been nearly untouchable. Saturday's nine-inning shutout was the best example of this, but it was also his third straight start having allowed a run or fewer while going seven or more innings. In all, the UC San Diego product went 3-0 with a 1.01 ERA in four starts for the Kernels and should be a key part of their Midwest League playoff run.

South Atlantic League
Chipper Smith, Greensboro
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 7 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 0 BB, 11 K)
Prior to the start of August, Smith had made just one professional start in his first 42 appearances in the Marlins organization. He moved to the Greensboro rotation at that start of the month, and now that the season's over, the Fish might want to consider making the move to a starter more permanent. The 23-year-old southpaw struck out 11 over seven frames to lead Greensboro to a one-hitter on Wednesday. He finished 1-1 with a 1.82 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 29 2/3 innings (six starts) when used in the rotation and was 8-3 with a 2.74 ERA overall in 34 appearances this year.

New York-Penn League
John Gant, Brooklyn
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 9 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 6 K)
Gant hadn't gone deeper than six innings this season for the Cyclones entering last Wednesday. Then again, when a guy has it, a guy has it, and you have to let him go. That's what Brooklyn did, allowing Gant to complete a nine-inning one-hitter in its 1-0 win over Tri-City. That marked the first shutout and complete game of the 21-year-old's pro career and the third nine-inning complete game in the team's 12-year history. On the season, Gant is 6-3 with a 2.33 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in 12 starts.

Northwest League
Kyle Schepel, Hillsboro
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 8 K)
Sit back and consider the following. What's more impressive? That Schepel tossed the first no-hitter in Hillsboro Hops history? Or that it was the D-backs prospect's second no-no of the year? Either way, you can't help but be taken aback by what the 23-year-old right-hander accomplished Saturday. Pitching in his first pro season after being signed as a Minor League free agent in 2012, Schepel enjoyed middling success with Class A Advanced Visalia and Class A South Bend before being moved to Hillsboro, where he went 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA.

Appalachian League
Nick Lomascolo, Johnson City
(1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 8 K)
The Cardinals left-hander has only been sprinkled into a starting role on three occasions this season. He made the most of his latest opportunity though, striking out eight while allowing one hit and one walk in six innings Tuesday. That outing was the longest of Lomascolo's season, although it did not top his 10 strikeouts over four no-hit innings in his only save of the season back on Aug. 13.

Pioneer League
Yender Caramo, Idaho Falls
(1-0, 1.13 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 8 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 1 BB, 4 K)
Since moving to a starting role in late July, Caramo had been knocked around a bit in his first six starts for the Chukars. That came to an end Saturday when he tossed eight no-hit innings in a 10-7 win over Grand Junction. (His lone run allowed came when he walked the leadoff batter in the first and the runner stole second, moved to third on a groundout and came home on a sac fly.) The gem should provide some optimism for the Venezuelan right-hander, who owns a 4.09 ERA and .300 batting average-against through 14 appearances for Idaho Falls.