Vlad Jr. stands above the rest for Buffalo

In a game that featured an abundance of offense from a number of touted prospects, the man -- or man-child -- at the top of the list showed why he's earned that spot.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs on Friday as Triple-A Buffalo pounded Pawtucket, 13-4, in front of 16,178 fans at Coca-Cola Field.

The three hits for the 19-year-old top Blue Jays prospect didn't even pace the attack for either side as the two teams combined for 28 knocks, including four-hit efforts from No. 21 Toronto prospect Jonathan Davis and Red Sox veteran Brandon Phillips. But the performance kept Guerrero within sniffing distance of a .400 season as he is batting .373 in the International League while his season average jumped to .394.
The teenage third baseman was elevated to Buffalo on July 31 after leading the Eastern League with 83 hits, 60 RBIs, a .667 slugging percentage, 136 total bases, 30 extra-base hits and 18 doubles for Double-A New Hampshire before a strained patellar tendon in his left knee sidelined him for more than a month. He played only seven games upon returning to the Fisher Cats, batting .345/.367/.690 with three homers and five RBIs, before the promotion.
Gameday box score
Friday night's effort marked his fourth three-hit game for Buffalo and just his second IL contest with multiple RBIs. Guerrero has not homered since he strung together four consecutive contests with a long ball two weeks ago. But he has hit safely in seven of his past eight games, with eight hits in his past 16 at-bats.
Guerrero was robbed of an RBI on his first-inning double off ninth-ranked Red Sox prospectMike Shawaryn as Pawtucket center fielder Rusney Castillo and second baseman Iván De Jesús Jr. combined to throw out Davis, who was trying to score from first.
After flying out to center to start the third, Guerrero followed Dwight Smith Jr.'s fourth-inning double by poking a liner to the opposite field and driving in a run with his second two-bagger. In the sixth, Smith doubled again to put runners in scoring position for Guerrero, and the Montreal-born slugger lifted a sacrifice fly to center to bring in another run.
Guerrero kept the line moving in his final at-bat with a one-out single in a five-run seventh.

The 26-year-old Davis finished with three RBIs and three runs scored, highlighting his 4-for-4 performance with his fourth Triple-A homer. It was the third time he'd collected four knocks in a game and the first since he hit for the cycle on June 26 with New Hampshire.

Making his Triple-A debut, top Red Sox prospect -- No. 98 overall -- Michael Chavis went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and a double.
The 37-year-old Phillips has hit safely in 11 of the past 12 games with two four-hit efforts in the past three nights. The 16-year Major League veteran signed a Minors deal with Boston on June 27 and is batting .328/.377/.496 in 38 games with Pawtucket.
Shawaryn (2-1) was tagged for six runs on 10 hits and a walk over 3 1/3 innings. The 23-year-old right hander sports a 4.32 ERA with 24 punchouts in 25 innings at Triple-A.