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Around the Minors: The week of July 5

Sights and sounds from action across Minor League Baseball
July 12, 2021

July 11

July 11

Making every pitch count
Entering Sunday, Matt Tabor had not allowed an earned run in his previous two starts. The 22nd-ranked D-backs prospect outdid himself against the Missions, tossing a complete-game no-hitter with a pair of walks and three strikeouts for Double-A Amarillo in Game 2 of a doubleheader. The right-hander only needed 77 pitches to accomplish the feat -- 49 were strikes.

Make it a tall boy
D-backs' No. 13 prospect Seth Beer gets all of this one, smacking it off the batter's eye in straightaway center field. It's his second dinger in three games for the Triple-A Aces.

Power pace
Make it three straight games with a home run for No. 17 Marlins prospect Griffin Conine , who sends this towering shot to right for his Minor League-leading 21st dinger of the season with High-A Beloit.

Swinging into history
Over 39 games this season, Brennen Davis clubbed six home runs. In three at-bats in Sunday's SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, the outfielder mashed a pair. In doing so, the second-ranked Cubs prospect joined Alfonso Soriano (1999) and Yusniel Diaz (2018) as the only players in Futures Game history to go yard twice in the contest.

Exit stage left
Not even 121 Financial Ballpark could contain Yermin Mercedes' second Triple-A homer. The slugger demolished the ball so deep to left that it exited the ballpark and traveled an estimated 462 feet. Mercedes holds the record in the Majors this season for longest homer with a 485-foot blast against the Royals.

Easy like Sunday morning
For the second straight Sunday, Hunter Greene notched a base hit for Triple-A Louisville. The flame-throwing right-hander roped the ball back up the middle for a single in the fifth inning. Greene also drove in his first run of the season with an RBI groundout in the second.

More than just a game
It's a week that keeps getting better for Julio Rodriguez , but what happened to him on Sunday may not be topped. MLB Pipeline's No. 5 overall prospect got a surprise visit from his father, Julio Sr., before his appearance in the Futures Game. What made the moment even more special was the fact that Julio Sr. got over his fear of flying to be there.

Thriller from start to finish
In his first start since 2019 with Double-A Tennessee, Justin Souza took the ball for Triple-A Iowa and dominated as he struck out five over 3 2/3 hitless frames. Scott Effross kept the no-no intact over the next 1 1/3 innings before Dillon Maples capped it off with a pair of hitless frames in the sixth and seventh. Still, it took a dramatic walk-off sacrifice fly off the bat of Trent Giambrone to complete the feat and secure the club's second no-hitter this season.

July 10

A hand-off to history
Braves No. 11 prospect Bryce Elder did the heavy lifting and No. 16 Daysbel Hernandez took care of the rest during a historic night for Double-A Mississippi. Led by Elder's seven hitless frames, duo combined to strike out 10 en route to the club's first no-hitter since 2019. Hernández carried the torch across the finish line, fanning four in two innings of relief, including the final two batters of the game.

You get a milestone and you get a milestone...
Fans at Dutchess Stadium were treated to something truly special Saturday. With No. 19 Yankees prospect Josh Breaux supplying the offense -- all of it -- three pitchers combined on a seven-inning no-hitter to complete High-A Hudson Valley's doubleheader sweep over Brooklyn. It was the first no-no for the Renegades since Doug Waechter made history on Aug. 10, 2000. Not to be forgotten was Breaux, who connected on a career-high three homers which accounted for all five of Hudson Valley's runs. The 23-year-old backstop has gone yard five times in his previous four games.

Twentysomething
Griffin Conine has taken his fair share of jogs lately. The No. 17 Marlins prospect added to his Minor League-leading home run total with his 20th blast of the season in High-A Beloit's matchup with South Bend. Conine has gone deep 14 times since the beginning of June but has been even hotter of late, slugging eight homers in his past 12 games. The son of former Major League All-Star Jeff Conine is also tied for third in the Minors with 52 RBIs.

July 9

A buzz-worthy performance
Brandon Marsh enjoyed a triumphant return to Triple-A Salt Lake. After spending a month on the injured list with a sore shoulder, the top Angels prospect homered, tripled and drove in three runs to lead the Bees to victory.

Double duty for Dominic
It was a Ruthian-type night for Red Sox prospect Dominic D'Alessandro, who went deep twice in the same game for the first time in his career. The 24-year-old's two taters accounted for more than 900 feet worth of home runs for High-A Greenville, including a 472-foot smash.

A noteworthy return
It was a successful return to the Minors for Kyle Muller after a strong three-week stint with the Braves. The No. 5 Atlanta prospect struck out a season-high 11 without issuing a walk and surrendered two runs in six innings for Triple-A Gwinnett.

That's more like it
Top Phillies prospect Mick Abel had it working Friday evening for Low-A Clearwater. After lasting just 2 2/3 innings in his previous start, the 19-year-old matched his career high with eight strikeouts while tossing five hitless innings for the second time in three outings.

July 8

Showing some four-sight
Top Dodgers prospect Keibert Ruiz has been faring rather well with Triple-A Oklahoma City. He's compiled a slash line of .301/.384/.636 in 37 games this season after putting together a season-high four hits with his 12th homer against El Paso.

Two guys, five home runs
It was an embarrassment of riches for Double-A Springfield. Well, it was after St. Louis' No. 29 prospect Nick Plummer walked it off with his third long ball of the game for the Cardinals. Add to that a two-homer night from Alec Burleson, the club's 15th-ranked prospect, and the only downside might be some tired legs.

Negret, we have a few ... new records
A whole bunch of Low-A Columbia marks were shook up by Juan Carlos Negret's big night at the plate. The Kansas City outfield prospect set the club's single-game production record (besting the one he previously shared with Scott Manea) with seven RBIs. Negret belted two homers for the third time this year, the second long ball was his 13th of the year and tied the club's single-season mark. All that helped the Fireflies post 20 runs for the first time as well.

Mark that one off the bucket list
With a seven-inning one-hitter for the Triple-A Stripers, Braves right-hander Kyle Wright notched his first career complete-game shutout. The 25-year-old struck out six and walked one.

Yeah, these ain't coming back
It seemed like these two were launched at about the same time on the Minor League landscape. There was the Ibandel Isabel homer that went an estimated 471 feet at 118 mph for the Double-A Trash Pandas. And then there was Brennen Davis' long ball for the Double-A Smokies. The defense took a reflexive step when it left the second-ranked Cubs prospect's bat and then stopped.

Sounds like he's good to go
In a rehab appearance for the Triple-A Stripers, Touki Toussaint matched his career high with 11 strikeouts. The Atlanta right-hander allowed two hits and a walk over six innings in Gwinnett's win over Nashville.

As the world turns
It was a roller-coaster ride for both High-A Bowling Green and Rome in first game of their doubleheader. Rays No. 28 prospect John Doxakis twirled five hitless innings -- the only blemish being a first-inning error. And the Hot Rods kept the no-hit bid going until the last batter of the seventh, when Braves No. 15 prospect Jesse Franklin V walked the game off with his 12th homer of the year.

July 7

An emotional roller coaster
First, seventh-ranked Angels prospect D'Shawn Knowles was called out on strikes with three men on and two out in the eighth for the Low-A 66ers. But the 20-year-old insisted he had fouled off that last pitch. After a brief umpire conference, the previous call was overturned and he was at the plate again. On the next pitch, he launched a pitch over San Manuel Stadium's right-field wall for a grand slam.

The early returns look very good
In his first professional outing in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League, Reds' No. 16 prospect Bryce Bonnin struck out seven while allowing a run on two hits over four innings. His second one -- and first for Low-A Daytona -- was even more impressive. It was 15 up and 15 down for the 2020 third-rounder, who struck out 11 in the process.

We'll buy that
You know what they say -- sign him up! A Triple-A Bats fan hanging out on the first-base side in the eighth inning of the game against the Redbirds keeps his eye on the ball and doesn't need a glove to snag a souvenir.

Heliot or helium?
Top Giants prospect Heliot Ramos launched his seventh homer of the season for the Double-A Flying Squirrels a loooong way. It went over the scoreboard, an estimated 440 feet.

Is it Groundhog Day again?
For the second consecutive day, San Francisco's No. 14 prospect Jairo Pomares went a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate for Low-A San Jose. Even the output was the same -- a home run, a double and two singles. (They weren't accomplished in the same order, though.)

Eager to take sides
Yankees infield prospect Oswaldo Cabrera went yard in consecutive at-bats from different sides of the plate for the Double-A Patriots. In the third inning against SeaWolves righty Chance Kirby, he smacked a two-run dinger to center field. Against lefty Max Green in the fifth, the 22-year-old added a three-run homer to left -- his 10th of the season.

July 6

Short but very, very sweet
In his first start since June 15 because of a blister on his left index finger, top Reds prospect Nick Lodolo was blistering. He delivered two perfect innings for the Double-A Lookouts.

Making noise with the glove
Some last-inning heroics come with the crack of the bat. But in the case of Blake Rutherford, it was the eighth-ranked White Sox prospect's glove that took the spotlight to cap the Triple-A Knights' contest against the Jumbo Shrimp.

Not bad for the first time
Low-A Fredericksburg hadn't yet experienced a walk-off homer, so what Nationals outfield prospect Kevin Strohschein did to cap Tuesday's game against Kannapolis was pretty grand.

Enjoying the ride
There's been a lot of excitement around the High-A Cyclones, who have three of the Mets' top four prospects -- Francisco Álvarez, Ronny Mauricio and Brett Baty -- on the roster. Tonight, Álvarez and Baty showed off the power Mets fans could be seeing in the not-too-distant future at Citi Field.

2-for-Tuesday
Among the prospects going yard twice were scorching Pirates' No. 14 prospect Mason Martin, who has collected six homers in the past four games for the Double-A Curve, and eighth-ranked Brewers prospect Freddy Zamora, who belted the first long balls of his professional career for the Low-A Mudcats.

Share and share alike
Talk about good sportsmanship. Indians prospect Miguel Jerez, who made his Low-A Hillcats debut on June 30, didn't have a first baseman's glove on hand. So Brewers prospect Ashton McGee has been loaning the Dominican Republic native his when the Mudcats are at the plate.

Driving one outta there
The last time fifth-ranked Orioles prospect Gunnar Henderson homered on June 2, he was still with the Low-A Shorebirds. He cranked his first long ball for the High-A IronBirds -- his eighth of the year overall -- in the second inning against the Drive.

July 5

Doing his homework
Top Mariners prospect Jarred Kelenic came back to the Minor Leagues to work on his game. The hitting certainly seems to be coming around, as the 21-year-old racked up four hits -- two doubles and two singles -- while plating two runs and scoring twice for the Triple-A Rainiers.

Five by five
Is it a baseball or a beach ball? It must seem like the latter right now for D-backs' No. 14 prospect Stuart Fairchild, because he has collected five homers over the course of the past five games for the Triple-A Aces.

Helping his own cause
Right-handed Padres prospect Evan Miller aided the offense with a bases-clearing double for the Triple-A Chihuahuas. The 26-year-old came into the game having struck out in his three previous at-bats this season.

You'll believe a man can fly
With two outs in the ninth and the game on the line, Angels farmhand Jon Jay went airborne for the Triple-A Bees. The 36-year-old caught the sinking line drive hit by the Dodgers' Andy Burns and Salt Lake went on to win in the 10th.

Business is booming at the dish
Giants' No. 2 prospect Joey Bart is doing great things at and behind the plate for the Triple-A River Cats. He knocked in a run in his third straight contest with a first-inning double to raise his average to .349 in 34 games this season.

Hope that had travelers' insurance
The only question about the long fly ball D-backs' No. 30 prospect Drew Ellis launched was whether it was going to be fair or foul. It was fair, and the 25-year-old collected his eighth homer of the season for the Triple-A Aces in the process.

You can stop holding your breath now
On Sunday, Bobby Witt Jr. threw a scare into everyone, himself included, when he came out of the Double-A Northwest Arkansas game after having difficulty fielding a double-play grounder. The top Royals prospect reports that it was just a calf cramp and he exited for precautionary reasons.

Surgery for Sixto
Top Marlins prospect Sixto Sánchez needs surgery for a small tear in the posterior capsule of his right shoulder. A date hasn't been set for the procedure yet, but the flame-throwing right-hander is expected to be back for Spring Training 2022.

The week that was
There were fireworks galore -- not just on Independence Day and not just during postgame displays across the Minor Leagues. Records were set by players and fans in the stands. Review all the action here.