Austin Riley Named International League Batter of the Week

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. - Gwinnett Stripers third baseman and left fielder Austin Riley has been named the International League Batter of the Week for May 6-12, the league announced Monday.
Riley, 22, batted .296 (8-for-27) with one double, four home runs, seven runs scored, eight RBIs, a .778 slugging percentage, and a 1.184 OPS in seven games during the week. He recorded his fourth multi-homer game of the season on May 8 vs. Buffalo, launching a pair of solo shots in the Stripers' 9-2 victory. Riley also homered in back-to-back games on May 11 and May 12 vs. Pawtucket, keying Gwinnett's 8-4 and 5-4 wins.

Ranked the Atlanta Braves' No. 4 prospect and the No. 32 prospect in baseball by MLB.com, Riley is batting .300 (42-for-140) in 36 games during his second season with Gwinnett. As of May 13, he leads the IL in home runs (14), runs (31), RBIs (35), extra-base hits (24), and total bases (94), and ranks in the league's top 10 in slugging percentage (2nd, .671), OPS (3rd, 1.047), hits (4th, 42), and doubles (T-6th, 10). He has homered 12 times in his last 17 games since April 25 and ranks third in the IL in batting in that span (.400, 26-for-65, 21 runs, 26 RBIs, 1.046 slugging percentage, 1.526 OPS).
Atlanta's Competitive Balance Round A pick (41st overall) in the 2015 draft out of DeSoto Center High School in Southaven, Miss., Riley has combined to hit .288 with 27 doubles, 26 home runs, 72 runs, 82 RBI, a .531 slugging percentage, and an .877 OPS over 111 career games with Gwinnett. He batted .282 with 17 doubles, 12 home runs, and 47 RBIs during his Triple-A debut last season, helping earn him the Braves' Hank Aaron Minor League Player of the Year award for 2018.
Riley's first career IL Batter of the Week award makes him the third Stripers player to be honored by the league this season. Mike Soroka was named IL Pitcher of the Week for April 4-7, and Andrés Blanco was named IL Batter of the Week for April 8-14.