Offensive Players of the Week

International League
Justin Ruggiano, Durham
.417 (10-24), 6 R, 2 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 8 SO, 0 SB, .875 SLG
After struggling in the first month of the season, Justin Ruggiano has really picked up his game. The Texas native capped off May and entered June by absolutely blistering the ball. Ruggiano slammed three home runs last week, including the first of a back-to-back for the Bulls in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Bats. Ruggiano had four multi-hit games in six starts this week and has now hit safely in eight straight games and in 23 of his last 27. Ruggiano posted an .875 slugging percentage over the six-game stretch, tied for best in the League with rehabbing outfielder Josh Hamilton of Louisville. In his first year in Triple-A, Ruggiano leads the Bulls in batting average (minimum 50 ABs), RBIs, hits and runs.

Pacific Coast League
Nate Gold, Oklahoma
.407 (11-27), 8 R, 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 14 RBI, 2 BB, 6 SO, 0 SB, .926 SLG
Nate Gold finally found his groove last week. The highlight came on Sunday, when Gold went 5-for-5 with two homers, seven RBIs and five runs scored, leading a 16-2 RedHawks' rout of Colorado Springs. Gold's seven RBIs in one game tied a franchise record held by the San Diego Padres' Adrian Gonzalez. The 27-year-old first baseman's perfect day also raised his average an astonishing 26 points from .254 to .280. Gold now has four home runs and 14 RBIs in his last five games. For the week, Gold led the Pacific Coast in RBIs and slugging percentage and tied for the league lead in homers and runs scored.

Eastern League
Trevor Plouffe, New Britain
.441 (15-34), 8 R, 5 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 BB, 4 SO, 1 SB, .676 SLG
The Twins' first pick in the first round (20th overall) in the 2004 draft showed why he is one of the organization's top position prospects last week. Plouffe led the Eastern League in hits and was second in average. On Sunday, the shortstop helped the Rock Cats sweep a doubleheader against New Hampshire by contributing four hits and scoring three runs. Plouffe entered the week hitting a paltry .244, but raised it to a respectable .279 during the seven-game stretch. In his first year in the Eastern League, Plouffe is second in the league in doubles with 17.

Southern League
Justin Upton, Mobile BayBears
.519 (14-27), 8 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 2 BB, 6 SO, 2 SB, 1.256 SLG
In his third week at the Double-A level, the 19 year-old Upton led the Southern League in hits (14), average (.519), on-base percentage (.563) and slugging (.889). Upton fell a double shy of hitting for the cycle on May 28 in an 11-inning, 8-5 loss to Carolina. In the first game of a doubleheader three days later, the Virginia native hit a game-tying two-run homer with two out in the bottom of the seventh inning to set the stage for teammate Carlos Gonzalez' game-winning blast an inning later. The brother of Tampa Bay Devil Rays' second baseman B.J. Upton added four hits, including a pair of doubles, and two RBI as the BayBears concluded the five-game series against the Mudcats with an 8-3 victory on Friday. Upton capped the week by going 3-for-3 at Jacksonville, extending his hitting streak to nine games and raising his average to .400 in 20 Double-A games.

Texas League
Colby Rasmus, Springfield
.450 (9-20), 7 R, 4 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 4 BB, 6 SO, 0 SB, 1.050 SLG
Rasmus tied a Springfield record last Tuesday by driving in seven runs in a wild 12-10 win over the Missions. The Cards took the lead for good in the game in the fifth on a three-rum homer by Rasmus that gave Springfield an 11-8 lead. Rasmus is tied for second in the Minor Leagues with 22 doubles this season. He's also third in extra-base hits with 33. The 2005 first-rounder (28th overall) is also leading the Texas League with 36 RBIs.

California League
Cyle Hankerd, Visalia
.524 (11-21), 6 R, 4 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 2 BB, 2 SO, 0 SB, 1.095 SLG
After struggling out of the gate, Visalia might want to thank Cyle Hankerd for helping them to get back on track. Thanks in part to Hankerd's stellar week, the Oaks have won four of their last five. The turnaround began Wednesday when Hankerd went 4-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs batted in to lead the Oaks to a 5-2 win over Modesto in the final game of the four-game series. The former USC standout led the California league in batting average and slugging percentage this week and ranked second in hits and RBIs.

Carolina League
Joshua Flores, Salem
.444 (12-27), 7 R, 3 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 4 BB, 7 SO, 1 SB, .815 SLG
Josh Flores is known for his speed, stealing bases and stretching doubles into triples. But last week, he showed he has some pop in his bat as he led the Carolina league in slugging percentage and extra base hits. The Chicago native also used his power to help propel the Avalanche to a 12-game winning streak, racking up 14 RBIs. For the season, Flores ranks second in batting average and triples in the Carolina League and third in stolen bases, hits and runs scored.

Florida State League
Mat Gamel, Brevard County
.563 (9-16), 7 R, 5 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 3 RBI, 6 BB, 1 SO, 1 SB, 1.000 SLG
Mat Gamel has been looking for his stroke in his first year in Class A Advanced. The former South Atlantic League All-Star may have found it this week as went 9-for-16 and raised his batting average almost 30 points from .238 to .266. Of Gamel's nine hits, five went for extra bases, accounting for nearly a fifth of his season total.

Midwest League
Hank Conger, Cedar Rapids
.381 (8-21), 3 R, 4 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 4 SO, 0 SB, .857 SLG
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have to be happy with their first-round selection (25th overall) in last year's draft. Conger blasted a grand slam, while driving in a career-high five runs in a 12-7 win over Peoria last Wednesday. The 2000 Little League World Series star has 18 RBIs in his last 14 games, and he led the Midwest League this past week in both slugging percentage and hits. On the season, Conger is batting .278 (47-for-169) with 13 doubles, eight home runs and a team-high 31 RBIs.

South Atlantic League
Chuck Caufield, West Virginia
.429 (12-28), 8 R, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 4 BB, 1 SO, 1 SB, .679 SLG
Chuck Caufield keeps on trucking and so do the West Virginia Power. Caufield led the Power with four hits and three RBIs as they clobbered the Grasshoppers 15-3 on Sunday. For the week Caufield knocked in 11 runs, good for second in the South Atlantic League. After a torrid week, Caufield improved him already impressive season totals to: .330 hitting (sixth in the SAL), 42 runs, 73 hits (first in the SAL) and 44 RBIs.