Caminero, Liberatore among Players of the Month

Minor League Baseball announced the Player and Pitcher of the Month Award winners for April in each of the 11 full season leagues in Major League Baseball’s player development system.

International League (Triple-A)

Iowa Cubs outfielder Christopher Morel batted .356/.456/.828 and led the minors in home runs (11) and led the league in RBIs (26), runs scored (25), total bases (72), slugging percentage (.828) and OPS (1.284). He was fourth in doubles (eight), and sixth in average (.356), hits (31) and on-base percentage (.456). Morel recorded 10 multi-hit games and hit posted an eight-game hitting streak. Morel, 23, was signed by Chicago as an international free agent out of Santiago, Dominican Republic, on August 23, 2015.

Memphis Redbirds (Cardinals) left-hander Matthew Liberatore went 2-1 with a 2.51 ERA in five starts and struck out a league-best 38 batters. Liberatore, 23, was originally selected by Tampa Bay in the first round (16th overall) of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Mountain Ridge High School in Glendale, Arizona.

Pacific Coast League (Triple-A)

Reno Aces (D-backs) infielder Phillip Evans batted .455/.576/.610 and led the league in average (.455), hits (35), runs (27) and on-base percentage (.576) and was third in OPS (1.186). He finished fourth in walks (21) and recorded 12 multi-hit games and hit safely in 11 consecutive games to end the month. Evans, 30, was originally selected by New York (NL) in the 15th round of the 2011 MLB Draft out of La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad, California.

Round Rock Express (Rangers) left-hander Cody Bradford led the Minor Leagues in wins in April as he was 5-0 with a 0.64 ERA in five starts, allowing two earned runs over 28 1/3 innings while striking out 25. He held opponents to a .135 average as he scattered 13 hits over his five outings. Bradford, 25, was selected by Texas in the sixth round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Baylor University.

Eastern League (Double-A)

Richmond Flying Squirrels (Giants) shortstop Tyler Fitzgerald batted .324/.410/.588, led the league in triples (three) and was third in average (.324), runs (15), total bases (40) and slugging percentage (.588). He was fourth in OPS (.998) and hits (22) while finishing fifth in doubles (six). He hit safely in nine of the first 10 games to open the season. Fitzgerald, 25, was selected by San Francisco in the fourth round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Louisville.

Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox) left-hander Shane Drohan went 4-0 with a 0.78 ERA in four starts as he allowed two earned runs on 13 hits and four walks over 23 innings. Drohan held opponents to a .163 average and has not allowed an extra-base hit this season. He began the season with 12 scoreless innings. Drohan, 24, was selected by Boston in the fifth round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of Florida State University.

Southern League (Double-A)

Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels) outfielder Orlando Martinez batted .333/.380/.611 and led the league in average (.333), hits (24), total bases (44), triples (three) and RBIs (19). He finished second in OPS (.991), slugging percentage (.611) and home runs (four). He recorded nine multi-hit games in 19 contests. Martinez, 25, was signed by Los Angeles (AL) as an international free agent out of Havana, Cuba, on August 30, 2017.

Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Marlins) left-hander Patrick Monteverde went 3-0 with a 0.35 ERA in four starts. He struck out 38 and walked just four while scattering 10 hits over 26 innings. He did not allow a run in his first 16 innings and fanned at least eight batters in each of his four starts. Monteverde, 25, was selected by Miami in the eighth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Texas Tech University.

Texas League (Double-A)

Amarillo Sod Poodles (D-backs) infielder Ryan Bliss batted .410/.424/.627 and led the league in average (.410), hits (34), total bases (52) and triples (two). He was second in doubles (eight) and third in runs (17) and stolen bases (eight) and finished fourth in slugging percentage (.627) and OPS (1.051). He recorded 13 multi-hit games and hit safely in 17 of 18 games, including a 10-game hitting streak to start the season and a seven-game streak to finish the month. Bliss, 23, was selected by Arizona in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Auburn University.

Tulsa Drillers (Dodgers) right-hander Nick Frasso went 1-1 with a 1.23 ERA in five starts as he scattered 16 hits and five walks over 22 innings. Frasso struck out 30 batters and held opponents to a .203 average. Frasso, 24, was originally selected by Toronto in the fourth round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of Loyola Marymount University.

Midwest League (High-A)

Dayton Dragons (Reds) outfielder Blake Dunn batted .386/.538/.702 and led the league in average (.386), runs (17), on-base percentage (.538), slugging percentage (.702) and OPS (1.240). He was second in total bases (40), home runs (five), RBIs (18) and stolen bases (11). He recorded nine multi-hit games and homered in each of the last three games of the month. Dunn, 24 was selected by Cincinnati in the 15th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Western Michigan University.

West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers) left-hander Carlos Pena pitched to a 0.47 ERA in five starts, covering 19 1/3 innings, as he allowed one earned run and held opponents to a .200 average. Pena struck out 26 batters and was unscored upon in his first nine innings and his last nine innings of the month. Pena, 24, was signed by Detroit as an international free agent out of Santiago, Dominican Republic, on March 6, 2019.

Northwest League (High-A)

Everett AquaSox (Mariners) outfielder Jonatan Clase batted .337/.455/.723 and led the league in total bases (60), runs (22), doubles (nine), home runs (seven) and stolen bases (17). He was second in hits (28), triples (one), RBI (17), walks (17), slugging percentage (.723) and OPS (1.178) and third in average (.337) and on-base percentage (.455). He recorded nine multi-hit games and had two separate seven-game hitting streaks in April. Clase, 20, was signed by Seattle as an international free agent out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on July 2, 2018.

Eugene Emeralds (Giants) right-hander Nick Sinacola pitched to a 1.06 ERA in five games (three starts) and held opponents to a .161 average over his 17.0 innings. Sinacola, 23, was selected by San Francisco in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of the University of Maine.

South Atlantic League (High-A)

Bowling Green Hot Rods (Rays) infielder Junior Caminero batted .392/.438/.743 and led the league in average (.392), runs (20), hits (29), total bases (55), home runs (seven), slugging percentage (.743) and OPS (1.181). He finished second in RBIs (23) and had 10 multi-hit games, including a five-hit game on Opening Night at Asheville. Caminero, 23, was originally signed by Cleveland as an international free agent out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on July 2, 2019.

Rome Braves right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver went 1-0 and did not allow a run in three starts, covering 14 innings as he allowed six hits and four walks. Smith-Shawver struck out 23 and held opponents to a .125 average as he allowed just two doubles and only two runners reached third base (one on a balk and one on a throwing error by the catcher) in April. Smith-Shawver, 20, was selected by Atlanta in the seventh round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Colleyville Heritage High School in Colleyville, Texas.

California League (Single-A)

Lake Elsinore Storm (Padres) third baseman Graham Pauley batted .371/.482/.557 and led the league in on-base percentage (.482). He was second in the league in average (.371), hits (26) and OPS (1.039) and was fourth in runs (18) and total bases (39). Pauley, 22, was selected by San Diego in the 13th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Duke University.

Fresno Grizzlies (Rockies) right-hander Blake Adams went 1-0 with a 1.06 ERA in three starts as he worked 17 innings and allowed just two runs on 12 hits and two walks while striking out 20. He allowed only three extra-base hits (all doubles) and ended the month on a 12-inning scoreless streak. Adams, 22, was selected by Colorado in the 13th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Kansas State University.

Carolina League (Single-A)

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (White Sox) first baseman Tim Elko batted .351/.407/.623 and led the league in average (.351), hits (27), total bases (48), home runs (six), RBIs (25) and slugging percentage (.623). He finished second in OPS (1.030) and posted seven multi-hit games, including a five-hit game April 14 at Delmarva. Elko, 24, was selected by Chicago (AL) in the 10th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of Mississippi.

Columbia Fireflies (Royals) right-hander Steven Zobac went 1-0 and did not allow a run in three appearances as he allowed just one hit and one walk over eight innings, while striking out 18 and holding opponents to a .040 average. He struck out the first 10 batters he faced in April and 14 of the 16 batters he faced in his first two outings. He did not allow a runner to reach second base in April. Zobac, 22, was selected by Kansas City in the fourth round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of California.

Florida State League (Single-A)

Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (Twins) catcher/first baseman Andrew Cossetti batted .395/.474/.678 and led the league in average (.339), home runs (four), doubles (eight), RBIs (20), on-base percentage (.474), slugging percentage (.678) and OPS (1.152). He was second in total bases (40) and sixth in hits (20). Cossetti, 23, was selected by Minnesota in the 11th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.

Dunedin Blue Jays right-hander Rafael Sanchez went 3-0 with a 1.14 ERA in four starts as he allowed 13 hits and two walks over a league-best 23 2/3 innings. Sanchez led the league with 31 strikeouts and held opponents to a .159 average. He fanned a career-high 11 batters April 27 against Bradenton and did not allow an earned run in his last 17.2 innings in April. Sanchez, 23, was signed by Toronto as an international free agent out of Antilla, Cuba, on May 13, 2022.