MLB Prospect Watch

Jake Odorizzi Joins Rays Staff

With reigning Cy Young winner David Price on the disabled list, the Tampa Bay Rays have promoted right-hander Jake Odorizzi to take his place in the rotation, reports Bill Chastain of MLB.com.  Odorizzi will take Price's turn in the rotation today.

Odorizzi, acquired by the Rays in the off-season in the James Shields trade with the Royals, is perhaps the most heralded of the Rays impressive upper-minors pitching depth.  He was considered the most major league-ready pitcher in the Royals system at the time of the trade and made two starts in the majors towards the end of last season.  Odorizzi was 4-0 with a 3.83 ERA and a 4.21 FIP in eight Triple-A starts this season.

Odorizzi is not an over-powering pitcher, featuring a low-to-mid 90's fastball to go along with a curveball, slider and change-up.  It's a basic repertoire, but he gets the most out of it and should have no problem establishing himself as a reliable big league starter, although he's not in the Price/Matt Moore/James Shields class of upper-rotation starters.

With Roberto Hernandez struggling, Odorizzi's time in the rotation while Price is out could serve as an audition to stick around upon the return of their ace.  If not, Odorizzi, along with Alex Colome, Alex Torres, and Chris Archer, continue to provide the Rays with the best pitching depth in baseball.

Prospect Action - 5/5/13

Triple-A

• Zack Wheeler put together the best start of his season, throwing six shutout innings and walking just one, according to Jonathan Raymond of MiLB.com.  Wheeler has now put together back-to-back solid starts after struggling to begin the year.
• Dellin Betances threw five no-hit innings on Sunday, reports Ashley Marshall of MiLB.com, but true to form for the Yankees right-hander, he walked four in the outing.  It was a season-high in walks for Betances, who has given out 16 free passes in 24 innings.
• A two-run double for Mike Zunino proved to be the difference on Sunday, notes The Seattle Times.  The Mariners catcher got off to a hot start at the beginning of the season, but is just 3-for-30 over his past eight games.
• Jake Odorizzi and his Rays teammates combined on a no-hitter on Sunday, says Jake Seiner of MiLB.com.  Odorizzi struck out three and walked four in the outing, lowering his ERA to 2.65 on the season.

Double-A

• Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson, often times over-shadowed within his own organization, broke out of a early-season slump on Sunday with a 4-for-6 day at the plate that included a home run, notes Raymond.
• Aaron Northcraft lowered his ERA to 3.46 on Sunday with five scoreless innings and six strike outs.  The Braves prospect broke out last season in the Carolina League, but has alternated good starts with poor ones so far in the Southern League.
• Kevin Gausman dropped to 1-4 on the season despite allowing just two runs in seven innings of work.  The Orioles 2012 first-rounder has now allowed two earned runs or less in his last three starts.

High-A

• Domingo Tapia threw six innings of two-hit ball, reports Seiner,  lowering the Mets right-hander's ERA to 2.23 on the season. Tapia has been strong this season in his second year in full-season ball, striking out 28 batters in 32 1/3 innings.
• Giants slugger Angel Villalona hit his sixth home run of the season and now has his batting average up to .214 thanks to 11 hits in his last 10 games.
• Gregory Polanco raised his batting average to .321 on the year with a 3-for-5 day at the plate that included a double and a home run.  The Pirates outfielder is now slugging .486 on the season and also has 10 steals.

Low-A

• Twins prospect Jose Berrios advanced to 3-0 on the season after striking out eight batters in six innings of work.   The 2012 first-round pick now sports a 2.55 ERA on the season with 21 strike outs in 17 2/3 innings.
• Tyrell Jenkins threw a complete game shutout on Sunday, lowering his ERA to 4.97 on the season.  The Cardinals prospect needed just 97 pitches to complete the outing.

Prospect Action - 4/30/13

Triple-A

• Rubby de la Rosa put together his second staight solid outing after struggling in his first three starts of the season, notes WPRI.com.  The Red Sox prospect struck out five batters in three innings without allowing a run.  He has yet to work more than three innings in an outing this season.
• After a rough start of his own, Phillies outfield prospect Darin Ruf has been red-hot lately, hitting another home run on Tuesday night, giving him three in as many games.  He's now eight for his last 13 with three doubles and three home runs.
• Wil Myers hit his third home run of the season in support of fellow Rays prospect Chris Archer, who struck out seven over six scoreless innings.
• Astros prospect Jarred Cosart out-pitched Brewers prospect Johnny Hellweg on Tuesday.  Cosart struck out six while allowing just one run over 5 1/3 innings while Hellweg battled his control, walking four over six innings, but did strike out seven.

Double-A

• Alex Meyer showed flashes of dominance, striking out eight batters over six innings, but the Twins prospect allowed four runs over that stretch.
• Yordano Ventura was dominant on Tuesday, as the Royals prospect struck out 10 batters over five innings while allowing just a single hit.

High-A

• Garin Cecchini turned in one of the biggest offensive days of his career, going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a home run.
• Following the lead of his major league counterparts on Tuesday, Indians top prospect Francisco Lindor went 3-for-3 with a home run in game two of a double-header.

Low-A

• Byron Buxton homered on Tuesday, his fourth home run of the season.  The second overall pick from last year's draft is now hitting .392/.510/.684 on the season.
• Cubs slugger Dan Vogelbach continues to show off his power, hitting his fifth home run of the season on Tuesday as part of a four-hit day.

Prospect Action - 4/11/13

Triple-A

• Kyle Gibson was not good on Thursday, as the Twins pitching prospect allowed five runs without getting out of the fifth inning.
• Braves first base prospect Joey Terdoslavich hit his first home run of the season, coming off of White Sox pitcher Andre Rienzo, who struggled, allowing seven runs in 5 1/3 innings.  Jared Mitchell collected two hits and stole a pair of bases in the loss.
• Alex Colome took a no-hitter into the 5th inning, writes Robert Emrich of MiLB.com, as the Rays prospect ultimately allowing just two hits in six innings while striking out seven.

Double-A

• Nationals top prospect Anthony Rendon hit his first home run of the season and is still playing third base despite being blocked there in the majors by Ryan Zimmerman.
• Kevin Gausman bounced back from a rough first start of the season, as the Orioles pitching prospect allowed just one run over six innings of work, notes Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun.
• Red Sox pitching prospect Brandon Workman allowed just three hits over six strong innings, according to The Hartford Courant.
• J.R. Graham failed to make it out of the fourth inning and took a loss, despite a home run from Christian Bethancourt in support of his effort, writes Solomon Crenshaw, Jr. of AL.com.

High-A

• The Blue Jays are still limiting the pitch counts of Aaron Sanchez, but that hasn't stopped the right-hander from dominating when he's on the mound, writes Jonathan Raymond of MiLB.com, who notes that Sanchez threw five no-hit innings on Thursday.
• Mets prospect Domingo Tapia struggled with his control on Thrusday, walking four batters while failing to get out of the first inning.
• Luke Jackson dominated in his second start of the season, striking out seven over five innings of shutout baseball.  The Rangers right-hander now has a 2.00 ERA and 11 strike outs in nine innings on the season.
• Phillies third base prospect Maikel Franco homered for the second straight game, this time as part of a three-hit day that also included a pair of doubles.

Low-A

• 2011 first-rounder Joe Ross threw five shutout innings while striking out eight and allowing just two baserunners on Thursday.  It was the second straight five inning scoreless outing for the Padres right-hander this season.
• The Marlins Low-A affiliate in Greensboro got two-hit days from Yordy Cabrera and Jesus Solorzano en route to a 6-4 victory.

Prospect Action: 4/11/13

Triple-A

• Chris Archer, who could be in the majors soon with the Rays if they choose to abandon the Roberto Hernandez experiment, didn't help make his case on Wednesday, giving up four runs in five innings.  He did strike out seven batters, however, while walking just one, and it's unlikely that the Rays are making any roster decisions based on his starts this season.  Wil Myers went 2-for-4 in the game and is now hitting .360 on the young season.
• Gerrit Cole allowed one run and struck out five of the six outs he recorded in a two-inning outing that was shortened due to the Pirates pitch count restrictions.  It took Cole 63 pitches to get through the two innings, and most organizations have a limit on how many pitches a pitcher can throw in one inning.
• Jarred Cosart earned his first win of the season as the Astros right-hander allowed just one hit over five shutout innings while striking out seven.

Double-A

• After a dominant opening start, Phillies left-hander Jesse Biddle didn't fare as well in his second outing on Wednesday, allowing five runs (four earned) in six innings without striking out a batter.
• Zach Lee was impressive in his second start of the season, as the Dodgers top pitching prospect struck out seven batters in as many innings and allowing just one run in the outing.
• Brewers pitching prospect Jimmy Nelson advanced to 2-0 after allowing just an unearned run over six innings of work.  Brian Flynn took the loss for the Marlins' Double-A affiliate in Jacksonville despite pitching well, allowing two runs in five innings while striking out eight, but not as well as his dominant first start.  Derek Dietrich had a perfect night at the plate in the loss, reaching base all four times he came to bat.
• Taijuan Walker struggled in his first start, and while he wasn't great on Wednesday, he was better, allowing three runs, all unearned, in five innings, as his teammates made seven errors behind him.  He did strike out five batters in the outing.

High-A

• Archie Bradley showed exactly what he can do when he throws strikes, as the Diamondbacks prospect struck out ten batters in six shutout innings without walking a batter.  Bradley has been good thus far in his professional career, but not as dominant as a pitcher with his stuff should be because of his tendency to put extra runners on base.  Wednesday night was a great indication of what he can do when he forces hitters to hit their way on base.
• Courtney Hawkins, the White Sox 2012 first-round pick, hit his first two home runs of the season on Thursday.  Hawkins entered the game just 1-for-10 on the season.
• Maikel Franco homered and Javier Baez fanned three times in a strange game between the Cubs and Phillies Florida State League affiliates that saw Cubs prospect Jorge Soler ejected for attacking the opposing dugout with a bat, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun-Times.

Low-A

• Josh Bell hit his first home run of the 2013 season, as part of a 2-for-4 night that also included a double and raised his batting average to .231.  Bell was a 2nd round pick by the Pirates in 2011 and was signed to a $5 million bonus, a record for the second round.
• After homering on Tuesday, Joey Gallo did on Wednesday the other thing he's going to do a lot - strike out.  The Rangers prospect  went 0-for-4 with three strike outs, showing his feast-or-famine approach on back-to-back days.
• Note: Most of the Midwest League was postponed on Wednesday night due to strong storms in the northern part of the country.