Marlins Minor League Report: June 24-30

Each week, Fish Stripes will be recapping the past week’s performances throughout the Marlins minor league system. We highlight the players who either had an outstanding week, or one they would like to put behind them.

All stats updated entering July 1.

Triple-A New Orleans Baby Cakes (3-4, 45-38 overall)

The pitching staff hindered the New Orleans Baby Cakes success this past week once again. They surrendered an average of 5.9 runs/game through their seven games played this past week. This concludes a terrible month from that standpoint, as they gave up five runs or more in 15 of their 27 games this month.

As a result, the Baby Cakes offense went to waste this past week, unfortunately. Their lineup was able to record five runs or more in six of their seven games.

Outstanding Player: Isan Díaz

For the second straight week, Isan Díaz is the most outstanding player from the Baby Cakes. The No. 6 Marlins prospect per MLB Pipeline went 8-for-24 (.333 AVG) along with a pair of home runs, seven RBIs and eight walks.

Not only does Díaz continue to lead the Baby Cakes in home runs and RBIs, but the 23-year-old is also leading the team in walks as well. That should help him eventually translate his game to the major league level.

It figures to be a busy July for Díaz, who will compete in Sunday’s Futures Game in Cleveland, followed by the Triple-A All-Star Game a few days later.

Double-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (5-2, 36-44 overall)

The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp were able to put together one of their best performances of the season this past week. Their pitching staff gave up an average of 3.4 runs/game, while their offense produced an average of 5.6 runs/game during their five victories.

Jacksonville’s run production hasn’t been consistent so far this season. But hopefully their recent success will help take some of the load off of their pitching staff going forward.

Outstanding Player: Sixto Sánchez

The consensus top prospect within the Marlins minor league system was virtually unhittable once again for the Jumbo Shrimp. The 20-year-old pitched seven innings of one-run ball against the Montgomery Biscuits. Sánchez also recorded a season-high 10 strikeouts as well in this start.

Following this start, Sanchez has now lowered his ERA to 2.77 and OPP AVG to .257. Clearly, there isn’t much left for Sanchez to prove with the Jumbo Shrimp. So look for him to potentially be promoted to the Baby Cakes before season’s end.

High-A Jupiter Hammerheads (3-3, 28-46 overall)

Unfortunately, the Jupiter Hammerheads offense went back to their struggling ways. Unlike last week, their lineup was unable to record anywhere close to the 5.2 runs/game produced. They plummeted to just 3.3 runs/game, which wasted outstanding performances from this pitching staff once again.

The Hammerheads pitching staff allowed two runs or fewer in three of their six games this past week. While they did surrender a combined 16 runs in their other three games, the lack of offense limited the Hammerheads’ team success.

Outstanding Player: Trevor Rogers

The Marlins first-round selection from 2017 is quietly having a very impressive season. Trevor Rogers lowered his ERA to 2.50 following his outstanding start against the Bradenton Marauders this past week. The 21-year-old went eight scoreless innings and surrendered a pair of hit, while creating eight strikeouts. Rogers has now strung together three straight impressive outings without allowing a single run.

Rogers is proving that it won’t take long for him to shoot up through the minor league ranks.

Honorable Mention: Braxton Garrett

Pipeline’s No. 7 Marlins prospect was just as dominant as Rogers for the Hammerheads this past week. Braxton Garrett pitched seven scoreless innings in his start and established a career-high 11 strikeouts.

If Garrett can stay healthy, there’s no question how impressive his numbers will be at the end of his first full season of professional baseball.

Low-A Clinton LumberKings (5-0, 39-39 overall)

The Clinton LumberKings will have to wait till July to extend their current six-game winning streak. Both the offense and pitching staff were fantastic this past week for the LumberKings.

Their offense recorded five or more runs in four of their five games this past week. Meanwhile, the pitching staff held their opponents to three runs or fewer in three of those games. Thankfully, this winning streak has gotten the LumberKings’ winning percentage back to .500.

Outstanding Player: Connor Scott

Another former Marlins first-rounder stepping up. Connor Scott went 7-for-21 (.333) along with a pair of doubles and six RBIs.

Scott has largely struggled with strikeouts so far this season, and that continued into this past week. The 19-year-old walked just once and struck out five different times. Scott will need to significantly improve his plate discipline before he can be promoted further.

Short Season A Batavia Muckdogs (3-3, 10-6 overall)

The Batavia Muckdogs pitching staff was unable to provide much support to their booming offense this past week. Standout outfielders J.D. Orr and Milton Smith Jr. led them to four or more runs in five of their six games, but the pitching staff surrendered six runs in three of those six games.

Disappointing Player: Dakota Bennett

The 11th-round draft pick from 2017 was pounded once again in his start this past week. Dakota Bennett gave up four runs on seven hits in just 4 ²⁄₃ innings pitched. The 19-year-old has now surrendered seven hits in back-to-back starts and currently owns a 8.49 ERA and .341 OPP AVG.