Thursday's top prospect performers
Here's a look at Thursday’s top Minor League performers from each team's Top 30 Prospects list:
Athletics: Brayan Buelvas, OF (No. 8), Low-A Stockton
Jordan Diaz, 3B (No. 11), High-A Lansing
Buelvas teed off for his second multihomer game of the season -- and first in three months -- as part of a 3-for-5 night. His second home run, a solo shot in the bottom of the ninth inning, extended the game to extras (when Stockton went on to victory). The 19-year-old has seven RBIs in his past three games and his season-long OPS is back up to .733. It had fallen below .700 a few days ago amid a 2-for-29 slump.
In his second game since returning from the injured list, Diaz went 3-for-3 with a home run, a double and three RBIs. Diaz’s homer was his first since Aug. 6 and the multihit performance was his first such showing since Aug. 21. Before going on the IL on Sept. 2, Diaz had slashed .291 through 86 at-bats in August. The 21-year-old has batted .289/.338/.477 with 12 homers and 55 RBIs in his first full season in High-A. Athletics prospect stats »
Braves: Ryan Cusick, RHP (No. 6), Low-A Augusta
Darius Vines, RHP (No. 23), High-A Rome
Cusick set a career high in strikeouts as he fanned 10 batters across four scoreless innings. The Braves' 1st-round pick from the 2021 Draft collected two strikeouts in the first inning as he worked around two singles and a walk in the frame. He proceeded to strike out eight of the next 10 batters he faced before his night came to a close on 66 pitches (45 strikes). The 21-year-old has struck out 34 batters in 16 1/3 innings since making his pro debut on Aug. 12 with Augusta and dropped his ERA to 2.67 following Thursday’s performance.
Vines continued his strong late-summer push with five scoreless innings, in which he allowed just a hit and a walk while fanning three. After a bit of a bumpy introduction to the High-A level, the 23-year-old now has a 2.54 ERA in his past eight starts (13 runs allowed in 46 innings). Thursday’s start was one of Vines’ best this season, but nothing tops his seven hitless innings back on July 31. Braves prospect stats »
Giants: Kai-Wei Teng, RHP (No. 12), High-A Eugene
Fresh off a career-best 13-strikeout performance, Teng continued to baffle hitters by striking out 12 batters and allowing one run on three hits across seven innings in Eugene’s 3-1 loss to Tri-City. Through his first full season in High-A, Teng has piled up the strikeout totals. His 12-strikeout performance Thursday marks his fifth double-digit strikeout outing of 2021. The 22-year-old has a 13.4 K/9 across his 95 2/3 innings with the Emeralds. Giants prospect stats »
Indians: Jose Tena, SS (No. 12), High-A Lake County
September certainly hasn’t been Tena’s best month, but he turned in a great showing Thursday: 3-for-5 with two doubles, a home run and two RBIs. In 13 prior games this month, Tena was just 10-for-47 (.213) with 18 strikeouts and only two extra-base hits. The 20-year-old’s first season past Rooke ball has been a success, though, with 16 homers and an .804 OPS in 104 games at the High-A level. Indians prospect stats »
Mariners: Gabriel Gonzalez, OF (No. 17), DSL Mariners
After hitting four home runs in his first 40 games, Gonzalez has gone yard on back-to-back days. The second time was part of a 3-for-4 game with a double, two walks and two RBIs. That marks the second three-hit game of Gonzalez’s season, with the other instance coming on July 26. The 17-year-old’s first year in pro ball has been excellent, as he’s torn up Rookie ball with a .299/.389/.565 slash line and eight steals in 10 tries. Mariners prospect stats »
Tigers: Beau Brieske, RHP (No. 27), Double-A Erie
Since giving up five runs in an outing on July 9 for High-A West Michigan, Brieske has bounced back solidly in his past 10 games. He continued that effort with six scoreless innings for the SeaWolves in which he limited Richmond to four hits, no walks and struck out four batters. Over his past 10 starts, Brieske has posted a 2.25 ERA in 56 innings and has limited batters to a .205 batting average in that span. The 23-year-old also has a 3.08 ERA through his seven outings since getting called up to Double-A. Tigers prospect stats »
Twins: Jose Miranda, 3B (No. 8), Triple-A St. Paul
Miranda stayed scorching hot with three hits, including a double, a home run and four RBIs. The Minors’ hits leader has three-hit games in consecutive nights and his seven-game hit streak now includes a staggering 16-for-33 (.485) stat line. Miranda has 22 hits versus just five strikeouts this month. The 23-year-old has steadily risen though the Minors throughout his five pro seasons, and a callup to the Majors feels like a foregone conclusion in 2022. Twins prospect stats »