Friday's top AFL prospect performers
Here's a look at Friday’s top performers in the Arizona Fall League from each team's Top 30 Prospects list.
Brewers: Joey Wiemer, OF (No. 23), Salt River Rafters
Wiemer collected four hits, reached base five times and scored a run a multihit night for Salt River in its loss to Mesa. The 22-year-old started his night off with a single in the bottom of the first, then drilled a double on the first pitch he saw in the third before eventually coming around to score on a sacrifice fly. He led off the bottom of the fifth with another base knock, reached via a hit by pitch in the seventh and topped off his performance by doubling on the first pitch again in the ninth. The Cincinnati product is 8-for-22 (.364) with a 1.118 OPS through seven Fall League games. More »
Cardinals: Juan Yepez, OF/1B (No. 27), Glendale Desert Dogs
It was a repeat night for Yepez, who again went 2-for-5 with a double at the plate, but this time added a home run and drove in four of Glendale’s nine runs in the Desert Dogs’ AFL-leading sixth victory of the season. With his team up 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth, Yepez stepped up with the bases loaded and ripped a three-run double to center field to pad Glendale's lead. Neither club scored again until Yepez clubbed a 3-2 pitch over the left-field wall to lead off the seventh, his second dinger in the Fall League. Through seven games, the 23-year-old is batting .346 with four doubles, four walks, five runs scored and an AFL-best 11 RBIs. More »
Cubs: Nelson Velazquez, OF (No. 29), Mesa Solar Sox
Velazquez has been an on-base machine in the second week of Fall League action. After drawing four walks on Thursday and scoring four runs on Wednesday, the 22-year-old recorded two hits with his first AFL home run, two RBIs and a free pass in Mesa’s 9-5 win. He capped off a three-run first inning for the Solar Sox with an RBI knock before drilling a solo shot to left to lead off the top of the third. In his first six AFL games, Velazquez has tallied three multihit efforts with four extra-base hits.
Dodgers: James Outman, OF (No. 27), Glendale Desert Dogs
Outman cranked his second Fall League homer in a 2-for-3 performance in Glendale’s 9-2 win. The lefty slugger filled up the box score, drilling a solo shot on the first pitch in the top of the second and doubling to start the eighth. Outman scored two runs and drew a walk to round out his line. The 24-year-old collected a career-best 48 extra-base hits in the regular season -- including nine triples -- and has already tallied four XBH in six AFL games thus far (two doubles and two homers).
Giants: Will Wilson, SS (No. 15), Scottsdale Scorpions
Wilson roped his first Fall League home run in a 2-for-4 effort for Scottsdale in its 10-8 loss. In a back-and-forth contest, the 2019 first-rounder (15th overall) pulled his club to within one run when he punched a 1-2 pitch over the right-field fence for a solo shot in the sixth. Across two levels in the regular season, Wilson drilled 15 long balls in 100 games while tallying 39 extra-base hits and 48 RBIs.
Red Sox: Jeter Downs, SS/2B (No. 5), Scottsdale Scorpions
After Cardinals prospect Lars Nootbaar took the AFL lead in home runs with four earlier in the day, Downs wasted no time catching him. The 23-year-old crushed a three-run dinger off Hans Crouse in the bottom of the third to give him four long balls in five Fall League games. Downs started the 2021 AFL season by going 1-for-2 with a single and three walks on Oct. 14 before exploding for four homers in his past four games. The slugging shortstop is batting .333 with nine RBIs, seven walks, six runs scored and an AFL-leading 1.520 OPS. More »