/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/34330891/Dan_Winkler.0.jpg)
It was a difficult week for injury news as the Rockies placed several high-profile players on the disabled list. Arguably the worst news, from a minor league standpoint, was Dan Winkler's. Before the injury, the right-hander was having an incredible season, posting a 1.41 ERA and just 33 hits allowed in 70 innings pitched.
The Illinois native was in the middle of a 4-inning no hitter when he was removed with pain in his elbow. An MRI revealed significant damage to the ulnar collateral ligament this week, which will require Tommy John surgery on the elbow.
While the timing isn't the best, from a roster standpoint it still leaves Winkler with plenty of room to make the big league club. Dan was chosen in the 2011 draft, which keeps him under team control until 2017. The median time of return on Winkler's type of surgery is nearly 15 months, providing him a timetable return of around 2016.
Pitchers can return sooner however, as demonstrated by Dylan Bundy. The Orioles top pitching prospect underwent Tommy John surgery in June last season, and he's already back throwing 94 mph. Bundy is set to return on Sunday, June 15th for his first minor league start of the season.
Rosell Herrera returns to form
After missing nearly the entire month of May, shortstop Rosell Herrera returned with a vengeance to Modesto. The switch hitter struggled to start the season posting a .562 OPS, but has since picked things up with a line of .415/.455/.610 for the month of June.
A lot of people were keeping a wary eye on Herrera to see if his 2013 season was a fluke. The young Dominican struggled in 2012 for his first attempt at Low-A Asheville, only to repeat the following season with a breakout year.
Herrera caught a lot of people's attention as a 20-year-old in Low-A Asheville last year, where he posted a .343 average and 16 home runs. Afterwards Herrera suddenly started catching on with a lot of prospect lists, appearing as the No. 86 prospect for Baseball America and No. 99 for MLB.com. The young infielder is an exciting player because of his 6-foot-3 frame, the ability to switch-hit, as well as being able to play play third or short defensively.
Hottest Prospects of the Week
Team Records
Team |
6/06 |
6/07 |
6/08 |
6/09 |
6/10 |
6/11 |
6/12 |
Total |
Colorado Rockies (MLB) |
3 - 5 |
|||||||
Col. Springs Sky Sox (AAA) |
3 - 5 |
|||||||
Tulsa Drillers (AA) |
4 - 4 |
|||||||
Modesto Nuts (A+) |
- |
2 - 5 |
||||||
- |
5 - 3 |
|||||||
DSL Rockies (ROK) |
- |
2 - 5 |
Top pitchers (filtered by ERA)
Name |
Age |
Tm |
W |
L |
Sv |
BF |
IP |
G |
ERA ▴ |
H |
R |
ER |
HR |
BB |
K |
Hector Villarroel |
18.8 |
DSL ROCK |
1 |
0 |
0 |
38 |
10.2 |
2 |
0.00 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
8 |
Daniel Winkler |
24.3 |
TUL |
0 |
0 |
0 |
13 |
3.2 |
1 |
0.00 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
Jorge Oviedo |
17.3 |
DSL ROCK |
0 |
1 |
0 |
23 |
5 |
1 |
1.80 |
6 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
Christian Friedrich |
26.9 |
COL |
0 |
1 |
0 |
21 |
5 |
1 |
1.80 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
2 |
Yohan Flande |
28.4 |
COL |
1 |
1 |
0 |
51 |
12 |
2 |
2.25 |
9 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
10 |
7 |
Tyler Anderson |
24.5 |
TUL |
0 |
0 |
0 |
16 |
4 |
1 |
2.25 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
Jon Gray |
22.6 |
TUL |
1 |
0 |
0 |
41 |
10.1 |
2 |
2.61 |
5 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
6 |
10 |
Top hitters (filtered by hits)
Name |
Age |
Tm |
PA |
R |
H ▾ |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
BB |
K |
SB |
BA |
OBP |
SLG |
OPS |
Rosell Herrera |
21.7 |
MOD |
32 |
3 |
14 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
6 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0.483 |
0.531 |
0.759 |
1.290 |
Raimel Tapia |
20.3 |
ASH |
33 |
7 |
14 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
9 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
0.467 |
0.500 |
0.700 |
1.200 |
Taylor Featherston |
24.7 |
TUL |
33 |
7 |
12 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
5 |
1 |
8 |
0 |
0.375 |
0.394 |
0.719 |
1.113 |
Jordan Patterson |
22.3 |
ASH |
34 |
7 |
11 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
3 |
5 |
1 |
0.367 |
0.441 |
0.600 |
1.041 |
Ben Paulsen |
26.7 |
COL |
34 |
6 |
11 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
8 |
5 |
6 |
0 |
0.393 |
0.471 |
0.643 |
1.114 |
Cristhian Adames |
22.9 |
TUL |
32 |
4 |
10 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
6 |
0 |
0.370 |
0.419 |
0.407 |
0.826 |
Emerson Jimenez |
19.5 |
ASH |
26 |
5 |
10 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
8 |
2 |
3 |
5 |
0.435 |
0.480 |
0.522 |
1.002 |
Tyler Massey |
24.9 |
TUL |
31 |
3 |
10 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
0.333 |
0.355 |
0.400 |
0.755 |
Ryan McMahon |
19.5 |
ASH |
30 |
6 |
10 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
0 |
0.385 |
0.467 |
0.462 |
0.929 |
Manuel Melendez |
17.2 |
DSL ROCK |
34 |
4 |
10 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
4 |
3 |
1 |
0.333 |
0.412 |
0.400 |
0.812 |
Chris O'Dowd |
23.7 |
MOD |
22 |
6 |
10 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
5 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
0.476 |
0.500 |
0.857 |
1.357 |
Stats by Minorleaguecentral.com
Hottest prospect videos of the Week
Kyle Parker with another opposite field home run.
Taylor Featherston homers twice on Star Wars night in Tulsa.
Tulsa clinches a playoff birth.
The 19-year-old Emerson Jimenez doubles for Low-A Asheville.
Programming note: I will be taking a couple of weeks off, as my day job is transferring me to North Carolina. I'm looking forward to sharing photos and stories about the players in Asheville. In the meantime, TomCat009 will be filling in as a guest writer.