A scheduled day off and some bad weather led to only two and a half games being played in the Colorado Rockies’ farm system on Wednesday. One of those games was played by the High-A Lancaster JetHawks, in which No. 1 PuRP Brendan Rodgers continued to make a case for a promotion to Double-A. The 20-year-old righty had two more hits, one of which was a home run, to increase his batting average to an absurd .393 on the season to go with an equally insane .693 slugging percentage and 1.109 OPS. Even after adjusting for the hitter-friendly environment he’s playing in, Rodgers has been the best hitter in the California League and is making a strong case for being promoted to the Double-A Hartford Yard Goats sooner rather than later.
Meanwhile, No. 11 PuRP Peter Lambert had a strong outing for Lancaster in which he allowed three runs in six innings with a walk and seven strikeouts. That gives the 20-year-old an impressive 66-to-17 strikeout-to-walk ratio on the year as he continues to cement himself as a legitimate starting pitching prospect. In Low-A Asheville, No. 19 PuRP Colton Welker led the charge in a 12 run barrage with a three hit game that included a homer and now sports an impressive .370/.410/.566 slash line on the year. The fourth round pick in 2016 is likely to see an uptick in his prospect ranking in the upcoming midseason PuRPs voting as well.
Triple-A: Day off
Double-A: Suspended
The Hartford Yard Goats and Richmond Flying Squirrels were suspended in the fourth inning on Wednesday. They will resume and finish the game on Thursday.
High-A: Stockton Ports 3, Lancaster JetHawks 2
Brendan Rodgers (No. 1 PuRP): 2-for-4, HR, RBI
Peter Lambert (No. 11 PuRP): 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, BB, 7 K
Garrett Hampson (No. 22 PuRP): 0-for-4, K
Brian Mundell (HM PuRP): 2-for-4, RBI
Low-A: Asheville Tourists 12, Lexington Legends 5
Colton Welker (No. 19 PuRP): 3-for-4, HR, RBI, BB
Jose Gomez (No. 30 PuRP): 1-for-5, RBI
Alejandro Requena: 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 7 K
Thursday probables:
Triple-A: Harrison Musgrave (No, 25 PuRP; 0-1, 6.49 ERA) vs. Sacramento
Double-A: Yency Almonte (No. 12 PuRP; 2-1, 1.48 ERA) vs. Richmond
High-A: Jesus Tinoco (3-0, 3.90 ERA), @ Stockton
Low-A: Brandon Gold (2-4, 5.02 ERA) vs. Lakewood