Thursday Pebble Report: Sam Hilliard and Garrett Hampson power Goats to victory

With Brendan Rodgers on the roster, Sam Hilliard and Garrett Hampson are a little overlooked by many following the Yard Goats for prospect power. But the duo refused to be footnotes last night, powering four of the nine Hartford runs and anchoring an offensive explosion for the Goats who, after starting 0-6, have started to regain their footing in the Eastern League.

Hampson, an infield prospect from Long Beach State (sounds familiar), was 2-for-3 on the night with three RBI and two walks. He was a pain on Portland pitching the entire night and upped his average to .304 with the strong evening.

Sam Hilliard may be even more overlooked, all things considered. Hilliard is a 15th round pick from Wichita State and plays a position the Rockies aren’t exactly begging for prospects in (corner outfield), but he has shown power every year in the minors and added his fourth home run of the year last night. The Goats 9-4 win over Portland upped their record to 4-8.

Other news and notes from around the Rockies affiliates are below:

Triple-A: Tacoma Rainiers 14, Albuquerque Isotopes 2

David Dahl: 1-for-4

Sam Howard (No.10 PuRP): 4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 K

Jordan Patterson (No. 14 PuRP): 1-for-3, RBI

Double-A: Hartford Yard Goats 9, Portland Sea Dogs 4

Garrett Hampson (No.9 PuRP): 2-for-3, 3 RBI

Sam Hilliard (No.17 PuRP): 2-for-5, HR

Brendan Rodgers (No.1 PuRP): 1-for-5

Class-A Advanced: Rancho Cucamonga Earthquakes 11, Lancaster JetHawks 4

Forrest Wall (No.16 PuRP): 1-for-4, 2B

Vince Fernandez (No.28 PuRP): 0-for-2, 3 BB, R

Colton Welker (No.5 PuRP): 0-for-4, BB

Class-A: Rome Braves 8, Asheville Tourists 5

Chad Spanberger (No.29 PuRP): 2-for-4, 2 RBI

Ryan Vilade (No.7 PuRP): 0-for-3, RBI

Shael Mendoza: 1-for-4

★ ★ ★

Thursday Probables:

Triple-A Albuquerque: Chris Jensen (0-0, 7.71 ERA) vs. Tacoma

Double-A Hartford: Ryan Castellani (1-0, 2.53 ERA) vs. Portland

Single-A Advanced Lancaster: TBD vs. Inland Empire

Single-A Asheville: Garrett Schilling (1-0, 3.24 ERA) vs. Rome