It continues to be a tough season in terms of wins and losses for many of the Colorado Rockies’ minor league affiliates. The seven clubs in action on Thursday combined for just one win, and just two of the seven teams are above .500 for the year. There are, however, always bright spots, and Thursday’s came from No. 3 PuRP Colton Welker. The 20-year-old righty went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, and three RBI in High-A Lancaster’s 9-7 victory over Stockton.
Since being drafted in the fourth round of the 2016 draft, Welker has done nothing but hit. He hit .326 with Rookie League Grand Junction in 2016, .350 with Low-A Asheville in 2017, and so far sports a healthy .333 clip with Lancaster in 2018. This affinity for collecting hits has moved Welker up many prospect lists. When he debuted on the PuRPs list prior to the 2017 season, he ranked as the Rockies’ 19th best prospect. He’s now climbed all the way to third both here and at MLB Pipeline. If he continues to hit, his value should continue to climb along with it.
★ ★ ★
Triple-A: Sacramento River Cats 4, Albuquerque Isotopes 2
Sam Howard (no. 11 PuRP): 52⁄3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Jordan Patterson (no. 15 PuRP): 1-for-4, RBI, K
Raimel Tapia: 0-for-2
Matt Holliday: 1-for-1
Mike Tauchman: 1-for-3, 2B, BB, CS
★ ★ ★
Double-A: Reading Fightin Phils 3, Hartford Yard Goats 2
Sam Hilliard (no. 13 PuRP): 1-for-4, 3 K
Brian Mundell (no. 16 PuRP): 0-for-4
Roberto Ramos (no. 23 PuRP): 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
Evan Grills: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K
★ ★ ★
High-A: Lancaster JetHawks 9, Stockton Ports 7
Colton Welker (no. 3 PuRP): 3-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI, BB, K
Tyler Nevin (no. 12 PuRP): 1-for-4, BB, K
Ben Bowden (no. 19 PuRP): 11⁄3 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Vince Fernandez (no. 20 PuRP): 1-for-5, HR, RBI, 2 K
Robert Tyler (no. 22 PuRP): IP, H, ER, BB
Justin Lawrence (HM PuRP): IP, H, 0 R, BB, 3 K
★ ★ ★
Low-A: Hickory Crawdads 3, Asheville Tourists 0
Ryan Vilade (no. 10 PuRP): 1-for-4, K, CS
Will Gaddis (no. 24 PuRP): 7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
Matt McLaughlin: 1-for-3
Sean Bouchard: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K
★ ★ ★
Short Season-A: Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 7, Boise Hawks 4
Mike Nikorak (no. 28 PuRP): IP, H, ER, BB, K
Terrin Vavra (no. 30 PuRP): 3-for-5, 2B, 2 RBI
Cade Harris (10th round, 2018): 2-for-4, SB
Jairo Diaz: IP, 0 H, 0 R, K
★ ★ ★
Dominican Summer League: DSL Giants 12, DSL Colorado 5
Bladimir Restituyo: 1-for-5, SB, 2 K
Walking Cabrera: 1-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB, K
Bryant Quijada: 2-for-4, RBI, BB, K
Enrique Saldana: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 K
★ ★ ★
Dominican Summer League: DSL Phillies Red 6, DSL Rockies 0
Gerard Ramos: 1-for-2, 2 BB
Junior Guerrero: 1-for-3, BB, K
Gabriel Gil: 1-for-3, BB, K
Manual Tovar: 22⁄3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, K
★ ★ ★
Friday Probables
Triple-A Albuquerque: Peter Lambert (No. 2 PuRP; 2-4, 5.61 ERA) vs. Sacramento, 6:35 PM MT
Double-A Hartford: Frank Duncan (3-5, 4.77 ERA) @ Richmond, 5:05 PM MT
High-A Lancaster: Matt Dennis (7-12, 5.84 ERA) @ San Jose, 8:00 PM MT
Low-A Asheville: Nick Kennedy (3-12, 7.52 ERA) vs. Hickory, 5:05 PM MT
Short Season-A Boise: TBD @ Eugene, 8:05 PM MT
Rookie Level Grand Junction: TBD @ Helena, 7:05 PM MT