Oh, what a blur this season is becoming. In three games, the first half is over. Myrtle Beach finds itself back in the playoffs again with their second straight first half title! It’s still up in the air whether the Smokies make it back to back appearances . They are in the neck and neck race with Chattanooga. South Bend had a tall task last week in Cedar Rapids. In order to get the back in the playoff hunt they had to win five or six. They lost five of six and were eliminated. Iowa, meanwhile, is in second place behind Saint Paul in the year-long international League playoff procedures.

Before we get to the players of the week, let’s take a look at some interesting trends in some statistics the past two weeks. I like to look at splits to see who’s kind of in a groove on the mound or at the plate. While seven day splits are nice for the awards that are coming up, they also give you an idea of how players do against multiple teams, and even monthly splits are better as you see how a player progresses from month to month. But for today, we’re looking at stats from the first 16 days of the month of June.  They do not include stats from this past Saturday and Sunday.

In other words, let’s see who’s hot in June!

Hitting

Iowa – Jared Young – .405, 4 HR, 12 RBI, Bryce Windham – .333/.455/.400/.855, Perlaza 3 RH 14 RBI

Tennessee – Luis Vazquez – .356, .987 OPS, Haydn McGeary .390/.490/.674/1.164, 3 HR, 10 RBI, and PCA – 4 HRs, 17 RBI in 13 games

South Bend – James Triantos .314 Avg., Yohendrick Pinango .286/.375 – much improved

Myrtle Beach – Jefferson Rojas .345 Reivaj – .395, Ismael Mena .355, Parker Chavers .333 13 RBI, Ballesteros .313 4 RHs 14 RBI, Felix Stevens .294 6 HRs 10 RBI

Pitching

Iowa – Riley Thompson 2.77 ERA in 3 starts, Ben Brown 3.13 ERA 22 Ks in 14.1 IP

Tennessee – DJ Herz – 12.1 IP, 17 Ks, 1.46 ERA, Chris Kachmar 0.00 ERA, Carlos Guzman 2.08 ERA

South Bend – Cade Horton – 2.00 ERA, 16 Ks, 9 IP, Manny Espinoza 2.25 ERA, Connor Noland 2.40 ERA, Adam Laskey, Joe Nahas, and Sheldon Reed all 0.00

Myrtle, Beach – Michael Arias 10 IP, 15 Ks 0.00 ERA, Yovanny Cabrera 0.00 ERA, Johzan Oquendo 0.00 ERA, 10 Ks, 7 IP, Brody McCullough 13 Ks in 8 IP 1.13 ERA, Koen Moreno 12 Ks, 9 IP, 1.86 ERA

Players of the Week

If you strike out 11 guys in one game, that’s going to get you the Starting Pitcher of the Week. That is exactly what Ben Brown of the Iowa did this week. He has pretty much solidified himself as the next man up if the Cubs need a starting pitcher . He’s also put himself near the top of the Cubs upcoming prospect list.

Don’t look now, but Adam Laskey has figured out some things. He and the Cubs made a few adjustments and he has been pitching lights out for South Bend this whole month. This week, he got in two games and had five strikeouts in three innings of work. When I saw him on Tuesday night in Cedar Rapids, that was the best I’ve ever seen him pitch as he just carved up the Kernels’ hitters. He is this week’s Reliever of the Week.

When it came to the Hitter of the Week, this was a tough choice. Do I go with the guy who had the five for five night with six RBI? Or do I go with somebody who has more sustained performance over the course of the week? Once you look at the stats, Jared Young of Iowa tore it up. He hit .438 with 3 HRs and an OPS of 1.589! Wow! That is one gaudy stat!

Myrtle Beach clinched a title! They win the Affiliate of the Week