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Demeritte, Mendez among top prospect performers Monday
- Updated: May 3, 2016
Class A Advanced High Desert has been rolling of late, winning 13 of its last 15 games to move into first place atop the California League South division with a 19-6 overall record.
Left-hander Yohander Mendez (Rangers’ No. 14 prospect) and second baseman Travis Demeritte (No. 21 prospect) have been key to High Desert’s early season success, and both thrived Monday as the Mavericks edged Visalia, 2-1.
Making his fifth start of the year for High Desert, Mendez, 21, struck out eight while limiting the Rawhide to just one hit in five scoreless innings. It was the third scoreless performance for the 6-foot-5 lefty in his last four starts, during which he’s posted a 27/6 K/BB ratio and yielded just one earned run in 21 innings.
“One of the things that Yohander is really gifted with is his ability to make adjustments,” Mavs pitching coach Oscar Marin told MiLB.com. “He controls his pitches because he controls his delivery and he’s able to repeat it. He has the ability to make adjustments as he goes along during the game, which is key. A lot of younger pitchers are unable to do that in the heat of the moment and it takes them until their next outing to make the adjustments.
Demeritte powered the Mavericks in the victory with a tie-breaking, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning. The dinger was the 21-year-old’s ninth of the season and helped him retake the Minor League lead. After a disappointing 2015 campaign that saw him serve an 80-game suspension for PEDs, Demeritte has rebounded this year to hit .292/.373/.730 with 19 extra-base hits, 24 runs scored and 18 RBIs in 22 games.
The rest of the best performances from top prospects Monday
• No. 20 overall prospect Franklin Barreto (A’s No. 1) stayed red hot in Double-A Midland’s win against San Antonio, going 3-for-5 with his third home run, two RBIs and a pair of stolen bases. The multi-hit performance was Barreto’s seventh in his last 10 games. Matt Chapman (A’s No. 6) also slugged his eighth homer of the season.
• No. 23 overall prospect Bradley Zimmer’s (Indians’ No. 1) only hit in four at-bats for Double-A Akron was a big one: a game-tying solo home run — his fourth of the season and second in as many days — in the bottom of the seventh inning. The RubberDucks scored another run in the frame en route to defeating Trenton, 2-1. Right-hander Adam Plutko (Indians’ No. 15) was sharp on the mound in his fifth …
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