Pipeline preview: Mendez is pitcher to watch

Here’s a look at top prospects to watch in Sunday’s Minor League action:

Hitter to watch: Kevin Newman (Pirates’ No. 11), Altoona vs. Akron (6 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)

Newman notched his third four-hit game of the season on Saturday, and his first since being promoted to Double-A Altoona. The 22-year-old shortstop went 4-for-4 to improve his average to .350 through 30 games for the Curve. Overall, the 2015 first-rounder has posted a .359 average, with more walks than strikeouts, over 71 games between the Class A Advanced and Double-A levels.

Pitcher to watch: Yohander Mendez (Rangers’ No. 13), Frisco at Corpus Christi (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)

Mendez, 21, has emerged as one of the better left-handed pitching prospects this season with his success against advanced competition across three levels. Since being promoted from Class A Advanced High Desert in late May, Mendez has pitched to a 3.32 ERA with 37 strikeouts over 40 2/3 innings (eight starts) for Frisco. He also was sharp in a Triple-A spot start earlier this month, when he fired five innings of three-hit ball, striking out seven, in a win over New Orleans.

Duel of the day: Stephen Gonsalves (Twins’ No. 5) vs. Paul Blackburn (Mariners’ No. 23), Chattanooga at Jackson (7:05 p.m. ET on MiLB.TV)

Gonsalves, No. 96 on the Top 100, enters the day having allowed just one earned run across his past three starts for Double-A Chattanooga. In that span, the 22-year-old left-hander has …

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