The month of August is here, and that means that Minor League Baseball is counting its days until the end of the season.
But that doesn’t mean that it’s time to stop this wonderful weekly series of discussing the O’s prospects of the week. This week, we saw walk-offs, mammoth home runs, great pitching performances and amazing defensive plays.
With that being said, let’s get into it. Here are your O’s Prospects of the Week.
Delmarva Shorebirds: Jake Cunningham – OF / Braxton Bragg – RHP
Jake Cunningham has had a down season, but this past week was maybe the best that Cunningham has swung the bat.
In six games, Cunningham slashed .389/.455/.500 with a .955 OPS, collecting seven hits, two of which were doubles, and knocking in five RBIs.
This season, the 22-year-old has a .620 OPS and has stolen 20 bases in 21 attempts. Cunningham is a former fifth-rounder from the 2023 draft, so he has time to find his rhythm moving forward.
As for the pitching side of things, the former eighth-rounder from the same 2023 draft is the guy we look at.
Braxton Bragg got the start for the Thursday game and tossed five innings of one-hit, one-walk, no-run baseball. He struck out seven batters and would end up getting a no decision.
Bragg has been a solid pitcher for the Shorebirds this year. He has a 4.13 ERA in 19 games and 15 starts. The 23-year-old has 69.2 innings under his belt and has only walked 19 batters while striking out 87.
Aberdeen IronBirds: Reed Trimble – OF / Nestor German – RHP
In what was really a down week for the IronBirds in general, a few players still managed to stick out.
Offensively, the honor this week goes to Reed Trimble. In four games played in this rain-infested series, Trimble hit safely four times, good for a .444 average this series.
The Southern Mississippi product added three stolen bases, as well as three RBIs and four walks. Any four-game stretch where you reach base at a rate of 61.5% is pretty damn good.
The pitching honor this week goes to the newcomer, Nestor German, who just recently received a call-up from Low-A Delmarva.
His first appearance on Friday was his High-A debut, in which German lasted two scoreless innings with no hits allowed. He recorded two strikeouts in these two innings, which goes right in hand with his 10.61 K/9 that he held in Delmarva before his call-up.
Bowie Baysox: Frederick Bencosme – INF / Ryan Hennen – RHP
Frederick Bencosme might not have been the Eastern League Player of the Week, but that doesn’t mean that he didn’t show out like a superstar this past week.
In six games, Bencosme slashed .579/.591/.842 with a 1.433 OPS. He tallied 11 hits, two doubles and one home run. He also drove in four and stole three bases in three attempts.
Bencosme has been phenomenal to watch this season, as he has been an on-base machine. In 89 games, the 21-year-old is slashing .245/.314/.347 with a .661 OPS. He has 79 total hits, 14 doubles, two triples and five home runs and has knocked in 32 RBIs, stole 17 bases in 21 attempts and has walked 32 times.
It seems like every pitcher wants to have their own week. Well, this week, it’s right-hander Ryan Hennen.
In three games, Hennen pitched 2.2 innings of work and didn’t give up a single hit or single earned run. He walked two batters and struck out six in his appearances.
Hennen has really had a solid season between two different clubs in Norfolk and Bowie. In 28 games out of the bullpen, he is 4-2 with a 4.66 ERA in 38.2 innings of work. He’s given up 45 hits, 20 earned runs, walked 13 batters and struck out 41.
Norfolk Tides: Daniel Johnson – OF / Cade Povich – LHP
With a flurry of moves, trades and call-ups, the Norfolk Tides roster had a total face lift. One player taking advantage of the opportunity is outfielder Daniel Johnson.
Johnson took his opportunity and ran with it, collecting nine hits across the series, including three multi-hit games. Although he’s not technically a prospect, Johnson hit .346 for the series, smacking two home runs, driving in nine runs and scoring nine himself.
Johnson is now slashing .275/.345/.492/.837 with 17 home runs and 63 RBIs and has scored 54 runs and stolen 12 bases.
On top of his offense, Johnson has played all three outfield positions and has collected seven outfield assists. With the outfield completely reshaped, he has a chance to showcase his value the rest of the way.
When a player is called up and struggles in the bigs, sometimes there is an adjustment period. Others take the experience and learn to adjust and get better to return and stay next time around.
Cade Povich is doing just that, as he was recently demoted after struggling with walks on the big league club. Returning to pitch to close out Sunday, Povich would show he is working on improvement by pitching a dominant game against the Knights.
Povich would pitch seven innings, allowing just two runs on three hits while striking out eight and walking just one. He threw 97 pitches with a 67% strike rate.
Povich improved to 6-1 across 14 games (13 starts). He has compiled a 3.31 ERA and a WHIP of 1.06 across 70.2 innings while striking 86 and walking 24 batters. The crafty lefty is holding batters to a .198 opponent average this season.
Povich has a chance to grow from his big league experience, and he seems to be taking those steps to prove he is what GM Mike Elias saw when he traded for him two seasons ago.
Which prospects stood out to you this week? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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