Fun on the Farm, 6/11/14

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (26-38, Pacific Coast League)

I know you're all aware of how Taijuan Walker did on Tuesday night, so I won't rehash the rehab, but I would like to talk about the rehab assignment of another soon-to-be Mariner.  Logan Morrison is now back with the Mariners after making himself hard to ignore.  He's been solid in Tacoma thus far, and last night he hit his third home run in 18 rehab games with the Rainiers.  Since his rehab assignment started on May 23rd, LoMo is batting .308 with 2 doubles, 3 home runs, 8 runs batted in.  He has also shown some solid plate discipline in drawing 11 walks, which is encouraging.  He will be starting at first base tonight for the Mariners and batting fifth.

Oh hey, guys, did you hear the news?  Chris Taylor is back!  Fresh off the DL, Taylor went 1-3 with a double, a walk and a run scored yesterday.  His finger appears to be fine, as his double extended his hitting streak to 9 games and kept his batting average all the way up at .372 (the best batting average of any player in the Mariners organization by a pretty wide margin).  During his 9-game streak, Taylor has 3 doubles, 3 triples, 5 runs batted in and 4 stolen bases.  On the year, he has 14 doubles, 5 triples, 3 home runs, 21 runs batted in and 9 stolen bases.  He's pretty good, you guys.  If he can sustain this level of offensive production, it's hard to imagine him not getting an opportunity with the Mariners fairly soon.

Another player to get excited about is Jabari Blash, who is heating up and starting to catch some breaks offensively. He's been a victim of a low BABIP all year but last night he broke through, going 3-4.  Blash's strikeout numbers are still a tad high for my liking, but his power makes him an intriguing prospect to watch.

Infielder Ty Kelly has also been playing well lately, but it's hard to see him getting a look with the Mariners this season.  I'm going to go out on a limb and say that he's probably not going to give Kyle Seager or Robinson Cano anything to worry about, and Chris Taylor would certainly get a look at shortstop before him.  Kelly has been hitting well lately, though, showing that he could be a solid option down the road.  In his last 16 games he's hitting .313 with 5 doubles, 4 home runs and 10 runs batted in.

AA Jackson Generals (28-36, Southern League)

Death is never an easy thing to deal with, especially when you're attached to that which has passed away.  Yesterday was especially difficult for me as I had to find out that shortstop Ketel Marte's 13-game hitting streak came to an end after an 0-4 performance on Monday.

I'm not sure if the single tear that rolled down my cheek was caused by the emotion that came with seeing a baseball icon start his last series in Seattle (Derek Jeter, not Alfonso Soriano), or because Marte's streak was snapped.  Either way, Marte is hitting .298 and he is still a Southern League All-Star.  Nobody can take that away from him, nobody.

Not all streaks are done in Jackson, though, thanks to outfielder Jamal Austin and his 10-game hitting streak.  Austin has 17 hits over the course of his current streak, including 3 doubles and a triple.   Marte and Austin are from from the only hot hitters on the Generals.  Here are some others who have been swinging the bat well lately:

• Catcher Mike Dowd has hit safely in 14 of his last 16 games.
• Outfielder Daniel Paolini has hit safely in 18 of his last 20 games.
• Catcher John Hicks is abtting .341 since May 6th and has managed to raise his batting average from .219 to .288.  He will play a much bigger role with the Generals now that fellow catcher Manny Pina has been dealt to the Detroit Tigers for a player to be named later.
• Over his last 13 games, infielder Jack Marder has posted 6 multi-hit performances.

A High Desert Mavericks (32-34, California League)

Pitcher Brett Shankin became the second consecutive High Desert Maverick to be named the California League's Pitcher of the Week (June 2nd-June 8) after Tyler Pike took home the honor the previous week (May 26-June 1).  Shankin made two relief appearances during the week, allowing no runs over 7.0 innings.  He struck out an impressive 7 batters over 3.1 innings on Tuesday, walking one and not surrendering a single base hit.

D.J Peterson is an absolute monster.  In his last 15 games, Peterson has 24 base hits including 8 doubles, 5 home runs and 18 runs batted in.  His 13 home runs on the year are good for second among M's prospects, but what's most impressive is the fact that he has hit 11 of them since May 8th.

A Clinton LumberKings (30-33, Midwest League)

Those Seager boys sure know how to hit, don't they?  Justin Seager is currently the proud owner of a 10-game hitting streak.  Seager, Austin Wilson and Zach Shank each had 2-hit performances in yesterday's 4-2 win over the Burlington Bees.

Wilson, drafted by the Mariners in the second round of last year's MLB Draft, has hit safely in 11 of his last 13 games.  During that stretch he's hitting .354 with 4 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs, 15 runs batted in.  Zach Shank has been pretty solid as well, hitting safely in 13 of his last 16 games.

Four Clinton players have been named All-Stars.  Catcher Marcus Littlewood  and shortstop Jack Reinheimer have both been named starters for the Western Division All-Star team in the Midwest League All-Star Game on June 17th.  Pitchers Edwin Diaz and Emilio Pagan were also named to the team, but will pitch out of the bullpen.