Every Monday we recap the top performers in the system based on the previous week’s results. For the first week, I combined the short week and the first full week of the season, giving an expanded report. Unfortunately, I spent most of the day traveling, then getting my flight delayed, then getting my flight delayed again, then getting it canceled, then booking a different flight to get back this evening.
The good news is that I’ll be flying back tonight and providing reports from Bradenton tomorrow. The bad news is that I didn’t get as much time to work on this feature this week, focusing only on the big team trends, plus a few key performers. But hey, there are lists of the top ten performers, sorted by game scores and runs created. Everyone loves a good list, right? Let’s check them out.
Pitchers
| Name | Team | Date | GS |
| Wilfredo Boscan | Indianapolis | 4/12/2015 | 72 |
| Chris Volstad | Indianapolis | 4/11/2015 | 71 |
| Charlie Leesman | Indianapolis | 4/13/2015 | 68 |
| Angel Sanchez | Altoona | 4/9/2015 | 68 |
| Tyler Glasnow | Altoona | 4/17/2015 | 67 |
| Tyler Glasnow | Altoona | 4/11/2015 | 65 |
| Matt Benedict | Bradenton | 4/18/2015 | 65 |
| Nick Kingham | Indianapolis | 4/9/2015 | 64 |
| Casey Sadler | Indianapolis | 4/17/2015 | 64 |
| Angel Sanchez | Altoona | 4/15/2015 | 64 |
| Jason Creasy | Altoona | 4/16/2015 | 64 |
| Zack Dodson | Altoona | 4/19/2015 | 64 |
| Cody Dickson | Bradenton | 4/14/2015 | 64 |
The Indianapolis starters had the best outings of the week, although Leesman didn’t make a second start, and Volstad and Boscan both struggled in their second outings. Altoona really led the way this week, with strong starts from all of their starters in both turns through the rotation. All ten of their game scores this week were over 55, and seven of them were over 60. They also had three “gems” this week, with game scores of 65 or more.
Tyler Glasnow was responsible for two of those gems, combining to give up one earned run in 11 innings, with a 13:4 K/BB ratio over two starts. Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider that Glasnow’s lone run probably shouldn’t have scored, as it was a pop fly that dropped between the second baseman and the right fielder in shallow right field. I recapped his second outing here, noting that it was the best I’ve seen him look.
Hitters
| Name | Team | RC |
| Austin Meadows* | Bradenton | 8.87 |
| JaCoby Jones | Bradenton | 7.98 |
| Steve Lombardozzi# | Indianapolis | 7.53 |
| Justin Maffei | Bradenton | 6.81 |
| Chase Simpson# | West Virginia | 6.62 |
| Jerrick Suiter | West Virginia | 6.40 |
| Keon Broxton | Altoona | 5.80 |
| Erich Weiss* | Bradenton | 5.58 |
| Josh Bell# | Altoona | 5.53 |
| Barrett Barnes | Bradenton | 5.24 |
Altoona had the pitching, but Bradenton had the offense this week, with Austin Meadows and JaCoby Jones leading the way. Meadows put up a .381/.413/.500 line, and has reached base safely in every game, with hits in nine of his ten games, including seven straight games. Jones hasn’t had the average, but has put up some impressive power so far, with an unreal .325 ISO. He’s got a .256/.333/.581 line so far. I profiled Meadows and Jones in the Prospect Reports last week.
The good news is that Barrett Barnes made his way on the top ten list. The bad news is that Barnes is now out with lower body soreness. The Pirates say this is just a precaution, although anything would be a concern with his injury history. He’s got a lot of potential with his bat, and carried his strong hitting this spring over to the season, going 9-for-20 with two doubles, a walk, and a stolen base.
