By Scott Barancik, Editor

Here are your minor-league highlights for the week of August 26-September 1, 2019. Because there were no standout performances at the plate, Jewish Baseball News is skipping its regular Hitter of the Week award.

Delaplane

Delaplane

Pitcher of the Week: Sam Delaplane (Mariners)

Sam Delaplane (Mariners/AA/Arkansas Travelers) pitched 3.1 hitless innings over 3 games to earn 3 saves, yielding just one walk while striking out 6. Since his promotion to Double-A in early June, the 24-year-old is 3-1 with 5 saves in 6 chances. Among all Texas League pitchers with at least 30 innings tossed, Delaplane is #1 in ERA (0.49), percentage of batters struck out (43.3%), opponent batting average (.107), and walks/hits per inning (0.59).

Mazel tov

  • Rosters have not yet been finalized for the prestigious Arizona Fall League, which features the 7 top prospects from each Major League franchise, but at least two Jewish pitchers have been selected so far: Sam Delaplane (Mariners/AA/Arkansas Travelers), and Dean Kremer (Orioles/AAA/Norfolk Tides). The AFL’s season begins September 18.
  • C Ryan Lavarnway, who played briefly for the Reds this season, was released by the franchise on August 29 but signed a minor-league contract with the Indians a day later. He has been assigned to the Columbus Clippers (AAA).
  • 2B Ty Kelly, who announced his retirement with characteristic humor late last month, has obtained Israeli citizenship and will be joining Israel’s national baseball team for the European championships taking place in Germany from September 7-15.

Other highlights

  • C Ryan Lavarnway (Indians/AAA/Columbus) hit .429 (3-for-7) in his first three games with the Cleveland franchise, generating a double, 2 RBIs, and a .500 OBP.
  • C Garrett Stubbs (Astros/AAA/Round Rock Express) hit .300 (3-for-10).
  • LF Tyler Benson (Padres/AA/Amarillo Sod Poodles) hit .500 (6-for-12) with an RBI, a stolen base, and a .538 OBP.
  • SS Scotty Burcham (Rockies/AA/Hartford Yard Goats) hit .333 (4-for-12) with a double, RBI, and a .385 OBP.
  • 2B Colby Schultz (Royals/High-A/Wilmington Blue Rocks) hit .389 (7-for-18) with a double, RBI, and a stolen base.
  • 2B Zane Gurwitz (Angels/High-A/Inland Empire 66ers) hit .318 (7-for-22) with a double, triple, and a .348 OBP.
  • C CJ Stubbs* (Astros/A/Quad Cities River Bandits) hit .286 (6-for-21) with a double, stolen base, and a .318 OBP.
  • SS Zack Kone (Pirates/A/Greensboro Grasshoppers) hit .304 (7-for-23).
  • OF David Vinsky* (Cardinals/A-short-season/State College Spikes) hit .333 (11-for-33) with a double, 3 RBIs, 3 stolen bases, and a .371 OBP.
  • C Andy Yerzy (Diamondbacks/A-short-season/Hillsboro Hops) hit .294 (5-for-17) with 2 doubles and a .429 OBP.
  • P Brandon Gold (Rockies/AA/Hartford Yard Goats) earned his 5th straight decision on August 28, yielding one earned run over 7 innings on 5 hits and a walk while striking out 3. His 12 wins are #2 in the Eastern League.
  • P Jake Fishman (Blue Jays/AA/New Hampshire Fisher Cats) tossed 3 hitless innings across 2 games, yielding 4 walks and striking out 4.
  • P Scott Effross (Cubs/High-A/Myrtle Beach Pelicans) pitched 4 scoreless innings across 2 games, yielding 4 hits and no walks while striking out 2.

Transactions

  • P Jeremy Bleich (Twins/AAA/Rochester Red Wings) came off the injured list on September 1.
  • C Ryan Lavarnway signed a minor-league contract with the Indians on August 30, a day after he was released by the Reds.
  • LF Albee Weiss (Twins) was reassigned from the Cedar Rapids Kernels (A) to the Elizabethton Twins (Rookie Advanced) on August 30.
  • 2B Ty Kelly (Angels/AAA/Salt Lake Bees) announced his retirement from pro baseball on August 26.

Free agents

Injured list

* Players marked with an asterisk were drafted in 2019.

Note to readers: Minor-League Monday does not include stats for all current Jewish minor-leaguers. Click here for a complete list of players, and then click on a player’s name to be taken to his stat page.

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