Minor League Batter of the Year:
There were a number of notable performances with the bat in the Connecticut minor league system this year. Honorable mention goes to 26 year old
Dan Stewart, who was signed at the start of the year to fill an organizational hole for the
Cary Grants of A ball, where he hit 18 home runs in 49 games before being promoted to AA
New Haven. There, he hit another 17 home runs in 67 games. However notable, his advanced age for those levels of competition have us looking elsewhere.
We'll also call out 1B
Brandon Childers, who spent the entire year with Cary. The former 8th round draft pick hit .333 while belting 17 home runs and drawing 75 walks in 126 games. He scored 104 runs and knocked 97 in. He's a hitter to keep an eye on in, although in a system that is crowded with solid first base prospects, we're looking for one of them to step up and look like a potential superstar. Perhaps that will be Childers.
24 year old
Eric Jacobs has earned a long look next spring for a potential major league roster spot after a midseason promotion from New Haven to AAA
Providence. He earned that promotion by hitting .351 with 10 home runs in 59 AA games, then went on to hit .321 with 9 home runs in 65 games at the minors' highest level.
However, the Nutmeggers will give the award for 2018 to 1B
Mike Harris. At 23 years old, Harris spent the entire season in AAA, hitting .302 with 16 home runs and 102 walks. Unlike many of the other players in the system, Harris hits for power while doing a solid job of avoiding the strikeout. As a result, of all the minor league hitters yet to debut with the Nutmeggers, Harris would be the most likely to start next season with the big club if not for the team's incumbants of Mike Pugh and Jesús Santos. Don't be too surprised if the team finds a way to open a spot for him.
Keep an eye on: SS
Greg Smith (AA), 1B
Sherwood Alldritt (SS-A)
Minor League Pitcher of the Year:
The two most interesting stories of the minor league pitching year out of Connecticut belong to two 2018 draft picks. First round pick
Bartolo Esquivel is a potential ace who dominated single A hitters out of the draft. He struck out 139 batters in 100 2/3 innings en route to a 9-4 record and 80% quality start percentage.
Thad Taylor was drafted in the 4th round, and struck out 149 in 112 2/3 innings at SS-A
Pearl City. For his efforts, he was named Hawaiian League Outstanding Pitcher.
However, neither of those players qualify for the award, and that's a testament to the team's lack of drafting or trading for any impact pitching prospects in the last couple of seasons. The top pitchers higher up the food chain were all veterans brought in to provide some stability to an organization severely lacking in the pitching department. As such, the award is going to a reliever for the second consecutive year.
Truman Burke hurled 90 innings of relief for the New Haven Politicos, stiking out 124 and posting a 1.80 ERA. He was 5-0 with 5 saves, and allowed just 49 hits. That's less than a hit every 2 innings. Why hasen't he moved up the chain more quickly, then? Well he has a little bit of a problem controlling his 100 mph heater, which says nothing of his offspeed stuff. He only hit 2 opposing batters, but he walked 56 in those 90 innings. That's more than the number of hits he allowed, and raised his WHIP to a still respectable 1.17, but nothing like what it could have been had he been able to find the strike zone more consistently. We think he'll eventually corral that speed and make a solid reliever in the PEBA some day. Hopefully, he can make those strides with a promotion to AAA next year.
Honorees:
- Connecticut Minor League Hitter of the Year: 1B Mike Harris (AAA)
- Connecticut Minor League Pitcher of the Year: RP Truman Burke (AA)
