2020 Minor League Players of the Year

[Matt]

It's time for teams to announce their 2020 minor league award winners! PEBA GMs, use this thread to to announce your choices for your team's top minor league hitter and pitcher. Before choosing your players, please take a moment to review the qualifications listed at the bottom of this post. The histories of the players you select will be updated to note the honor you are bestowing upon them. You need do no more than list the hyperlinked names of the players, along with their current position and league level, but you are of course welcome and encouraged to provide an explanation for your selections - we want to get to know the future of your franchise!

Please use the following formatting when you make your announcement. Make sure to list players by their hyperlinked name, current full position (e.g. "SP" rather than just "P", "CF" rather than just "OF") and league level as listed in OOTP:

• Arlington Minor League Hitter of the Year: CF Ken Shoemaker (AAA)
• Arlington Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP José Avalos (AAA)

Use the following code to easily set up your announcement. Just alter the capitalized sections to match your particular needs.

Code: Select all

[list][*]TEAM Minor League Hitter of the Year: POSITION [url=http://pebabaseball.com/reports/news/html/players/player_XXXX.html]NAME[/url] (LEVEL)
[*]TEAM Minor League Pitcher of the Year: POSITION [url=http://pebabaseball.com/reports/news/html/players/player_XXXX.html]NAME[/url] (LEVEL)[/list]

Qualifications for Minor League Player of the Year Award

• Players must have been in your organization since the start of the major league season (i.e. players acquired during the season through the draft or via trade are excluded from candidacy).
• Players must have at least 300 PA (batters), or 10 starts or 40 appearances (pitchers) at the minor league level.
• Players must not be older than 26 (or must have turned 27 after July 1).

Now tell us... who is the best and brightest of your system?

[Matt]

• Kawaguchi Transmitters Minor League Hitter of the Year: 1b Hyobe Ojima (AAA)
• Kawaguchi Transmitters Minor League Pitcher of the Year: MR Mike Mayl(AAA)

Ojima had a monster season no matter how you slice it. Splitting time between AA, AAA, and an end of season cup of coffee with the Transmitters, Ojima in total batted .298 with 52 doubles, 2 triples, 40 HR, and 114 rbi. One way or another, Ojima will find plenty of playing time with RGV next season.

When it comes to Mike May, let's just say thank goodness he: made 12 starts, signed with us prior to the season, and didn't turn 27 until Sept 22. Otherwise this award would go from looking ugly to looking ridiculously atrocious in a heartbeat. May finished the year 8-4 4.36 and we think someday he can be an average long reliever in an over 40 slow pitch softball league.

[Borealis]

Aurora Announces 2020 Minor League Players of the Year
by Francis Ferry, NLN baseball beat writer

Minor League Hitter of the Year

2B Jack Speed

Don't let the name fool you - this guy has some speed. Although he stole 'only' 29 bases in 93 games for the normally conservative Borealis system, make no mistake - he can flat out fly.

He can also flat out hit. Spending the bulk of the season at AA Gatineau, Speed hit .323 with 22-2B, 6-3B and 6 HR - with 47 RBI, primarily out of the lead-off spot. He added another 5-2B and a 3B and HR in a brief 28 game stint at AAA Thornton, where hit hit only .230.

Jack primarily plays at a position that is kind of stacked right now in the Aurora system as aside from Aurora starter John 'Gypsy' Foster, Josh Ligonier, Gabriel McIntyre, John Dickson and 2020 draftees Pedro Medrano and Jorge Diaz all play second with defensive prowess and hit well. Speed can also play some first and third, but not very well, but Aurora is looking into him being one of their candidates for the coveted Winter Ball spots. Aurora scouts believe that Speed is just about ready for primetime offensively, so improving his defense will go a long way to determining his future with the Big League club.

Speed originally was signed by the Calzones of San Antonio prior to spring training 2018, and was traded to Aurora exactly a year ago, last November, in exchange for CL Jorge Estrada and CF Luis Rodriguez (who had, himself, been acquired from San Antonio). He had hit .279 combined at Monterey (AA) and Drumright (A) during the 2019 campaign.

Runner-Up: LF Wilson Mercado - .310 AVE/.947 OPS/15 HR/53 RBI at AA Gatineau.

Minor League Pitcher of the Year

MR John Gray

The 2015 draft will no doubt go down in Aurora lore for a couple of reasons. A) They had a whopping 15 picks in the first 4 rounds, five of which were pitchers. B) It may be the draft with the fewest players who make it to The Show - and contribute. As of today only Arturo Jimenez (the top pick overall for Aurora) Edgardo Rojas, Rusty Butler (all three 1st round picks), Jimmy Younger and Richie Norman have broken through. Aside from Jimenez, who looks ready to bust out, the results are a mixed bag.

The last of those pitchers, taken with the 4th pick in the 4th round was a bright, hard-throwing reliever from Seton Hall Prep - John Gray, who averaged more than a strikeout per inning during his HS career. After being drafted he spent 3 full seasons on the Islands as he struck out 142 in 118 IP for Mokule'ia, then 84 in 60 IP at SLRC in 2018, followed by 138 in 85 IP last year at Gatineau.

His 2020 numbers at Thornton were pretty impressive as well, as he threw a career high 109 innings and likewise struck out a high of 164 batters, while posting a 3.95 ERA. Batters swung a minuscule .191, though those who hit him did so with some success as he gave up 17 HR.

Gray lost out in his chances to make the club out of spring training primarily because he had options left, with Felix Pena, instead, heading to Aurora. This spring John will get another shot.

[Zephyrs]

Reno minor league hitter of the year: SS Ángel Soto (AAA)
Reno minor league pitcher of the year: SP En-guo Zhào (AAA)

[Apollos]

• Crystal Lake Minor League Hitter of the Year: 1B Brandon Johnson (AA - Brampton)
  Johnson had a breakthrough year for the Camels as he led the organization in almost every offensive statistical category and compiling a .357/.421/.624 line, good enough for an OPS of 1.046. Johnson, originally a 4th round selection in the 2017 draft by the Sandgnats may be blocked at the big league level by youngster Wilson Munoz, though his performance was certainly worthy of a promotion and he will open the 2021 campaign at 1B for the AAA Evansville Tri-Staters.
• Crystal Lake Minor League Pitcher of the Year: MR Edgar Merriam (AA - Brampton)
  Merriam asserted himself in 2020 working primarily as the setup man for AA Brampton and in the process firmly established himself as one of the organization's brighter talents. Working 97 innings across 81 appearances, Merriam compiled a 2.40 ERA with 104 K's and a 2:1 strikeout to walk ratio. Merriam was a 4th round pick out of Brophy Prep in the 2016 PEBA draft by the Gnats and will open the 2021 season with hopes of earning a big league call up should his outstanding production continue.

[Leones]

• Havana Minor League Hitter of the Year: RF Motoki Suzuki (ML)
• Havana Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Kantaro Sakata (AAA)

Mercurial is the only word adequate to describe the rise of young Suzuki who began the season in AA and ended up in the bigs. Scouts don’t foresee him as a starter in PEBA but the Suzuki has been feeding the scouts crow in the two years since he was drafted. He’ll be one to watch in Havana.

Sakata went from the A to the AAA club as the organization sought to address a lack of quality pitching in the high minors. He met the challenge at every level but has yet to dominate in AAA as he did at the lower levels, He’ll likely remain in the minors to continue his development.

[roncollins]

• LUPIN Minor League Hitter of the Year: 1B Takechi Yoshida AAA
• LUPIN Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Yoshimochi 'Seeker' Okazak A/AA

Yoshida had a season beyond the pale, but how he's going to find it hard to get much time behind Tenno and Ota.

Seeker was a past 1st rounder, who did well in A-ball, but struggled in his brief stint at AA. The fact that he's pitcher of the year probably says a lot about the depth of our minors on the hill.

[Greg A]

Dayton Flyers/ Celestial Warriors

Minor league batter of year: MAsujiro Watanabe (A- Shojo Ninjas)
Minor league pitcher of year: KAtsunosuki Aoki (AA Makurosu Hunters)

I'd link them but my new designation seems to be not having an easy time finding my players in statslab. Also I borke my left elbow and right wrist so not trying to hard on computer

[Borealis]

Hey Greg, Longchamps, the former Aurora farm hand, is not eligible - he's way to old...

[Coqui]

• Canton Longshoremen Minor League Hitter of the Year: C Cliff Mitchell (SS-A - Akutan Island Eagles)
  
  The Canton Longshoremen organization has often gone on record as believing that there is truth to the the fun, self-coined acronym TINSTAACP, a variation on the sabermetric saw of yore TINSTAAPP, or "There Is No Such Thing as a Pitching Prospect", generally appreciated as a statement about the injury prone nature of pitching prospects. In the PEBAverse, "There Is No Such Thing as a Catching Prospect" is a testament to the number of catching prospects and high-performing minor league catchers who wash out at the major league level. Despite that prejudice, second year pro Cliff Mitchell put up a 2020 season that could not be ignored. The 2019 3rd round pick from East Carolina hit 346/464/564 in a return too short season A-ball. Considered a hit-first prospect, Mitchell nonetheless won rave reviews for his nimbleness behind the plate. While a relatively crowded organizational catching depth chart kept Mitchell in short season ball for his first full season as a pro, his leading the organization's catchers with 15 HR in just 289 at bats will force the organization to clear a roster spot somewhere in full season ball for Mitchell in 2021.
• Canton Longshoremen Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Juan Marquez (AA - Youngstown Thunder)
  
  This year's Canton Longshoremen Minor League Pitcher of the Year comes with an interesting asterisk. Don't be deceived, fourth year pro Juan Marquez is a very deserving candidate - indeed, he led all qualified candidates with 4.0 pitching WAR. It's just that he also added 1.1 batting WAR and 0.4 fielding WAR while playing 49 games in right field, thanks to a 269/410/429 batting line. Whether Marquez' prodigious talents would be best developed and utilized in the outfield or on the mound has been an ongoing debate in the Longshoremen organization since Marquez was selected with the 4th pick in round 2 of the 2017 amateur draft. Indecision and greediness has won out, as Marquez has made 40 starts on the bump in the past two seasons, and 116 in the pasture. 2020 was a breakout year for Marquez the pitcher, as he went 12-6 with a 3.69 ERA in 21 starts. Even with that success, there are those in the organization who believe that Marquez' higher ceiling is as a power-hitting, All-Leather fielding outfielder. Even his fans admit that his pitching ceiling is likely as a inning-eating, worm-killing #3 starter. It will be interesting to see how long the organization continues to develop Marquez as a two-way player, a decision that may be forced sooner rather than later by the toll that all that development takes on Marquez' availability - he has missed roughly 17 weeks to injury in his 3 and a half years as a pro. He is generally used as a Sunday starter, pitching once per week, and starting in the outfield three other times per week.

[Nigel]

London Minor League Batter of the Year - 3B Marcox David (A)

London Minor League Pitcher of the Year - SP Wade Morris (AAA)


20-yr-old Brazilian 3B Marcox David was picked up by the Underground as a minor league free agent in 2017 after being released by San Antonio. Since then he has bounced around between Maui & Dover without significant success or game time. In 2020 it all came together for him, he made 115 appearances in Dover and posted career stats in most categories. In 413 AB's he managed 105 hits of which 28 were doubles whilst scoring 60 times & driving in 47. He started to sort himself out on the bases too with successful steals 14 times out of 16 attempts. His averages (.254/.323/.390) are much improved but could still do with plenty of work while his defence also showed marked improvement (+16.3ZR) earning him the 2020 NAFTA A AWL Glove Wizard Award at 3B.

25-yr-old Starter Wade Morris arrived in London in 2016 from Bakersfield as part of the Bob Adams trade. The majority of his time in the franchise has been spent either in Montreal or Worcester as this award has really been for the effort he made this year to improve on his abysmal 2019. Moving from Montreal to Worcester at the start of 2019 he went 4-7 with a 4.77 ERA in 15 starts in Triple-A while his control also let him down, 54 walks and only 54 K's. He remained in the Worcester rotation in 2020 after spending all off-season working hard to improve himself. He managed a 16-6 record while posting a 3.48 ERA from 28 starts. He has also shown a slight improvement in his control (94 BB / 100 K) and has earned another year of living the dream.

[Greg A]

Hey Greg, Longchamps, the former Aurora farm hand, is not eligible - he's way to old...

Didn't even realize his age :). I changed it. Thanks

[Simon]

Big Small Calzones of the 2020 year:

- San Antonio Minor League Hitter of the Year was: Boyd Locke (AAA)
23 years old Left Fielder had great 2020 season in triple A Joplin Red Racers team finishing with stats as follows: .366/.448/.634. He was briefly tryed in the big leagues, but it didnt work out well just yet. His glove is also somewhat lacking.

- San Antonio Minor League Pitcher of the Year was: Steve Hall (AAA)
24 years old rightie was promoted to the MLB pen after great showing in the minors: 3.67 ERA, 7.9 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 in 39 appearances and he is already one of the 4 best relievers in San Antonio. Comparable to him was only Jorge Estrada (0.47 ERA etc etc), but appeared in only 17 games.

I know Hall is 1 game short from (of, to? english is hard) minimum, so if he cant be awarded, then im not awarding anyone this year.

[Evas]

• Shin Seiki Evas Minor League Hitter of the Year: SS Torazo Kodama (S-A)
• Shin Seiki Evas Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Arinori Mochizuki (AAA)

Kodama, who just turned 20, remains a divisive prospect. After being taken 4th overall in 2019, he was seem by many as a reach. At this point, scouts continue to say he lacks the contact ability of major league hitter. That might be true, but his stats are saying otherwise. If he can get is contact up to snuff, his combination of power, eye and speed could be very valuable in Shin Seiki as a right handed SS.

Mochizuki made a huge comeback Tommy John surgery, re-establishing himself as one of the best pitching prospects in Japan. He got better as the season went on, culminating in a brilliant Evas debut on 10-03-2020. The future looks very bright. He probably will be called up to the big leagues before getting the opportunity to log enough innings to win this award next year.

[Lions]

• Connecticut Minor League Hitter of the Year: 1B Sherwood Alldritt (A/AA)
• Connecticut Minor League Pitcher of the Year: SP Reese Wilson (A)

1B Sherwood Alldritt continued to showcase his plate discipline as he ascended to AA New Haven during the 2020 season. He hit a combined .337 with 75 walks and 11 home runs between the two levels.

Batting Honorable Mention: LF Pepe Ríos (AA/AAA)

SP Reese Wilson is 23 years old and just won the NAFTA AWL Outstanding Pitcher Award after going 16-7 with a 2.04 ERA and 174 in 186 2/3 innings. Despite that award, the fact that he earns this honor as the franchise's best minor league pitcher for 2020 is an indictment of the lack of quality in the minors. Wilson and the rest of the top pitchers in the minors look like they're unlikely to be stars at the PEBA level.

Pitching Honorable Mentions: SP Michael Singleton (A/AA/AAA)