I've become a huge Blake Lively fan. Huge. Sadness. Mike Olt has a broken clavicle, which is really put a damper on my minor league boner I had going on. In addition, Leonys Martin -- the starting centerfielder for the 2012 Texas Rangers -- is out with back issues.
Also, the Rangers have signed 14 of their 51 draft picks, including eighth-rounder Kyle Hendricks.
Still we trudge on.
Round Rock Express
Joey Butler, the 25-year-old outfielder, is hitting .331 with four triples and nine doubles.
Chad Tracy is absolutely killing it. He's got 58 RBI with 13 homers and 14 doubles. Average at .281. He has a career 135 doubles in the minors. I wonder if he'll ever get a shot?
Zachary Phillips has strung together 5.2 straight scoreless innings. Having a miserable year, however.
I thought it'd be funny if Luis Cruz drugged Nelson Cruz and took the call-up. He's got 13 doubles and seven home runs.
Cody Eppley has a 1.04 ERA on his trek back to Arlington.
Julio Borbon's hitting .226 in his most recent stay in Triple A.
Speaking of ruined confidence, Pedro Strop's got a 5.51 ERA in the minors. Still has 23 strikeouts in 16 innings.
Frisco RoughRiders
Jon Greene has a .301 average and 18 doubles. By a mile, his best year in a while. Just doesn't have a position.
Whatever step forward Engel Beltre took a year ago, he's taken two steps back. His K/BB ratio is out of whack and his average is below the Mendoza line.
Soft-tossing Dick Bleier has allowed just two homers and four walks in 39 innings. Opponents are hitting .307 off of him. He also has a 2:1 groundball/flyball ratio.
Tommy Mendonca would be perfect if he didn't have 70 strikeouts. Hitting .315 and 30 extra-base hits.
If you want a name for the Rangers bullpen in 2011 or 2012: Tyler Tufts. For his career, 193 innings and 162 strikeouts.
Carlos Pimental, by the month: 6.11 ERA (April), 4.31 (May) and 1.93 (June, so far).
Myrtle Beach Pelicans
Joe Wieland has a ridiculous four (4!!) walks in 78 (seventy-eight!!) innings. Here are totals for Pelican players that are more than Wieland's walk total:
18
Errors by Leury Garcia. Five Pelicans have five or more errors.
5
Walks by Robbie Erlin, when he was a Pelican. He's now a Frisco RoughRider.
5
Wild pitches by Barret Loux.
5
Saves from converted infielder Johan Yan.
6
Triples by Ryan Strausborger.
7
Wins by Robbie Ross.
8
Doubles by Zach Zaneski.
6
Home runs allowed by Joe Wieland. Thankfully, a lot of them are solo.
Hickory Crawdads
Jake Skole over his last 10: .324/.422/.514 - 13 runs - 10 RBI - 7 walks - 6 strikeouts.
Tomas Telis is hitting .310. He's hit everywhere he's been, but never above low-A. Still doesn't walk (11) but doesn't strikeout either (15).
Nick Tepesch has a 44:13 K/BB ratio.
Watch out for Jorge Marban: .145 BAA in 18 innings of relief.
Odubel Herrera, by the month: .329 (April), .176 (May) and .410 (June). Add on 14 doubles and 17 stolen bases.
Ryan Rodebaugh has a gaudy 0.50 ERA and a .181 BAA.
As a starter, Cody Buckel has a 1.64 ERA and his BAA is 60 points lower than as a reliever.
