As the minor league baseball season continues, MiLB Pack Pros continue to show great performances in the league. Will Wilson, Evan Mendoza and Preston Palmeiro all have continued their strong offensive performances while Jason Parker and Michael Bienlien have been leading from the mound.
Will Wilson, shortstop, Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants)
Wilson kept up with his solid batting performance in late June and into July. In the Emeralds’ most recent series against the Hillsboro Hops, Wilson notched his 10th home run of the season. While he reached this benchmark, Wilson’s slugging percentage continued to decline, though it is still impressive at .497. The Giants’ organization acknowledged his overall solid season by promoting him to the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels on July 6.
Jason Parker, right-handed pitcher, Daytona Tortugas (Cincinnati Reds)
While Parker has one loss in his two games pitched since June 21, the right-handed pitcher turned his performance around in the next game on July 1. In just four innings, he secured a career-high 10 strikeouts and only allowed three hits. Parker’s performance in this game helped Daytona to secure the win against the Lakeland Flying Tigers. Additionally, Parker’s July 1 game brought his ERA since June 21 to 2.00, which is significantly better than his season ERA of 4.46.
Evan Mendoza, third baseman, Memphis Redbirds (Saint Louis Cardinals)
Mendoza’s bat has been cooling off recently, with a decrease in both batting average and slugging percentage. This could be due to having four strikeouts in 18 at-bats since June 21. However, with three runs, four hits and one RBI in those same 18 at-bats, Mendoza is still showing his offensive strength.
Preston Palmeiro, second baseman, Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels)
Palmeiro has shown a decrease in batting performance in recent weeks. In games since June 21, he has notched a batting average of .283, compared to his .288 on the season. Additionally, his slugging percentage in that time is at .426, compared to his .458 on the season. Hopefully Palmeiro will continue this upward trend further into the season.
Michael Bienlien, right-handed pitcher, West Michigan Whitecaps (Detroit Tigers)
Bienlien has played in three games since June 21, despite moving up from the low-A Lakeland Flying Tigers to high-A West Michigan on June 29. In his last game with the Flying Tigers, Bienlien pitched two innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits and notching two strikeouts. Since moving to West Michigan, he has appeared in two games, pitching 4.2 total innings with four strikeouts and four allowed hits.
