Just a Week Left in the Arizona League First Half

Nick Vander Tuig was promoted to Augusta after tearing through the Arizona League. Vander Tuig started five games, put in 19 innings, and allowed a pair of runs. He had a WHIP of an even 1 and came a strikeout shy of one per inning.

Bobby Bradley has quickly looked to be a very solid pick in the third round of this year’s draft by the Cleveland Indians. Bradley has a triple slash of .362/.443/.638 and is leading the league in RBIs, 22, in 17 games. Of his 25 hits, eight have gone for doubles, and three have left the park putting him one behind the league leaders. He even has a triple to his credit, and while I wasn’t at the game he tripled, I question the fielding on the play because he is about as slow as they come.

Matt McPhearson leads the league with 15 steals, including 9 over the past ten games, and he doens it not just on speed, but with excellent jumps on the bases. I have seen plenty of players with more speed than McPhearson in the AZL this season, but I have not seen anyone get the jumps he gets.

Jose Cardona really struggled in a seven game stint with Myrtle Beach, but has really hit his groove in Arizona with the Rangers. He is hitting .387 in 15 games in the AZL, which is the best in the league, despite two 0-5 nights this week. On Wednesday, he went 4-5 and scored three runs and followed it up with a 3-5 night with a double, two RBIs, and a steal.

Despite being 6-4 over their past 10 games, accounting for 4 of their five losses this year, the Rangers have already clinched the first half crown for the West Division as they have a 7.5 games lead over the next closest team with only about a week to go in the first half. Meanwhile, in the East and Central Divisions, every single team is within 3.5 games of the first place teams in the given divisions, making this week very interesting for the playoff picture.