Tuesday's top AFL prospect performers
Stephanie Sheehan
@Steph_Sheehan
Michael Avallone
@MavalloneMiLBHere's a look at Tuesday¡¯s top performers in the Arizona Fall League from each team's Top 30 Prospects list.
Tigers: Spencer Torkelson, 1B/3B (MLB No. 4), Salt River Rafters
Torkelson tallied yet another multihit game in Salt River¡¯s 4-2 loss, roping a double and a 109 mph single in a 2-for-4 performance. The Tigers¡¯ top prospect has reached base in each of his six AFL games so far, recording at least one knock in five of them. He¡¯s racked up an AFL-best nine hits (two of them doubles) in six games, good for a .447 average, with seven walks, four runs scored and three RBIs.
Giants: Marco Luciano, SS (MLB No. 5), Scottsdale Scorpions
After collecting just two hits in 13 at-bats with five strikeouts to start the fall campaign, Luciano broke out in a big way with two home runs and four RBIs in Scottsdale¡¯s 12-4 win over Glendale. The top-ranked Giants prospect had more hits on Tuesday than in his first four AFL games, with the two dingers and a sharp single in a 3-for-5 performance. His first long ball was a three-run shot in the first inning to give the Scorpions an early four-run lead, and his second blast was a solo shot in the third. The sixth-inning single rounded out his day. More ?
Red Sox: Triston Casas, 1B (MLB No. 18) and Jeter Downs, SS (No. 5), Scottsdale Scorpions
Casas may not have driven in a run in Scottsdale¡¯s win, but he reached base four times via a double, a single and two walks. The 21-year-old has three multihit performances through five games and has earned three free passes in 23 plate appearances. Casas is batting .300/.391/.500 with a homer, a double and three RBIs in Arizona despite striking out nine times.
While Casas was setting the table from the three-hole, Downs did some heavy lifting out of the leadoff spot. After going deep 14 times during the regular season, the 23-year-old launched a three-run blast for his second long ball in as many games. Despite appearing in just three of the Scorpions' five games, Downs has driven in five runs and walked five times in 15 plate appearances while going 3-for-10.
Rays: Curtis Mead, 3B (No. 14), Scottsdale Scorpions
Mead¡¯s first-inning single extended his hitting streak to all five games he¡¯s appeared in. He swatted his second AFL home run several innings later for his first multihit effort. Mead has tallied three extra-base hits, five RBIs and an .895 OPS through 22 at-bats with the Scorpions. The Australia native enjoyed a strong year in his first full-season campaign, collecting 55 extra-base hits, 69 RBIs and a .321/.378/.533 slash line across three Minor League levels spanning 104 games.
Dodgers: Carson Taylor, C (No. 30), Glendale Desert Dogs
A good first impression can go a long way and Taylor has delivered on that promise as his first professional season comes to a close. Making his AFL debut as Glendale¡¯s designated hitter, Los Angeles¡¯ 2020 fourth-round Draft pick slugged a solo homer and added an RBI single in four at-bats. The production was par for the course for the 22-year-old, who batted .278 with an .804 OPS and 54 RBIs in 79 games for High-A Great Lakes during the regular season.