Carlson, Campusano lead power parade
After a relatively quiet first few weeks of camp, Dylan Carlson made an impression early and often on Saturday.
The No. 13 prospect opened his first multi-hit performance of the spring with his first homer, putting St. Louis on the board in its 5-2 win over Houston with a two-run jack to right field on a 90-mph cutter from Brandon Bielak in the second inning. Carlson's 60-grade power was on display, as the long ball was an absolute no-doubter.
Carlson drew a walk -- his third in four games -- in the fifth and lined a single to left in the seventh. The switch-hitting outfielder scored his second run on a hit by John Nogowski. The perfect day at the dish makes him 8-for-31 (.258) with a .361 OBP over 12 games this spring.
The 2016 first-rounder was named the Texas League Player of the Year in 2019 and made his Major League debut at age 21 last year, struggling to a .200/.252/.364 slash line but putting an emphatic coda on the campaign with a 1.016 OPS in the Wild Card Series against San Diego.
Meanwhile, Red Sox prospect Bobby Dalbec and Padres prospect Luis Campusano each flexed some muscle with an opposite-field double in their games.
The right-handed-hitting Dalbec, in fact, picked up two opposite-field hits in Boston's 8-2 loss to Atlanta. The No. 93 prospect singled in the second inning and launched a double to deep right-center in the seventh. He scored when fellow Red Sox prospect Gilberto Jimenez socked a two-bagger to left in his only plate appearance two batters later. Atlanta was able to retire Dalbec twice -- both with fly balls to the warning track.
Dalbec has five homers and two doubles to go with a .395 OBP over 14 games this spring. He went yard eight times for Boston in 2020.
Campusano smoked a liner into the gap in right-center field for a two-bagger against the Dodgers' Dustin May in the fourth inning of the Padres' 4-4 tie with Los Angeles. It was the third double this spring for the 22-year-old catcher, who's 7-for-28 (.250) in 12 games.
The No. 45 prospect won a batting title and co-MVP honors in the Class A Advanced California League in 2019 and is already advanced enough that the Padres assigned him to the alternate site last year and brought him up for a debut in September. He proved the move a wise one by homering in a 1-for-3 showing.
More prospect news from Saturday's Spring Training action:
Sixto S¨¢nchez, RHP, MIA (MLB No. 15)
S¨¢nchez made the game look easy in his second appearance of the year, facing nine Nationals batters and retiring nine. The 22-year-old righty recorded five outs on the ground -- including three in the first inning, two of those comebackers. S¨¢nchez's Grapefruit League campaign has been abbreviated by a false-positive COVID-19 test and visa issues, but he's unscored upon over 4 2/3 innings so far and has hit triple-digits. Gameday ?
JJ Bleday, OF, MIA (MLB No. 20)
Bleday stroked an RBI double and delivered a sacrifice fly in two plate appearances for his first two RBIs since his Grapefruit League debut last month. Since homering on Feb. 28, the 23-year-old had gone 2-for-15 with nine strikeouts in 10 games. Bleday was the fourth overall pick in the 2019 Draft out of Vanderbilt and batted .257/.311/.379 in 38 Minor League games. Gameday ?
Randy Arozarena, OF, TB (MLB No. 34)
Arozarena extended his hitting streak to four with a pair of singles during his first multi-hit effort of the spring. The 26-year-old grounded out in the first inning and lined singles to right in his next two at-bats before being replaced. Last year's postseason sensation has raised his average 136 points to .269 thanks to a 5-for-11 spurt. Gameday ?
Alex Jackson, C, ATL
Jackson was not messing around in swatting his first homer of the Grapefruit League season, a long drive that cleared the left-field berm and landed on the concourse at CoolToday Park. The dinger, coming on a 2-0 count against Boston's Mart¨ªn P¨¦rez, was also good for his first three RBIs and second hit of the spring. Jackson has appeared in nine games for Atlanta during the regular season over the last two years. Gameday ?
Ryan Weathers, LHP, SD
The fifth-ranked Padres prospect made his fourth appearance (second start) of the spring and more than doubled his strikeout total with six whiffs over three frames. The southpaw yielded three runs on four hits and a walk. Weathers posted a 3.84 ERA over 22 Midwest League starts in 2019. Gameday ?
Riley Adams, C, TOR
Coming to the plate for just his eighth time this spring, Adams delivered his second home run. The 24-year-old catcher drilled an opposite-field tater to give the Blue Jays an insurance run in the ninth inning against the Phillies. He's 3-for-7 with four RBIs. Riley was an All-Star in the Class A Florida State League in 2018 and 2019. Gameday ?
Kyle Isbel, OF, KC
Kicking off a two-hit performance, Isbel belted a 425-foot home run in the Royals' 6-6 tie with the D-backs. In the third inning, the left-handed-hitting outfielder connected with Luke Weaver's 1-1 pitch to produce an exit velocity of 110.3 mph and send the ball well out of the yard in right field. Facing Taylor Widener in the seventh, he drilled a liner to left with a 107.1-mph exit velocity for a single. Isbel is 9-for-26 (.346) with two long balls this spring. Gameday ?
Kodi Whitley, RHP, STL
Whitley worked around two Houston hits in the ninth inning to record his second save of the spring. When Jose Siri and Abraham Toro put themselves aboard with back-to-back grounders with one out, the 26-year-old righty buckled down to punch out two in a row. He's unscored upon in six Grapefruit League appearances this year. Whitley made the roster last year but was limited by COVID-19 and elbow soreness. Gameday ?