Here is the first Dodger minor league Hot and Cold Players of the Week for 2011. Similar to last year, this is basically a weekly post about the best and worst minor league players in the Dodgers system for the past week. It is similar to the weekly Hot Sheet on Baseball America, except that it obviously focuses just on the Dodgers and will not only look at the players that are doing well, but will also feature players who are struggling. Please keep in mind that this does not take into account the first few days of the season (I didn't do hot/cold post the first week since there were only 4 minor league games played through last Sunday), but instead looks at the performances from the past week. Also, this year I am going to be adding in an update about where each Dodger minor league team is in terms of standings and how the teams did during the past week.
Albuquerque Isotopes: 6 - 4, 2nd place in the PCL American South Division. The Topes went 4 and 2 this past week.
Chattanooga Lookouts: 6 - 4, 3rd place in the SOU North Division. The Lookouts went 5 and 1 this past week.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes: 6 - 5, tied for 1st in the CAL South Division. The Quakes went 4 and 3 this past week.
Great Lakes Loons: 7 - 4, tied for 1st in the MID Eastern Division. The Loons went 5 and 2 this past week.
Hot Hitters:
Trent Oeltjen (AAA): 4 HR's, 9 RBI's, .368 average, 1.000 SLG, 1.455 OPS - Oeltjen had back to back 4 RBI days early in the week with 3 homers in 2 days, then hit a game winning jack on Saturday. Although he's no longer on the 40 man roster, the 28 year old continues to be a legitimate backup outfield option for the Dodgers.
Jerry Sands (AAA): 3 HR's, 11 RBI's, .417 average, .917 SLG, 1.398 OPS, 1.5 BB/K rate - Sands has torn up AAA since the beginning of the season, and has hit well both at home and on the road. I just hope that Sands is still in AAA when head to Albuquerque next Saturday to catch an Isotopes game.
Jonathan Garcia (LoA): 3 HR's, 8 RBI's, .370 aveage, .852 SLG, 1.266 OPS - A lot of people discounted Garcia's success in 2010 because he was playing in the hitter friendly Pioneer League, and did most of his hitting at home. Garcia seems to be putting those worries to rest, however, as he hit 3 homers on the road this week in near freezing temperatures and continues to rack up the extra base hits.
Alfredo Silverio (AA): 2 HR's, 9 RBI's, .333 average, .800 SLG, 1.175 OPS - Silverio got off to a very slow start in 2010, but that has not been the case thus far in 2011. Alfredo capped his strong week with a grand slam on Sunday, and is pretty much the only Lookout hitter who is putting up good stats.
Cold Hitters:
Leon Landry (LoA): .208 average, .292 SLG, .613 OPS, 2 CS - Landry did record his first extra base hit this week and had a couple of multi-hit games, but he continues to struggle in his first full professional season. He hasn't even been able steal bases with any efficiency. It's still early so I'm not worried, but I'm hoping that he turns things around soon.
Rafael Ynoa (HiA): .130 average, .130 SLG, .361 OPS, 1 Error - Ynoa recorded just 3 hits this week, none of which went for extra bases. I was worried that Rafael's solid stats in 2010 wouldn't translate into success at the higher levels, and so far he has proven me right. The good news is that Ynoa only struck out once this week while walking 3 times, so maybe he's just getting unlucky with his BABIP.
Pedro Baez (AA): .053 average, .105 SLG, .205 OPS, 6 K's - Many Dodger prospect junkies have called for a move to the mound for Baez, and his offensive woes thus far in 2011 have only added fuel to the flame. The Dominican native collected just one hit this week, and oddly enough the only 4 hits he has this year have all gone for doubles. He is still just 23 years old so it's not too late to make him a pitcher.
Hot Pitchers:
Matt Magill (HiA): 12 IP, 2 Wins, 0.75 ERA, 0.83 WHIP, 2.70 FIP - Magill had two impressive outings this week, allowing just 1 run and 7 hits over 12 innings. After posting a minor league leading .194 batting average against in 2010, Magill has actually bested himself thus far in 2011 with a .171 mark.
Red Patterson (LoA): 12 IP, 1 Win, 0.74 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, 1.80 FIP, 10.0 K/BB rate - Patterson was the opening day starter for the Loons and got blasted for 7 runs in 2 innings, but since then Red has been dominant. He gave up just 6 hits in 12.1 innings of work this week, and allowed just 1 walk against 10 strikeouts.
Rubby De La Rosa (AA): 5 IP, 1 Win, 1.80 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 1.40 FIP, 16.2 K/9 - Rubby made just one start this week, but he made it count as he struck out 9 batters and allowed just 3 hits. He looked as dominant as he did in spring training, and if he continues to succeed at this rate it will be difficult for the Dodgers to keep him in the minor leagues.
Shawn Tolleson (LoA): 3.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 4 saves, 24.3 K/9 - The myth that is Shawn Tolleson continues to grow with every outing as Tolleson continues to strike out almost every batter he faces. He finally recorded his first ground out of the 2011 season on Sunday, because every other out had come via the K. What's most impressive about Tolleson is that he also had a dominate season in 2010, so this doesn't seem to be a fluke so far this year.
Cold Pitchers:
Travis Schlichting (AAA): 2.2 IP, 13.50 ERA, 3.37 WHIP, 8.07 FIP, 3.37 K/9 - Schlichting has yet to find his groove in 2011 and has been rocked in his last two outings. For someone that has always been around the plate, the strangest part of this past week is that he uncharacteristically walked 5 batters, and recorded just 1 strikeout. It's no wonder that Troncoso got the big league call over him.
Carl Webster (HiA): 4.2 IP, 9.64 ERA, 2.36 WHIP, 6.20 FIP, 5 walks - Webster had a rough outing this week in which he allowed 11 runners to reach base via the hit and walk. The only good news about that start is that he ended up striking out 7 batters, so maybe that will be a sign of things to come.
Luis Vasquez (HiA): 2.1 IP, 7.72 ERA, 3.86 WHIP, 9.63 FIP, 6 walks - Vasquez simply could not find the plate this week, which is a problem that has plagued him throughout his minor league career. He was supposed to be the Quakes closer in 2011, but that role has been taken over by Steven Ames since Vasquez cannot be relied upon to throw strikes.