Minor League Update: Games of February 28

NL EAST

New York Mets

• Travis d’Arnaud, C: 2-for-3. Four hits in nine at-bats for the top catching prospect in baseball, although Denard Span stole second and third against he and Brandon Lyon.
• Rafael Montero, SP: 2 IP, ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 0 K. The 10^th best prospect in the organization, according to BP, Montero is in big league camp after posting a 2.36 ERA with 19 walks and 110 strikeouts between Hi-A and Lo-A last season.

Philadelphia Phillies

• Darin Ruf, OF: 2-for-3, 2B, E (2). Breaks an 0-for-10 start to the spring with a single and double in his last two at-bats on Thursday. Also made his second error as he continues to learn on the job with very little experience in the outfield.

Washington Nationals

• Anthony Rendon, 3B: 1-for-2, 2B, 2 RBI. An RBI double in his first at-bat extended his spring hit streak to four games.

NL CENTRAL

Milwaukee Brewers

• Josh Prince, IF/OF: 1-for-3, HR (1), 2 RBI: Super-utility candidate homered off White Sox closer Addison Reed.
• Johnny Hellweg, SP: 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, K. Vying for a bullpen spot, Hellweg now has four scoreless innings this spring.

Pittsburgh Pirates

• Jameson Taillon, SP: 2 IP, 0 ER, H, BB, 3 K. The 2^nd best prospect in the Pirates’ organization and the 11^th best in baseball, Taillon could be a factor in Pittsburgh as soon as 2014.

St. Louis Cardinals

• Oscar Taveras, OF: 1-for-4, HR (1), 4 RBI. Hit a first inning grand slam against Marlins starter Jacob Turner, who only recorded two outs in his first start of the spring.
• Trevor Rosenthal, SP: 3 IP, ER, 2 H, BB, K. Although he may ultimately end up in an integral late-inning bullpen role, Rosenthal has a legitimate shot to win a rotation spot this spring.

NL WEST

• Charles Brewer, SP: 3 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, BB, K. Only one unearned run allowed in five spring innings for the 24 year-old right-hander, who had a 5.99 ERA in 24 Triple-A starts in 2012.

AL EAST

Baltimore Orioles

• Kevin Gausman, SP: 2 IP, ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 2 K. A long shot for a rotation spot, but not many other candidates are blowing 96 MPH fastballs by hitters this spring.

Boston Red Sox

• Brock Holt, 2B: 2-for-4, BB. Acquired in the deal that also brought Joel Hanrahan to Boston from the Pirates, Holt is now 5-for-13 in his quest to win a bench job.
• Jackie Bradley, Jr., OF: 3-for-5, 3 R, SB (1). It’s starting to look more and more like Bradley has a real shot to win a big league job platooning with Jonny Gomes in left field.

New York Yankees

• Zoilo Almonte, OF: 2-for-3, RBI. Twenty-three year-old switch-hitter keeping himself on the radar for the starting left field job to start the year until Curtis Granderson returns.
• Melky Mesa, OF: 2-for-3, HR (1), 3 RBI. Reminds everyone that he’s also in the mix for the temporary left field job with a three-run homer off Astros reliever Sam Demel.
• Brett Marshall, SP: 3 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, 3 K. Yankees are lacking in starting pitching depth so three shutout innings from Marshall is an encouraging sign.

AL CENTRAL

Cleveland Indians

• Trevor Bauer, SP: 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, K.  Four shutout innings with no walks and three strikeouts to start the spring.

Detroit Tigers

• Dixon Machado, SS: 2-for-3, 2B, 3 RBI. The 21 year-old, an elite defender with a woeful career OPS of .570, is off to a 3-for-5 start with two doubles this spring.
• Nick Castellanos, OF: 3-for-3, RBI. Hey, the scouts were right. This guy can flat out hit.

AL WEST

Houston Astros

• Brad Peacock, SP: 2 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, 0 K. Bounced back after a rough outing on Saturday (IP, 3 ER, 2 H, BB).

Seattle Mariners

• Nick Franklin, 2B: 1-for-4, HR (1). Only 2-for-14 this spring but has a homer and double.

Texas Rangers

• Jurickson Profar, SS: 1-for-2, 3B, RBI, BB. The top prospect in baseball is 2-for-11 but also has six walks (.471 OBP).