A crazy week resulted in some unusual box scores and impressive individual performances.
Hot Streak
Kyle Russell RF Texas Jr.
In a game so amazing that is spawned its own forum discussion, Russell’s Longhorns lost to the Missouri Tigers 31-12. Reports were that the wind was blowing out – an understatement to be sure. While the box score is fun to look at – like Jacob Priday’s 4 home run day - few things may be more important than the resurrection of Russell’s season, and draft stock. Nobody seems to have told Russell that the wind stopped blowing out after that game. In his last four games, Russell has six home runs and has raised his season batting line to .257/.436/.562. Bad news, Russell still has five strike outs in those six games and just two walks. While Russell will never hit more much of an average, at least he is showing good things still happen when he does make contact.
Stephen Strasburg RHP San Diego State So.
73-to-8. That is where Strasburg’s strikeout to walk ratio currently sits. 73-to-8. I said it again because that’s really impressive. Strasburg has improved on an All-American Freshman year for Tony Gwynn’s Aztecs by dominating every time out, spanning 50.1 homer-less innings. Strasburg saved his best for his last outing. On the same day that Texas and Mizzo were combining for 43 runs, Strasburg struck out 23 in a 1-0 victory against Utah. He only allowed one hit and one walk over nine spectacular frames. Eighteen of the 23 Utes went down swinging and Strasburg struck out the side in the first, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth – while striking out his final two batters in the ninth inning with the tying run on second base. If he can keep up anything remotely close to this, Strasburg – with a fastball that touches 99 - will be drafted extremely early in the 2009 draft.
Eric Thames OF Pepperdine Jr.
Selected by the Yankees with pick No. 1191 in the 2007 Draft, Thames elected to return to school and play for the Waves. After not hitting a single home run last year, Thames has 10 already this year – Pepperdine is one of the most extreme pitcher’s parks in the country – while the rest of his teammates combine for just 18. The center fielder – who was drafted on the strength of his athleticism, upside and defense last year – is hitting .408/.510/.816 with nine doubles, six triples, and has been successful in 10 of 11 steal attempts. Thames has made himself a lot of money this year with a truly remarkable year. Jump on the Thames bandwagon now, while there’s still room. This guy lists one of his hobbies as “hitting” on his official Pepperdine biography, how awesome is that?
Johnny Giavotella 2B New Orleans Jr.
How do you improve on a season in which you lead your team in home runs, draw 50 walks, hit .380 and are the first sophomore at your school named team captain? Simple, you just have to be Johnny Giavotella. While listed at just 5-foot-8 Giavotella is hitting .446/.553/.744 and has increased his walk rate from 17.76% last year to 20.50% this season while lowering his strikeout rate from an already minuscule 8.11% of his plate appearances to just 5.59% – a mark almost unseen for a guy who hits for power and walks a ton. This scrappy table setter isn’t going to ‘wow’ scouts at first glance, but he’ll draw more than a few David Eckstein comparisons – and I mean that in the best way possible.
Justin Smoak 1B South Carolina Jr.
I actually heard someone the other day talking about Smoak having a “lackluster” season so far. Just to put whatever fears you may have had about Smoak’s season – his power more specifically – Smoak sent three balls soaring over the fence on Tax Day. So one last time for those OCD folks in insanely deep keeper leagues, Justin Smoak is still a bad-baseball-hittin’-mother (.364/.492/.721 with 24 XBH).
Cold Spell
Aaron Crow RHP Missouri Jr.
On the surface giving up nine earned runs on nine hits over just five innings might make one think that the possible No. 1 pick would be sliding down draft boards. However Crow got the win in Mizzo’s 31-12 victory over the University of Texas Longhorns on the 11th. While the wind hurt his ERA, scouts and general managers will overlook that. The fact that Crow’s control left him in the game is actually worrisome. Crow needed 103 pitches to get through 5 innings and only 59 were strikes. There surely will be lots of eyes on Crow’s next start, this Friday on the road versus Oklahoma, and two of those eyes will be mine. How a guy responds to failure says a lot about him, I’m expecting good things from Crow against the Sooners.
Lincoln Hamilton can be reached at lhamilton@dentonoutlaws.com.