The Fourth of July might be over, but there were plenty of Minor League fireworks left over. Everson Pereira checked off the milestone box, hitting for a cycle during the best overall performance of his professional career. Meanwhile, Top 100 prospect Owen Caissie cracked two more long balls, Zyhir Hope enjoyed a grand Saturday and Zach Cole made it seven homers in six games.
Zyhir Hope, OF, Great Lakes (LAD No. 2/MLB No. 37)
Hope's impressive season for High-A Great Lakes continued with the Virginia native slugging his first professional grand slam. The 20-year-old has driven in eight runs in five games this month and his 54 RBIs are third in the Midwest League. Hope, who is slashing .297/.398/.480 with 31 extra-base hits in 77 games, has been especially dangerous with the bases loaded this year, going 6-for-17 (.353) with 15 RBIs. Gameday
Owen Caissie, OF, Iowa (CHC No. 1/MLB No. 43)
Caissie's recent power surge continued with another multihomer game, his second in three games, to bring his long ball total to 16. The 22-year-old has been red-hot since the calendar flipped to June, mashing nine homers and putting together a .337/.450/.717 slash line, 17 extra-base hits and 19 RBIs in 26 games. Caissie's 16 long balls are tied for fourth best in the Triple-A International League. Gameday
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Cam Caminiti, LHP, Augusta (ATL No. 1/MLB No. 61)
Caminiti was limited to three innings, but the 2024 first-rounder made the most of his time on the mound. The 18-year-old struck out six, scattered four hits and a walk and tossed 47 of his 61 pitches for strikes. Caminiti has been piling up the strikeouts in bunches in recent weeks. The Arizona native fanned 15 over his first 13 2/3 innings (four starts) but has racked up 28 K's in his past 18 1/3 frames (five starts) for Single-A Augusta. Gameday
Hunter Barco, LHP, Indianapolis (PIT No. 3/MLB No. 80)
Barco followed up a pair of strong starts with an even better one, twirling six one-hit frames and striking out seven for Triple-A Indianapolis. The Florida product surrendered a fourth-inning double and three walks during his 90-pitch effort, generating 14 whiffs on 42 swings. Barco has surrendered just one run over his past 18 innings (three starts), bringing his ERA to 3.11 at Triple-A and 1.85 overall. Gameday
George Klassen, RHP, Rocket City (LAA No. 3)
Klassen put a rough month of pitching behind him with one of his best starts of the season to open July. The 23-year-old equaled a season high with nine strikeouts and surrendered one run and two hits over five innings. Klassen tossed 86 pitches (50 strikes) and generated a whopping 21 whiffs on 37 swings. The Minnesota product has 66 punchouts in 52 2/3 innings spanning 14 starts for Double-A Rocket City. Gameday
Ryan Johnson, RHP, Tri-City (LAA No. 7)
Johnson, who opened his pro career as a Major Leaguer, delivered arguably the Minors' best all-around pitching performance of the season for High-A Tri-City. The 22-year-old allowed one hit and twirled a nine-inning shutout with a career-high 12 strikeouts. Johnson surrendered a single to the third batter he faced before setting down 25 successive opponents. The Dallas Baptist product has a 1.99 ERA, an 0.92 WHIP and a 61-to-10 K/BB ratio in 54 1/3 Minor League innings. Gameday
Everson Pereira, OF, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (NYY No. 12)
Pereira enjoyed a career-best performance at the plate, hitting for the cycle during his second five-hit game as a pro. The native of Venezuela homered twice -- and almost hit a third -- while racking up six RBIs and scoring four times. Pereira, who has 93 Major League at-bats to his credit, has already matched his home run (3) and RBI (11) totals from June this month. The 24-year-old leads Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in long balls with 15 and is second with an .870 OPS. Gameday
Zach Cole, OF, Corpus Christi (HOU No. 19)
There isn't a hotter power hitter in the Minors at the moment than Cole, who went deep for a fourth consecutive game. The 24-year-old now has 13 long balls, with seven coming in his past six games. Cole has gone 10-for-26 (.385) with eight extra-base hits and 15 RBIs in that span. The Ball State product has already surpassed his home run total (11) from a year ago and is six shy of matching his career high of 19 established in 2023. Gameday