Summertime is all about the bats. At least that's how it seemed to shake out around the Minor Leagues on Sunday as big performances at the plate took the spotlight to cap the first week of July. Among those were big hits from some of the top shortstop prospects in all of baseball, including the first professional two-homer game by JJ Wetherholt and an impressive dinger by Leo De Vries.
JJ Wetherholt, SS, Springfield (STL No. 1/MLB No. 19)
St. Louis' top prospect achieved the first multihomer game of his career in impressive fashion at Double-A. He bookended his day with big flies, cranking a two-run homer to right-center in the first inning and lining a solo shot over the center-field fence in the eighth. The 22-year-old has been one of the top hitters in the Minors this season, and he leads the Texas League in on-base percentage (.425) and OPS (.891) while ranking second in hitting (.300). Gameday
Leo De Vries, SS, Fort Wayne (SD No. 1/MLB No. 3)
Baseball's top-ranked shortstop prospect swatted a two-run homer as a right-handed batter, his first since June 10, in a preview of what might be to come next week in the All-Star Futures Game. The 18-year-old is one of the youngest players at High-A but has been far from overmatched at the level, collecting 63 hits, 39 RBIs and a .360 on-base percentage through his first 68 games. Gameday
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Konnor Griffin, CF, Greensboro (PIT No. 2/MLB No. 13)
Griffin can do it all on the baseball field and he's proving it at High-A. The 19-year-old collected three hits and matched a career high with three steals, while driving in two runs and scoring two more to pace the Grasshoppers from the leadoff spot. It was a microcosm of the running start Griffin's gotten since reaching the level about a month ago. He's hitting .322/.421/.522 with 10 extra-base hits and 14 steals since the promotion. Gameday
Owen Caissie, OF (CHC No. 1/MLB No. 43), Moisés Ballesteros, C (CHC No. 2/MLB No. 53), Iowa
Chicago's top two prospects both had big games at Triple-A, each rapping three hits apiece from the top two spots in Iowa's lineup. Caissie doubled, walked and scored twice, while Ballesteros also scored a run. All told, the pair reached base seven times. With both Caissie (.944 OPS) and Ballesteros (.333 average/.888 OPS) performing, it feels like they might not have a lot left to prove in the Minors. Ballesteros made his MLB debut in May during a five-game cup of coffee before returning to Iowa. Gameday
Emmanuel Rodriguez, OF, Fort Myers (MIN No. 2/MLB No. 46)
Sidelined since late May with a right hip injury, Rodriguez began a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on June 21 and was transferred to Single-A Fort Myers on July 4. He showed he's coming back strong with a three-hit performance, and the 22-year-old also drew a walk and drove in two runs. Rodriguez had hit .232/.400/.392 over his first 39 games at Triple-A St. Paul before the injury. Gameday
Spencer Jones, OF, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (NYY No. 2)
The 6-foot-7 Jones can hit the ball a long way, and he's been showing off that ability a lot since his recent promotion to Triple-A. His 20th homer of the season was demolished: 113.4 mph exit velocity, 445-foot distance, a mammoth tank for his fourth homer in eight games with the RailRiders. He's posted a 1.345 OPS since arriving at Triple-A. That's called making your presence felt. Gameday
Caleb Bonemer, SS, Kannapolis (CWS No. 9)
The White Sox second round pick from 2024 is proving he can fill up the box score at Single-A. He socked his seventh homer of the year as part of a three-hit day, driving in three runs from the No. 2 spot in the lineup. The 19-year-old has a .392 OBP and an .826 OPS through 69 games with the Cannon Ballers, along with 24 extra-base hits, 44 runs, 40 RBIs, 49 walks and 20 steals. Gameday
Ricardo Olivar, C, Wichita (MIN No. 16)
Olivar's best game at the Double-A level -- or actually of his career -- came during a slugfest. The right-handed-hitting backstop bashed a homer, roped a double and added a sacrifice fly en route to a career-high seven RBIs for Wichita. The seven RBIs were more than twice Olivar's previous season high and he's having a nice season with 19 extra-base hits, nine steals and a .796 OPS. Gameday
Jack Wenninger, RHP, Binghamton (NYM No. 27)
Wenninger became the sixth Minor League pitcher this year to reach 100 strikeouts on the heels of a dominant 11-K effort at Double-A. The 23-year-old righty set a season high in K's while allowing only one unearned run on two hits and a walk across six innings. Three of the strikeouts came at the expense of Rockies top prospect Charlie Condon, the No. 3 overall pick in last year's Draft. Gameday