Padres Organization Players of the Week: July 8-14

Here is a recap of the top performers of the All-Star break-shortened week in the Padres organization.

Farm batter: CJ Abrams (R) 

The Padres’ 2019 sixth overall pick continues to rake in Rookie ball. Twenty games into his professional career, he is batting .446 with a 1.187 OPS, both are second-best in all the Arizona League. This week he batted an astounding .500 and has opened his professional career with a 20-game hitting streak. He is yet to go hitless in a game as a pro. This week he had two three-hit games as well.

The CJ Abrams train rolls on 🚅 17-game hitting streak to start his pro career.

2 doubles, a triple & a SB for the #Padres' No. 6 overall #MLBDraft pick last night. The 18-year-old SS leads all 2019 @MLBDraft picks in hits, TB, 3B & AVG (min. 40 PA): https://t.co/uheuTO4NpK pic.twitter.com/i63KvIYR5D

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 11, 2019

The 18-year-old shortstop might find his way to Single-A Tri-City before too long. He is also showing elite discipline at the plate with just a seven percent strikeout rate. He has shown his athleticism with 11 stolen bases as well.

Farm pitcher: Omar Cruz (A)

Cruz earns his first Player of the Week nod of his career. In Friday’s start for Fort Wayne, he struck out 10 batters in just 5 2/3 innings, matching his season high. Cruz started the year in Short Season Single-A Tri-City but was quickly moved up to full-season ball after a solid showing in two games. He owns a strikeout rate of 14.4 batters per nine innings in three starts for Fort Wayne.

Padres Down on the Farm: July 12 (Morejon & Bolanos Solid for Amarillo/Omar Cruz K’s 10/Abrams with three more hits) @EVT_JClark https://t.co/V0fapIFkBP pic.twitter.com/N4O0eperL1

— East Village Times (@EVT_News) July 13, 2019

In his five starts between the two levels, he is yet to have a FIP higher than 2.69. The Padres signed Cruz in July of 2017 out of Mexico. In just 16 career professional games, he owns a solid 2.40 ERA in almost 64 innings pitched.

MLB batter: Manny Machado

The real Manny Machado has finally stood up. Since June 1, Machado is hitting .286 with 14 home runs, a .967 OPS and a 146 wRC+. Only Mike Trout has more home runs over that stretch than Machado in the entire league. This is the Machado the Padres paid $300 million for and he has been worth every penny up to this point. He homered three times in the three-game series against the Braves to open the second half of the year, with five total hits.

MANNY MACHADO: CLEARED FOR TAKEOFF 🚀🚀

Exit velo: 1️⃣1️⃣1️⃣ mph. Distance: 4️⃣1️⃣3️⃣ feet.#FriarFaithful | @Padres pic.twitter.com/y1S1zO3Jyq

— Bally Sports San Diego (@BallySportsSD) July 14, 2019

With his hot six weeks, Machado’s numbers look much more aligned with his career totals. He is on pace for 40 home runs, which would be a career high, with a .850 OPS, which is almost 30 points higher than his career OPS. He and Fernando Tatis Jr. have carried the Padres’ offense for the better part of a month.

MLB pitcher: Cal Quantrill

Quantrill had his “coming-out party” on Sunday against the Braves. He tied his career high with six innings pitched and for the first time, he allowed zero earned runs in a start. His Game Score (via Baseball Reference) was 68, a career-best. He has been inserted back into the rotation after a brief spell as a reliever. He forced weak contact all game and just allowed three hits to Atlanta.

This is as sharp a game as we’ve seen out of Quantrill. Locating FB, SL , CH wherever he wants today. Fun to watch! Needs some runs still tied 0-0 in 5th. #RunSupport #Padres

— Bob Scanlan (@heyscan) July 14, 2019

Quantrill has now pitched in 12 games this season, eight as a starter, with an exactly average 100 ERA+. He was solid as a reliever, with a 1.59 ERA in four outings but until Sunday, he had struggled to find his footing as a starter, with a 4.57 ERA.

Nick Lee

Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.