Padres Organization Players of the Week: June 17-23
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Here is a look at the top performers of the week in the Padres organization.
Farm batter: CJ Abrams (R)
| Games | AVG | HR | XBH | RBI | OPS | wRC+ |
| 5 | .522 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1.324 | 247 |
Abrams has had about as impressive of a professional debut as anyone could dream of. The Padres’ sixth overall selection in the 2019 draft earlier this month has shown he isn’t intimidated by the jump from high school to pro ball, showing off his well-regarded hit tool. Hitting above .500 in a week is hard to do in Little League much less in the Arizona League.
On top of his quick bat, he has displayed his quick feet with a stolen base, a double and a triple. He has shown good discipline at the plate with a 12.5 percent strikeout rate, much better than average. If he keeps this up, he will not be in the AZL for much longer.
Farm pitcher: Joey Cantillo (A)
| Games | IP | ERA | K | BB | FIP |
| 1 | 6 | 0.00 | 10 | 0 | 0.13 |
Cantillo received this honor just two weeks ago, and here he is again. He tossed six innings of shutout ball against Great Lakes, striking out ten without a single walk and just two hits allowed, leading the TinCaps to a 6-0 win. Cantillo is starting to gain recognition for his recent success. In 12 starts this year for Fort Wayne, he has a 1.96 ERA with a 2.21 FIP.
#PadresOnDeck: LHP Joey Cantillo allowed 2 hits and no walks with 10 strikeouts over 6 scoreless innings for Single-A Fort Wayne Thursday. On the season, the 19-year-old has a 1.96 ERA, a 0.87 WHIP and a .181 opponents' batting average.
— Bill Center (@billcenter) June 21, 2019
The 19-year-old may pitch himself into Lake Elsinore before too long. He is striking out 12 batters per nine innings and now has pitched 11 straight scoreless innings. He has tossed eight consecutive starts while allowing either one or zero runs.
MLB batter: Manny Machado
| Games | AVG | HR | XBH | RBI | OPS | wRC+ |
| 6 | .444 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 1.390 | 258 |
Machado has broken out. He is now hitting like the Manny Machado Padres fans expected when he signed the richest contract in team history. He has been hitting like vintage Machado the entire month of June, in which he is batting .325 with seven home runs and a 1.040 OPS. This week he helped the Padres sweep the first place Milwaukee Brewers with six hits in the three-game series.
Manny Machado has been cleaning up at the plate over his last 10 games. pic.twitter.com/1r4v7fDSWD
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) June 23, 2019
His overall season stats are looking much more normal for his standards, now at a .278 average with 16 home runs (on pace for 33) and a 122 wRC+, with an .847 OPS.
MLB pitcher: Logan Allen
| Games | IP | ERA | K | BB | FIP |
| 1 | 7 | 0.00 | 5 | 2 | 3.04 |
Logan Allen had quite the week. He was called up to make his major league debut, paid one dollar by world famous wrestler John Cena to settle a bit, and then tossed seven shutout innings in his big debut. He aided the Padres to a 4-1 victory over the Brewers. He allowed just five base runners in total in the seven innings.
Allen earned himself a second start with his strong debut. The Padres desperately need starting pitching depth and Allen could provide that. He showed confidence and a fearlessness rarely seen in pitchers just getting their feet wet.
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.