Minor League Notes, April 14, 2012

Minor League Notes, April 14, 2012

**Oakland Athletics prospect Brad Peacock looked great Friday night, throwing six one-hit innings for Triple-A Sacramento, fanning eight and giving up one run. He ended up the loser in a 2-0 contest. Peacock has now thrown 12 innings for the River Cats, giving up five runs but just two earned (1.50 ERA) with a 14/4 K/BB ratio and only six hits allowed. His command has been quite good thus far and he's positioning himself for a major league promotion later in the year.

**Double-A Binghamton right-hander Zack Wheeler got knocked around in his first start on April 6^th, but his second outing last night against Portland was much better: six innings, five hits, one run, zero walks, nine strikeouts. The New York Mets prospect is likely to spend at least half the season in Double-A, with a Triple-A promotion in the second half if he continues to pitch well. I wouldn't expect to see him in the majors before 2013. The Mets have no real reason to rush him, with fellow hard-throwing right-handers Jeurys Familia and Matt Harvey a bit further along the development path.

**Boston Red Sox prospect Matt Barnes has been outstanding in his first two starts for Low-A Greenville in the South Atlantic League: 10 innings, three hits, zero runs, two walks, and 16 strikeouts thus far with a 3.00 GO/AO. Drafted in the first round by the Red Sox from the University of Connecticut last June, Barnes has been everything expected thus far and won't be long for Low-A ball at this rate. His curveball, which was erratic in college, has reportedly looked very good this spring.

**Atlanta Braves pitching prospect David Hale had a rough outing on April 8^th, giving up six hits and seven runs in just 1.2 innings for Double-A Mississippi. April 13^th was much different: he threw six hitless, shutout innings last night, with two walks and five strikeouts. A third-round pick from Princeton in 2009, Hale has an above-average fastball and slider, but is still working to refine his changeup. He was mediocre last year in High-A (4.10 ERA, 86/30 K/BB in 101 innings, 106 hits) but has one of the livelier arms in the Braves system and could take a step forward with improvements to the changeup and his command this year.