– Covering June 18th – June 24th games…. pickings were slim in a week shortened by rain at nearly all levels and an All-Star Break in Charleston –

Pitcher:
Adam Warren, 24, RHP, AAA
12 IP, 6 K, 3 BB, 12 H, 3 ER, 1 HR
Notable: Won MLPW in early June

What a difference a month makes. When Warren took home an MLPW in early June, we noted that his ERA had just crept below the 5.00 mark. Today, his ERA stands at 3.86, after allowing only 7 runs in his last 31 innings of work. We’re now seeing the version of Warren that we saw in 2011.

And like we asked in June, we wonder how much of Warren’s early season’s struggles were due to an unusually high BABIP:

The difference this year is the big increase in hits he’s allowing. He’s gone from 8.6 H/9 in 2011 to 11.7 H/9 in 2012. One of the main culprits looks to be a career-high BABIP of .348. The highest BABIP he’s had at any stop in the minors was .309 (at AA). So, Warren’s either experienced so bad luck or he’s getting tattooed. Without batted ball data, it’s tough to tell…but that BABIP seems abnormally high.

His BABIP is now .327 (before his Sunday start) and his hits-per-nine has dropped to 10.35. Maybe it was a BABIP issue?

Hitter:
Mason Williams, 20, LHB CF, A
.421/.421/1.052 in 19 PAs, 1 SB
Notable: 3 HRs in 4 games

In a short week for Charleston, Mason Williams went bananas — hitting 3 HRs, a double, and a triple over the course of just four games. That 1.052 cited above is a slugging percentage, not an OPS. That’s the type of power the 20-year old flashed this week.

On the season, Williams is impressing with a .308/.355/.496 line, which puts him 3rd among regulars on the team in OPS (Tyler Austin #1, Gary Sanchez #2).

Here’s a video of his first home run of the week, a lead-off shot:



Honorable Mentions:

Vidal Nuno, 24, LHP, AA
6 IP, 4 K, 0 BB, 9 H, 3 ER
1.08 ERA, 22 K/8 BB in in 33.1 IP

Juan Cedeno, 28, LHP, AAA
1.2 IP, 5 K, 1 BB, 2 H, 1 ER
While he did let up a run, striking out 5 in 1.2 IP is impressive. The independent league signing has K’d 36 in 36.1 IP, and has a 5.00 K/BB ratio against LHB. 1.48 ground out / air out ratio overall too.

Melky Mesa, 25, RHB CF, AA
.368/.400/.736 in 20 PAs, 1 SB
2 HRs on the week, .260/.336/.460 on the season, .200 ISO

In the “I’m not taking the Spring Training cut that well” category…

DJ Mitchell, 25, RHP, AAA
2 IP, 2 K, 3 BB, 6 ER, 7 ER, 1 HR
He now has a 5.74 ERA in 73.2 innings. FIP tells a better story at 4.22, and his left-on-base rate is only 61.6%. Still, this is the third year he’s seeing AAA. You have to wonder if motivation is an issue.

Also, we’re not going to update you on Dellin Betances. Just know that he threw another very messy start. Maybe he should be demoted, so he can try to get his head together?

In Case You Missed It….

Interview with 2012 Yankees 1st Round Draft Pick, Ty Hensley
Interview with Senior VP Mark Newman on the CBA’s impact on Yanks’ draft