Nationals Farm Authority

This Week’s Top Headline

• BY GOLLY, BAEZ!: Potomac OF Edgardo Baez was named the Single-A California/Carolina League All-Star Game MVP, after hitting an opposite-field solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning that lifted the Carolina League to a 3-1 victory at BB&T Coastal Field in Myrtle Beach, SC on Tuesday night…Baez’s blast snapped a 1-1 tie and proved to be the game-winning run…the 21-year-old is the second Washington prospect to be named his league’s All-Star Game MVP, joining INF Bill Rhinehart who earned MVP honors representing Hagerstown at the Single-A South Atlantic League All-Star Game last week…Baez leads the Carolina League with 52 RBI and ranks among league leaders in doubles (t-3rd, 22), home runs (t-4th, 12), slugging percentage (4th, .527) and total bases (5th, 128).

Triple-A Columbus Clippers

• 43-35, 2nd Place, 2.0 Games Back
• COLLIN’S MAULIN’: RHP Collin Balester is 8-1 in 10 starts beginning May 2…the 22-year-old has allowed 2 earned runs or less in his last 5 starting assignments, going 4-0 with a 2.85 ERA (9 ER/28.1 IP) in that span…Balester, selected in the 4th round of the 2004 First-Year Player Draft, is 9-3 with a 4.00 ERA in 15 starts overall…his win total is tied for 2nd in the International League…per Baseball America, the Huntington Beach, CA native entered the season rated as the No. 3 prospect in the Washington system.

Double-A Harrisburg Senators

• 43-33, 2nd Place, 2.5 Games Back
• LOOK, IT’S HIM…IT’S ZIMM!: RHP Jordan Zimmermann owns a 2.01 ERA (5 ER/22.1 IP) and a .164 (13-for-70) batting average against in his last 4 starts…he has allowed 3 earned runs or less in 8 of his 9 starts with the Senators since being promoted from Potomac on May 4…the 22-year-old went 3-1 with a 1.65 ERA (5 ER/27.1 IP) 5 games (4 starts) with the P-Nats…overall, he is a combined 5-2 with a 2.64 ERA and a .194 BAA in 14 appearances (13 starts) with Harrisburg and Potomac…Zimmermann was a second-round selection in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft.
• SETH NOTICE: INF Seth Bynum has hammered Double-A pitching since being promoted to Harrisburg on June 4…in 20 games with the Senators, he’s batted .322 (19-for-59) with 5 doubles, a triple, 2 home runs, 8 RBI and a .394 on-base percentage…the 27-year-old began the season with Single-A Potomac, where he hit .266 (47-for-177) with 13 doubles, 6 home runs and 30 RBI in 50 games…Bynum was signed as a non-draft free agent in May 2004 out of Indiana University.

Single-A Potomac Nationals

• First Half: 42-28, First Place, 7.0 Games Ahead
• Second Half: 5-1, First Place, 3.0 Games Back
• HE MUST BE A LEO: According to Zodiac lure, Leos love attention and will do anything to get it…this month, INF Leonard Davis has received plenty of attention, swinging one of the hottest bats in the minors at a .447 (34-for-76) clip with 7 doubles, a triple, 5 home runs and 14 RBI in 23 games…Davis has a .512 on-base percentage and .763 slugging percentage in June, while crossing the plate 27 times in 23 contests…the only player in all of the minors who has a higher June batting average is Triple-A Albuquerque (Marlins) OF John Gall at .477…additionally, he has hit safely in 26 of his last 29 games, going 43-for-100 (.430) with 6 homers and 21 RBI in for the season…overall, Davis has batted .342 with 13 home runs and 35 RBI in 59 games…he is 2nd in the Carolina League in batting average and home runs…selected by the Nationals in the 8th round of the 2004 Draft out of Fresno City College (CA), the 24-year-old is playing his 5th season in professional baseball.

Single-A Hagerstown Suns

• First Half: 34-35, 5th Place, 6.5 Games Back
• Second Half: 5-2, T-First Place, 0.0 Games Back
• WILL-EMS POWER: RHP Colton Willems is 1-0 with a 0.87 ERA (2 ER/20.2 IP) in his last 3 outings…including 6.0 innings of one-run ball on Tuesday vs. Lake County (Indians), the 19-year old is 2-1 with a 1.91 ERA (8 ER/37.2 IP) in 6 starts beginning May 26…Willems, selected in the first round (22nd overall) of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, began the season rated as the No.9 prospect in the Washington chain according to Baseball America.
• THE CAT WITH THE BAT: That Sun out in left field (Aaron Seuss), he’s playing great ball…with doubles and homers, always answers the call…in this month alone, hitting .299 (20-for-67)…numbers like that will keep him off the pine…2 homers this month, that makes 10 for the year…13 RBI (in June), as he shifts to high gear…streaks he can do, with hits in 6 straight…has hits in all except 3 in his last 28 (games)…one’s rarely enough, he prefers to take 2 (22 doubles this season)…not bad for the kid from Cal Baptist U…a 27th rounder in 2007…for the Suns of H-town he’s been a gift sent from heaven.
• EVEN STEPHEN: INF Stephen King has hit safely in 38 of 46 games overall, batting .314 with 14 doubles, 4 homers and 24 RBI…King, a 3rd round selection from the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, is 19-for-57 (.333) with 2 homers and 21 RBI with RISP…after striking out in 38% (64 K/169 AB) of his at-bats through the first 46 games last season, he has improved his strikeout rate, fanning just 20% (38 K/188 AB) of the time in 46 games this season.

Short-Season Single-A Vermont Lake Monsters

• 3-6, 4th Place, 2.0 Games Back
• SHOWING HIS FEATHERS: RHP Brad Peacock tossed 7.0 innings of one-run ball, striking out 6 and walking one in his most recent start Sunday vs. Lowell (Red Sox)…the 20-year-old, selected in the 41st round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, is 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA and a .154 batting average against in 2 starts with the Lake Monsters.

Gulf Coast League Nationals

• 2-2, T-3rd Place, 1.0 Game Back
• ALL SMILES: Including a 2-for-4 game with a 3-run triple yesterday at GCL Cardinals, INF Smiley Gonzalez has posted multi-hit and multi-RBI efforts in 3 of 4 games to begin the season…overall, he is batting .444 with 2 doubles a triple and a team-leading 7 RBI…the 18-year-old signed with the Nationals as a non-drafted free agent July 2, 2006.