Lonnie Chisenhall, SS, Short-Season Mahoning Valley (Indians)
Chisenhall was a mildly surprising first-round pick this year, as most saw him as more of a supplemental-round type of talent. He signed quickly, and then got off to a slow start in his pro debut, batting .158 in his first nine games. From that point forward, though, he's been doing what he was paid seven figures to do—hit. With two doubles on Saturday and a triple and home run yesterday, Chisenhall is now batting .267/.328/.426 overall, and is 13-for-35 with three bombs in his last nine contests. He's made 11 errors already, but he's not really a shortstop anyway, and will likely slide to the left or right in his full-season debut next year. For now, what's important is that he's hitting.
Josh Donaldson, C, High-A Stockton (Athletics)
Donaldson went 0-for-3 on Sunday, and during the first half of the year, when still with the Cubs' organization, that wouldn't have been a big story, as Donaldson hit just .217/.276/.349 for Low-A Peoria and left scouts who had followed him at Auburn, or seen the 1000+ OPS line in his pro debut, wondering what the big deal had been about. Since the Rich Harden trade, however, Donaldson has suddenly been showing why he was seen as one of the better offensive catching prospects in the game entering the season, because after that 0-for-3, Donaldson is batting .386/.457/.651 in the California League with 24 RBI in 21 games—one more run driven in than he had during the entire first half of the year with Peoria. It's far too early to just write off his miserable showing in the Midwest League, but this is a significant performance boost nonetheless.
Philip Hughes, RHP, Low-A Charleston (Yankees)
Technically, he's not really a prospect any more, but he's still a young unproven player. Based on what Hughes showed on Saturday, though, he could be a factor in the post-season race. Once the top pitching prospect in the game, Hughes made his second rehab appearance since coming back from a rib injury, absolutely dominating Sally League hitters on Saturday, allowing one hit in 3 2/3 shutout innings while striking out five. More important was how good Hughes' stuff was, as his fastball sat in the low 90s and consistently touched 94-95—the kind of velocity he showed frequently in the minors, but rarely with the Yanks. While neither he nor Ian Kennedy have played the expected roles at the big-league level this year, they both might come September.
Kellen Kulbacki, OF, High-A Lake Elsinore (Padres)
A supplemental first-round pick in 2007 after being one of college baseball's top hitters, the problem with Kulbacki was that swinging the bat was really the sum of his skills, as he's a little on the small side for a corner outfielder, doesn't run well, and has a below-average arm. He hit just .164/.260/.295 during the first month of the season at Low-A Fort Wayne, but some numbers games roster-wise forced a move up to the California League, which turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to him. He hit just .221 during his first month for the Storm, but since then he's been the best hitter in the league. A 7-for-12 weekend that included a double and a pair of home runs brought his season averages up to .347/.440/.620, and in his last 30 contests, he's batting .433 (52-for-120) with nine doubles and nine home runs. As far as the ratio of offensive potential to media attention goes, Kulbacki is huge.
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Prospectus Preview (08/04)
Team Health Reports: Washington Nationals