Minor League Monitor - Eastern League

Brad Peacock leads the league in WHIP (0.85), strikeouts (108) and wins (8). His 5.7 H/9, 0.4 HR/9, 1.9 BB/9, and 12.1 K/9 are all excellent numbers and the 23 year old is developing into a top prospect. Dellin Betances (1.76), Eric Surkamp (1.88) and Steve Johnson (2.16) are the only starting pitchers with lower ERAs than Peacock.  24 year old Blue Jays prospect Joel Carreno ranks behind Peacock among starters with 11.1 K/9. Carreno's 6.0 H/9 rank 3rd behind Peacock and Betances (5.9). Other notable pitchers include Liam Hendriks (6-2, 2.96 ERA, 1.9 BB/9, 8.2 K/9) Jacob Turner (Age 20, 2.94 ERA, 7.3 H/9, 2.4 BB/9, 7.2 K/9) and Chen Lee (RP 2.37 ERA, 5.9 H/9, 0.2 HR/9, 2.4 BB/9, 12.6 K/9).

Chih-Hsien Chang has turned on the power this year and leads the league in OPS with .983 and SLG with .627. His triple slash stats of .308/.356/.627 are all career highs for the 23 year old outfielder. Chang's teammate, Alex Hassan, ranks third with a .916 OPS. Hassan has always have solid batting averages but he has added an excellent walk rate to his skill set to become a promising prospect. He doesn't have the power or speed to be a major fantasy contributor, however. The Blue Jays have been getting solid production out of JP Arencibia, but he may have competition in the near future. Travis d'Arnaud ranks 7th with his .873 OPS. Fellow catching prospect Ryan Lavarnway ranks second in the league with 14 home runs and is hitting a robust .284.

Player profiles after the jump...

Jordany Valdespin - Mets  SS/2B  DOB: 12/23/87

Valdespin got off to a slow start with a .221 April AVG but has turned it on since. He hit .281 in May and is batting .345 with a 1.086 OPS in June. He has a .191 ISO this year and is 17/4 on the bases. If he can maintain the power and speed he could develop into a 15/15 type of player in the majors. I wouldn't go all in betting he will be a top 10 shortstop one day but he has shown some nice improvements this season that has led to his stock rising.

Starling Marte - Pirates  CF  DOB: 10/09/88

Starling Marte has hit for a solid AVG for most of his minor league career. After batting just .220 in his Dominican Summer League debut he has put up marks of .296, .309, .319 and now .336. His walk to strikeout ratios are nothing to write home about but it isn't as much of a problem considering he keeps putting up strong OBPs. He has 20 SB speed and minimal power so he doesn't have fantasy star potential, however, given his age and ability to hit for AVG he should work his way into the Pirates lineup as a regular one day.

Francisco Martinez - Tigers 3B  DOB: 09/01/90

After a terrible April in which he hit .179/.263/.284, Martinez has gone on an absolute tear. He hit .333/.350/.526 in May and is at .368/.405/.500 so far in June. He is one of the youngest position players in the Eastern League and is showing flashes of dominance. If he can develop the power some think he is capable of he has the potential to be a fantasy stud at third.

Steve Lombardozzi - Nationals  2B  DOB: 09/20/88

Lombardozzi has been consistent all year long and he has been getting better. His season line is .309/.366/.454 with 16/3 SB/CS. Lombardozzi has gone under the radar mostly because he lacks a stand-out skill at the plate. He does everything well but nothing great. Still, those types of players have value in fantasy and he projects to be a top 10 second baseman in my eyes.