[ayaghmour2]

CF Johnny Peters (#41 Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 1st Round, 3rd Overall (1945)
FABL: .250/.423/.450 (134 OPS+), 26 PA, 2B, HR, RBI
AAA: .320/.415/.462 (122 OPS+), 623 PA, 26 2B, 5 3B, 13 HR, 63 RBI, 7 SB
CWL: .272/.383/.463 (115 OPS+), 164 PA, 8 2B, 6 HR, 242 RBI, 3 SB

"This excellent week is as good as he's been, and I'm hoping he can stay hot the rest of the way."

I wrote that yesterday. I probably should have waited until today!

Peters brought the power today, as the recently turned 25-year-old doubled his home run total in just four games. The former 3rd Pick hit three out of the park, going 8-for-18 in 4 games with a double, walk, and 7 RBIs as the Stallions won three of four to improve to 19-16 on the season. He's now hitting a comfortably above average .272/.383/.463 (115 OPS+) and overtook Mickey Holloway (.227, 5, 33) for the team lead in homer. Peters now has a strong 123 WRC+ due to 25 walks and 8 doubles, and he's been worth 1.1 WAR while providing solid left field defense (0.9, 1.014). As good as he's been, Dixie Marsh doesn't think he's ready to enter out starting lineup, and Max Wilder still prefers Hal Sharp and Chubby Hall in left. Despite that, I'm starting to think it may be worth starting the season with him in the lineup. A gifted hitter, Peters profiles as a potential .300/.400/.500 hitter, and if he can cut down his strikeouts a bit, there's Whitney votes in his future. Despite all this, he still feels underdeveloped for his age. A little more seasoning may be what it takes to get that star level production, so if our group of corner outfielders doesn't impress, Peters may finish the year as our every day left fielder.

LHP Ron Berry (#80 Overall)
Acquired: Via Draft: 7th Round, 112th Overall (1944)
AA: 7-4, 104 IP, 2.94 ERA (148 ERA+), 1.20 WHIP, 41 BB, 51 K
A: 7-3, 81 IP, 2.11 ERA (192 ERA+), 1.00 WHIP, 19 BB, 59 K
CWL: 2-4, SV, 4.71 ERA (99 ERA+), 1.61 WHIP, 33 BB, 28 K

Very few pitchers had a better 1948 season then Ron Berry, who was dominant at both AA and A ball for us this year. Berry went 14-7 in 24 starts, posting ERA+ of 192 and 148 with FIP- of 66 and 88. These are remarkable numbers for a 22-year-old, as all the hard work he put in the offseason paid dividends this year. Now 23, Berry returned to the Santa Clara Stallions, where he threw 5.2 inning out of the pen for them in the inaugural 1946 season. This time around they're using him where he belongs, the rotation, but the early returns have been mixed. In his first five starts, he allowed four or more runs, including a pair of starts with six earned runs. His last three appearances have been far better, as he has 2.2 scoreless innings out of the pen and an excellent 8 inning start in the Stallions 8-1 win over the Holguin Hawks, who lead the other division. Berry looked like the pitcher he did stateside, allowing just 2 hits, a run, and 3 walks with 5 strikeouts to improve to 2-4 in 9 appearances (6 starts). His 4.71 ERA doesn't look very good, but that's just two percent below average in the high scoring CWL, where only one pitcher (I'm sure you can guess who!) has an ERA below 2.45.

For Berry, it's nice seeing him get extra innings this season, as he's getting every so close to big league ready. We don't need to rush him, but it's great to see how he does against hitters who are more advanced and experienced then him. There are a lot of guys down South who spent their entire seasons in AA or AAA, and since he missed almost two months last season, he's a bit behind in terms of innings for guys from his class. I already planned on giving him a chance to crack the Blues opening day rotation, and a few more starts like his most recent and I think he'll be a lock to start there. The Stallions front three of Kelley-Beardsley-Berry may be the same for the Blues, giving them a pretty exciting rotation in terms of both prospect potential and current ability. Berry has the most upside of the three, but all are current starters and have FABL rotation potential. Berry could be a borderline ace, as long as his command is closer to his Lincoln days (3.1 K/BB) then his Mobile days (1.2 K/BB). The stuff is great, he keeps the ball in the park, and if he's able to master the strike zone too, he's going to carve out a very nice career for himself.