Quakes 3B C.J. Retherford hits against the Stockton Ports on June 5th. Photo: Dustin Nosler

Someone break up the Quakes. Rancho Cucamonga went 7-0 this week, thanks largely in part to my attendance on Tuesday and Wednesday. All kidding aside, the Quakes got some great pitching and some timely hitting to catapult them into a first place tie in their division with the Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego Padres) at 34-30. With six games left in the first half, the Quakes are in a good position to win the division. They have the Lancaster Jethawks (Houston Astros) and High Desert Mavericks (Seattle Mariners) this week.

The Isotopes great week is overshadowed by the Quakes performance. The team hit well and pitched exceptionally well (until giving up 11 runs yesterday). Still, 25 runs allowed in seven games in the Pacific Coast League? Yeah, I’ll take that.

The Lookouts were shortened this week by rain. They were rained out on Saturday and a Sunday doubleheader was also rained out.

The Loons allowed the fewest runs this week at 18. The ‘Topes scored the most at 44.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (5-1)

Runs Scored: 44
Runs Allowed: 25

Player Of The Week

Brian Cavazos Galvez – OF

The Isotopes had a nice week at the plate, but no one was hotter than Cavazos-Galvez: 9-for-16 (.562) with a double, a triple, three RBI, and two runs scored. He struggled so much in the Southern League (.167/.233/.359), it’s almost amazing to see him tearing up PCL pitching (.364/.397/.622). This is Cavazos-Galvez’s second award in the last three weeks.

Pitcher Of The Week

John Ely  – RHP

Ely takes his third POTW award by throwing the ball well in one appearance: 6 2/3 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K. Ely has been fantastic for the Isotopes this season, as he’s fourth in the PCL in ERA (3.22, among pitchers with at least 50 IP), leads in strikeouts (78), and is third in K/9 among starting pitchers (9.7).

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him back in the majors sometime this season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (2-3)

Runs Scored: 20
Runs Allowed: 22

Player Of The Week

Brahiam Maldonado – OF

Signed as a free agent earlier this season, Maldonado just barely beat out Blake Smith for this week’s award by going 7-for-16 (.437) with two doubles, two triples, four RBI, and four runs scored. The 26-year-old is hitting significantly better with the Lookouts (.364/.435/.628) than he did with the New York Mets Double-A affiliate (.094/.147/.094).

Pitcher Of The Week

Aaron Miller – LHP

Miller had the best outing of any Lookouts pitcher this week: 5 IP, 6 , 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K. While his WHIP wasn’t great, he did strikeout more batters than he pitched innings.

Miller has been up and down this season for the Lookouts, but there’s obviously still potential in his left arm. He needs to start throwing more innings per start (only 5 IP in five of his last six starts).

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (7-0)

Runs Scored: 39
Runs Allowed: 19

Player Of The Week

C.J. Retherford – 3B

Retherford had perhaps the best week of anyone not named Alex Castellanos this season. He went 13-for-28 (.464) with six home runs, 11 RBI, eight runs scored, and two stolen bases. His triple slash has skyrocketed in the last 10 games and now sits at .337/.369/.631. He was named the California League‘s Player Of The Week. It marks the second week in a row a Quake has won it, as Michael Pericht won it last week.

The only bad thing about this is the fact Retherford is 26 years old in the Cal League, but he hit the cover off the ball this week, regardless. This is Retherford’s second award.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jon Michael Redding – RHP

Redding started on Tuesday and had a fantastic outing. He retired 17 hitters in a row at one point. Redding’s numbers for the week were solid: 14 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 14 K. As a 24-year-old in High-A, he isn’t much of a prospect. He is what he is — a soft-tossing righty who relies on control to be successful.

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Great Lakes Loons (2-4)

Runs Scored: 18
Runs Allowed: 18

Player Of The Week

O’Koyea Dickson – 1B/DH

It was another off week offensively for the Loons, but Dickson managed to put up decent numbers in five games: 6-for-18 (.333), one home run, four RBI, three runs scored, two walks, and one strikeout. On the season, the slugging first baseman is up to .325/.428/.561 on the year. He should get a promotion soon — perhaps after the All-Star break. This is Dickson’s third award.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ryan O’Sullivan – RHP

Last year’s fourth-round pick topped Ralston Cash for this week’s award with two stellar outings: 15 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9 K.  As a groundball pitcher, he isn’t going to get a lot of strikeouts — and hasn’t this season (6.4 K/9). But he’s been effective against Midwest League hitters and might get a look in Rancho before the season is out.

His 2.77 ERA, 1.05 WHIP .199 BAA lead the team (among starting pitchers with enough innings) and is second to Jarret Martin in innings pitched (65 1/3 to 65). This is O’Sullivan’s second award.

While the Dodgers minor league teams didn’t do well in the win-loss column, there were some solid performances this week. The Isotopes tied with the Lookouts for fewest runs allowed at 28. The ‘Topes also had trouble scoring though, averaging just three runs per game this week.

The Quakes, after scoring just 16 runs last week, exploded for 51 runs this week. They also had the most wins for the week (four). Then again, they also allowed 44 runs — most in the system.

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Ethan Martin is on the list for the second consecutive week, while Josh Fields, Michael Pericht, Zach Lee, and Scott Schebler are all making their first appearance on the POTW list.

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I’ll be seeing the Quakes live on Tuesday and Wednesday as they come up my way to face the Stockton Ports (Oakland Athletics affiliate). Unfortunately, with Chris Reed‘s promotion, I won’t get to see him (wasn’t scheduled to pitch anyway). The projected starters, if things stay the way they are right now, are Jon Michael Redding (whom I saw last year) on Tuesday and Lee on Wednesday. Garrett Gould also relieved Lee in his last appearance, so maybe I’ll get to see him pitch, too.

Follow me on Twitter (@FeelinKindaBlue) for updates and photos from the games.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (2-5)

Runs Scored: 21
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Josh Fields – 3B

I’d have thought Fields would have made this list sooner, but this is his first honor of the season. He went 8-for-25 (.32o) with a home run, two doubles, three RBI, and five runs scored. Take the next sentence with a grain of salt: Fields has a nice on-base percentage, but his .454 slugging percentage leaves a little to be desired.

Pitcher Of The Week

Stephen Fife – RHP

Fife takes home the POTW award for the second time in three weeks by having his best outing of the season: 6 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K. After a horrendous start to the season (a one-time owner of a 9.92 ERA), Fife has a 5.43 ERA in 11 starts — roughly 0.80 points more than league-average. So, that’s progress … I suppose.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (3-4)

Runs Scored: 28
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Luis Nunez – INF

This is Nunez’s second award, and he picked it up in a week where no one really impressed at the plate for the Lookouts. Nunez went 9-for-30 (.300) with four doubles, a triple, four RBI, and three runs scored. The 25-year-old is getting a lot of the playing time over a guy like Jake Lemmerman (for some reason) and is not exactly tearing the cover off the ball: .274/.316/.411.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ethan Martin – RHP

Martin takes home this honor for the second consecutive week by having a really good performance against Birmingham: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K. He’s allowed four runs in his last three outings and has given up just three home runs this season (all in the same game). He’s easily the most surprising prospect in the Dodgers system and has definitely restored my faith in him.

I’m looking forward to doing midseason prospect rankings on my blog. I had him slotted in at No. 37 to start the season. Let’s just say he could easily be 20 spots higher than that come later in the month.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (4-3)

Runs Scored: 51
Runs Allowed: 44

Player Of The Week

Michael Pericht – C

It’s hard to overlook a 10-for-20 week for Bobby Coyle or a 12-for-27 week by Chris Retheford, but Pericht’s hits had more substance than Coyle and his week was slightly better than Retheford’s.

Pericht, the subject of my most recent post, went 12-for-23 (.522) with three home runs, two doubles, 10 RBI, and six runs scored. The big catcher is hitting .337/.409/.704 this season in 98 at-bats. His playing time should increase in the coming weeks.

Pitcher Of The Week

Zach Lee – RHP

This could have gone to Jordan Roberts, but Lee’s outing — short as it was — was masterful: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K. That’s the Zach Lee we all know and love.

He appears to be 100 percent after spending some time in Arizona for Extended Spring Training. Now that he’s back (hopefully for the rest of the season), and with Chris Reed getting promoted to Double-A, he’s the unquestioned ace of the staff. But most importantly, he needs to stay healthy. I assume he’s on target for about 130 innings this season after throwing 109 in his debut campaign.

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Great Lakes Loons (2-4)

Runs Scored: 25
Runs Allowed: 33

Player Of The Week

Scott Schebler – OF

Schebler had a great week for the Loons, going 10-for-28 (.357) with a home run, four doubles, seven RBI, and four runs scored. Schebler has been hot and cold this season, so this is just a typical hot streak for him. He’s hitting .261/.298/.441 on the season.

As you can probably tell by the OBP, he doesn’t draw any walks — eight in 222 at-bats. That rate isn’t going to get it done. However, 26 of his 58 hits have gone for extra bases, so the ability is there. He’s just 21, but it’s hard to teach plate discipline.

Pitcher Of The Week

Joel Lima – RHP

This is Lima’s second award, and he picked it up by pitching two games in long relief: 6 1/3 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K. It wasn’t a great week for the Loons on the mound, so that’s why a reliever gets the award for the third consecutive week. On the season, Lima has a 1.33 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, .203 BAA in 20 1/3 innings. The 22-year-old is one of the Loons’ go-to guys out of the bullpen when a starting pitcher falters in an appearance.

To answer the headline, I’m guessing because he’s a 24-year-old in High-A. But his 1.130 OPS is sure to raise some eyebrows — mine included.

After his 4-for-4, 2 HR, 6 RBI performance on Friday night, Michael Pericht is attempting to make a name for himself in the Dodgers system. It was his second multi-home run game of the season (May 3rd), and he also hit a home run on Saturday night, giving him nine on the season.

My top two Dodger catching prospects coming into the season — Gorman Erickson (Double-A) and Pratt Maynard (Low-A) — have underperformed thus far, and admittedly, I hadn’t given Pericht much consideration as a prospect coming into the season. Now though, while he isn’t ready to leap those two in my rankings by any means (nor may he ever), his power potential as a catcher is awfully intriguing.

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Pericht has been playing behind Christopher O’Brien with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes this season, but that could change if he keeps hitting.

Helping his cause, Pericht is posting reverse splits this season, and is playing more against righties.

• Vs. RHP: .343/.418/.771 (!), 8 HR
• Vs. LHP: .304/.385/.565, 1 HR (23 AB)

So, that’s encouraging. However, his 31.4 percent strikeout rate is a bit alarming. He’s shown the ability to get on base (if only a little) in the past, and has an 8.6 percent walk rate this season. He’ll need to improve in both those areas as he either gets more playing time in Rancho or moves up to Double-A.

His defense isn’t much to write about, so I won’t. I will say that his caught stealing percentage is 29% for his career — not great, but not Todd Hundley-esque, either. Of course, that could go down as he moves up.

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I’m not ready to declare Pericht the next great Dodger prospect or anything, but the power potential is there, as one would expect out of a 6’5″, 235-pounder.

At the very least, he’s someone to keep an eye on for the rest of the season, and it’d be nice to see him get some extended playing time to see if there’s anything there other than a guy who mashes against younger competition. For that to happen, however, some roster moves would probably have to be made (Austin Gallagher and one other player promoted to make room for O’Koyea Dickson and Pericht in the starting lineup) — moves that might not be made anytime soon.

The Loons are on fire, going 5-1 this week and taking top honors. They also have the week’s top pitcher in Jarret Martin. Surprisingly, the hitters stepped up this week, especially Scott Van Slyke, who helped the Isotopes put up 43 runs in seven games. The Loons allowed 21 runs, while Albuquerque checked in with 22 runs allowed.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (5-2)

Runs Scored: 43
Runs Allowed: 22

Player Of The Week

Scott Van Slyke – OF/1B

Van Slyke tends to hit in waves, and this week was no exception. He went 7-for-23 (.304) with four home runs, eight RBI, six runs scored, and five walks. His best game came on Thursday, when he went 3-for-5 with two home runs against Oklahoma City. He’s up to .330/.406/.626 on the season.

Pitcher Of The Week

John Ely – RHP

Elymania! Well, not really. But Ely did have a good week, making two strong starts: 1-0, 12 2/3 IP, 16 H, 2 R (earned), 3 BB, 14 K. Ely has struggled ever since getting off to a fast start in the 2010 season, spending the majority of his time with the Isotopes. Ely has a 4.64 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, and .316 BAA so far this season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (2-4)

Runs Scored: 27
Runs Allowed: 26

Player Of The Week

Jake Lemmerman – SS/2B

Late Night, my boy, had himself quite a week, going 7-for-13 (.538) with two home runs, four RBI, two doubles, six runs scored, three walks, and two stolen bases. Despite starting the season off slowly, Lemmerman is up to .316/.391/.500 this season while splitting time at shortstop and second base.

Pitcher Of The Week

Red Patterson – RHP

Despite being a little old for the league (25 on Friday), Patterson has been awfully effective out of the Lookouts’ bullpen. This week, he pitched in four games and posted this line: 5 IP, 7 H, 1 R (earned), 1 BB, 7 K.

Patterson started with the Loons and Quakes last season and was effective, but with the logjam of starters in Chattanooga, Patterson has been relegated to bullpen duty – and has done well: 2.11 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 2.1 BB/9, and a 10.1 K/9.

He’s nothing more than Triple-A roster fodder, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him throw a pitch in the majors before the end of next season.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (2-5)

Runs Scored: 37
Runs Allowed: 32

Player Of The Week

Austin Gallagher – 1B

Gallagher is finally tapping into the power potential that a 6’5″, 210-pound frame should have. He went 6-for-20 (.300) with three home runs, seven RBI, five runs scored, and a double. He’s hitting just .265 and has a .336 on-base percentage, but he does have a .504 slugging percentage to supplement his line. If there’s any hope left for him, he’ll start completely mashing – but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Gallagher just edged out catcher Michael Pericht, who hit four home runs this week, including a walk-off shot on Thursday.

Pitcher Of The Week

Angel Sanchez – RHP & Logan Bawcom – RHP

Sanchez had been struggling a little bit, but he put together two fine performances this week: 1-0, 14 1/3 IP, 10 H, 5 R (earned), 5 BB, 10 K. His season line isn’t pretty (4.83 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 9.4 H/9, 4.68 FIP), but he’s shown signs of improving.

Bawcom had an impressive week out of the bullpen despite only making two appearances. He threw 2 2/3 innings, allowed two hits, no runs, no walks, and seven strikeouts. He struck out all six of the batters he faced on Friday night. Bawcom doesn’t get a lot of love in prospect rankings, but he’s quietly posting some great numbers as the Quakes closer: 23 strikeouts, six walks, and zero runs allowed in 13 innings.

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Great Lakes Loons (5-1)

Runs Scored: 39
Runs Allowed: 21

Player Of The Week

Joseph Winker – 1B

Like the Loons, Winker had himself a week: 9-for-23 (.391) with a home run, seven RBI, five doubles, six runs scored, and three walks. The 22-year-old is hitting .273/.331/.473 after today with three home runs, 19 RBI, and a league-leading 13 doubles. He’s not much of a prospect right now, but he’s having moderate success so far in the Midwest League.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jarret Martin – LHP

In perhaps the biggest no-brainer for Pitcher Of The Week, Martin continued to have success in the Midwest League. This week’s line: 1-0, 14 IP, 5 H, 1 R (earned), 4 BB, 10 K. He had a bad start on April 26th (5 IP, 11 H, 7 R), but he still boasts a 2.63 ERA, .205 batting average against, and a 2.17 GB/FB ratio.

He definitely needs a promotion to Rancho Cucamonga, and it’s kind of weird that the Dodgers promoted Brandon Martinez instead of Martin, unless the fits the rotation schedule better. If not, Martin should get promoted as soon as possible, especially with Chris Reed suffering from shoulder fatigue.

Dominican Summer League Dodgers: Pitchers
Dominican Summer League Dodgers: Hitters
Arizona League Dodgers: Pitchers
Arizona League Dodgers: Hitters
Ogden Raptors: Pitchers
Ogden Raptors: Hitters
Great Lakes Loons: Pitchers

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Today I continue my off-season recap of the Los Angeles Dodgers minor league affiliates, moving on to the hitters of the Great Lakes Loons.

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I’ll be picking the prospects for the 2012 Prospective Prospect Profiles list from these reviews, so it might be worth reading. Or not.

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Jonathan Garcia – OF – 19

Jonathan Garcia Statistics

Disappointed doesn’t begin to describe his year, as the final line looks terrible (.228/.290/.420/.710), but he started off on fire (.274/.326/.619/.945 In April), which gave hope for a breakout season.

I’m not completely down on him though, as he was 19 in the Midwest League and still popped 19 homers. Additionally, he had a .274 BABIP compared to a league average BABIP of .306. Of course, normalizing that wouldn’t excuse his performance, and the main problems are that his K% (25.9) and BB% (6.6) continue to be well below average.

He’ll either repeat low-A in 2012 or the Dodgers might even “promote” him to high-A in order to get him into a better hitting environment.

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Chris Jacobs – 1B -22

Chris Jacobs Statistics

Due to his light tower power and potential, I was a Jacobs apologist until 2010, when he seemingly regressed against better competition and struggled to get playing time. Well, he struggled to stay healthy in 2011, but when he did play, he took a gigantic leap forward.

Jacobs posted a .288/.393/.521/.914 line with a reasonable strikeout rate and a well above average walk rate, thus baiting me into being a believer again.

I’m curious to see how his swing plays against advanced arms, and I think he would be best served being moved to high-A in 2012. If he proves that his 2011 outburst wasn’t a fluke, I think he can be moved quickly to AA to be tested.

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Leon Landry – OF – 21

Leon Landry Statistics

If it wasn’t for the complete lack of bats at this level, I might have ignored him completely, because a .250/.307/.360/.667 line simply isn’t very good.

More than the numbers though, I haven’t seen him display a single tool that makes me want to believe, and he reminds me of Xavier Paul or Jamie Hoffmann in that he does a lot of things okay, but his ceiling appears to be as a reserve.

He’ll need to repeat A-ball in 2012 and show improvement.

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Michael Pericht – C – 23

Michael Pericht Statistics

As a 23-year-old in A-ball, he put up a .273/.351/.445/.795 line, which is acceptable for a catcher, but not acceptable for his age. Beyond that, my main concern is that he strikes out a ton (26.4 K%), but has a below average walk rate (7.2 BB%).

Yes, the system is catcher starved. Yes, he has power. However, he’ll need to get better in a hurry to remain even a blip on the radar, in my opinion.